Luke 6:37-42 - Judge Not?

Luke  •  Sermon  •  Submitted   •  Presented   •  41:21
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Introduction:
The first verse in our Scripture for today is likely the most misunderstood and erroneously quoted verse of Scripture in the world today.
The late pastor and theologian R.C. Sproul attested that this is probably the most popular verse known by pagans. Any time that the church or a believer stands up and calls out sin, this is the verse they quote - albeit out of context. “Judge not!” they cry out! “You are not supposed to judge others. How dare you to stand in judgment of me! You worry about you and I’ll worry about me. Jesus said not to judge me!”
Today, we are going to shine a light on these words from Jesus. Did Jesus really say not to judge anything? Are we really just to take everyone at face value and let everyone find their own truth?
In a postmodern world that is defined by one truth and that being that:
False Teaching of Postmodernism:
The only absolute truth is that there is no absolute truth.
In light of this pervasive worldview today regarding relative truth, how do we understand the teachings of Jesus here?
Let’s get into the Scripture for today and see what God has for us to learn:
Read Full Scripture:
Luke 6:37–42 ESV
“Judge not, and you will not be judged; condemn not, and you will not be condemned; forgive, and you will be forgiven; give, and it will be given to you. Good measure, pressed down, shaken together, running over, will be put into your lap. For with the measure you use it will be measured back to you.” He also told them a parable: “Can a blind man lead a blind man? Will they not both fall into a pit? A disciple is not above his teacher, but everyone when he is fully trained will be like his teacher. Why do you see the speck that is in your brother’s eye, but do not notice the log that is in your own eye? How can you say to your brother, ‘Brother, let me take out the speck that is in your eye,’ when you yourself do not see the log that is in your own eye? You hypocrite, first take the log out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to take out the speck that is in your brother’s eye.
Prayer
Today we will see four ways that we should strive to follow and obey Christ in light of today’s Scriptures. The first is…

I. You Should Always Strive to Be Gracious (37)

Luke 6:37 ESV
“Judge not, and you will not be judged; condemn not, and you will not be condemned; forgive, and you will be forgiven;
We mentioned Jesus’ change of tone last week as we continued studying His Sermon on the Mount or Plain that we have been going through. He switched to giving direct commands in His teaching. And this week we see Him continue with these direct objective commands.
We started off today’s sermon by asking the question - does Jesus really mean that we are not to judge at all? Are we not to discern good and evil? Did Jesus mean that we are not to lovingly call out sin? Did Jesus mean that we are to accept sin as ok?
Absolutely not. We will see Jesus go into more detail regarding this later in today’s passage. But I pray that you understand that this is certainly not what Jesus is saying here.
Instead, Jesus is commanding believers not to personally judge or condemn others according to their own self-righteousness and legalistic ideals. Why? Because it is God’s job to judge. So as we discern the Word of God, we do not tell people what we think or make judgments from our own wisdom - we judge and discern based on the Words of Scripture.
I have told people many times - likely being offensive when saying it - I don’t care what you think about a particular topic. And I don’t really care what I think about something - or at least I shouldn’t care. It is only what God thinks that matters.
There is only One True Judge and that is Jesus Christ.
James 4:12 ESV
There is only one lawgiver and judge, he who is able to save and to destroy. But who are you to judge your neighbor?
My friends, what you think is not what matters. You have no right to judge by your own opinions, feelings, or rules. Only the True Lawgiver and Judge can judge and condemn.
And to my more liberal friends out there, this applies to you as well. You have no right to judge in a positive way something that God calls evil. There is only one lawgiver and you are not it. How you feel about inclusion of sin matters not in the kingdom of God. And if you judge things the Bible clearly calls sin as not sin - you bring condemnation on yourself and place yourself in direct opposition of God.
May we avoid both extremes of legalism and liberalism. Instead, may we practice Biblicism (meaning the Word of God carries the ultimate authority).
Jesus ends verse 37 with a command to forgive. This is an extremely important teaching that He brings out. Forgive and you will be forgiven. Those who do not forgive others are in grave danger. I pray that this is not you. Because those who refuse to forgive others do not fully grasp their own sinfulness. Theologian Leon Morris once said:
“A forgiving spirit is evidence that the person has been forgiven.”
Leon Morris
Jesus told a parable regarding this in Matthew 18:21-35.
In this parable of the unforgiving servant we are introduced to a king who forgives a servant for a great debt - one that he could not fully pay in many lifetimes. The man is set free due to the mercy of the king and his debt is forgiven.
However, this debt forgiven servant has another servant who owes him a small fraction of money in comparison. And this servant has this other man thrown into jail until he should repay him. The king hears of this and is angered and orders that the unforgiving servant who owed him money be thrown into jail until he pay back all he owes him. Jesus ends in verse 35 with the following statement:
Matthew 18:35 ESV
So also my heavenly Father will do to every one of you, if you do not forgive your brother from your heart.”
Friends, God takes unforgiveness very seriously. Those who are not forgiving do not understand the magnitude of their sin. It is difficult if not impossible to be saved if we do not understand the depth of our sinfulness that put Christ on the cross. Those who are truly saved understand grace and mercy and practice forgiveness.
So far we have seen that we should strive to be gracious, next we see that we should always strive to be…
Scripture References: James 4:12, Matthew 18:21-35

