Matthew 7:1-6

The Gospel Of Matthew  •  Sermon  •  Submitted
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Scripture Reading: 2 Samuel 12:1-14

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In Chapter 6, Jesus Began Addressing How Christians are to Practice Our Righteousness
We Are Not to Practice Our Righteousness For the Purpose of Being Seen By Others
We Are Not to Store Up Earthly Wealth But Heavenly Wealth
We Are Not to Worry About Our Daily Necessities But Rather to Focus On the Kingdom and Righteous Living

Matthew 7:1-6

Illustration:
There Was a Man Who, After Hearing What the Preacher Was Going to Be Preaching About…
Would Always Turn to His Wife and Say, “I Sure Hope So and So is Here to Hear This One!”
Topic: Drinking - “I sure Hope Brad is Here to Hear This One!”
Topic: Cussing - “I Sure Hope Janice is Here to Hear This One!”
Topic: Humility - “I Sure Hope the Johnsons are Here to Hear This One!”
But One Day the Preacher Got Up, Looked Straight at the Man and Said, “Today, I’m Going to Be Preaching On Judging Others!”
The Man Seemed to Sink Down in His Seat a Little Bit
He Turned to His Wife and Gave a Nervous Sort of Grin, and Said
“Honey, I Think He’s Talking About You.”
In This Lesson, Jesus is Going to Be Teaching Us About Judging Others
This is a Text That I Would Have Added to Our Sunday Night Series On Twisted Scripture if We Hadn’t Already Been Looking at the Semon on the Mount
Matthew 7:1 is One of the Most Twisted Scriptures in the Entire Bible
Christianity is All About Realizing We are Wrong/Sinful and Seeking to Change
But People of the World Don’t Like to Be Told They are Wrong or That They Need to Change
So They Will Site Matthew 7:1 and Claim That Jesus Tells His People Not to Judge Others
Let’s Look at the Passage and See What Jesus Was Actually Saying
Matthew 7:1 (NASB)
“Do not judge so that you will not be judged.
“Do Not Judge” in Greek is in the Present Tense
Possibly a Better Translation Would Be “Stop Judging”
If You Don’t Want to Be Judged, Then Stop Judging!
The Sermon On the Mount is Focused On How Citizens of Jesus’ Kingdom Behave
And if You Want to Be in His Kingdom, You Have to Have Greater Righteousness Than the Scribes and Pharisees
We’ll Notice Throughout the Rest of Jesus’ Dealings With These Jewish Leaders…
That They Are Very Judgemental People
In Order to Be a Citizen of Jesus’ Kingdom, You Can’t Be a Judgemental Person
The World Would Like For Me to Stop Right There, But Jesus Doesn’t
Matthew 7:2 (NASB)
For in the way you judge, you will be judged; and by your standard of measure, it will be measured to you.
The Way You Judge Others Now is the Way You Will Be Judged in the Future
And God Will Use the Same Standard of Measurement That You Use
If You Judge By the Teaspoon-Fulls, God Will Judge You By the Teaspoon-Fulls
But if You Judge By the Bucket-Fulls, Then God Will Judge You By the Bucket-Fulls
I’ll Tell You This, I Don’t Even Want a Teaspoon Full of God’s Judgement!
Jesus’ Brother Repeats a Lot of the Teachings of Jesus in His Book
He Repeats This Teaching as Well, But From the Opposite Side
James 2:13 (NASB)
For judgment will be merciless to one who has shown no mercy; mercy triumphs over judgment.
Showing Mercy to Others is Better Than Showing Them Judgement
And if We Show Mercy to Others, Instead of Judgement…
God Will Show Us Mercy in the Day of His Judgement
John Chrysostom (349-407) Said it This Way:
“For with what judgment ye judge,” saith He, “ye shall be judged.” That is, “it is not the other,” saith Christ, “that thou condemnest, but thyself, and thou art making the judgment-seat dreadful to thyself, and the account strict.”
You Aren’t Condemning Someone Else When You Judge Them
You Are Condemning Yourself
When You Judge Others, You Are Only Making the Judgement Seat of God More Dreadful For Yourself
Matthew 7:3 (NASB)
