Verses Taken Out of Context

Part 1   Matthew 7:1    So……Never Judge, Ever? 

Hello sisters in Christ and friends!! Have you ever heard someone quote Matthew 7:1, “Judge not, that you be not judged”? I am sure you have, because it is one of the most misused verses in the Bible. We live in a “don’t judge me” society, don’t we?  Matthew 7:1 is almost always used when someone is committing a sin willfully and they know that the Bible says what they are doing is wrong, but they don’t want to stop the behavior, so they spout Matthew 7:1 to make themselves feel better. Think about it. Why else would they quote a Bible verse to justify sin unless they already knew that the sin was condemned by the Bible? This is the verse that people like to “cherry pick” when they are approached by someone else about the sin in their lives. I myself may have even repeated this verse myself, in my head, while at worship on Sunday, when the preacher said something that stepped on my toes. Of course, that was in the past, when I didn’t like for my toes to be stepped on and I was being stubborn. I knew better!  But now…..I actually welcome my toes getting stepped on, because it helps me examine myself and grow. But anyway, Matthew 7:1 is the verse that people will use to justify themselves when they don’t want to change. They say things like, “How dare you judge me when Jesus says no one has the right to judge” or “no one is perfect” or “God is the judge, not you” or “I’m ok. I’m not as bad as most people”. Of course, if they would continue reading through verse six of that chapter, they would understand that Jesus isn’t condemning all judgment. He is saying that we have to judge in the right way and with the right motives if we are going to judge at all. And when we do make a judgment about someone’s behavior, we need to put ourselves in their position in order to handle the situation in the right way. How would we feel? Do we like being called on the carpet? If we are being honest, none of us like to be called out or “judged” by another person for something we have said or done. We might even be attacked as a Christian for our belief in and adherence to God’s word. It is human nature to be defensive, but as Christians, we have to stop and examine ourselves and ask some questions before we react to the person who calls us out. Is this person a member of the Lord’s church? Do they have our best interest at heart? What perspective is the person coming at you from, the scriptures or the world? Whether it is something we need to be called out for or not, we will show who we truly belong to by how we respond to the situation. We need to always respond in a way that shows Christ living in us. We will talk more about our response to others later in the post. However, on that note, aren’t we as Christians accused of being judgmental all the time in today’s society, all because we follow the standard of God’s word? But I am certain that using God’s word as our standard for determining right from wrong is not being judgmental. It is called righteous judgment when we do this in the right way, and Jesus tells us exactly how to do that in Matthew 7:1-6. Of course, we also have to use God’s word in a loving, kind, and merciful way all while being careful not to compromise the truth. And I won’t sugarcoat it! It’s hard! People in the world do not understand, because they don’t believe the way that we as Christians believe. God’s word doesn’t mean to them what it means to us. And because they don’t understand, we are called intolerant and unloving, and even bigots and haters. Of course, this is so far from the truth. If only they could see that we stand against sin because we love their souls and we don’t want them to be lost eternally. But have you noticed that the very same people who are calling us judgmental, are being judgmental themselves by calling us judgmental? The only difference is that they are using a different standard to judge us. They are using the world’s standard of judgment on us. With all that being said, let’s take a deep dive into Matthew 7:1-6 and truly see what Jesus means in these verses.

First of all, Jesus is not condemning all judging, only hypocritical judging of which He accuses the scribes and Pharisees of many times. In Matthew 23, Jesus spends the entire chapter calling the scribes and Pharisees hypocrites for their unrighteous judgment on others. Several times in that chapter, Jesus makes the statement, “Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites!” So we definitely learn from them how not to judge! But throughout the New Testament we find many verses that support the fact that we as Christians are to judge with righteous judgment. Jesus was not saying that we as Christians are not allowed to judge if a behavior is sin or not. How would we fulfill our commission in Matthew 28:18-20 to go and make disciples if we can’t help them understand what behaviors in their lives are sinful? How would preachers ever stand in the pulpit and preach the truth, which includes pointing out sin?

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

Don’t we have to judge someone’s words to see if what they are saying is the truth from God’s word? 1 John 4:1 says that we are not to believe every spirit, but we are to test the spirits to see if they are of God. Why? Because many false prophets have gone out into the world. The word test could be substituted with the word judge. We have false teachers everywhere we turn today. We have to use God’s word to expose their lies. 

Paul, when speaking to the churches in Galatia in Galatians 1:8 says, “But even if we, or an angel from heaven, preach any other gospel to you than what we have preached to you, let him be accursed.”

