Who’s to Judge?
by Donavon L Riley

The Bible tells us that Jesus did not come into the world to judge but to save (John 3:17), yet it also names Him as the Judge of all (John 5:22). Here lies the mystery of grace: the One who holds the right to judge refrains from doing so. Instead, He steps down into the depths of our brokenness, not to condemn but to redeem, to buy back a world lost to its own wickedness and held captive by the evil one and his host. This is not weakness but strength, not indifference but love—a kindness so fierce it unsettles us. The Judge chooses mercy over wrath, salvation over condemnation.

We, in our pride, judge because we believe ourselves better than we are. But Jesus, though He is God, humbled Himself, taking the form of a servant. He bore the weight of human frailty, suffering even death on a cross to break the chains of death itself. In His humility, He reveals our arrogance; it is not Jesus who judges us; we judge ourselves. We judge others. We even judge Him. He does not fit the mold of the judge we demand, the one who affirms our distorted sense of self and punishes those we despise. Instead, He comes as the Savior we do not expect, exposing the fractures in our own image and offering to heal them with His grace.

This is the scandal of the Gospel: that the Judge of the world steps into our world not to cast us down but to lift us up. It is we who hold the gavel, we who distort the truth, while He stands as the Savior we need but do not recognize. Yet still, He saves. Still, He offers us life, if only we will set down the gavel and see Him as He is—the Judge who chooses mercy, the King who wears a crown of thorns, the Savior who calls us not to judgment but to grace.