The Principle of Judging

The Position and Posture We are to take towards Judging — (Vs. 1)

Jesus begins this section by stating…“judge not, that ye be not judged.”

And the first thing I want us to look at this morning as we get into this sermon I’ve entitled “The Principle of Judging” is the Position and Posture We are to take towards Judging.

Now, with that being said, in order to know the right position and posture we should take towards judging, first off, it would do us well to understand exactly what Jesus means here and the definition of judging.

“Judge” — is the Greek word (krinō) — it means properly to distinguish, i.e. decide (mentally or judicially); by implication to try, condemn, punish

The very word “judge” means properly to distinguish but the problem is that most of the time when we judge someone we do it most improperly.

We make assumptions instead of knowing the person or the story behind the person.

We see their skin tone, their race, their dress, their family, their lineage or their status in society and we want to automatically make assumptions about who that person is or who we think they are without ever getting to know them or their story first.

I want to give you three prime examples of what we’re talking about here to try and bring this thought to life.

I was taking a drive with a dear friend of mine the other night. We had to run to his house and pick up something. And as we were riding down the road, I asked a question about a piece of property which long story short led us to talking about the person who was currently renting the property.

I knew the person personally but he didn’t. But when the person’s name came up, he automatically said something very negative about the person. And when he said it, it caught me off guard because that didn’t describe the person I knew at all.

So I say, what makes you say that about him?

He says, “well I’ve seen him around town a few times and he just seems big feeling.”

I immediately replied, “well your estimation of this fellow is dead wrong. I know him personally and if you knew him like I knew him I don’t think you would think that at all.”

“I actually believe if you got to know him, you’d probably find he’s right opposite of what you think.”

Now, this is where it gets good. The next day, Ciara and I were headed somewhere and guess what we saw?

My friend sitting in that fellows driveway having a talk with him!

Now, with that being said, I haven’t had a chance to speak to my friend since then but I’d like to think he found out the person he thought this fellow was, was wrong.

Now, let me get on to the next scenario and this is one I shared with our crowd here on Wednesday night.

At my work, every year we have what’s called a “Week of Understanding.” And during this week, we deal with all kinds of issues in society.

This year the theme just happened to be…“don’t judge me, get to know me.”

And there were different stories of different people where they had been judged because of their religion, their race or their lifestyle.

But there was this one story that really stood out to me. It was about this young lady who had a rough time growing up because of a speech impediment.

Now, the problem wasn’t her speech impediment as much as it was people judging her by her looks.

You see, her parents were of Asian descent but she was actually born and raised here in the United States.

But at an early age she was diagnosed with a condition called “tongue tie.”

This condition is literally where the skin that connects your tongue to the bottom of your mouth is longer than it is supposed to be and it can cause you to have a lisp and not be able to speak like other people do.

Now, when she was a toddler, everyone thought the little lisp was adorable but as she got older and started school people started making fun of her and connecting her speech impediment with her race instead of actually asking her why she couldn’t talk exactly right.

I can’t remember what grade it was but there was one point that her teacher, basing her speech problem off of her race and assuming because of her Asian descent that she needed help learning English, put her in what’s called an ESL class thinking she needed help learning English.

She didn’t take the time to review her reading scores or she would have noticed this young lady was one of the smartest people in her class when it come to reading and had no need whatsoever to learn English better.

But because she judged her by her looks instead of getting to know her and her condition, she actually made the girl’s life a lot harder than it needed to be.

Now, to the last scenario we also talked about on Wednesday night.

Let’s all be honest with each other for a minute here and take a look around this church house.

For the most part, every person here looks the same as far as skin color and descent would you agree?

Now, let’s imagine for a second that a family walked in those doors right before service started of Arabic descent with turbans on and took a seat in the middle of the Church.

What reactions do you think would take place?

I can guarantee the majority of people’s first thoughts wouldn’t be “oh, how nice of them to join us today!”

I’d dare say some would be leaning over to their spouse and saying, “oh my, look who just walked in!”

Now I’m not trying to be mean this morning but I’m simply trying to state some of the thoughts I know would be going through this crowds mind!

Is it right?

Absolutely not!

And that’s exactly what Jesus is trying to address here!

We live in a world today where everything is backwards. It’s not innocent until proven guilty anymore but rather the mindset today is guilty until proven innocent.

To automatically make those assumptive judgments about people without truly getting to know them is wrong.

If you’ll remember, its the very opposite of the definition judge.

