Making Judgments

As we look at this portion we find a phrase which many use to tell us we are not to judge. Jesus does say, “Judge not, that ye be not judged”. However, if you read the several verses following we see that He tells us to make judgments concerning variety of issues.

The very first instance of a judgment we must make is concerning what is holy, and the casting of that unto the “dogs”. Would we not be making a judgment decision concerning what is “Dogs”. The other in this same verse concerning the throwing of pearls to “swine”. Again, there would be the need to make a judgment. There must be a greater meaning for “Judge not, that ye be not judged”, than the normal tendency. One of the things concerning judgment that we will see is that of the heart.

As human beings we do not know the intents of other human hearts. We have hard enough time knowing the intents of our own hearts, if indeed we can know that. It would seem to me that that is one thing the Lord is addressing in these first five verses.

“Judge not, that ye be not judged. For with what judgment ye judge, ye shall be judged: and with what measure ye mete, it shall be measured to you again. And why beholdest thou the mote that is in thy brother’s eye, but considerest not the beam that is in thine own eye? Or how wilt thou say to thy brother, Let me pull out the mote out of thine eye; and, behold, a beam is in thine own eye? Thou hypocrite, first cast out the beam out of thine own eye; and then shalt thou see clearly to cast out the mote out of thy brother’s eye. Give not that which is holy unto the dogs, neither cast ye your pearls before swine, lest they trample them under their feet, and turn again and rend you.” Matthew 7:1-6 (KJV).

We are too often too quick to judge others. One way we judge others and often very wrongly is for their motives. Christians, sad to say, often judge one another’s motives for their actions. We say things like, “The only reason he did that is to work his way to that cushy office job”. O, really, and how would we know this man’s or woman’s heart? We do not.

We are also too quick to judge by the traditions of men. That was the problem Jesus was addressing for sure. The Pharisees and scribes had certainly judged Jesus wrongly. They had accused him of breaking the Sabbath on several occasions for healing on the Sabbath, for working in the grain fields on the Sabbath, etc.. That was according the their traditions of the law, not according to the law. As Jesus says, “The sabbath was made for man, and not man for the sabbath” Mark 2:27. After they had added their traditional understanding to it and added a few loopholes for themselves it became a switch for the wearing out on the people.

It is probably safe to say too, that this command is for the benefit of not condemning others with our judgment. People, without Jesus Christ, are already condemned. How can we, and why should we add our condemnation? “Therefore thou are inexcusable, O man, whosoever thou art that judgest another, thou coondemnest thyself; for thou that judgest doest the same things.” Romans 2:1. Condemnation and vengeance is Gods. Only He has the final say in judgment, and for one I am so thankful for that.

As Christians we are to first examine and make judgments of our own lives; “For if we would judge ourselves, we should not be judged.” 1 Corinthians 11:31 (KJV). If we look intently into our own selves we find we have no place to accuse or condemn; “For if any be a hearer of the word, and not a doer, he is like unto a man beholding his natural face in a glass: For he beholdeth himself, and goeth his way, and straightway forgetteth what manner of man he was. But whoso looketh into the perfect law of liberty, and continueth therein, he being not a forgetful hearer, but a doer of the work, this man shall be blessed in his deed.” James 1:23-25 (KJV). To rightly judge self is to depart from sin and become compassionate to the sinner. We must first, have our eyes cleansed from obstacles before we can help others. Anything less is hypocrisy.

We are to discern the hardness, and lack of reception of filthy hearts. We are to recognize the dogs we come in contact with. The dogs are the scavengers on the streets content with their unscrupulous lives, spreading disease and are vicious. Paul writing to the church of Galatia says, “…‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself’. But if you bite and devour one another, beware lest you be consumed by one another” Galations 5:14b-15, and he is using the animals of the street to illustrate the point of Christians needing to love one another, rather than “devour the other” in judgments. We should not take what is holy – from the altar – and give it to those whose lives despise holiness. This takes some discernment, ie., judgment. The swine are those who love their filthy mudhole better than being clean, better than the bathtub of being clean before the righteous and holy God of all creation. Why should we in foolishness throw the beautiful pearls of righteousness to the swine only to have them trampled in the mudhole. Surely judgment is needed to know when to stop, pack your bags, and leave.