Those of us who subject the fruits of our labor, planning,
husbandry and breeding of livestock to the judge at a livestock show like the
State Fair do so with the expectation that the judge has a standard and that
standard is based on something higher then his own personal opinion, bias and
experiences. Most livestock breed associations, publish what is considered the
standard of the ideal animal for their given breed. The American Boer Goat Association publishes
a standard so that people like me, and my family who wish to raise such
animals, know what perfection looks like.
Then when we bring our animals to livestock shows and have learned men
and women judge our animals according to that specific standard, we know the
animal closes to the ideal or perfect standard gets the purple ribbon and is
declared “Champion”.
I would like to use this as the backdrop about Christians
judging things. Now some of you are
thinking, “Stop the bus! Doesn’t the Bible say nobody is suppose to judge?” Why
yes, it does. But keep reading.
The world teaches a viewpoint of what is seen as non-judging
and open-mindedness. All things are relative and no one has the right to judge another. Perhaps you have
heard or used yourself the Native American expression about not judging anyone
until you have walked for a period of time or distance in his or her
moccasins. Shakespeare is often quoted
from his work called Henry VI, “Forebear to judge, for we are sinners all.” You
see, the world’s wisdom and political correctness say we're not supposed to
judge. This has penetrated Christian thinking which cries “Christians are
suppose to be non-judgmental. Christians, of all people, are to be open-minded.
Christians are to follow Jesus and Jesus never judged anyone!”
If you believe Jesus never judged, then I urge you to rethink
this.
Really.
Jesus never told people not to judge... not the way those
words are understood by most people. To say, “Jesus told us not to judge” is to
tear the words away from its context and to twist the intention of what Christ
Jesus was clearly teaching. Let’s look at this collection of verses that this
idea or misunderstanding originates from: Matthew chapter 7, Jesus said: 1 “Judge not, that you
be not judged. 2 For with the judgment you pronounce you will be judged,
and with the measure you use it will be measured to you. 3 Why do you see
the speck that is in your brother's eye, but do not notice the log that is in
your own eye? 4 Or how can you say to your brother, ‘Let me take the speck
out of your eye,’ when there is the log in your own eye? 5 You hypocrite,
first take the log out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to take
the speck out of your brother's eye. 6 “Do not give
dogs what is holy, and do not throw your pearls before pigs, lest they trample
them underfoot and turn to attack you.”
Verse 5 is
clear. FIRST take the log out of your
own eye THEN you can help a brother in his own sin. In other words, what Jesus DID say was we are
to judge other people by the standard we want for ourselves. We are not to judge
others with one set of rules and ourselves with a second set (which generally
is more lenient based on our sinful nature). Jesus is also clear the measure
you use to judge others will be the measure others will use to judge you.
"But", I can hear the objection again, "But
Jesus never judged!!!!"
If you think Jesus never judged, then you need to take a
serious look at the accounts of the life of Christ Jesus in the four Gospels.
Jesus personally selected twelve men to be His closest disciples and to be
fishers of men (Mark 1:17). He rebuked the disciples when they were wrong when
they tried to keep children away from Him (Luke 18:16). He even cursed a fig
tree for not producing fruit and it died (Matt 21:18-22). All four gospels records the time He cleansed
the temple from corrupt moneychangers with His divine rage and a whip of cords
(Matthew 21:12–17, 21:23–27 and Mark 11:15–19, 11:27–33, and
Luke 19:45–48, 20:1–8 and John 2:13–16). When He allowed Himself to
be arrested in the Garden of Gethsemane, He chose not to defend Himself (Luke 22:47-54).
When He was on trial and before the Roman Governor Pilate, Jesus was clear that
this was His choosing (John 18:33–38). Jesus is clear, He chose to lay down His life and He has the authority to pick it up again, which we know as the Resurrection
(John 10:18). His whole earthly ministry
was full of moments when Jesus made a decision. In other words…He judged.
“Yes, BUT!!!!”
