Judge Not!

If liberals ever had a favourite verse, this would be it. “Judge not, lest ye be judged. So get off my back and let me do what I want.” (New Liberal Translation). But perhaps I am being unfair. Christians too, use this verse often to defend themselves against criticism. And Christians too, have sometimes no response to this other than to swallow their words and mouth an apology and say, “Jesus loves you”.

So let’s back up a little bit and examine what Jesus means when He tells us not to judge. Now, to judge has two general meanings. The first is to discern – that is, to decide upon a judgement of something. For example, I judge that this room is really cold right now. The second is to sit in judgement upon someone else – to proclaim judgement over another person, much like a judge in the legal system. It has a connotation of condemnation.

Let us see whether the first interpretation holds here. The verse is taken from Matthew 7:1. So as with all textual analysis, we look at the context:

“Do not give what is holy to dogs, and do not throw your pearls before swine, or they will trample them under their feet, and turn and tear you to pieces.” Matthew 7:6

“Beware of the false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly are ravenous wolves. You will know them by their fruits.” Matthew 7:15-16

Christians would sure be hard pressed to obey these two commands if we are to refrain from judging. In fact, the entire Bible has calls for us to judge. I mean, there is an entire book called Judges. Like, come on. John 7:24 says “Stop judging by mere appearances, but instead judge correctly.” So it is clear that we are called to judge – in the sense of discerning between right and wrong. Obviously we have to identify sin when we see it.

So we are left with judging as condemnation. This is the judgement that is referred to in the Day of the Lord’s Coming – or what is more commonly known as Judgement Day. This is the divine judgement that God gives out to people – heaven or hell. Redemption or condemnation.

“There is only one lawgiver and judge, He who is able to save and to destroy. But who are you to judge your neighbour?” James 4:12

“Therefore you have no excuse, O man, every one of you who judges. For in passing judgment on another you condemn yourself, because you, the judge, practice the very same things. We know that the judgment of God rightly falls on those who practice such things. Do you suppose, O man—you who judge those who practice such things and yet do them yourself—that you will escape the judgement of God?” Romans 2:1-3

We have no right to condemn, because we ourselves are only saved by grace. That’s what the parable of the unforgiving debtor (Matthew 18:21-35) is about. We who have been offered grace are called to extend grace. We are not to exclude anyone from the faith, to call them unworthy or undeserving of salvation (sometimes unconsciously). This too, is an important point for us to remember. I find myself guilty of it on many occasions.

The balance we have to strike between this two is then what we often say (and what liberals dismiss out of hand in disdain): “Hate the sin, love the sinner”. But really this sums up what our Lord commands us to do. And it is not impossible – for the sin is separate from the sinner. We are not defined by our sinful nature.

One last thing that is important to consider as we examine this verse. The context also reveals another warning for us – one against hypocrisy. Matthew 6:1-16 talks about the pitfall of hypocrisy. Matthew 7:3-5, directly after the verse in question, also directly address the sin of hypocrisy: “Why do you look at the speck that is in your brother’s eye, but do not notice the log that is in your own eye? Or how can you say to your brother, ‘Let me take the speck out of your eye,’ and behold, the log is in your own eye? 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.”

What then shall we conclude? Firstly, we are called to discern between right and wrong, to call out sin when we see it and proclaim truth in the face of lies. However secondly, we are not to condemn someone as evil and sinful, or worse, beyond redemption. We are not to play God. Lastly, even as we discern and judge good from bad, we are to avoid hypocrisy – trumpeting truth and righteousness when we are living lives that are but whitewashed tombs (Matthew 23:27). Therefore, this gives us the liberty to call out sin, and even confront those who are sinning in love if the time and place is right. However, it does not give us the liberty to proclaim that God hates gays, or to exclude anyone from access to the faith or salvation. It calls us to live lives of integrity even as we stand for truth and righteousness. A high call indeed.