Romans 2:1

Romans 2:1 says, Therefore thou art inexcusable, O man, whosoever thou art that judgest: for wherein thou judgest another, thou condemnest thyself; for thou that judgest doest the same things. Matthew Henry points out that in chapter one Paul was speaking of the Gentiles, and now he started speaking to the Jews, God's chosen people.  As followers of Christ today, this chapter speaks of our actions.  Paul, having listed a multitude of sins, now tells us that we are inexcusable when we judge others for their sins.  I believe the judgment that he is speaking of is condemning others as we judge their sins.  We as followers of Christ again have to be careful that we don't judge the sins of others to be to great to forgive.  We may say, for example, that murder is unforgivable, but being disobedient to parents is just normal behavior.  We cannot categorize sin.  Paul warns us when we judge others, we condemn ourselves, because we have done the same.  That is not to say we have done the same sin, but we are all guilty of sin and should look to God for forgiveness and pray for the forgiveness of others.  We as followers of Christ can never hold ourselves above others because we feel that we are morally superior to them.  Verse two adds, But we are sure that the judgment of God is according to truth against them which commit such things.  Paul tells us that we need to leave the judgment up to God, since He judges us against His truth.  We are called to present God's truth to the world so that people might be redeemed, and not condemned.  We are not in the judgment business, but the redemption business.  Once a person is forgiven by God, they must be forgiven by His people.  Consequences of sin may remain in the world, but in God's judgment, the penalty has been paid by Christ for all sin.  It is simply a matter of accepting the sacrifice that Christ has already made.  Verse three continues, And thinkest thou this, O man, that judgest them which do such things, and doest the same, that thou shalt escape the judgment of God?  Paul tells us here that we should not think that we will escape God's judgment when we judge others self-righteously.  We should always call sin what it is, but we should never feel that we are more worthy of forgiveness than anyone else, no matter what their sins or our sins are.   Verse four concludes, Or despisest thou the riches of his goodness and forbearance and longsuffering; not knowing that the goodness of God leadeth thee to repentance?  If we set ourselves up as judge of others, we actually show that we despise God's goodness, forbearance, and longsuffering.  We should not be concerned with condemning others, because it is God's goodness, not our own, that leads us to repentance.  We should treat everyone as though God has not given up on their being redeemed, no matter how sinful we may think they are, because we are but redeemed sinners, by the grace of God.  God does not need sanctimonious followers.