Judge Honestly

Do not judge, or you too will be judged. For in the same way you judge others, you will be judged, and with the measure you use, it will be measured to you. (Matthew 7:1-2)

Today and tomorrow, we are going to look at what I believe is probably the most misunderstood, misused and misapplied passage in the entire Bible. By the way, it is not just unbelievers who misapply it and misunderstand it, but sadly many believers make the same mistake. These two verses are in regard to judgmentalism. People equate the church today with a holier than thou attitude that screams what they are against and whispers what they are for. They hear the criticism, but they don’t see the compassion. They hear the condemnation; they don’t feel the care. And I humbly admit for a good bit of this we are guilty as charged.

So, we are going to dive into what Jesus said and what Jesus didn’t say about this whole matter of judging so that we can make sure we’re not only interpreting Scripture correctly, but that we’re also living out Scripture correctly so as not to turn others away from the church. So let’s look at the first way we should approach judgment today, and then we will look at the other two ways tomorrow.

The first thing we must understand is that we are to judge honestly. For those of us who do attend church, who try to live the Christian life, who do believe it is important to obey God’s commandments, it is very easy to fall into a “holier than thou” attitude. It is easy to look down our nose at people who don’t reach our standards. It is easy to elevate our preferences over God’s principles and judge people on what we think people ought to be and what we think people ought to do. At this point, I have to make sure you understand there is a difference between confronting a sin and condemning a sinner.

It is right if it is done the right way, in the right time, with the right spirit, but the other is wrong. There is only one way to know when you have crossed the line. When your standard of calling anything wrong is based on anything other than the clear teaching of a moral command in the Word of God you are being judgmental. When you judge someone’s motives rather than their methods you are being judgmental. When you judge what people do, it is another thing to judge why people do them.

Dear Lord, I want to make sure that I am applying your Word correctly when it comes to judgment, so I’m asking that you give me the wisdom and the discernment to do that. Help me to be honest and point others to the truth of your Word as the standard we should all be following. In Jesus’ name, amen.