Why do you look at the speck that is in your brother’s eye, but do not notice the log that is in your own eye?
One Thing We Need to Notice Right Off the Bat is the Word “Brother”
Jesus is Talking About Our Relationship to Those in Our Family Community
He Could Be Referring to His Jewish Audience’s Jewish Community
Or, He Could Be Referring to the Kingdom Community
Since This Sermon is All About How to Live Within His Kingdom, I’m Going to Go With the Latter
The Principles Jesus is Laying Out For Us Are Dealing With How to Treat Our Brothers and Sisters in Christ
Jesus Asks, “Why Do You See the Tiny Piece of Sawdust in Your Brother’s Eye…”
“But You Don’t Pay Any Attention to the Giant Beam of Wood Sticking Out of Your Own Eye?”
I Wonder if This Illustration Was More Personal to Jesus, Having Grown Up the Son of a Carpenter
This Hyperbolic Visual Was Likely Pretty Humorous to His Listeners
It’s Hard Not to Imagine a Person With a Long 2X4 Hanging Out of Their Head
Though His Illustration is Funny…
The Principle it Teaches is Very Serious
We Find it Very Easy to Notice the Tiniest Weaknesses, Short-Comings, and Failings of Others
And We Find it Very Easy to Ignore Our Very Large Weaknesses, Short-Comings, and Failings
Those Who Aren’t Concerned With Comparing Themselves to the Teachings of Jesus…
Because They are Too Busy Comparing Others to His Teachings
In Romans Chapter 1, Paul Talks About How God’s Judgement is Against Those Who Live in Sin
Then Immediately After Listing Off Many Sins That are Worthy of Death, Paul Says:
Romans 2:1 (NASB)
Therefore you have no excuse, everyone of you who passes judgment, for in that which you judge another, you condemn yourself; for you who judge practice the same things.
Those Who Pass Judgement Upon Others While Also Living in Sin Condemn Themselves
Matthew 7:4 (NASB)
Or how can you say to your brother, ‘Let me take the speck out of your eye,’ and behold, the log is in your own eye?
You Are in No Position to Help Someone Fix the Minor Issues in Their Life…
When You are Unwilling to Even See the Major Issues in Yours
Imagine an Alcoholic Father Telling His Teenage Son Not to Drink
Imagine a Potty-Mouthed Mother Telling Her Children Not to Say Bad Words
Imagine Parents Who’ve Lived Off the Government Their Entire Adult Lives Telling Their Children to Get a Job
You Don’t Have to Imagine These Scenarios Because We See Them Happen All the Time
And Before We Start Thinking of People in Our Lives Who Fit This Description…
We Better Start Paying Attention to Jesus, and Look at Ourselves
We Have the Solution to Everyone Else’s Problems…
But So Often We Refuse to Acknowledge Our Own
Matthew 7:5 (NASB)
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.
Hypocrites See the Sins of Others Without Seeing Their Own
Hypocrites Tell Others How to Be More Like Jesus When They Themselves are Nothing Like Him
Jesus Tells Us the Simple Remedy to This Hypocritical Practice
Fix Yourself Before You Start Trying to Fix Others
Examine Yourself Before You Examine Others
Repent Yourself Before Telling Others to Repent
Make Jesus Your Master Before Telling Others to Submit to Him
We See From This Verse That Jesus Wasn’t Saying What the World Wants to Believe He was Saying
He Wasn’t Telling His People Not to Judge Each Others’ Actions
He Was Telling Us Not to Judge Each Other Harshly and Hypocritically
After We Examine Ourselves and Fix Our Own Problems…
Then We Are to Help Our Siblings in Christ Fix Their Problems
John Chrysostom Also Said:
‘Correct him, but not as a foe, nor as an adversary exacting a penalty, but as a physician providing medicines,’
And Also:
You see, we ought not to upbraid (scold) nor trample upon them, but to admonish; not to revile, but to advise; not to assail (criticize) with pride, but to correct with tenderness.
Paul Told the Galatians:
Galatians 6:1 (NASB)
