It is in harmony with this thought that the Apostle Paul declares in one place that neither the world nor the brethren were capable of judging him—that only the Lord, who could read the heart and know all the conditions and testings and weaknesses to be striven against, could properly judge. He even declares, "Yea, I judge not mine own self" (1 Cor. 4:3). It is an excellent plan neither to condemn others who claim to be walking conscientiously as children of the Lord, nor even to condemn ourselves under similar circumstances. We should simply press along day by day, doing the best we can to cultivate the heavenly graces and to serve our Master, leaving all the results with the Lord.
God is the Lawgiver in the sense that the laws governing all His free moral agents originate from His heart and mind, and have been written by Him in their hearts and minds. Accordingly, by right is He the law enforcer, dispensing life to those who remain in harmony with His law, and death to those who violate His law. This office precludes any, apart from His appointment, from occupying His judgment seat.
Eph. 4:31; Luke 6:37; Rom. 2:1; 9:20; 14:4, 13; 1 Cor. 4:5; Ex. 20:16; Matt. 10:28; Isa. 8:12, 13; Luke 12:4, 5; 1 Pet. 3:14, 15; Heb. 7:25.
