WWJD

John 20
(The Empty Tomb/Jesus Appears to Mary Magdalene)
Jesus Appears to His Disciples
19 On the evening of that first day of the week, when the disciples were together, with the doors locked for fear of the Jewish leaders, Jesus came and stood among them and said, “Peace be with you!” 20 After he said this, he showed them his hands and side. The disciples were overjoyed when they saw the Lord.
21 Again Jesus said, “Peace be with you! As the Father has sent me, I am sending you.” 22 And with that he breathed on them and said, “Receive the Holy Spirit. 23 If you forgive anyone’s sins, their sins are forgiven; if you do not forgive them, they are not forgiven.”

Jesus gave an enormous amount of power to the disciples when He blessed them with the Holy Spirit... He gave them the power of "forgiveness" over mankind. Sometimes, unfortunately, we (modern day Christians) feel that we should have that ultimate power, too. Maybe somebody hurts us so badly that we want to be judge and jury!

But, Jesus specifically told the disciples:
"If you forgive anyone’s sins, their sins are forgiven; if you do not forgive them, they are not forgiven." And what WE were told was the following:
Luke 6:37 “Do not judge, and you will not be judged. Do not condemn, and you will not be condemned. Forgive, and you will be forgiven. AND Matthew 6:15 But if you do not forgive others their sins, your Father will not forgive your sins.

That's a little bit different than what the disciples were told, huh?

In the 90s, I wore a WWJD bracelet, like many other Christians did, too. It made me consciously think "What Would Jesus Do" in various situations throughout the day. It also showed other people that passed me during my journeys, that I was a Christian. Now, I wear a chunky cross necklace. I wear it for the same reason. It reminds me that others "see" me as a Christian, and that my actions may be under scrutiny. And, the last thing I want to be seen as is a hypocrite. So, am I perfect because of my chunky necklace? Of course not! I'm a sinner just like everyone else. But, it keeps me humble, and ever mindful.

Anyway, I wonder if the disciples struggled with their roles as judges. I know I would have... There are too many things in my past that I could be judged for to judge anyone else. I hope everyone else feels that way. If all the cross necklaces I see everywhere are any indication... Well, we can only ask ourselves WWJD?