II. You Should Always Strive to Be Generous (38)

Luke 6:38 ESV
give, and it will be given to you. Good measure, pressed down, shaken together, running over, will be put into your lap. For with the measure you use it will be measured back to you.”
We discussed the importance of generosity last week. Here we see Jesus expound upon it again. This time He lets us know that those who are generous will receive blessings from God. And not just any blessings. Abundant blessing. We see that these blessings from God are pressed down and shaken and running over. And that these blessings are given by God in proportion to one’s own generosity.
And these are abundant blessings. These aren’t short-changed blessings. The imagery that Jesus uses here is one of grain. People in ancient times could sell grain that had a lot of air around it or they could sell grain that was thoroughly packed. God is a God of true measures. In fact, the Proverbs are full of teachings regarding this. See Proverbs 11:1 for one example:
Proverbs 11:1 ESV
A false balance is an abomination to the Lord, but a just weight is his delight.
Jesus is letting believers know that God is not going to cheat you out on blessings. He is not going to be like unjust market sellers who would try to put the least amount of grain in a container and sell it for the same price. Instead, this grain is measured correctly, it is pressed down to remove the air, then it is shaken together to remove any remaining empty space. And God doesn’t just stop there - He even adds enough to be running over so that it is so full that you cannot move without grain spilling onto your lap!
Our God is a wonderful God who gives good gifts to His children in response to their generosity.
Yet, these gifts given are not limited to financial blessings. They may take the form of many earthly, spiritual, or heavenly blessings.
See James mention this:
James 1:17 ESV
Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shadow due to change.
With all of this in mind we should not strive to be generous because of what we are going to get back. That is missing the whole point. We can be radically generous though because we know that God is faithful and will continue to bless and provide for us. And we can know that He is a good and loving Father who gives good gifts to His children. But we don’t give in order to receive earthly blessings.
Sadly, many false prosperity preachers have sinfully taught this to mean that you will surely receive abundant financial blessings if you give to the work of the Lord and to others. Although God does choose to bless some generous people to be conduits of His blessings, not everyone is promised an earthly financial return on their generosity. But there is most certainly an even better return that God gives. It may be joy, peace, a closer relationship with the Father. It may be heavenly in nature and will come to you in heaven. It may in fact be a financial return for some. But like we mentioned last week - we should give in a radically generous way because God has done so for us. We don’t give to try to attain favor with God or blessings from Him. We give because He has been so lovingly generous to us.
For us who are in Christ - we have received the most generous gift we could ever want or need - eternal life through Christ’s death on the cross. The Gospel is most generous gift we could ever hope for!
We should always strive to be gracious and generous and we should always strive to be…
Scripture References: Proverbs 11:1, James 1:17

