Judge not, lest you be judged!

Judge not, lest you be judged!

Charles Spurgeon , et al.

Few verses are more misunderstood or misused than the words of Jesus in
Matthew 7:1, "Judge not, lest you be judged!" In our day of moral
relativism, blame-shifting,
and self-justification, this verse is regularly pulled out of context to
silence any voice that dares to call sin what it is. Yet such misuse turns
the
Lord's words on their head, distorting both His meaning and His purpose.

First, what Jesus is NOT saying: He is not forbidding all forms of judgment.
Scripture itself commands believers to discern between good and evil
(Hebrews
5:14), to expose the fruitless deeds of darkness (Ephesians 5:11), and to
confront a brother or sister who is in sin (Galatians 6:1). In fact, just a
few
verses later in Matthew 7, Jesus warns against giving what is sacred to dogs
(verse 6), and identifying false prophets by their fruits (verses
15-20)--both
of which require spiritual discernment and righteous judgment. Clearly then,
Jesus is not promoting a blind tolerance of sin, or moral indifference.

Nor is He forbidding the correction of others. His very command, "then you
will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother's eye"--implies that
helping a brother overcome sin is a necessary and loving work. But it must
be done with humility, self-awareness, and sincerity.

What Jesus IS condemning, is self-righteous, hypocritical judgment--the kind
that sees minor faults in others, while ignoring major ones in ourselves.
He is exposing the pride that delights in criticizing others from a position
of moral superiority, while remaining blind to our own sin.

The image which Jesus paints is intentionally exaggerated in order to make
His point: a man with a plank sticking out of his eye, trying to remove a
speck
of dust from someone else's eye. None are more unjust in their judgments of
others, than those who have a high opinion of themselves.

Until we have first humbled ourselves before God, repented of our own sin,
and been cleansed by His grace--we are not fit to help others. We must first
judge ourselves rightly--only then will we be able to see clearly and act
compassionately.

In the end, this passage is not a prohibition against loving confrontation.
The real force of Jesus' words is this: Judge yourself first. Deal with your
own sinful heart, before you presume to deal with another's. And when you do
speak to others about their sin, let it be from a place of grace, truth, and
godly love--never from hypocrisy.

Judgment that aligns with God's Word, is exercised in humility and aims at
restoration--is not only permitted--it is commanded. The problem is not
judgment
itself, but self-righteous, hypocritical, or unjust judgment.

"Brothers, if someone is caught in a sin, you who are spiritual should
restore him gently. But watch yourself, or you also may be tempted."
Galatians
6:1