Estimated reading time: 2 minute(s)
The other day as we were reading through the book of Luke, the boys and I heard Jesus say, “Don’t judge other people and God won’t judge you.” I stopped when I said that and said to the boys, “That’s crazy! What does Jesus mean by that? Does he really mean if we just don’t judge other people, then God won’t judge us???” And I thought, How does that get us out of it??
And I think I was revealing a misunderstanding of God right there.
Is God really the big mean judge just waiting to condemn us? Or is he rightfully judge, but willingly grants us a completely restored relationship with him through Jesus – “There is no now condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus”?
Today I happend to be thinking of an instance or two where I was feeling “judged” and that reminded me of these words we had recently read, that Jesus spoke long ago. I was thinking about when I felt judged and trying to figure out why I was being judged in the frist place. And all I could think of was that the person(s) I was thinking about just might not understand the God who does not demand perfection from us? Perhaps they just don’t know that God does not look at everything as “right” and “wrong”?
And then the verse made sense! Maybe Jesus didn’t mean the cause and effect version I thought, where when we don’t judge, God doesn’t judge us. Perhaps he meant that if we understand that he doesn’t judge, and so we won’t judge others, then we will feel less and less “judged” by him. As we treat other people as he does – then we can understand the Father who does not “judge” us?
Perhaps I’m just rambling… or just not saying well what I think I realized today. If you have any thoughts, please add them to this. That’d be great.
But also, please know that he does not judge your every move. You are loved by your Father, and there is no condemnation for you who are in Christ Jesus.
Greg I think you may have made a mistake in interpreting the passage you mentioned. While you did not reference it directly I would assume you are referring to Matthew 7:1. This is not a blanket statement, but the verses which surround it help to identify who the type of person Jesus is referring to; namely a hypocrite who chooses to look past his own sin, but judges others (see vs.5). Verse five basically tells us that we must judge ourselves, before we judge others, i.e. removing the log from my eye so I can remove the speck from my brother’s eye. Removing both is a form of judging.
There are several other verses in the Bible which in fact tell us to judge (rightly) and Paul tells Timothy in 1 Timothy 5:24 that the church should judge those whose sins are evident.
Check out these words from a well verse professor and I hope this helps you. Blessings!
—-
To Judge, or Not to Judge
Christ commanded us not to judge others, but aren’t there times when common sense or prudence requires it? Asked by Stephen Hunt, St. Paul, Minnesota
Answered by Roger E. Olson | posted 3/29/2008 07:20PM
Even people who know very little about the Bible are usually familiar with Jesus’ saying “Judge not, that ye be not judged” (Matthew 7:1, KJV). This command is part of Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount; it is Jesus’ most popular saying because our culture values tolerance so highly.
But it is usually ripped out of context and misinterpreted.
Matthew 7:1-5 includes Jesus’ warning about trying to take a speck out of a neighbor’s eye while ignoring the log in your own eye. In verse five, Jesus makes clear the audience he is addressing: “You hypocrite!” When Jesus says “Do not judge,” he is warning people against heaping criticism and condemnation on others without being willing to examine one’s own behavior. Clearly the context is one in which some religious leaders were harshly condemning other people while attempting to justify their own sinfulness.
Furthermore, many people are unaware of balancing texts about judging in the rest of the New Testament. These include Jesus’ command “Do not judge by appearances, but judge with right judgment” (John 7:24, NRSV), and Paul’s rhetorical question “Is it not those who are inside [the church] that you are to judge?” (1 Cor. 5:12). Clearly not all judging is forbidden. If that were the case, the church could have no boundaries; the body of Christ would not be a body but a gaseous vapor!
Paul urged the Corinthian church to exclude the man who was living with his father’s wife; he ordered them not to associate with people who claim to be Christians but live blatantly sinful lives without repentance (1 Cor. 5). Did Paul simply forget Jesus’ command not to judge? Was he unaware of it? That’s doubtful. Rather, we should suppose that Jesus meant only to condemn hypocritical judging. When the church must discipline a member, it should always do so in full recognition of everyone’s lack of perfection and need of the Savior.
Some churches and Christian organizations avoid church discipline because it is a form of judging, and judging is wrongly equated with intolerance. Judging is then (ironically) judged incompatible with the spirit of Jesus’ teaching. Church discipline is surely the more biblical approach, even as it is fraught with danger.
The New Testament condemns every spirit that says Jesus Christ has not come in the flesh (1 John 4). Today the problem is more likely to arise around denials of Christ’s deity. And yet Christ’s deity is a nonnegotiable of Christian faith that is crucial to the gospel. Christians should not tolerate denials of such central truths within the church, and must discipline with love those who knowingly reject the truth of the Incarnation.
Similarly, the New Testament condemns immorality, including homosexual behavior (Rom. 1:26-27). Churches that condone such behavior among believers are abdicating their responsibility to shepherd God’s flock.
Church discipline inexorably involves making judgments and even judging people’s behaviors, but it can be done in a nonjudgmental and humble manner. One church I know stripped a man of membership, without shaming or humiliating him, because he refused to cease an adulterous relationship or repent of it. He was encouraged to continue attending worship services, and his involvement in the church eventually contributed to his repentance and restoration to full fellowship. The church acknowledged that everyone sins, but recognized the importance of a repentant spirit. Without such humble discipline, there is no real discipleship.
Finally, even though the context of Matthew 7 may not require it, one is justified in thinking that Jesus does not want us to take God’s place in determining individual persons’ ultimate spiritual fate. This would be another example of inappropriate judging. Which specific individuals of our acquaintance will end up in heaven and which will end up in hell is not for us to determine. That judgment belongs to God alone.
But who should be a member of a church, and how members should behave as such, must sometimes be decided by the church, based on beliefs and behaviors.
Roger E. Olson is professor of theology at George W. Truett Theological Seminary of Baylor University, and author of The Westminster Handbook to Evangelical Theology.
Copyright © 2005 Christianity Today. Click for reprint information.
http://www.christianitytoday.com/ct/2005/july/22.52.html