Help…I Judge Others!
Matthew 7:1-6
“The World’s Greatest Talk” sermon series
Rev. Brian North – Westminster Presbyterian Chehalis, WA
June 6th, 2010
This morning we’re continuing our series titled, “The World’s Greatest Talk” as we look at Jesus’ teaching in the Sermon on the Mount. And today Jesus gives some practical advice about judging others. I would suggest to you that this is very timely for us in 21st Century America, because now more than ever, we need to live making right judgments. We have to make judgments for the sake of our marriages, the sake of our jobs, our reputations, our finances, our families and more. And yet, Jesus says in this morning’s passage, “Do not judge.” And many people have taken those three words and made them the centerpiece of their living. But immediately after those words, Jesus goes on to tell us how to judge rightly, and gives two reasons why we should judge. So what is Jesus trying to communicate? So let’s look more closely at this teaching and see if we can understand what’s going on, and see how it applies to our lives.
Throughout the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus gives challenging teaching and new ways of approaching subjects such as not just loving our family and friends, but loving our enemies. He gives strong teaching on divorce, adultery, praying, and so forth. You can imagine the eyes rolling and the comments under people’s breath as people poked one another in the ribs, or thought they had of people they wished were there to listen. I mean, the teaching that defined adultery as simply looking lustfully at someone certainly had spouses glancing at each other and saying, “Honey, did you hear that?” And so it’s highly possible that people were sitting there right in front of Jesus, in judgment toward one another. And he begins this new subject of judging by saying to them in verse 1, “Do not judge.” That’s a pretty tough statement! Hard to live by, isn’t it?
But his statement raises an issue: Do we just turn a blind eye to immoral or illegal behavior? Are we not to judge immoral behavior by co-workers, or our kids, or our siblings, friends, and so forth? Do we, in an effort not to judge others, just let that stuff slide? When you know your best friend is having an extramarital affair, do you just turn a blind eye because you don’t want to “judge” them? Do we let our alcoholic co-worker ruin his career and his family because Jesus says, “Don’t judge?” Is that really what Jesus wants us to do? Do we just accept any and all behavior, any and all moral failures, any and all misconduct, any and all sin…so that we don’t pass judgment? That certainly seems far from what Jesus teaches elsewhere or what the rest of the Bible teaches us.
And, in verse two Jesus presumes that we do judge others when he says,
“For in the same way you judge others, you will be judged, and with the measure you use, it will be measured unto you” (Matthew 7:2). So according to that, judging happens. It’s a given. We judge, and we will be judged – ultimately by God, but in the meantime, by others, too. So which is it: Is judging ok, or not? First he says, “Don’t do it” but then he presumes it happens. What’s going on here? I think he gave this statement, “Do not judge” to grab their attention, and ours. Like a cold splash of water on the face…it wakes us up. But it’s not the final word on the subject, because he continues on to tell us how to judge, and gives us two reasons why we should judge others.
Let’s start with “how” to judge others. Jesus tells us how with in verse 3, “Why do you look at the speck of sawdust in someone else’s eye, but ignore the log in your own eye?” (Matthew 7:3). What Jesus is saying is that we’re to judge carefully, and with humility, because we each have our faults, failures, and sins.
We saw this just the other night when a baseball umpire totally blew a call on what would have been the last out of a perfect game. There have only been some 20 perfect games in all of Major League history. (Explain what one is for those who don’t know.) And the other night, a pitcher had recorded 26 of 27 outs, with on one reaching first base. And on what should have been the 27th out, the ump blew the call. Did you see that? Clearly, the batter was out, the game should have been over, and history made. But the ump blew it. And immediately every fan in the stadium passed judgment on him. But did you see how the pitcher reacted? This guy, who by human standards should have been in the ump’s face and blaming him for blowing the call, was all grace. No grudges. No judgmental attitude. And to the umpire’s credit, he acknowledged after the game that he blew the call. He looked at the reply and realized his mistake. He had totally humility in the wake of his error. But the pitcher is a model for us of not judging. He knew that he hadn’t walked in that umpire’s shoes…Didn’t see it from his angle. He has his own faults, and so who is he to jump all over the umpire, even in the face of history? And that’s how we Christians are to be in our judgments.
So: For the Christ-follower, this means not having an air of superiority or an air of judgment, but rather an attitude of grace. It means acknowledging our own sins and shortcomings and allowing God’s transforming grace to impact us. And so we judge with grace and humility. That is how we judge, because no one is perfect, ourselves included.
Jesus then gives two reasons why we judge others. The first is so we can help those people whom God puts before us. We judge to help others. You see, Jesus wants us to get away from the human tendency, which is to judge others to make ourselves feel better. Jesus doesn’t want us to go down that road. For example, let’s say I go to some kind of social function – like a wedding reception – and I realize after I arrive that I’ve underdressed for the occasion, and I’m embarrassed. So what do I do? I look for someone who’s more underdressed than I am, and I say to myself, “At least I’m not dressed like him!” And now I feel better. But I shouldn’t, and Jesus doesn’t want us to judge like that.
