A favorite verse of many people is in Matthew 7:1: Do not judge others, and you will not be judged. This verse is frequently quoted whenever someone is pointing out the sins or faults of another. The impression is that we should never make moral judgments in what we see in others. Is that true? Is that what Jesus meant when He said this? Are we never to make moral judgments about the right or wrong in other people? If we see wrong in others, can we never point it out? I am persuaded that Jesus statement is often misused, that Jesus taught there are times when we must judge. There are times when it is appropriate to point out the faults in others. To judge or not to judge, that is the question before us. We are to judge, but we are not to condemn. In fact, a better translation of Matthew 7:1 would be: Do not condemn others, and you will not be condemned. I am in no position to condemn a person. But I am in a position to make judgments about things, situations, viewpoints, and even about peoples actions to some degree. Exercising discipline of any sort does require judging others as to their moral or spiritual condition. In some cases proper judgment must be made. Jesus is saying that is it wrong for anyone to concentrate his attention on the speck in his brothers eye, and while thus occupied, to ignore the beam in his own eye. James also warned against making judgments without mercy (James 2:13). If we make judgments without showing mercy, then no mercy will be shown when we are judged! Just as Jesus said in verse 2, For with what judgment you judge, you will be judged. With the same measure you use, it will be measured back to you. The implication is not we should never judge, but when we do judge, remember that we shall be judged by the same standards we use! So let mercy and love temper our judgments. The kind of judging forbidden by Jesus is that which is self-righteous, hypocritical judging which is false and calls down Gods judgment on itself. This is the kind of judging that was also condemned by James when he wrote: Do not speak evil of one another, brethren. He who speaks evil of a brother and judges his brother, speaks evil of the law and judges the law. But if you judge the law, you are not a doer of the law but a judge. There is one Lawgiver, who is able to save and to destroy. Who are you to judge another? (James 4:11-12) May God help us to refrain from such judging... To be more apt to remove the beams from our own eyes and to then be more useful in helping others with their problems. But to say we should never judge, is to abuse what Jesus teaches, not only in this passage but elsewhere as well! Speaking of judging, John 12:48 says, He who rejects Me, and does not receive My words, has that which judges him—the word that I have spoken will judge him in the last day. We are also reminded in 2 Cor. 5:10 that: For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, that each one may receive the things done in the body, according to what he has done, whether good or bad. Let us then prepare ourselves for the day in which we will be judged by the One Who sees and knows all things. God loves us. Let us surrender our all to Him.
Posted on: Fri, 15 Aug 2014 14:47:12 +0000
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