Paul uses some strong language here. I am certain that Paul means for the Christians at Galatia to judge whether what they are being told is the truth. Paul even says that if we are truly spiritual, we will judge all things that are going on around us to make sure we are doing what is right.

Paul, when speaking to the Christians at Corinth in 1 Corinthians 2:15 says, “But he who is spiritual judges all things…..” 

So if we are in Christ and we are faithful Christians trying to walk in the light and fulfill God’s purpose for our lives, then we can judge with the righteous judgment that Jesus is speaking about in Matthew 7:1-6. What is our measure that we use to judge right from wrong? The measure is God’s word and God’s word only. Judgment can only be righteous if God’s word is the measuring stick. 

Jesus said in Matthew 7:1-2, “Judge not, that you be not judged. For with what judgment you judge, you will be judged; and with the measure you use , it will be measured back to you”.

So how do we want to be judged? How do we want our children/family members to be judged? If one of my children gets into some kind of trouble like possibly getting a DUI, how do I want my child to be treated or talked about/judged by my brothers and sisters in Christ? Will they judge me as a parent because my child made a mistake? How do I want others to judge him/her? Harshly, unmercifully, and critically? Or with love, mercy and forgiveness? I’m sure there are many of us who have experimented with alcohol when we were young, but…..the truth is…….we just didn’t get caught. And that’s only one example of something that could happen. Let’s put ourselves in others’ shoes and determine how we would want to be judged or treated. And let’s try and help that person overcome their problem by encouraging them, visiting them, or sending them a card, not by shunning them or treating them like they have the plague. Maybe we haven’t been involved in the same type of sin as someone else. But we cannot be self righteous by thinking we are better than other people because we haven’t been involved in the same sin as they have. We all have our own sin. (Romans 3:23) Jesus was the opposite of self-righteous. He ate with sinners. He forgave the woman who was caught in adultery. He talked to the woman at the well. He even took the time to listen to and forgive the thief on the cross when He himself was in more agony than we could ever imagine. He didn’t shut Himself off from the world. And He, of course, didn’t allow the world to influence Him. He never condoned anyone’s sin, but He was ready to forgive them if they had the right heart. Oh how wonderful it is to have Him as our example!! Are we trying to be like Him? How did He judge? How do we want to be judged by God? We want grace and mercy from God, don’t we? 

James 2:12-13 is plain and simple friends. “So speak and so do as those who will be judged by the law of liberty. For judgment is without mercy to the one who has shown no mercy. Mercy triumphs over judgment.” 

If we want mercy, we must show mercy. We will be judged by God in the same way that we judge other people. Jesus is simply warning us right from the start by saying, “don’t judge if you aren’t ready to be judged in the same way by someone else or by God.” He is saying, if you can’t judge in the correct way, then don’t judge at all. Think hard about that before we move on. Do you want God to judge you in the same way that you judge other people? That might be a scary thought! Do we want to be judged on our physical appearance, our race, our hometown, our family, etc.? What about our past? Let’s be honest…..most of us would not want to be judged on our teen years, our young adult years or possibly even our recent past. 

Let’s remember Jesus’ words in John 7:24, “Do not judge according to appearance, but judge with righteous judgment.”

So what does righteous judgment look like? Just a few verses down from Matthew 7:1-6 is the verse we call the golden rule. I would think that the golden rule would have a little something to do with righteous judgment. 

In Matthew 7:12 Jesus says, “Therefore, whatever you want men to do to you, do also to them, for this is the Law and the Prophets.” 

Think about this verse. How does it apply to our judgment of others? 

In Matthew 7:3-5, Jesus goes on to say, “And why do you look at the speck in your brother’s eye, but do not consider the plank in your own eye?Or how can you say to your brother, ‘Let me remove the speck from your eye’; and look, a plank is in your own eye?Hypocrite! First remove the plank from your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother’s eye.”