When we judge someone correctly, we do so because we have properly distinguished who they are and what they are all about but when we judge wrongly, we do so by judging improperly; by not taking the time to get to know someone and their story; by not taking the time to get to know why they are the way they are or why they are in the position they are in.

So, there is the superficial judging that shouldn’t be taking place but there is also another kind of judging I believe Jesus is speaking of here and that’s the judging of one’s faults.

How many times do we see someone get caught in the snares of Satan and automatically we want to judge that person for their short coming?

“Well I just can’t believe so and so did that. You know I always knew there was something fishy about them!”

Listen, the last time I checked, not a single person sitting here’s name was God so make sure you leave the judging up to Him. The Bible says in...

James 4:12 KJV 1900

12 There is one lawgiver, who is able to save and to destroy: who art thou that judgest another?

Instead of looking upon a person’s mistakes with a judgmental attitude, look upon them with a Christlike attitude!

What’s that you ask?

Well Paul gives us a very good illustration in...

Galatians 6:1–2 KJV 1900

1 Brethren, if a man be overtaken in a fault, ye which are spiritual, restore such an one in the spirit of meekness; considering thyself, lest thou also be tempted. 2 Bear ye one another’s burdens, and so fulfil the law of Christ.

Paul says here to restore such an one in the spirit of meekness, considering thyself, lest thou also be tempted.

You know what that means?

It means instead of looking upon them and condemning them for their faults, care for them, nurture them, help them to understand we all make mistakes and that’s why we need Jesus!

And the reason we are to restore instead of condemn is because the reality is every single person sitting here is only one act away from finding themselves in the same situation!

“Well preacher I’d never do that!”

Oh yeah?

The next verse in Galatians says...

Galatians 6:3 KJV 1900

3 For if a man think himself to be something, when he is nothing, he deceiveth himself.

You think you’re above reproach?

You think you’re above being tempted and giving into temptation?

Just keep on thinking that for the Bible says...

Proverbs 16:18 KJV 1900

18 Pride goeth before destruction, And an haughty spirit before a fall.

Instead of judging someone in their faults we are to restore them with a spirit of meekness lest we also be tempted.

Now, I do want to take just a moment here and say that there is a right way to judge someone.

It’s called discernment and discernment only comes with knowledge.

Look down with me if you will real quickly at Verse 15 of this same chapter.

Jesus says here...

Matthew 7:15–16 (KJV 1900)

15 Beware of false prophets, which come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ravening wolves.

16 Ye shall know them by their fruits. Do men gather grapes of thorns, or figs of thistles?

And then look on down in Verse 20....

Matthew 7:20 (KJV 1900)

20 Wherefore by their fruits ye shall know them.

The word Jesus uses here for the word “know” is (epiginōskō) and it means to know fully. It refers to having certain or complete knowledge or a fuller understanding regarding a subject.

So in the beginning of the chapter here Jesus tells us to judge not but here just a few verses later we have him telling us by their fruits you shall know them.

What’s the difference?

When we judge someone without having complete knowledge of their situation we are doing wrong BUT when we know them, when we know their situation, we have that complete and full picture, that’s where the discernment comes in and we’re going to get deeper into this part of it when we get to this section here in scripture but I simply wanted to use these verses here to help us understand it’s not wrong to make a judgment call if we have all the information.

It’s not wrong for a jury to make a call if they feel they have all the evidence. If they feel they know the full story, then they have the right to judge just as we do but the problem lies when we improperly judge someone or something without have full knowledge of the situation.

And Jesus says here if that’s the case, if you don’t know that person and you don’t know their story then you better not judge!

And then He tells us why we shouldn’t judge…so that we won’t be judged.

You ever heard that old phrase for every finger you point there’s three pointing back at you?

That’s the principle Jesus is trying to get across here.

If we don’t want to be judged of others and ultimately if we don’t want to be judged of God the way we have judged other people, then the best thing for us to do is to simply not judge at all!

Which takes us to our next point in which I want to dive a little deeper...

The Premise of Judging — (Vs. 2)

Now, to help us get a little better understanding of the scripture here, I also want to read this same passage in Luke’s gospel.

Luke 6:37–38 (KJV 1900)

37 Judge not, and ye shall not be judged: condemn not, and ye shall not be condemned: forgive, and ye shall be forgiven:

38 Give, and it shall be given unto you; good measure, pressed down, and shaken together, and running over, shall men give into your bosom. For with the same measure that ye mete withal it shall be measured to you again.

What Jesus is trying to explain here is a very simple concept.

