One of the most popular sayings that you hear today is, ‘Don’t judge me.’  When someone says, ‘Don’t judge me,’ that basically means they want unlimited approval of everything they do.  Every thought.  Every belief.   Every bad decision.  Every moral decision.  Just accept it.  Approve of me, no matter what I do.   Validate me, no matter how badly I perform.  And if you don’t, you make me feel bad.  You are mean.  You are judging me.  You hate me.   And any negative feedback, anything less than 100% approval, is called judging, and it is offensive.  Why?  Because holding me accountable makes me feel bad.  So, if you make me feel bad, then you are bad.  Whatever you do, ‘Don’t judge me.’

What is the ‘Don’t judge me’ culture all about?  It’s about making ourselves ‘god’.  We believe that truth and morality are inside us.  We decide what is right and wrong based on how we feel.  God is irrelevant.  Scripture is irrelevant.  Moral standards of holiness are irrelevant.  Church is irrelevant.  What matters is how I feel right now.  My feelings determine truth.  My feelings determine what is right and wrong.  I am god.  And anything that makes me feel bad is bad and/or wrong.  Today, we get to see what Jesus says about that.

I remember when our girls were younger, one of my daughters didn’t do their homework.  I began to talk to her about it, and she said, “Dad, you are making me feel bad.”  I thought about it and said, “Good, that’s the point.  When you don’t do your homework, you should feel bad.”  There just seems to be a thing in us that doesn’t want to be held accountable.  And when someone pushes in on us, it can make us feel bad, and we push back, don’t we?   

Disclaimer for clarity: We have taught for years that our emotions are important.  They are the check engine light of your heart.  We identify them.  We pay attention to them.  We process them.  They are real and important.  However, our short-term emotions are not our identity, and they shouldn’t rule over us and determine our long-term lives.  

We have been in a series called Rethinking Your Faith.  Why?   Because if your faith hasn’t transformed you to wake up every day with the purpose to please Jesus, not yourself, you have missed it.  And you need to rethink everything.  

Before we jump into our talk today, I wanted to look back at Sam’s talk last week.  I don’t know if you remember his talk, but he ended his talk with a huge question.  Sam asked, Can you trust God, or is it all on you?  Sam was sharing from Matthew 6 when Jesus said, Don’t worry about your life, don’t worry about tomorrow.  If you didn’t hear Sam’s talk, you need to hear it because it was so helpful.  

Today, we jump into Matthew 7.  It’s the part where Jesus says, ‘Don’t judge.’  

Matthew 7:1-6 Do not judge, or you too will be judged. 2 For in the same way you judge others, you will be judged, and with the measure you use, it will be measured to you.

3 “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? 4 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? 5 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.

6 “Do not give dogs what is sacred; do not throw your pearls to pigs. If you do, they may trample them under their feet, and turn and tear you to pieces. NIV

Jesus cares how we treat people.  

To understand what Jesus is saying, we need to start with understanding the word ‘judge’.  

In verse one, the Greek word for judge is ‘krino’.  It can mean both ‘to discern’ and ‘to condemn’.  

Jesus here is talking about a condemning heart.   The attitude of a person who is comfortable finding fault in others, all the time.  It is easy for them to be critical.  They enjoy talking badly about people behind their backs.  Do you know this person?  Are you this person?  I must say, this trait is a very common trait in South Central Pa.  I know because I am from this area.  

Let me ask you, were you raised in a family where you learned that it was normal to be nice to someone’s face while at the same time being critical of them behind their backs?   Do you find that it is easy to see the faults of others?  Do you find that it is easy to be negative and critical of others?  That’s what Jesus is talking about.  

I want to read the Message Version.  Same verses, just a different translation.

Matthew 7:1 Don’t pick on people, jump on their failures, criticize their faults - unless, of course, you want the same treatment. That critical spirit has a way of boomeranging. MSG

Jesus is giving us a warning.  Don’t live with a condemning attitude because when you do, you will be judged in the same way.  Have you ever thought about that?  How you treat others is how you will be judged.  Let me ask you this question.  How do you want to be judged?  For me, I don’t want to be judged at all.  And if I am going to be judged, I want compassion.  I want to be treated like a person who has hurts, temptations, and weaknesses.

