Judge Not...Sometimes

The idea of judgment seems to be misconstrued among both the secular world and religious world. Just like most things though, everyone has their own opinion, and I get that. What say you?

As a Christian, my idea of judgment comes from the Bible. There will come a time when Jesus comes back and will judge the world (Acts 17:31). He has been given authority over Heaven and Earth (Matthew 28:18) so He has the right to do this. In the meantime, let’s try and clear up some things.

Possibly, one of the most well-known verses in the Bible is Matthew 7:1. Jesus states, in His sermon on the mount, “Judge not, that you be not judged” (NKJV). Many around the world, both religious and secular, will quote this verse in response to someone calling out their bad behavior. This verse isn’t saying what they think it saying though. It’s been pulled from its context. The full thought goes through to verse five which says, “Judge not, that you be not judged. For with what judgment you judge, you will be judged; and with the measure you use, it will be measured back to you. And why do you look at the speck in your brother’s eye, but do not consider the plank in your own eye? Or how can you say to your brother, ‘Let me remove the speck from your eye’; and look, a plank is in your own eye? Hypocrite! First remove the plank from your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother’s eye.”

Here, Jesus is warning people about hypocritical judgment. This means we should be careful how we judge because God will ultimately use the same judgment on us. We shouldn’t be condemning people for things that we ourselves have problems with. It would be like telling people they shouldn’t smoke, all the while, you’re lighting up your own cigarette. This is actually what Jesus is telling us to be aware of.

Furthermore, as followers of Christ, we should refrain from doing the condemning of those outside the church. Those in the world aren’t living by the same standards we do anyway. We actually do a disservice to the church when we start condemning the world.

Look at what Paul writes in his first letter to the Corinthians. In chapter five, he told the church to not associate themselves with sexually immoral people, and among others as well. He didn’t mean those in the world, he meant people that is “named a brother” (v. 11) or in other words, someone who calls themselves a Christian. The world is going to do its own thing, so we have to let them be. We can only preach to them by our words and deeds so that may “glorify your Father in Heaven” (Matthew 5:16). I’m not saying to associate yourself with those in the world who love sin either, as that would put a damper on our character as well. My point is simply to refrain the judgment of the world because that’s Gods job, not ours.

Another fairly well-known verse is John 3:16. However, look at the very next verse that many seem to leave out. Verse 17 says, “For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved.” Seems pretty straightforward, right? Jesus loved us all so much that He willingly died for us. That needs to be our approach to the world too. His first coming was to show love. His second coming will be for judgment. We need to keep that order. The way we show Jesus to those outside of Him, is love. Plain and simple. How will the world know we are Christians? Jesus said, “A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another; as I have loved you, that you also love one another. By this all will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another.” (John 13:34-35)

Our “judgment” needs to be reserved for those inside the church. Once we put on Christ, we should be called to a higher standard. That’s when we start living by God’s standard and those who are slacking, we need to help them along. That’s what the church is to be about.

The judgment doesn’t come until one of us starts falling back into a life of sin. This is what finishes Paul’s thought back in 1 Corinthians 5. It’s when a brother (or sister) begins not living up to the standards they are called, is when we need to start condemning them so they can recognize what they’re doing and turn back to God. If they do turn back, embrace them once again. If not, they need to be put out. Paul says to “deliver such a one to Satan for the destruction of the flesh, that his spirit may be saved in the day of the Lord Jesus” (v. 5).

Let’s refocus our minds back towards the mind of Christ. He taught us how to love, now we need to show it. Love, then judge; in that order.