If you think Jesus never judged, you need to read for
yourself the 23rd chapter of the Gospel of Matthew. Here Jesus gives a tongue-lashing
to the self-righteous religious elite of His day. My study Bible calls this
section the “Seven Woes”. In these verses Jesus uses harsh words that I have
never, ever heard any preacher use. Jesus says "Woe to you scribes and
Pharisees." He says "woe to you" six more times peppering the
woes with cutting words like “hypocrites; serpents, brood of vipers, blind
guides, blind fools, blind men, blind Pharisees.” Ouch!
I cannot find in the gospel accounts of Christ Jesus ministry
that we who follow Him are told to be accepting of everything, anything, and for
that matter…everybody. Jesus told us to
judge. In the gospels He teaches His disciples to judge between right and
wrong; He teaches His disciples to judge between the one Good Shepherd,
Himself, and the other shepherds, the false shepherds. Jesus taught His
disciples to distinguish between the broad way of Satan, which leads to hell and
eternal death and the narrow path of repentance, forgiveness, and salvation,
which ushers saved souls to heaven.
One week after His glorious resurrection from the dead, John
records a risen Christ Jesus standing before a disciple who had doubted the
supposed return of his master and told Thomas to touch the wounds in His hands
and side. That night, Jesus told Thomas to make a judgment, “Judge for yourself,
Thomas. Am I real? Am I alive?” John
records Thomas’ judgment in his confession, “My Lord and my God!”
Jesus' entire life, from beginning to end, was dedicated to
saving you and the rest of humanity. Long… long ago God had decided –
judged if you will - that He would sacrifice His perfect Son so a lost and
condemned world might be saved. God’s standard, HIS WORD, said there is a cost
to sin and it must be paid in full with blood.
So God pronounced His judgment and his judgment is final. There is no
appeal.
God’s decision was that He would save us from ourselves,
from our sin, from the power of Satan, and from fear death. That decision…that
judgment was fulfilled in Jesus the Christ, our Champion. Born as a human and yet
all God, Jesus’ life fulfilled the laws we have recklessly broken; He resisted
the sinful temptations which we found sweetly irresistible; He carried the sins
we have committed. In fact, Jesus took our sins onto Himself and carried them
to His cross. On the Cross of Calvary He died the death we deserved. If
humanity was to be saved, God the Father needed to pass judgment. His Son's life would be offered up as our
Substitute, as our Sacrifice to atone (to pay) for our sin. This was the
judgment of God, which resulted in the redemption, and salvation of all who
believe.
You see, Jesus wants us to judge. He wants Christian parents
and grandparents and churches to teach their children how to judge that which
is real and precious from that which is temporary and fleeting. He wants us to
teach all believers to distinguish the truth not “a truth” but “THEE Truth”,
which comes from God-fearing, Bible-believing pastors who faithfully proclaims
Christ Jesus and Him resurrected; Who proclaims repentance and the forgiveness
of sins through Christ Jesus, who in fact called Himself “THE Way, THE Truth
and THE Life. He wants all believers to distinguish between THE TRUTH and the
elusive lies, which are spoken by false prophets. He wants us to teach all
believers about integrity, honor, faithfulness, REAL God pleasing love and
Truth, He wants us to teach all believers how to reject that which is thin, insignificant,
trivial, unimportant and of this world, which the larvae of moths will eat and
rust will decay. He wants us to judge and He wants us to teach those judgment
skills to our children and to all believers.
Jesus wants us to judge by using God’s standards: God's perfect
law and not any person's subjective personal preferences and biases, which can
be shaped and even manipulated by the world and Satan. God wants us to distinguish what is God
pleasing from immoral, good from evil, a real Savior from a false pretender. He
wants us to “test everything” against God’s standard.
God’s standard is THE truth, it is perfect and it never
changes. Against this timeless standard do we examine ourselves and hold
ourselves accountable to. Confessing our
faults and sins, and repenting of them, we then can help our neighbor in the
same practice. Always holding up and holding
on to God’s perfect standard and not our own self-contrived double standard.
