Judge not

Mat 7:1 Judge not, that ye be not judged.
Mat 7:2 For with what judgment ye judge, ye shall be judged: and with what measure ye mete, it shall be measured to you again


Judge-
G2919
κρίνω
krinō
kree'-no
Properly to distinguish, that is, decide (mentally or judicially); by implication to try, condemn, punish: - avenge, conclude, condemn, damn, decree, determine, esteem, judge, go to (sue at the) law, ordain, call in question, sentence to, think.


Condemn not. Punish not. Avenge not. Conclude not. Damn not. Decree not. Determine not. Esteem not. Sue not. Ordain not. Question not. Sentence not. Think not.


We are to judge not, why? So that we are not judged.


Too many people assess themselves with higher praise than they dare give another. Judging others is something we are brought up doing. We judge when we determine a person is beneath us. We judge when we determine a person is above us. We judge when we choose to over look undesirable sorts and take up with those who conform more closely to our own selves. We call this HUMAN nature- this sort of judging. Even as children we begin this sort of behavior- sensing something just isn't quite right about a peer and thus begins the quest to keep away from the one that isn't quite right and not only that, the distinguishing between what is perceived right and not quite right is begun. The not quite right will fall into a few categories- those who are just a little off, and those who are a bit more off, and those who are way off. While a child might shun one who is a little off, and another who is a bit more off, they very seldom shun those who are way off- these become the targets of ridicule which takes on many forms. The purpose of that ridicule is for the child who perceives himself as being 'right' to elevate and secure that position for himself while assuring the way off child who is perceived to be far from right is kept in that position which then only makes the right child feel even more right about themselves.


No, this isn't a sociology lecture- far from it. We talk about judging and might be quick to say we don't 'judge' but the truth is we 'judge' a lot! It's just not called judging. We condemn others all the time and in many ways. Again, I can hear the echo of 'it's just human nature'. Yes, sinful human nature, not the nature God would have us embrace and promote.


Children will learn judging from their parents and from each other in an endless cycle of human nature.


When we judge we are setting ourselves up to be judged by the same measure we are judging.


Mat 7:2 For with what judgment ye judge, ye shall be judged: and with what measure ye mete, it shall be measured to you again


If we are quick to judge, we will be quick to be judged. If we judge harshly we will be judged harshly. We can't escape this though many believe they do.

As children groups are formed and labeled.

There is the 'IN' crowd, the 'NOT SO IN' crowd, and there is the 'OUT' crowd. The in crowd is usually made up of very harsh judges who determine where the others fit in. The not so in crowd are left neither harshly judged nor completely free from judgment. The out crowd are judged very harshly. You know what I'm talking about and we can run it around in our heads forever and make a million excuses for the position of certain people but NONE of it makes it right.


Jesus wasn't part of the 'IN' crowd. The 'IN' crowd was made up of the Pharisees and Sadducees, the Priests, the workers in the temple. For awhile it looked as if Jesus were ushering in a NEW in crowd, but the current in crowd didn't allow that to happen.


Jesus advocated for those in the out crowds as He revealed why they more than any others needed kindness, not condemnation. While Jesus associated with those sinners in the out crowd He was doing so to reveal to us that we are NOT to play judge! We take a great risk when we make decisions regarding who is worthy of us. ALL are worthy of us, just as all are worthy to receive Jesus. The WORST of sinners is worthy to receive Jesus' love, Jesus' forgiveness. We have NO right whatsoever to condemn those that Jesus would never condemn.


I've written before on the difference between judging eternal life and judging right from wrong and it still holds true. We can judge NO ONE's eternal life no matter how horrific they might be. We can judge that the actions they are committing are wrong, and therefore we can choose not to participate in them, but we can't judge the outcome of those actions on an eternal level. As soon as we judge another we are being judge by the same measure we are judging. We lose the right to a compassionate judge when we judge without compassion.


It goes along the same lines as forgiving others as we want to be forgiven. In this case we judge as we want to be judged. And if we're smart we'll recognize that we need to be judged by One filled with compassion and ready to forgive us our sinful ways-- every little tiny sinful way. We don’t have to be HUGE sinners to warrant condemnation, and this is something people love to forget about or choose to never really contemplate.


Those children growing up- you know the ones in the in, not so in, and out crowds- they all become adults and often as adults the mindset will continue. The child who learned to judge other children harshly will become adults judging harshly and so on. Does this happen ALL the time? No. We grow up and some who are out now make it their goal to become IN, and once they are in some will choose to forget what it was like to be in the out crowd and they'll go along with the adult IN crowd against the adult out crowd. Do you really think that all that judging simply disappears as we grow up? I used to think so. Many people love to tell children who are in the out crowd that it won't always be that way, things will be different when they're older. Yes, sometimes that's true, but often we escape one setting for another. The outside of things might have changed but the underlying process of HUMAN nature is still at play on another level. Not to be unfair, some of those who are in will become out and sometimes they'll get a taste of being judged with the same judgment they judged- hopefully it's enough for them to repent and take up the words of our Savior to--


Mat 7:1 Judge not, that ye be not judged.


By the grace of God we need to live this temporary life as one truly seeking life eternal with Jesus Christ our Lord and Savior. When we live understanding just how temporary this life is, judging others takes on a whole new context. We don't have to worry about being 'IN', not in this life not ever because the only One who is truly 'IN' is our Savior and it's Him we must live for- not for others and not for ourselves, but for HIM. Everything else is counted as loss when we live for a better life promised to us.


We will ALL be judged and at that time our Judge will know how we have judged.


By the grace of God may we leave the judging up to Him as we seek to only reveal the love of Christ to ALL others.


Amen.