Jesus clearly wants us to do some self-examination in these verses. We have to examine ourselves if we are going to judge righteously. And Jesus uses some very strong language. Anytime Jesus uses the word hypocrite, it makes me want to sit up and take notice, because I know it is some serious business! However, it is almost as if Jesus is using a little humor here to get his point across. Imagine someone looking for a tiny speck on someone else when they have a huge beam sticking out in front of them that is completely blocking their sight. How would we ever help that person if we can’t get around our own beam? If we can’t see clearly our own flaws, how can we see someone else’s flaws? And seeing our flaws does not mean us saying, “well, I’m not perfect”, but then not really working to get rid of them. Yes, we all have flaws. And we can all say that we have flaws, but are we working on getting rid of them? God intends for us to work on getting rid of them. Jesus says very plainly for us to remove our beams, whatever they may be. As Christians, we should always be working to try and better ourselves throughout our entire life. This will help us to be able to judge with righteous judgment. So….first, we have to admit that we have flaws, which is hard for some people. That is a flaw in itself. It is the flaw of self-righteousness. Second, we have to specifically identify our flaws and be real about it friends!! We may have some we don’t mind admitting and others that we would rather not face at all. And last, we have to intentionally work on those flaws with God’s help through prayer and through His word. We have to be intentional. I have never had a problem admitting my flaws, however my problem was working on them. I couldn’t work on them because I wasn’t putting God first in my heart. I wasn’t praying like I should have been. And I most definitely wasn’t in His word enough to allow God to help me work on them. It takes both prayer and Bible study to truly change. I could pray and pray and pray some more for God to help me, but if I wasn’t listening to God through His word, and if I wasn’t being intentional in trying to change, then He couldn’t help me. That is my personal issue and I don’t care to admit it if it helps someone else with their struggles. I don’t mind sharing my past struggles. If my testimony helps others to not feel alone, then it is worth telling. With that being said, Jesus says for us to examine ourselves before we try to help someone else with their struggle with sin. We can’t help them if we are involved in the same type of sin that they are involved in. This is when we become hypocrites. For example, maybe we hear a friend using bad language and we automatically want to go talk to them about this behavior. But, what if we turn around and talk about other people in a negative way or gossip about others. Isn’t that a beam that Jesus is talking about that we should get out of our own eye? Bad language and gossiping are in the same family of corrupt communication, right? Another example might be a father being hard on his daughter about her clothing choices, but when he is alone, he gets on the internet and looks at pornography. Isn’t he holding his daughter to a standard that he isn’t holding himself to when he is looking at women who are degrading themselves online? These are just a couple of examples of unrighteous judgment. 

We also have to have the right motives behind our judgment. What is our true purpose for judging? Righteous judgment also includes having the right purpose and motive for judging. Our purpose has to be solely to help the other person get on the right path to heaven. It can’t be for any glory for ourselves. And it can’t be to just make ourselves feel better about our own sin. I also don’t believe we can call people out in an embarrassing or “holier than thou” way. The context of the verses in Matthew 7 is referring to approaching other Christians about sin in their lives to try and help them get themselves right with God and back on the straight and narrow. However, whether they are fellow Christians or not, we have to go to them gently, in love, with mercy and forgiveness in our hearts and in our voices. Sometimes it is not what we say, but how we say it. And also, is there a difference between how we handle each other as sisters in Christ and how we handle friends who are non-Christians? I personally believe there’s a huge difference. Most fellow Christians should understand your reasoning behind coming to them. They should know that you are just doing what Jesus has told you to do in His word. Whether they respond positively to you or not, deep down they know why you are doing it. They know you love them and that you are concerned about their souls. But non-Christians may not understand your reasoning and may see you as thinking you are better than they are no matter how you approach them. Like I said in my opening paragraph, they don’t see God’s word the way that we do. I firmly believe that we will make a more positive impact on a non-Christian simply by being a good example when you are around them. Just be Christ-like in front of them and wait for doors to open to talk to them about Jesus and the Bible. Show them the life you live by how you talk, where you go, what you watch, and what you find important. Treat them with kindness and respect even if they aren’t making all the right choices. Show them respect even when they don’t show you respect. Stand up for the truth at all times, but always with respect and never stoop to their level by losing your temper. Friends, were we not once where they are? Yes! We were. And I always try to keep in mind that everyone hasn’t had the upbringing and opportunities to learn God’s word that I have had and I haven’t walked in their shoes. And this brings me to the final verse of our study. I have always found this verse out of place because I didn’t truly understand what it meant. But after I have studied it, I get what Jesus is telling us.

Matthew 7:6 says, “Do not give what is holy to the dogs; nor cast your pearls before swine, lest they trample them under their feet, and turn and tear you in pieces.”