Do you see what Jesus is saying?  How you treat people matters.  Treat people with compassion.  Jesus wasn’t saying there is no truth.  Jesus wasn’t saying, don’t have any discernment.  Jesus is saying, your attitude and motivation in relationships need to be full of love, humility, and the desire to restore people.  Don’t be quick to hold people to a standard that you don’t hold yourself to.  View people through a different lens.  Put yourself in their shoes.  Don’t act superior or as if you are above others.  Have compassion.  Have empathy.

Jesus continues.

Matthew 7:3 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? 4 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? 5 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. NIV

Does this sound weird to you?  It might.   Here’s why.  Jesus is introducing God’s kingdom to us.  In God’s kingdom, we are expected to treat others with compassion and humility.  And that can sound really weird because in our kingdom, the world we live in, maybe even the family we grew up in, it’s normal for us to jump on people’s failures.   It’s easy for us to focus on, notice, talk about, and condemn others for their faults while at the same time ignoring the glaring issues we have.  And to make matters worse, in our kingdom, it can be normal to act nice to people and talk about them behind their backs.  Jesus is calling us out.  He used the word, hypocrites.  In God’s kingdom, it’s normal to have compassion and build people up.  In our kingdom, it’s too easy to jump on people’s failures and tear them down.  In the area of relationships, it’s where God’s kingdom clashes with our kingdom.  

Jesus uses the analogy of our eyes again.  Remember when Jesus talked about money?  Jesus said ‘When your eye is healthy, your whole body is filled with light.  But when your eye is unhealthy, your whole body is filled with darkness.’  Here, Jesus is saying our spiritual vision can be distorted.  How?  When you are focused on other people’s faults and are critical of them.    

I need to share a scripture with you.

Romans 2:1-2 Every time you criticize someone, you condemn yourself. It takes one to know one. Judgmental criticism of others is a well-known way of escaping detection in your own crimes and misdemeanors. MSG

It’s easy to see what is wrong with others, while at the same time, ignoring who we really are.  And this behavior is a red flag.  It’s an indicator that our spiritual vision is becoming distorted.  It shows that God’s kingdom isn’t in our hearts.  Think about it, every time we criticize and condemn others, maybe even in gossip behind their backs, what are we not doing?  We are not thinking about the flaws in our lives.  That’s why Romans says judgmental criticism of others is a well-known way of escaping detection.  Do you see it?  Judgmental criticism is a huge indicator that something is off spiritually.   

Who would ever live like this?  We would.   Every parent on your kids' sports team would.  Every person you work with would.  Every person who follows a leader would.  We can do this in our homes and friendships.  Ask yourself, how do I view people?  With criticism or compassion?  Do I see their faults, or do I put myself in their shoes?  Does it feel good to talk about others?  Does it bring me passion to point out their faults, their inconsistencies, and their issues?  And that is when you know.  It’s a red flag.  It’s an indicator that our spiritual vision is distorted.  When we see people, we don’t see a person to love; we see a problem to be judged and criticized.  To be clear, we can do this in our relationships.  

There is another place where we can do this.  We can do this in politics.  Ask yourself, how do I view people in the political world?  Do we view people as a person to love or a problem to be judged and criticized?  Our country is so divided right now politically, it’s beyond insane.  In our country, we see people make quick assumptions about them based on what they wear or say, and we are very comfortable judging and condemning them.  What is interesting, as Christians, we can care more about others believing what we believe than showing compassion for them.  

The problem we are having is that the news channels on both sides are showing us the worst of the other side, and it distorts both political parties.  You are constantly seeing the worst on the other side, and they quickly and easily become the enemy.  They are someone who needs to be fixed.   How did we get here?  Where you get your information is right.  Where they get their information is right.  We walk away from them, and the thoughts swirl in our minds, ‘How could that person believe what they believe? It makes no sense.’  It’s actually pretty simple.  Outside of the extremes, your source of information is different than their source of information.  So, when we see people, we don’t see a person to love, we see a problem to be judged and criticized.  And it’s tearing us apart.  

Here is the problem with showing compassion for others.  Compassion is messy.  Compassion might cost you something.  It takes time.  It requires us to slow down, ask questions, and care.  You see, being judgmental and critical is easy.  You just make quick assumptions and say awful things.   Compassion, the act of putting yourself in their shoes, takes time and takes a heart.  So maybe at home and in politics, the greatest thing we can do is ask more questions.

What did Jesus say?