Because Jesus says, “You hypocrite, first take the plank out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother’s eye” (emphasis added) (Matthew 7:5). Did you catch that? We can help others remove the specks from their eyes, once we have taken a sober look at ourselves and gotten things going in the right direction. And so after we begin taking care of our own business, we carefully judge others so we can help them with the struggles in their own lives. We see the speck in someone’s eyes, we acknowledge it’s there, we don’t ignore it, but instead we judge that the speck doesn’t belong in that person’s life – it’s an obstacle to right living and right relationships – and then we look for ways to introduce them to Jesus Christ so he can help them to remove that speck, through our grace-filled efforts.
And when you think about it, that’s the kind and loving thing to do. Reaching out to people to help them experience God’s grace in their lives requires some sort of judgment. We have to recognize that something isn’t right. Then we can invite them to experience Christ in their life, and God will open their eyes to what’s going on in their lives that He can free them from. We can take that risk, grounded in humility, to reach out and invite the people around us to know the surpassing greatness and power of Jesus Christ. Take a look at this video clip to see what I’m talking about… (If reading on-line, follow the link to watch the video.)
Did you find yourself judging a little as you watched the clip? I did the first time I saw it. But we see in this that we are to judge others so we can bless, comfort, and assist others in knowing the love of God. We judge that something is amiss in someone’s life – maybe just the fact that they’re a sinner like any of the rest of us – and then we can invite them into God’s presence where we can most profoundly help them.
So after judging ourselves, the first reason we judge others is to help them rather than to put them down. Jesus then gives a second reason why we judge other people. Look at the last verse from this text. Jesus says, “Don’t give to dogs what is sacred; do not throw pearls before swine” Matthew 7:6a). We judge others – again, with humility – to protect what is sacred and holy in our lives. In other words, one reason we judge people is to be careful with what we entrust to them. And how do you know who the “dogs” and the “pigs” are in your life? You have to judge them. You have to know their character and whether or not they’re going to influence you toward God, or away from God. You have to determine whether or not they’re going to bless you or harm you. I don’t know if Jesus intended this last verse to be applied in this way, but I think this is incredible parenting advice. For any of us who have kids of our own or are involved in the lives of kids, those kids are like pearls, they’re something sacred, that is entrusted to us. They are of incredible value and highly precious, so let’s protect them and keep them pure and innocent and safe.
Or for the recovered addict, whether it’s someone whose now free from alcohol or drugs, or porn, or television, or whatever…this last verse (Matthew 7:6) ought to be underlined in our Bibles. It ought to be printed out and taped to our bathroom mirrors and the dashboards of our cars, and the edges of our monitor screens, and the refrigerator door, and inside our purses and wallets, and burned into our brains…so you’d remember it anywhere you might go that temptation might try and creep up on you. Because: If God has freed you from some addiction, or freed you from a destructive behavior, you do not want to hand that freedom over to dogs or pigs who will turn and trample you under foot. We have to be careful with whom we associate, who we trust with that new found freedom. It doesn’t mean we don’t reach out to people who struggle with those same things…but we have to do it carefully, especially if you’re now free from that same struggle. And a verse like this to help remind us of the fact that we’re free and we should protect it can be life-changing. In fact, as I was writing those very words, it occurred to me that Tiger Woods needs to hear this verse. Actually, apparently he needed it in the months or years leading up to last December…but who would have known until last December? So I emailed him the verse with some encouraging words from me.
Maybe you know someone who needs to hear that verse, and God will put it on your heart this morning to share that verse with them, to remind them that they need to judge the people in their lives – not with an air of superiority and a judgmental attitude – but with grace and humility and yet also with a sense of self preservation so that sacred freedom, or that sacred marriage, or that pearl of a child in their life, would be protected. Or maybe you could use some humility-filled judgment of people in your life so that your marriage, or your job, or your kids, or your freedom from sin would maintain their sacredness.
So, do you need help in how you judge others? Jesus offers some wise counsel right here. He causes us to sit up and take notice with the statement, “Do not judge.” But clearly, as he continues on, he gives us a couple reasons why we should judge others, and he gives us a guideline on how to judge others – with grace. But it starts with ourselves and our own walk with God. If we don’t begin there, we end up falling into a worldly judgmental attitude. That’s judging without grace and humility. Jesus is drawing us away from that, as he directs us to begin with ourselves.
And so this morning, as we come to the table for communion, I invite you to examine yourself. Don’t start with your friend or your spouse or the person next to you, or anyone else. Start with your own heart. What are the planks in our own eyes that we need to work with God in removing? What are the aspects of our own lives that need some straightening out? Let’s each search our own hearts and our own lives and discern for ourselves, as we come to the table and seek God’s forgiveness and transformational grace. Then, when we leave here today, we can invite others to come to Jesus and meet him and see how God, through us, can help them both now and forever more. Let’s pray…Amen.