Steven Goulstone is the pastor at Wellington South Baptist. This post is adapted from his recent sermon on 7 June 2026, part of the “Redemptive Family” series. You can listen to it on our church podcast here.

One of my closest friendships began with a problem: I didn’t like him.

We met at school when we were fourteen, and I had already decided who he was. He was sporty, loved music I couldn’t stand, and I’d heard plenty of negative stories about him from mutual friends. Looking back, it’s embarrassing how quickly I judged him. Yet nearly thirty years later, he remains one of my best friends.

That experience reminds me how easy it is to place people into categories: different, difficult, wrong, or simply “other.” If I could misjudge someone who would become such an important part of my life, how much easier is it to judge people whose backgrounds, beliefs, or experiences are very different from my own?

In 2 Corinthians 5, Paul writes, “From this point on we won’t recognise people by human standards.” Because Christ died for all, Christians are called to see people differently, not through the lens of our assumptions, but as people deeply loved by God.

This is at the heart of what it means to be a Redemptive Family. God reconciles us to God’s self through Christ and invites us to participate in that same work of reconciliation. Most often, that work doesn’t happen through programmes or events. It happens through relationships.

The friendships we already have are often the places where people first experience something of God’s love. Not through pressure or arguments, but through curiosity, care, and honest conversations about our own journey of faith.

A spiritual conversation begins by listening. It remains curious about another person’s story. It shares personal experience rather than winning debates. And it helps people see a little more clearly what it means to follow Jesus.

The invitation isn’t necessarily to find new people. It’s to see the people already in our lives differently, and to love them well.

Reflect

Who is one person already in your life that you’ve been seeing through a ‘human standard,’ and how could you offer them a posture of curiosity instead of judgement this week?