UNDERSTANDING: “Don’t Judge!”

Or are there times when we should judge?

 

Have you ever been in conversation with someone, perhaps discussing an incident which has caused some surprise, when the other person said to you, “Well, we mustn’t judge”? The remark can be a conversation-stopper, stifling debate. It is clear that the person you are speaking with is a little uncomfortable with the topic and wishes to bring the discussion to an end. The remark can be even more direct when the words “Judge not!” are used instead. You may feel that you are being put in your place and that judging is wrong. Where did the expression originate?

 

Matthew 7 begins with the words, “Judge not, that ye be not judged.” The Lord Jesus Christ was speaking in the passage known as “The Sermon on the Mount”. He was explaining to His disciples that if they judged other people, they must expect a similar judgment to fall upon them. The following words confirm this: “For with what judgment ye judge, ye shall be judged: and with what measure ye mete, it shall be measured to you again” (Mt.7:2). The Lord Jesus then gave an illustration in order for His listeners to grasp the truth, using the analogy of the beam and the mote. Suppose you detect a speck in your brother’s eye – nothing very significant at all but there nonetheless. In what appears to be an act of kindness you point this out to your brother and offer to assist him in its removal. Such an act is all well and good if your sight is excellent. Suppose, however, that your sight is impaired by the existence of a plank in your own eye. (The Lord was using hyperbole in order to get the point across.) Your perceived act of kindness is unlikely to help a great deal until your own problem is sorted out. Actually the Lord Jesus was showing that such an offer of help did not come from the purest of motives but betrayed hypocrisy of the worst kind. His teaching application was scathing: “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” (Mt.7:5).

 

The error consists of putting yourself in a more favourable position than the other person. It is based upon being blind to one’s own faults. There is no value in helping another person if we are not aware of the help we also need. Notice that the Lord Jesus did not forbid the removal of the speck, but He did highlight the matter of priority. First things must come first: the initial action requires looking into one’s own eye and removing the plank which is lodged there. Only after this obstruction has been removed can profitable help be offered to the other person.

 

 

 

VERSE IN CONTEXT

The warning in Matthew 7:1 needs to be considered in its context. If we “judge” others, we must expect others to “judge” us with the same exactness. If our “judging” of someone involves pointing out a fault to them, we must first ensure that we are beyond reproach and that there is not anything more glaring in our own life. Failing to take this into consideration renders us hypocrites.

 

The “judge-not” conversation-stopper is really using a text out of its context. The Lord Jesus was not saying, “Judge not – full stop.” Rather, He was instructing His listeners to be responsible in matters of judgment and to consider themselves first of all. Were they in a fit state to judge, or was their own sight impaired? Perhaps He was also warning them that the speck in the eye of another might be imaginary. Could it not simply be a small reflection of some fault of their own? We must also remember that it is not our prerogative to pronounce judgment upon the motives of another person. We do not know what caused them to do the thing they did. The action may have been motivated by self-interest, but on the other hand it may have been motivated by genuine care and compassion. We do not have the ability to discern someone’s motives. “The thoughts and intents of the heart” (Heb.4:12) lie beyond our gaze. God is the perfect Judge of the motives of another person, and we must leave that work to Him.

 

 

 

ANOTHER SAYING

Those who point out that we must not judge usually fail to quote another saying of the Lord Jesus. In John 7:24 Jesus said, “Judge not according to the appearance, but judge righteous judgment.” This verse appears to say the very opposite! According to this, we are to judge – but not in a superficial fashion. We must not judge something simply by how it appears but with righteous judgment. God is the righteous Judge who will do right (Gen.18:25). If we are to judge in a righteous way, as the Lord Jesus instructs us to do, we must assess every situation according to His divine standards. “Righteous art Thou, O LORD, and upright are Thy judgments” (Ps.119:137). Those judgments are revealed in His Word. We need to understand His Word in order to apply its unchanging principles to every situation in life. Rather than terminating conversation and closing our minds, Christian believers are actually responsible to “judge” in the correct way. Further Scriptures make this abundantly clear.

