Judge Not

Jesus said "Judge not, that you be not judged" (Mt 7:1). This passage is one of the most misused passages in the Bible. Sadly, if someone speaks out against a sinful activity or lifestyle the one seeking to teach and promote the teaching of God is often accused of judging. First, we have to wonder if the accuser ever considers that he is doing exactly what he condemns. To be consistent the accuser should not say anything.

To understand what Jesus meant we must look at the context. Immediately after saying "judge not" Jesus said, "Beware of false prophets" (Matt. 7:15). The only way to determine if one is a "false prophet" is to judge. Therefore, it is evident that, Jesus only condemns certain types of "judging."

There are many passages of Scripture that actually require Christians to judge. For example, John said, "do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits, whether they are of God" (1 Jn. 4:1). Paul said, "have no fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness, but rather expose them" (Eph. 5:11) and, "if a man is overtaken in any trespass, you who are spiritual restore such a one in a spirit of gentleness" (Gal. 6:1). Obedience to these commands is impossible without making judgments of others.

Jesus, in Matthew 7:1, was condemning hypocritical judging--not all judging. The hypocrite seeks to remove a "speck" from another's eye when he himself has a "plank" in his own eye. Are we never to help our brother remove the "speck"? No, for verse 5 tells us to do that very thing, but only after removing the "plank" from our own eye. Jesus said, "Do not judge according to appearance, but judge with righteous judgment" (Jn. 7:24). So acceptable judging cannot be surface judgment, but must be based on objective fact. Also, judging before one hears the facts is shameful and foolish (Prov. 18:13). Finally, acceptable judging requires the use of the right standard. Your opinion is no better than mine and mine is no better than yours. The only proper standard is God's Word, for it will judge all of us (Jn. 12:48). Let us remove our "planks" and "judge with righteous judgment."

Judge, but judge mercifully remembering the words of Jesus: "For with what judgment ye judge, ye shall be judged: and with what measure ye mete, it shall be measured to you again" (Mat. 7:2): You'll reap what you sow (Gal. 6:7-8). If you are swift and harsh in judging others, then God will see to it that you receive the same from others.

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