When we are trying to help someone, we have to know when we have done all that we can do. Sadly, there are some people who don’t want to be helped. They do not value God’s word. It means nothing to them. When we make an effort to make a righteous judgment in order to help a person who doesn’t want to change, it is like throwing what is holy to dogs and and throwing pearls to pigs. Pigs were considered unclean in the law of Moses and dogs were considered savages at that time. They only want the scraps of food that are thrown out onto the ground. They get the leftovers.  In comparison the people Jesus is comparing to dogs and pigs only want the scraps of the world, not the pearls of the gospel. They may want no part of the Bible at all. Or, they may only want the parts of the Bible that suit their lifestyle, or they may want to twist the Bible to fit their way of life. Hence the term, scraps. They don’t want what is good, right, and whole. They don’t want the full truth. They want scraps. This comparison is not to degrade a person and call them dogs or pigs. They are human beings that God loves just like we are. It is only an analogy about how they treat God’s word. They treat God’s word the way that dogs and pigs treat scraps of food. If we keep coming at them with God’s Holy Word (pearls) and they keep pushing it away, eventually they may turn on us, attack us and try to destroy us in some way, either by taking advantage of us or possibly slandering our name. We have to decide if a person just has no interest in the truth of the gospel. It is a judgment call. We can’t force a person to change no matter how hard we try. It is ultimately up to them. We should not feel anger towards them, but rather, pity, because of the state of their soul. At that point, all we can do is treat them with kindness and respect, and pray for them. 

Remember what Jesus told His twelve disciples in Matthew 10:14, “And whoever will not receive you nor hear your words, when you depart from that house or city, shake off the dust from your feet.”

Jesus knows that sometimes we are just spinning our wheels with some people. He wants us to spend time and effort helping those who want to be helped. Sometimes it may even be someone we love dearly. Does that mean we are giving up completely? No, of course not.  We can keep praying for the person. We can keep showing kindness. We keep being a Christ-like example. But we have to protect ourselves and concentrate more on those who are interested in learning the truth. I’m so happy that Jesus loves us so much that he added verse 6 to his teaching on 

righteous judgment. Even though it seems out of place, it actually ties in perfectly. Jesus wants us to protect ourselves. He doesn’t expect us to work a miracle with people who are obstinate towards God’s word. Thank you Jesus for Matthew 7:6.

In closing, let me ask myself all the questions. You can do the same. Was Jesus condemning all judgment? No, He was condemning unrighteous judgment. As long as we are following Jesus’ rules for righteous judgment, then we are always going to be in the right.  Do I want God to judge me in the same way that I judge others? If I want mercy and compassion, then I have to show mercy and compassion. Do I examine myself before judging someone else? Do I have a beam in my eye that I need to remove? I can’t help anyone if I myself am not right with God. Am I a hypocrite? Self righteous? I don’t want to be like the scribes and Pharisees whom Jesus called hypocrites over and over in Matthew 23. What is my purpose for judging a person? Am I doing it to save the person’s soul or to ruin their reputation? Am I trying to make myself feel better about my sin? Motives are everything. And finally, does the person want to be helped? Have I done all I can do? I have to protect myself from being attacked by the person I am trying to help. If they have no interest in changing, then I have to stop throwing my pearls to the pigs and move on. One more question, my sisters in Christ, does Jesus imply through these verses that we need each other? Absolutely, He does!! How would we be able to help each other if we don’t get to know one another, and make connections with each other? It is so important that we as sisters in Christ are there for one another. I need my sisters in my life, and I want to be present and available for my sisters. I need to do better in this area and I’m challenging myself to do that. That is my challenge to us all, myself included. Get to know one another and make those connections with each other. I know we will be blessed for it.

I hope I have done this subject justice. I love God’s word and want to make sure that I am thorough in everything I write. I also want to put myself into it and make it personal to all of you. I love you all and I hope you have a wonderful weekend. Thank you for reading!! 

God’s Plan of Salvation

If anyone ever needs help in learning the truth of the gospel, please reach out and I can help you or put you in contact with someone who can. Below is the plan that God has set forth in His word, for mankind to receive His grace that leads to salvation and an eternity with God in heaven. 

We have to hear His word. (Romans 10:17) 

Upon hearing the message of Jesus, we believe it. (Mark 16:16) 

Then, we confess Jesus’ name before men. (Matthew 10:32) 

Next, we repent of our sins. (Acts 2:38, Acts 3:19) 

Finally, we are baptized into Christ for the remission of our sins. (Acts 2:38, Matthew 28:18-20, Mark 16:16, Romans 6:3-4, Acts 22:16, 1 Corinthians 12:13, Galatians 3:26-27) After baptism, God adds us to His church. (Acts 2:47)

Then, we remain faithful in our commitment to Christ until death. (Revelation 2:10, 2 Peter 2:20-22)