 

Some very practical instructions are given by Paul at the end of 1 Thessalonians, among which we find: “Prove all things; hold fast that which is good” (1 Thess.5:21). The word translated as “prove” was used in the testing of metals and means to test with a view to approving. The assayer of metals was not intent on wasting his time. He did not need to test mud! However, when he was involved in the testing of metals, he knew what he was seeking. That which he tested would either be proved good or worthless. By applying a rigorous test to that which he anticipated to be genuine, he could determine whether his appraisal was right or wrong. The spiritual application is not difficult to grasp. We are to test all matters according to the standards of the Word of God (“prove all things”) and then “hold fast that which is good”. When we have proved something to be good, we are then to hold firmly to it. This instruction is set in the context of preaching. In those early days before the canon of Scripture was complete, the Holy Spirit must not be quenched and prophecies must not be despised – but appraisal was necessary because not all might be “good”. Tests must be applied in order to determine that which was doctrinally sound.

 

 

 

REJECT ERROR

This instruction is no less important in the twenty-first century. We are warned that “in the latter times some shall depart from the faith, giving heed to seducing spirits, and doctrines of devils” (1 Tim.4:1). The Holy Spirit speaks “expressly” (or unmistakably) about this, so there should be no doubt. Seducing spirits will arise to lead people astray. Those spirits will resemble Satan who can appear as “an angel of light” (2 Cor.11:14). In this guise he, and they, will not be recognized. Therefore we must expect to find false teaching entering the church and taking people unawares.

 

Particularly since the mid 1990s error has abounded. The “Toronto Blessing” (as it was known) was a phenomenon which rapidly spread world-wide. Many “Christians” were swept off their feet (literally) by the “spiritual” manifestations and believed they were witnessing a new work of God. But does the Holy Spirit     contradict His own nature? One of His characteristics in the nine-fold fruit of the Spirit is temperance, or self-control. The inspired Word of God exhorts, “Let all things be done decently and in order” (1 Cor.14:40) and clearly states, “Do all to the glory of God” (1 Cor.10:31). The distasteful scenes of pandemonium at the mega-meetings associated with the Toronto event can easily be viewed on the internet. In the light of these Scriptures, can people barking like dogs, roaring like lions, crowing like cockerels, and laughing hysterically be decent, in order, and to the glory of God? Would God be glorified when redeemed man, positionally above the animal creation, behaves in a way resembling it? The “fruits” of this movement enable us to identify it. We can categorically declare that this was not a work of the Holy Spirit but a work of seducing spirits.

 

One of the pace-setters in the so-called “Toronto Blessing” in the U.K. was Holy Trinity, Brompton, an influential Anglican church in London led by Sandy Millar from 1985 to 2005. Although the phenomena associated with Toronto was clearly not the work of the Spirit of God, Sandy Millar and Holy Trinity Brompton never withdrew their approval. The same vicar pioneered the growth of the hugely-successful Alpha course which began at HTB in 1977. Although initially somewhat low-key, following the events of Toronto, and with Sandy Millar’s input, the popularity of the course mushroomed. It has become a powerful ecumenical tool, and both the church and the course are now under the leadership of Nicky Gumbel who took on the running of the course in 1990. An important question needs to be asked: “Should we trust a course which finds its origin in a church that attributes to the Spirit of God manifestations which are clearly the work of another spirit?” Actually, there need be no doubt. A careful examination of the course reveals that it is unsound[1]. The fact that Alpha appeals to the Roman Catholic Church should raise serious questions in our minds!

 

Another theme which we ought to judge today is Contemporary Christian Music. This has been analyzed with care and in great detail by David Cloud[2]. Rock music is the music of rebellion, protest, and sex. Common sense should tell us that it is an inappropriate medium for the holy people of God. Secular rock musicians make it abundantly clear that the style of music is a message in itself, the words being less important. Music of this kind is fleshly and contaminated. Composers and performers who claim to be “Christian” and who use it in a church context often admit that they are influenced by secular rock, as David Cloud demonstrates. Placed under the searchlight of Scripture it must be rejected. Instead, we should cling to that which is good and brings glory to God.

 

“We mustn’t judge” is nothing more than an escape from reality. The fact is that we must judge everything (ourselves included) in the light of God’s infallible and eternal Word.

 

[1] Falling short? The Alpha Course examined, by Chris Hand, DayOne, 1998.

[2] David Cloud: The Foreign Spirit of Contemporary Worship Music – www.wayoflife.org