Ever how you judge people, is how you’re going to be judged and whatever rule you use to judge, that will be the same rule that will be used to judge you.

You ever heard someone say, “they set the bar really high?”

Well what they are actually saying is that someone has a standard of judging someone or something. And if someone or something isn’t good enough, or doesn’t reach their standard of judging, then it’s simply not good enough for them.

What we need to understand is that whatever rule of measurement we use to judge others by, the same will used of God to judge us by.

Now, that ought to hit home and make us all think a little differently about how we are judging others, Amen!

I really like how Luke’s gospel breaks this down though and I want to show you something that jumped out at me when I was studying this.

Luke 6:37–38 (KJV 1900)

37 Judge not, and ye shall not be judged: condemn not, and ye shall not be condemned: forgive, and ye shall be forgiven:

38 Give, and it shall be given unto you; good measure, pressed down, and shaken together, and running over, shall men give into your bosom. For with the same measure that ye mete withal it shall be measured to you again.

The premise of judging is simply understanding that however you decide to judge others will ultimately determine how you will be judged.

And then Jesus brings it home in Verses 3-5 with the Priority of Judging.

The Priority of Judging — (Vs. 3-5)

In these verses, Jesus brings home the idea of judging others for their shortcomings and failures.

The word He uses here for “mote” literally means a speck, like a speck of sawdust or at largest a splinter.

The word He uses for “beam” on the other hand, speaks of a very large beam used in the roof system of a house.

The illustration drives home the priority of judging.

We shouldn’t be worried with others minor failures when we have major one’s of our own to deal with.

I want you to imagine for a second you had this large beam in your eye. Would you be able to see the speck that’s in your friends eye?

The answer is no. But what we do, is we want to look over our own problems at someone else’s because it makes us forget about our own.

And Jesus says if you’re doing that, you’re being a hypocrite!

Jesus says here before you go judging someone else for their problems, you need to deal with your own.

You need to do spiritual checkup on your own heart, on your own problems before going and trying to tell someone else about theirs.

There’s an illustration Jesus used in Luke Chapter 18 that really helps to drive this principle home. It’s the story of the Pharisee and the Publican.

Luke 18:9–14 KJV 1900

9 And he spake this parable unto certain which trusted in themselves that they were righteous, and despised others: 10 Two men went up into the temple to pray; the one a Pharisee, and the other a publican. 11 The Pharisee stood and prayed thus with himself, God, I thank thee, that I am not as other men are, extortioners, unjust, adulterers, or even as this publican. 12 I fast twice in the week, I give tithes of all that I possess. 13 And the publican, standing afar off, would not lift up so much as his eyes unto heaven, but smote upon his breast, saying, God be merciful to me a sinner. 14 I tell you, this man went down to his house justified rather than the other: for every one that exalteth himself shall be abased; and he that humbleth himself shall be exalted.

The Pharisee judged the Publican no doubt because of his profession and the part that gets me most is the piousness of this Pharisee.

This Pharisee is probably standing right next to this Publican and within himself the Bible says, he thanks God that he isn’t like the rest of the world. I mean you can just hear the self righteousness pouring out in his prayer and then he says, “God I thank you that I’m not like this publican here beside me.”

He automatically judged the man because of his profession more than likely without ever getting to know him or more even trying to lend a helping hand spiritually to this man.

He’d rather of let him die lost and undone than to lend a helping hand and tell him about God because in his mind, he had already judged him unworthy of the kingdom of God…just because he wasn’t like he was.

The Publican on the other hand simply knew that he was undeserving of God’s amazing grace and asked God to have mercy on him and the Bible says that he, not the Pharisee, left justified.

This Publican recognized that the Priority of Judging started with getting himself right with God before he could help anyone else get right with God.

And this is the principle of judging we need to leave here with today.

Before you look upon someone else and condemn them for the life their living, you better make sure you got your own life in order.

You need to make sure to get the beam out of your own eye before you go looking for the speck in someone else’s.

Closing

This morning, as we come to a close, I would encourage every person sitting here to do spiritual inspection of your own lives.

I would encourage you to start by judging yourselves and if there’s some things you know you need to take care of in your own life, this is your time to come and do business with God.

1 Peter 4:17a

17a For the time is come that judgment must begin at the house of God:

1 Corinthians 11:31 KJV 1900

31 For if we would judge ourselves, we should not be judged.

Galatians 6:7 KJV 1900

7 Be not deceived; God is not mocked: for whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap.

If you would bow with me in a word of prayer.