Brethren, even if anyone is caught in any trespass, you who are spiritual, restore such a one in a spirit of gentleness; each one looking to yourself, so that you too will not be tempted.
We are Commanded to Judge Our Brothers and Sisters
Making Judgements is Necessary to Help Each Other Faithfully Follow Jesus
Whenever We See a Brother or Sister Living in a Way That is Not Helpful in Their Walk With Jesus
We are to Help Restore Them
But We are to Do it With Gentleness
And We are to Look to Ourselves
Making Sure We Are Doing What is Right Before Trying to Correct Them
Matthew 7:6 (NASB)
Do not give what is holy to dogs, and do not throw your pearls before swine, or they will trample them under their feet, and turn and tear you to pieces.
This Verse Has Always Seemed Random and Out of Place in This Context
Upon First Reading it, it Seems Jesus Immediately Switches to Another Topic
But That’s Not the Case
Dogs Were Not Like the Domesticated Pets That We Have Today
They Were Wild Scavengers
And Pigs Were the Symbol of Uncleanness to the Jewish People
That Which is Holy is Something Special, Sacred, Set Apart, and Otherly
Jesus May Be Referring to Meat That Has Been Sacrificed to God
And Pearls Were Something That Was Very Costly and of Great Value
Dogs and Pigs Were the Opposite of Holy and Costly
If You Give Holy Meat to Dogs, They Will Devour it Without Even Recognizing it’s Sacredness
And After They’ve Finished it, They Might Turn On You and Rip You to Shreds
And if You Toss Pearls to Pigs, They’ll Just Stomp Them into the Mud and Not Think Twice About Their Cost
So What Do These Things Refer to?
That Which is Holy and Costly is the Gospel That Grants Entrance into the Kingdom and Eternal Life
The Dogs and Pigs Are Those People Who Care Nothing About the Good News
Those Who Would Rather Rip it Up and Stomp On it Than Obey it
Those Who, if Confronted With the Message, Might Even Decide to Act Violently Toward the Messenger
So How Does This Verse Connect to the First 5?
Jesus First Tells Us Not to Judge Others Harshly or Hypocritically
But Now He is Showing Us That There is a Time For Judgements to Be Made
When Spreading the Gospel to the Lost or Trying to Restore/Correct a Sibling…
There Will Be Times When We Come Across People Who Care Nothing For it
Those Who Have Shown Themselves to Be Dogs/Pigs
Those Who Have Made it Abundantly Clear That They Have No Interest in the Gospel…
Or the Righteous Standards of the Kingdom
Jesus Says, “When You Come Across Those Who Have Persistently Rejected the Gospel/Correction…”
“It’s Time to Move On.”
We Can’t Force People to Love and Serve Jesus
Many Times the Harder We Push, the Worse the Situation Will Become
We Might Turn People Away From Jesus Entirely
We Might Sever Friendships That Might Have Proved Fruitful in the Future
We Might Push Them to Act Hatefully or Violently Towards Us
According to Jesus, When They Have Proven Uninterested, It’s Time to Move On

Application

In Order to Have Greater Righteousness Than the Scribes and Pharisees and Be Citizens of the Kingdom of Heaven:
We Cannot Be Judgemental People
We Must Judge the Actions of Our Siblings in Christ…
But Only After Examining and Correcting Ourselves First
And When We Make Those Judgements…
We Must Do it With Mercy, Gentleness, and Wisdom
When a Person Refuses to Accept the Gospel or a Sibling Refused to Accept Correction, It’s Time to Move On
As Christians, We Have to Judge
But We Don’t Have to Do it Harshly or Hypocritically
We Need to Always Remember:
We Are Not the Judge
Whenever We Judge Others, Even When We Do it Rightly, Are Not Saving Nor Condemning Them
Only God Can Save and Condemn
That’s None of Our Business
Our Business is to Show Mercy, Gentleness, and Love By Living Faithfully to Jesus and Helping Others Do the Same
Jesus Tells Us to Judge Ourselves and Show Mercy to Others
When We Do That, We Will Be Shown Mercy
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