Judge Not

One of the most misquoted Bible verses is found in Matthew 7:1 which says, "Do not judge, or you too will be judged."  Christians and non-believers alike love to cite that the Bible says not to judge someone.  The problem is, you can't justify that thinking just on the first phrase of that verse.  Most people who quote this particular passage are using it as an attempt to justify their own actions.  In other words, it is a tactic to distract people from our own weaknesses.
As in all biblical truth, we must look to the whole of the Word of God before standing on a particular verse, or in this case, a partial verse before proclaiming, "thus saith the Lord."  One doesn't have to go far in their study to grab the truth of this statement.  Jesus' words in the the following verses of Matthew 7 give us the real truth behind his opening statement.  The issue here is not that all judgment is wrong but that the mode and manner in which we do judge will have a boomerang effect on us.  We are encouraged to take inventory of our own lives before judging a person or situation.  We are to make sure we don't have anything hindering a clear view of another's situation. So many times we make judgments without ever knowing another person's story.  We make assumptions on outward appearance or actions.

Jesus' words in verse 6 remind us that we are to have discernment in our lives at all times.  If we do not use discernment, we will make some unwise choices.  It is right that we judge actions and activities that are contrary to God's word and will.  However, we must be sure we are judging from a pure motive based in love and not from a personal bias.  For example:  I will judge abortion on demand as against God's plan and design. Life is sacred.  My judgment, however, will lead me to support ministries like crisis pregnancy centers.  I will not, in my judgement of abortion, plot to blow up abortion clinics.

As we continue our series on Spiritual Abuses, the topic of judging others is one we all need a daily check on to see how we are doing.  Sunday we will see what causes us to judge and what dangers lurk when judging other in the wrong way.  We will see how to become people of godly discernment.

Hope to see you then,
Pastor Jeff