Learning the Jesus Way of LifeSample

What It’s Like When God Is in Charge (Part 6)

Pray: Jesus, give me the faith to go where you go, do what you do, trust what you say, and love how you love. Today, I commit to following you. Amen.

Yesterday, we learned that healthy eyes are fixed on Jesus and His kingdom above everything else. Today, we’re going to read one of Jesus’ most misunderstood teachings in the whole Bible, and discover how easily sin blurs our vision.

One of the last teachings Jesus offered to His disciples, before He sacrificed Himself on the cross to rescue all the world from sin and the devil, was this:

“A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.” John 13:34–35 NIV

Jesus is telling us the world will know who He is because of the way we love. But, in many parts of the Western World, Christians have become known for the exact opposite of what Jesus taught.

Author and pastor Brennan Manning wrote, “The greatest single cause of atheism in the world today is Christians: who acknowledge Jesus with their lips, walk out the door, and deny Him by their lifestyle. That is what an unbelieving world simply finds unbelievable.”

When nonbelievers in America were asked to describe Christians, the three words that showed up most were: judgmental, hypocritical, and bigoted.

Which brings us to today’s portion of the Sermon on the Mount:

“Do not judge, or you too will be judged.” Matthew 7:1 NIV

By itself, this verse seems really clear. Don’t judge, otherwise you’ll be judged too. But, by itself, this verse seems to contradict a lot of other things the Bible says about judging.

Here’s one example, found in Proverbs, a book filled with practical wisdom for navigating life: “Speak up and judge fairly; defend the rights of the poor and needy” (Proverbs 31:9 NIV).

So, is Jesus going against what was written in the Old Testament? Keep reading.

Remember, when it comes to reading the Bible wisely: context is everything. If you want to know what a verse really means, then don’t read only that verse. Read the verses around it, the paragraphs that come before and after, and the rest of the chapter it’s found in. Because the Bible is meant to be read in passages, notjust pieces.

If we keep reading, then the message Jesus wants to get across becomes much more clear.

“Do not judge, or you too will be judged. For in the same way you judge others, you will be judged, and with the measure you use, it will be measured to you.” Matthew 7:1–2 NIV

By adding that second verse to the first, we start to get a fuller idea of what Jesus is saying. Why shouldn’t we judge? Because other people will judge us the same way we judge them. Whatever standard we use to judge them, will be used against us.

How do you want to be judged by others? Do you want to be judged harshly? Do you want to be judged mercilessly? Do you want to be judged hatefully? Of course not!

When we get it wrong, we want to be judged kindly, mercifully, and lovingly. If that’s the way you want to be judged by others, Jesus instructs us, then you better judge them that way too.

Now, it’s important to take a second here and talk about the two different types of judgment. The first type is what we will call discernment. The second type is what we’re going to call condemnation.

Discernment is about recognizing something for what it is. For example, when you make the judgment that a box of apples is a box of apples and not a box of oranges, you are practicing discernment. You are recognizing a thing for what it is.

Condemnation is looking down on others and seeing them as less than. For example, when you make the judgment that people who like apples are worse than people who like oranges, you are practicing condemnation. You are looking down on them and seeing them as less than.

So, what is Jesus trying to teach us? This: Don’t look down on others. When you look down on others, others will look down on you.

The way we judge others will determine how others judge us. It seems simple enough in the examples above. But in the real world, things are a lot trickier. Because we don’t see as clearly as we think we do. All of us have been infected by the disease of self-centeredness called sin. This sickness affects every part of us: our hearts, souls, will, desires—even our bodies, including our eyes. Sin blurs our vision. It blinds us to truth, and it tempts us to see ourselves as the hero (or the victim) in the story and others as the villain. This is why what Jesus says next is so important.

“Why do you look at the speck of sawdust in your brother’s eye and pay no attention to the plank in your own eye? How can you say to your brother, ‘Let me take the speck out of your eye,’ when all the time there is a plank in your own eye? You hypocrite, first take the plank out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother’s eye.” Matthew 7:3–5 NIV

When you start looking for what’s wrong in other people’s lives, it won’t be hard to find. Even if it’s just a tiny speck of dust. We’re really good at seeing what other people do wrong. But, other people’s sin isn’t what Jesus wants us to focus on. The more we focus on their problems, the easier it is to ignore our problems. That’s why Jesus tells us to start by dealing with our own issues. Because until we get our eyes fixed, we’ll never see clearly enough to help other people deal with their issues.

Why do so many people describe Christians as judgmental, hypocritical bigots? Maybe it’s because we’ve been far too focused on calling out the specks in other people’s eyes without taking the time to confess we’ve got a plank in our own eyes. Before you start pointing a finger, take a good look in the mirror. Let Jesus reveal to you the parts of your life that need to die. Then, ask the Holy Spirit to help you change, to make you more like Jesus. Then, and only then, will you be able to see clearly enough to help others get their lives right too.

“So in everything, do to others what you would have them do to you, for this sums up the Law and the Prophets.” Matthew 7:12 NIV

This is what the entire Old Testament is about. All the commandments in the Law and all the corrections from the Prophets are intended to make us into the kind of person who loves others the way we want to be loved ourselves.

Okay, but what about the importance of truth and accountability? Those things absolutely matter. And it’s important to point out that Jesus isn’t telling us to give up on speaking the truth and holding others accountable. Not even close. Instead, Jesus is showing us how to speak the truth in love and hold people accountable in a way that is actually helpful. How? By doing so with grace, mercy, and patience—just as we’d want it done to us. .

Application: Read through Psalm 139 slowly and carefully. Pay attention to the words of the Psalmist David. How does he describe the wisdom and vision of God? How does that compare to our wisdom and vision? How should that affect the way we think about judging others? Finally, when you get to the end, settle in on verses 23 and 24. Ask God to search you. Ask Him to show you the parts of you that maybe you can’t see—the parts of you that need to be removed and reformed. Ask Him to show you a better way forward and help you make the changes you need to make you more like Jesus.