Be Humble

Introduction

Where we are in the sermon on the mount?

The main theme of the sermon: Instruction for the Christian community, for life within the kingdom of God as pilgrims status in this world, calling us to the perfect righteousness that is only found in those who rest in Christ Jesus by faith.

Chapter 5: Establishing the kingdom principles, with the law driving us to the righteousness of Christ.

Chapter 6: Correcting the focus on righteousness; not for the sake of man, or the world’s blessings, but for our Heavenly Father and His provision.

Chapter 7: Practical application of kingdom righteousness, with the theme of pending judgment throughout.

The message applies to us today just a much when Jesus first preached it. Let us then listen, and pray that God would give us the ears to hear, the minds to comprehend, the heart to believe, and the will to apply His word faithfully to our lives.

Matthew 7:1–6 “1 “Judge not, that you be not judged. 2 For with the judgment you pronounce you will be judged, and with the measure you use it will be measured to you. 3 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? 4 Or how can you say to your brother, ‘Let me take the speck out of your eye,’ when there is the log in your own eye? 5 You hypocrite, first take the log out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to take the speck out of your brother’s eye. 6 “Do not give dogs what is holy, and do not throw your pearls before pigs, lest they trample them underfoot and turn to attack you.”

One of the most misused texts of scripture

“Do not judge!”

“Who died and made you judge,” “who are you to criticize me,” “you cannot tell anyone they are wrong…”

This is clearly not what Jesus meant.

In this passage alone there is a speck in our brother’s eye that needs removed, and Jesus calls us to use judgment in how we share the treasures of the gospel.

Later in Chapter 7, we are called to beware of false teachers, judging them by their fruit.

Earlier in the sermon, there is a clear distinction between righteousness and immorality.

What this sermon hopes to do:

Help us understand what Jesus is teaching in this passage;

Help us to apply Jesus’ teaching to how we live in the righteousness of God’s kingdom today.

Do Not Judge -

What does Jesus mean by this? There are two warnings:

He is warning us against the temptation to Hypocritical Criticism

What is meant by judgment here:

Sitting in judgment of others - to tear down, and find faults.

Calvin, It is a self-righteous spirit… a feeling of superiority, and a feeling that we are all right while others are not. That then leads to… a spirit that is always ready to express itself in a derogatory manner. And then, accompanying that, there is the tendency to regard others with contempt. It is the spirit of the Pharisee.

People who are judgmental can easily find and exaggerate the smallest faults in those around them, while they overlook the grosser faults in their own character.

The warning: Lest you be judged…

The judgment you make will be made against you; the measure you used will be used for you

What this means

You are exposing yourself to judgment, and that you will have to answer for these things. You do not lose your salvation, but you are evidently going to lose something.

If we do not show mercy, have you ever known mercy?

The warning comes with an illustration: “Specks and Planks.”

The eye: One part of your body that you cannot see, if there is something wrong with the eye, you need someone else.

Speck and beam: Something hindering not just vision, but the light illuminating the inner man (Matt 6:22-23).

The speck: a dry stalk or twig, a sliver or particle of grit.

The beam: a large wooden plank to support the roof.

Imagine the picture: a rafter sticking out of your head, and as you try to remove speck from someone else, your bashing them over the head with the plank in your own eye.

It is something that needs to be corrected, removed, healed, for the sake of righteousness.

Brother: This is relational, correcting the vision, the obstructing sin, of your brother or sister in Christ.

Discipleship, accountability, discipline = love.

Jesus also warns of the temptation to “Righteous Indiscretion.”

The opposite reaction; in order to not be judgmental, we abandon all judgment in our teaching the things of God.

“Don’t cast your pearls before the swine.”

“Holy things” That which the priest took into the temple to intercede for the people and bring salvation from sin.

“Pearls” That which had great beauty and value.

The incomparable value of Christ.

Dogs and Swine - unclean, unmanageable

2 Peter 2:22 “What the true proverb says has happened to them: “The dog returns to its own vomit, and the sow, after washing herself, returns to wallow in the mire.””

Those who have shown a hardened contempt for God

Trample the spiritual truths underfoot

They have no appreciation for what they receive, they listen only to mock and destroy, they will turn on you and devour you.

The Lesson Illustrated

The Speck and the Plank

Nathan and David - the parable of the rich man taking the poor man’s lamb, which he loved as a child. David’s reaction is severe - lashing out at the lesser sin of another, while covering up his own adultery and murder.

The speck may be a dried up bit of doctrine that is obscuring your vision, and must be washed out. Beating someone who’s spiritual vitality has been reduced to dry dogma with more doctrine, rather than leading them to the healing, revitalizing waters of Christ, will not bring healing and righteousness.

Pearls before Swine -

Read the room, know your audience

Jesus rebuke of the pharisees

Shake the dust from your shoes

Paul turning from the synagogues to the Gentiles

1 Cor 5

Balancing on the Razor’s Edge

That we would hold one another accountable in the pursuit of righteousness, without falling into hypocritical judgment;

That we would practice sound judgment in how we proclaim the righteousness of God’s kingdom.

How do we find this balance?

We are called to provoke one another on in righteousness (Heb 12), how do we do this without being judgmental.

We are called to bring the gospel to the world, how do we do this with wisdom, not casting pearls before swine?

Be Humble

The Practice of Righteousness requires Humility

Looking for faults begins in the mirror

Job 34:32 “32 teach me what I do not see; if I have done iniquity, I will do it no more’?”

The grace of the Spirit’s conviction -

Removing the beam from your own eye

Seeking the mercy of God in Jesus Christ to cover your sins

Daily dying to yourself and rising in the righteousness of Christ.

Seeing clearly to remove the speck from your brother

In mercy, grace, and love to be reconciled and restoring those around you

You are going to handle a soul, you are going to touch the most sensitive thing in man. How can we get the little mote out? There is only one thing that matters at that point, and that is that you should be humble, you should be sympathetic, you should be so conscious of your own sin and your own unworthiness, that when you find it in another, far from condemning, you feel like weeping.

We never outgrow our need for the gospel

We begin each day in the gospel

We approach one another in the gospel

The Purpose of Righteousness is God’s Glory and Strengthening the Church

God is glorified when the grace and mercy of God are demonstrated in the restoration of sinners to God and to one another in Christ.

As we speak to one another, even challenge them in their sins, we do it for God’s glory - for the purity of His church, that the Gospel may be shown in our lives

The Church is strengthened as we exercise humble, merciful, and true discipline

Imitate me as I imitate Christ.

Let your good works shine before men

The Message of Righteousness is for those in Christ - the call of the gospel is for all

We cannot expect those outside of Christ to grow in righteousness -

To call them to righteousness without Christ is to teach them to depend upon themselves, and set them up for greater failure - even to drive them further away from Christ

My first witness and failure

They will trample the truth underfoot - and turn to attack

We must call them to recognize sin and turn to Jesus, but we should not try to force our message “on those who show no inclination to accept it.”

The message is always the Gospel. We never outgrow it.