Matthew 7:5 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. NIV

Jesus is saying, if you want to be discerning, check the attitude of your heart.  What is your attitude, your motivation for speaking?   Do you want to condemn or do you want to show compassion?  We first must do a self-evaluation of our hearts, and then we might be able to talk to the other person.  ‘Judge not’ doesn’t mean ‘care not’.  If I love others, I will remove my judgmental criticism.  I will have compassion and put myself in your shoes.  I will do the self-evaluation to make sure I am not a hypocrite.  I will then, maybe, be ready to speak.  Why?   Love doesn’t walk away; love demands that I do this for your good.

Then Jesus ended with,

Matthew 7:6 Do not give dogs what is sacred; do not throw your pearls to pigs. If you do, they may trample them under their feet, and turn and tear you to pieces. NIV

What does this have to do with judgment?  God and His compassion are what’s sacred, or the pearls.  God has shown us nothing but compassion.  We are the dogs, the pigs.  We have lacked compassion.  We have been harsh with others.  We have taken what is sacred, the pearls, God’s compassion, and trampled on them.  And we will never stop judging others and have true compassion until we see how we have treated God’s compassion.  

Three very practical applications.

 #1. Jesus did not mean you can’t have rules in your home, in school, or in the community.  

Romans 13:4 The policeman is sent by God to help you. But if you are doing something wrong, of course you should be afraid, for he will have you punished. He is sent by God for that very purpose. 5 Obey the laws, then, for two reasons: first, to keep from being punished, and second, just because you know you should. TLB

Break a rule and what happens?  Judgement.   You do bad things; you will be judged.   A child behaves terribly or is making bad choices, judgment.  The parents try to hold them accountable.  Then your kid says, ‘You can’t judge me, you are making me feel bad.’   Or the passive parent says, ‘I don’t want to be a parent and say the right thing because I don’t want them to feel bad.’  

There is a difference between ‘discernment’ and ‘condemning’.  Leaders, parents, police, human resources at work, schools, and communities all have rules.  They provide a structure for safety.  They are there to discern bad behavior and end it.  Why?   Because if you don’t, it leads to chaos and pain.  

In Matthew 7, Jesus was talking about a condemning heart.  Jesus did not mean you can’t have rules.

#2. Jesus did not mean that you can’t tell the truth.  Paul told Timothy the following.

1 Timothy 1:3 As I urged you when I went into Macedonia, stay there in Ephesus so that you may command certain men not to teach false doctrines any longer 4 nor to devote themselves to myths and endless genealogies. These promote controversies rather than God's work-which is by faith. 5 The goal of this command is love, which comes from a pure heart and a good conscience and a sincere faith. 6 Some have wandered away from these and turned to meaningless talk. NIV

Timothy was told directly to address people who were not telling the truth.  Was that hateful?  No, Paul said that’s love.  If you love someone, you will tell them if what they are doing is outside of what scripture says.

In Matthew 7, Jesus did not mean that you can’t tell the truth.    

#3. Jesus did not mean, church can’t have moral teaching on holiness.  Paul wrote a letter to the Corinthian church. Let’s read some of it.

1 Corinthians 5:1 I can hardly believe the report about the sexual immorality going on among you, something so evil that even the pagans don't do it. I am told that you have a man in your church who is living in sin with his father's wife. 2 And you are so proud of yourselves! Why aren't you mourning in sorrow and shame? And why haven't you removed this man from your fellowship? 

3 Even though I am not there with you in person, I am with you in the Spirit. Concerning the one who has done this, I have already passed judgment 4 in the name of the Lord Jesus. You are to call a meeting of the church, and I will be there in spirit, and the power of the Lord Jesus will be with you as you meet. 5 Then you must cast this man out of the church and into Satan's hands, so that his sinful nature will be destroyed and he himself will be saved when the Lord returns. NLT

Paul judged someone walking in sin.  And Paul was surprised that the people around this person didn’t say something sooner.   

When Jesus said, ‘Do not judge others,’ do you see the context?  Again, don’t live with a condemning attitude.  Jesus didn’t mean, don’t have discernment.  There are standards of holiness and purity before God.

A couple of questions to wrestle with to close.

What is normal for you?   Is it easy to be critical of others?   Or is it easy to show compassion?   I think a great follow-up question is, are you judgmentally critical of yourself?

Did you know that judgmental criticism is a red flag that shows that something is spiritually wrong?

Based on how you judge others, how do you think you will be judged?

What was modeled for you in your family?  Being judgmental and critical behind people’s backs?  Or putting yourself in other people’s shoes?