III. You Should Always Strive to Be Godly (39-40)

Luke 6:39–40 ESV
He also told them a parable: “Can a blind man lead a blind man? Will they not both fall into a pit? A disciple is not above his teacher, but everyone when he is fully trained will be like his teacher.
The context of where we are now is that Jesus has told the multitude gathered around - with an emphasis on His disciples - that they should love their enemies, be gracious and merciful, and be generous. And now He moves into telling them a parable to let them know why it is so important to strive after righteousness.
Jesus is asserting that people are watching you. And people oftentimes follow you.
So how are we leading others? When we get into verses 41 and 42 in a few moments, we will see further that we can be blind at times.
And here in verse 39 we are told of the danger of being blind and trying to lead someone else.
In ancient times, blindness was fairly common. And it was extremely dangerous for blind people because there were pits dug throughout the land in order to find water. Digging for wells was very common in the area of Israel. Sometimes these wells would be covered and sometimes they would not. These wells were extremely dangerous and could lead to death for one who fell into it.
Interestingly, there was even a Law for Israel to cover pits because of the dangers therein.
Exodus 21:33–34 ESV
“When a man opens a pit, or when a man digs a pit and does not cover it, and an ox or a donkey falls into it, the owner of the pit shall make restoration. He shall give money to its owner, and the dead beast shall be his.
One had to take responsibility for protecting animals and other people from falling into a pit that they dug.
We see Jesus point out the ridiculous nature of one blind man trying to lead another blind man in such a dangerous environment. Surely they both will fall into a pit!
But Jesus is using this illustration to describe a different kind of blindness. He is using it to describe spiritual blindness.
My friends, we can have our vision clouded by our own sinfulness and self-righteousness. And we can lead others to fall right into a pit with us if we are not in Christ and following Him. And we are given a warning that those whom we disciple will be like us.
Parents - this is a tough Word! Your children will often do what you do and not do what you don’t do.
If you don’t attend church regularly and make it a priority - they probably won’t either. If you use foul language - they probably will as well. If you are unfaithful to your spouse - even the statistics show that they will be less likely to be faithful to their future spouse (1). If you are slothful and lazy, they probably will follow suit. If you are a liar, they will likely struggle to tell the truth as well.
Luke 6:40 ESV
A disciple is not above his teacher, but everyone when he is fully trained will be like his teacher.
That is because those who are disciples of another become like their teacher - just like verse 40 asserts. Parents - would you be happy if your children ended up just like you? Would you be ok with that?
It is only by the grace of God that your children will grow further than you in sanctification. Are you leading them as a blind guide? Or are you leading them with clear vision given by the Holy Spirit. The best thing you can do right now is submit your life fully to God. Be sure that you are truly saved. Repent of your sins. Be sure that you truly believe in Jesus Christ - who died on the cross for your sins, rose from the dead three days later and now is seated at the right hand of the father. And follow Christ with your entire life.
But what about those of us who are teachers and preachers of the Word - are we leading people with the clear vision of the Holy Spirit from a humble heart? Or are we blind guides as well?
So many preachers are blind guides today my friends. They are leading countless souls into the pit of Hell. I pray hard against the false teachings by these depraved souls. I pray that God’s true people hear His voice and avoid these wretched teachers and preachers of their false gospels.
But may we at CrossPointe always lead with clear vision and not as one who is blind. May we not wrongly influence others and may we not be a stumbling block to others.
May we strive to be godly.
Lastly,
Scripture References: Exodus 21:33-34

