Judge not?

"Don't drop j's dude." I say this jokingly sometimes, but I've come to realize recently that there are some people around me who use this saying quite seriously. I was blessed enough this weekend to spend a good bit of time with my good friend Andy Jones, and somewhere in the midst of our weekend discussion, this issue arose: what do people mean when they say "Don't judge me."? We decided that what they actually mean varies depending upon the situation, but the common reference used to defend this statement is usually Matthew 7:1 in which Jesus says "Judge not, that you be not judged" (NKJV). So, the real question appears to be "what did Jesus mean"?

Well, Andy and I whipped out an interlinear Bible (Greek, Hebrew, KJV), a Strong's Concordance (the hefty one), and Andy's study Bible, prayed for understanding, and went to it, discussing as we went. The actual word used for judging in Matthew 7 carries the connotation of condemnation, not just discernment, which fits with what people seem to mean when they say, "don't judge me." It's more like saying "don't condemn me."

There is so much to be said about this passage that I will only touch on two pieces tonight. First, there are two distinctions to be made. The first distinction is between believers and unbelievers. We are not to judge unbelievers, those outside the Church. Paul makes this VERY clear in 1 Corinthians 5:12-14. What he also makes clear in this passage is that we ARE to judge fellow believers, those inside the Church. So, the first parity: do not judge unbelievers, judge believers. Read on.

The second distinction has to do with what's up in Matthew 7 - the distinction between our own human, self-righteous judgment and God's righteous judgment. This distinction is made clearer when Paul speaks to it in Romans 14. Christ, in Matthew 7, is saying something first about what judgment we are to exercise and second (in the verses following) about how we are to exercise that judgment. What he is saying about the first is that we are not to exercise our own judgment on others. Stay with me. I did not say that we are not to judge our fellow believers. I said that we are not to judge them with OUR OWN judgment. By rebuking our fellow believers when they sin, we are not judging/condemning them; we are merely delivering the message that God has already passed judgment on their actions. For instance, if you know that a friend of yours, a believer, is getting drunk on the weekends, it is your duty as his brother to rebuke him, gently, and in love. You are not actually "judging" him when you do this. You are using your judgment (discernment) to see his sin and to identify it as such, but you are not condemning him. His actions stand condemned already, for God specifically forbids drunkenness in His Word in Ephesians 5:18 (one of several places). Thus, as Paul explains in Romans 14, we are not to judge our brothers and sisters according to any standard except that by which God will judge us.

I think of it this way: if God expressly speaks against something, I am expressly against it and will "judge" that thing in believers. If God does not clearly speak against something, that thing truly is between that believer and God.

Be careful what you judge; don't put words in God's mouth just because you don't like something. And, on the other hand, be careful to inform your Christian brothers and sisters of God's judgment as expressly written in his Word because he commands you to do so (2 Tim 4:2 is one of several places God commands this).

In my next posting, I hope to touch more on how Christ wants us to exercise this judgment. That is what Matthew 7:2-6 explains. I also hope to make it a little more clear that it is ridiculous to tell someone, someone who is rebuking you for something that God specifically condemns (judges) in his Word, "don't judge me." If this is you, please realize that your brother is not judging you, and that even if he is, what he is trying to tell you is that God is judging your sin, and that's the only judgment that really matters anyway.

Oh my God, how can it be?...

How can God love me so much? How can it be that he would go about planning things out so far in advance so that they will work for my good? He is currently speaking to me and teaching me (not to mention refreshing me) through a book written by a not-so-famous pastor in 1892. I picked up this book almost two years ago in a little, hole-in-the-wall, antique bookstore in Chattanooga, TN when I was there for a weekend to see Emily's cousin marry. We were just walking along when we saw this old store and decided that it would be fun to browse. Well, I like old books (I know what you're thinking, and my answer is, "I have no idea."), so I picked up a few stories that I knew and two books that I'd never heard of, books that you've probably never heard of either. I stored them both away, and the other day, I had a few quiet hours that were not stuffed with planned events, so I pulled out Hours With a Sceptic. Oh my God, I am amazed at your planning and foreknowledge. No book recommendation can be better than a recommendation from the Holy Spirit, which is what this book most definitely was. Oh how God knows the details of the future.

And now, he is also ministering to my lovely wife and to me by bringing us fellowship that we have both so desperately needed lately. Today has been for me one of the most refreshing days in a very long time because God has reminded me, by the company and conversation of dear friends, the depths of both his knowledge of and love for me - me personally. There is much more that I would like to write, but I must sleep. I get to worship with the body of Christ in a very few hours. Thank God for that.