James 4:11-12 “Brothers, do not slander one another. Anyone who speaks against his brother or judges him speaks against the law and judges it. When you judge the law, you are not keeping it, but sitting in judgment over it. There is only one Lawgiver and Judge, the one who is able to save and destroy. But you–who are you to judge your neighbor?”

James isn’t talking about going to someone who has offended you personally to talk about their sin. He is talking about making them the object of your gossip to others. You can talk against the people who make you mad. You can sit in judgment and condemn the people you think have hurt you. You can choose to stew and brood and be angry. But does it do any good?

It certainly doesn’t help them. They are no closer to changing and treating you better when you are talking behind their backs or just carrying around a chip on your shoulder. It doesn’t help us. Unless there is something seriously messed up about us psychologically, it doesn’t make us feel better to go around with a belly full of resentment towards someone else. It only adds to our stress and indigestion.

Worse yet, it puts us at odds with God and his law, which is essentially, “love your neighbor,” even “love your enemies.” We are silently saying, “I think God’s way is stupid. My genius idea of carrying my anger and resentment around with me all the time, driving up my blood pressure and ruining my sleep, makes much more sense.”

Do we hear ourselves? Can we see what we are doing? Is there any way to judge others, and judge God’s law, and still think we can submit to God and humble ourselves before him?

James tells us no. “There is only one Lawgiver and Judge, the one who is able to save and destroy. But you–who are you to judge your neighbor?” Let it go. Let God be God. We aren’t qualified to stand in his place, and we don’t really want the job anyway.

He can save and destroy. If we need saving from someone else, and that means destroying them, there is One Lawgiver and Judge qualified to make that call. It is not you or me. It is the One who already let himself be destroyed to save us all. We act in self-interest. He acts in self-giving love.

And if the person with whom we have our quarrel can be saved, too, no one knows better than our Lord if that is the case and what he must do. Dealing out proper judgment to people who upset us is above our paygrade as God’s people. Confront their sin and lead them to God’s grace? Yes. Verbally condemn them to others and carry a grudge? No. Let it go. Leave that kind of judgment to God, and find God’s cure for our discontent in the grace he has shown to you and me.