IV. You Should Always Strive to Be Gentle (41-42)

Luke 6:41–42a (ESV)
Why do you see the speck that is in your brother’s eye, but do not notice the log that is in your own eye? How can you say to your brother, ‘Brother, let me take out the speck that is in your eye,’ when you yourself do not see the log that is in your own eye?
A speck and a log are much different sizes. But what exactly do these words mean in the original Greek. The word speck in Greek is karphos (car-phose) which is usually used to describe a small chip of wood or splinter. Obviously this is still a painful thing. This speck or splinter in the eye would certainly cause pain for a person. But what about the word log given here?
This cartoon, although hilarious, still doesn’t give it complete justice. The Greek word given is dokos (doe-kose) which refers to a wooden beam that would be found in a building. In fact, this often referred to a large wooden beam that was the support beam for a whole building!
So you can see Jesus’ humor here when he speaks of these two people. How can the one with the wooden beam in his eye get close enough to help his brother with a speck in his eye? It is absurd to think that one could be effective in helping in that situation!
Instead, one would most certainly cause even more harm to the other person!
Jesus goes on to say:
Luke 6:42b (ESV)
You hypocrite, first take the log out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to take out the speck that is in your brother’s eye.
Jesus uses a difficult word to start off the second half of verse 42. You hypocrite! Jesus was known for some harsh words at times! As we have mentioned before - Jesus is always kind and good - but He isn’t always nice! This tough word is needed for those who are hypocrites. It is necessary to speak the truth. And those who do what we have just discussed are, in fact, hypocrites who need to repent of their sin.
But note Jesus teaching here. He does not say that the speck is not a big deal. That splinter sure hurts a lot. It causes pain and suffering.
As an ER physician I actually have people come in fairly often with the smallest fleck of metal in their eyes from grinding metal (see picture).
Side note and teaching point - if doing any metal grinding or sandblasting etc - wear googles that cover your entire eyes and that make a complete seal.
But these people come in with their eye red and irritated. They have tears forming at warp speed and running down their cheeks. And it is all because of this small piece of metal that has become embedded into their cornea.
With these patients, I numb up their eye, grab a needle, flick the metal out, and remove it with a cotton swab.
Some of you are a little queezy after that! But could you imagine me doing that delicate and dangerous procedure with a beam coming out of my eye? Think of this cartoon picture and me trying to a procedure on someone eIse’s eye! I would not be helpful at all to them. Instead, I would end up causing them far more pain than when they first came in!
But once my vision is clear, I am able to take out that speck with accuracy and precision. And the patient is able to leave feeling much better than when they first arrived.
That is what we are to do friends. Before addressing sin in someone else’s life, we need to be sure we have handled our own sin with the Lord. We need to make sure we understand our own failings. Only once we have humbled ourselves before the Lord can we be used by Him to help someone else deal with their sin.
And then we can see clearly through the lens of Scripture. We aid our brothers and sisters by bringing the Word of God to their attention and allowing the Holy Spirit to convict and change from the inside out.
I love what theologian David Garland says regarding this:
The fault is judging others without first judging oneself using the same measuring stick. The order is judge yourself first, then you can move to help, rather than judge, another. Harsh judgment obstructs mercy (Jas 2:13) and destroys relationships.
David Garland
Friends, the measuring stick that we should use is the Word of God. We measure ourselves by the Word first and foremost. We need to humble ourselves and be teachable by the Holy Spirit and the Word of God as well as other mature believers. Once we have repented and turned from our sins, only then can we move forward to help others with theirs in a gentle and loving manner. James 2:13 states:
James 2:13 ESV
For judgment is without mercy to one who has shown no mercy. Mercy triumphs over judgment.
Our mercy should triumph over judgment. We should be gracious and merciful with those who struggle with sin because we know that we struggle as well. We need to have a sober-minded view of ourselves if we ever want to be used by God to help others.
Romans 12:3 speaks of a sober-minded view of one’s self well:
Romans 12:3 ESV
For by the grace given to me I say to everyone among you not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think, but to think with sober judgment, each according to the measure of faith that God has assigned.
We should think of ourselves with sober judgment. We should realize our weaknesses and be quick to repent. Only then can we be truly used by God.
Scripture References: James 2:13, Romans 12:3
Conclusion:
As we come to a close, we have seen that we should strive to be gracious, generous, godly, and gentle. Jesus has given us direct commands today and let us know that importance of being humble and teachable.
So with all of this Scripture and teaching in mind - are we to judge others? The answer is that we are to humbly discern situations by using the Word of God and the Holy Spirit. And we are only to do this after first allowing the Word of God and Holy Spirit to convict us of our own sins. Only when we have humbled ourselves before God and repented of our own sins can we approach someone else in a gentle and loving manner regarding their sins.
Yet, may we love our brothers and sisters enough to deal with our own sin so that we can be of service to help them through theirs. Because even those with splinters in their eyes are suffering from the effects of sin. Our churches should seek to be holy as God is holy. We should seek to be constantly repenting ourselves and also helping others deal with their sin. Yet, this should always be done humbly and lovingly.
Let us continue striving toward being like Christ. Only by the power of Christ through His Holy Spirit can we do this.
Prayer
There is only one absolute truth - Jesus Christ is the way and the truth and the life.
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