Lesson 19, Luke 6:37- 49 The big Job of Judging

Judging Others and Yourself 6:37-42

English Standard Version (Chapter 6)

37 j“Judge not, and you will not be judged; condemn not, and you will not be condemned; forgive, and you will be forgiven; 38 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.”

39 He also told them a parable: “Can a blind man lead a blind man? Will they not both fall into a pit? 40 A disciple is not above his teacher, but everyone when he is fully trained will be like his teacher. 41 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? 42 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.

When the you are dealing with the “nitty-gritty” of personal relationships, there is no more nerve touching truth than is found here. Social media has given individuals a faceless way to be hurtful, judgmental, and direct right in the offending person’s living room. In their eyes, it appears that there is no harm in this form of “in your face” communication. But we have seen how damaging the judgments can be as they fly in every direction. Everyone has an opinion no matter how acerbic it is. Jesus is saying, it is probably better to keep Judgments to yourself, because if you don’t, you will be the next one in line for a redress.

The three areas addressed here is judging others, condemning them, and the necessity of forgiveness that overrides this face to face activity. While most of the judging and condemning goes on behind someones back, the offenders must be forgiven. If you do not forgive, how can you ever expect for someone treat you fairly. In other words, in whatever way you dish it out, you will get in back in interest, good or evil.

The question is: do you have a God given right to be as critical as you can be? The answer is, be careful because you may have to eat your words, even if you think you are speaking the truth. The rule of thumb is this: think Biblical and forgive. You may not be able to afford giving people a piece of your mind. Words have a way of making their way back to their source, even if you said something in confidence. Court proceedings may be different as far as how to proceed with this if you stand accused of something libelous. The smart way is to not say everything that is on your mind. For instance, a recent traffic miscue resulted in a couple of parties arguing. That conversation resulted in a fist fight and someone got charged with assault. A soft answer does turn away wrath, and forgiveness is never out of style. They are always affordable. Free. Free. Free. Free.

The Forgiveness

When you give forgiveness, especially unmerited, you will be blessed beyond measure with the goodness of God, so says the Lord Jesus Christ. I like to think of this as something in your lap you can put both of your arms around. Or think of it as Our Abba Father, Daddy God, letting you sit in His lap and get a long enduring hug, patting your back and assuring you it’s going to be okay. Yes, there are times when you reputation gets soiled by someones mouth, but Jesus is saying, “I’ve got this. Let me take care of your reputation. Let me give you a hug.”

It really seems that Jesus goes out of His way by “country miles” to give losers the benefit of the doubt so that your actions will draw them into the everlasting family.

The disciple, teacher and brother vs. 39

The parable of the “blind leading the blind” is really about understanding what is in front of you. Do you not see the need to discern the traps that are right before your eyes? The lack of understanding is labeled as blindness. A person not properly trained disciple will never be above his teacher in position and in spirit. he will strive to be like his teacher. Eyes wide open and walking in fellowship with the teacher to avoid the pit of the “lack of understanding.” Certainly, this would include understanding what the will of God is for this point in time.

The next scenario is all about a critical element in every disciple/teacher relationship. In this case, we would say, “brother.” Yes, it can be a real blood brother or a brother in the Lord. The critique involves something very small in the eye that has led to some serious distraction, like an errant eyelash or eyebrow. it’s in the eye and you just have to stop to take care of it. But the critique that you saw in someone else’s eye, is nothing compared to the log in your own eye. It’s worse than their speck, but yet, you have made the speck the issue. By making the wrong thing the issue, you become the hypocrite. It is the issue of the insincere. It is the power of the pretender. it is showing others you have a similar problem as the one you are critiquing. When you go after some one who is leading through uncertain territory, it is far better to help them than to be critical. It is essential for you to be free of any offense before you can expect them to trust you to do right or to give any essential correction.

The Treasury of Abundance. 6:43- 45

English Standard Version (Chapter 6)

43 “For no good tree bears bad fruit, nor again does a bad tree bear good fruit, 44 for each tree is known by its own fruit. For figs are not gathered from thornbushes, nor are grapes picked from a bramble bush. 45 The good person out of the good treasure of his heart produces good, and the evil person out of his evil treasure produces evil, for out of the abundance of the heart his mouth speaks.

The source of a good person’s outward and inward goodness comes from the heart. If you see thorns, you know it’s not going to be a wonderful tree. If you see thorns on a vine, you may see some fruit that is tasty, like raspberries or blackberries, but they do not have the bulk of plant or DNA to sustain a grape. That takes a vine of substance and with branches that are easily pruned and harvested without getting pricked. Grapes and figs are every man’s type of plants. They are multipurpose and will sustain you.

We get here to the end of this thought and we see that it’s all about what is coming out of your mouth. Your mouth and your heart are irreversibly connected. The tongue can be a thorny issue like the bramble or thornbush. Collectively, they are a plant species that grows wild. I’m sure they can be cultivated, bu their nature is to spring up like a weed. It is the wild, space-robbing, uncultivated remarks that show the density of your heart spiritually. these words from the heart are either an evil treasure or a good treasure. What’s it gonna be?

House Building 6:46- 49

English Standard Version (Chapter 6)

46 “Why do you call me ‘Lord, Lord,’ and not do what I tell you? 47 Everyone who comes to me and hears my words and does them, I will show you what he is like: 48 he is like a man building a house, who dug deep and laid the foundation on the rock. And when a flood arose, the stream broke against that house and could not shake it, because it had been well built. 49 But the one who hears and does not do them is like a man who built a house on the ground without a foundation. When the stream broke against it, immediately it fell, and the ruin of that house was great.”

The master teacher has a problem because His students and children that do not do as He says. They say they belong, but their words do not back them up. It’s contrasted with the foolishness of building your house on sand. Following Jesus is like the wisdom of building on a rock, or a house with a foundation. Storms will wreck you without a proper foundational relationship with Jesus. Trust in Him to sustain you and save yourself a train wreck. Get out your cell phone cameras, because with out Jesus that wreck is going to be a big one. Save yourself a really big mess in the day of the hurricane of evil and let your house stand in Christ. Why not start today?