To JUDGE…or NOT to Judge?

RE-Release from: November 14, 2018, 10:00 AM

TO JUDGE or NOT TO JUDGE…..that is the BIG QUESTION??

To all my brother’s and sister’s in Christ, I first want to preface this teaching by saying…I love you and truly believe that you have SOOO much VALUE to GOD that he sent HIS only son because of the LOVE HE has for you and me, so that we do not have to “stay stuck” in our sin and bondage…that JESUS came to MAKE us FREE!!! I also know that we are all in our own timetable of transformation and sanctification…however…please let us not become complacent about where we are and where GOD wants us to be…by using excuses and trying to justify this place of compromise.  If we truly LOVE and KNOW HIM, we will OBEY HIS commands….it doesn’t mean we are perfect…it just means we want ALL that HE has for us!

I wanted to address what I hear SO MANY TIMES coming from “Christian’s” that say…”Don’t judge me, God doesn’t want us to judge”…and then they throw out a “PARTIAL SCRIPTURE” taken out of context of the whole chapter or what the rest of the meaning is.  So today…I want us to DIG IN to the scriptures and look for the COMPLETE and WHOLE meaning of what is being communicated!

If we can…let’s look at first WHO the “righteous JUDGE” is…

2 Timothy 4:8-Henceforth there is laid up for me a crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge, shall give me at that day: and not to me only, but unto all them also that love his appearing.

There is only ONE RIGHTEOUS JUDGE and that is the Lord.  But there will be a JUDGE we face at the end of our lives.  Jesus is full of grace and truth (John 1:14), and judges with right judgement (1John 4:8).

In that…God has given us not only HIS WORD to live by and obey, has put HIS HOLY SPIRIT within us to “quicken” our mortal body and bring us conviction to keep us on the right path, but has also equipped and called us to hold each other accountable (submit to one another in the fear of the Lord).  HIS word will be used to bring reproof, rebuke and correction when needed, but in love, gentleness, and humility.  I am grateful for all the leaders, elders and brethren HE has put in my life to help me see my own blind spots of where I have gotten off track, and have not been walking soberly with HIM.

The scripture I hear most quoted in the “DO NOT JUDGE ME” mantra, comes from… Matthew 7:1— “Do not judge so that you will not be judged.  If we stop right there…it really looks like…we should NOT JUDGE.  However, let us read on to complete the whole “context”…

Matthew 7: ² “For in the WAY you judge, you will be judged; and by your standard of measure, it will be measured to you. ³“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? ⁴ “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? 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.  I don’t believe we are to JUDGE with a HYPOCRITAL PIOUS JUDGEMENT, but we are to judge the brethren with a RIGHTEOUS judgement…NOT a SELF-RIGHTEOUS judgement!

So the context is pointing out what JESUS always hated….PRIDE….self-righteous hypocrites that do not humble themselves first…and think that they are ABOVE others..that have a spirit of religious piety that think they are not equal to others because of their educational degrees, titles, royal robes and membership to their religious organizations of Saducess and Pharisess, and they have put themselves on a very HIGH pedestal or even physical platform.

I do believe Jesus gives us each other and gives GIFTS to HIS BODY for the process of transforming the way we think and becoming more so like HIS IMAGE…not the image of man’s righteousness.  These scriptures do say 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!  So…it doesn’t say…DON’T EVER JUDGE?? 

 I believe when we teach and or correct as a leader, we always have to examine our own heart’s first—and continue to constantly die to ourselves daily!!  Die to the need to be “like God”…high and lifted up!  I want to continue to move into a place of self-growth, sanctification and walking in holiness and righteousness so that I can become a WITNESS of the GOODNESS of GOD!

In continuance of this thought…that we are to look at our brethren and see where they are STUCK in bondage…let us take a look at the next few chapters…

1 CORINTHIANS 5:1-13–

¹ It is reported commonly that there is fornication among you, and such fornication as is not so much as named among the Gentiles, that one should have his father’s wife. ² And ye are puffed up, and have not rather mourned, that he that hath done this deed might be taken away from among you. ³ For I verily, as absent in body, but present in spirit, have judged already, as though I were present, concerning him that hath so done this deed, ⁴ In the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, when ye are gathered together, and my spirit, with the power of our Lord Jesus Christ, ⁵ To deliver such an one unto Satan for the destruction of the flesh, that the spirit may be saved in the day of the Lord Jesus.⁶ Your glorying is not good. Know ye not that a little leaven leaveneth the whole lump? ⁷ Purge out therefore the old leaven, that ye may be a new lump, as ye are unleavened. For even Christ our passover is sacrificed for us: ⁸ Therefore let us keep the feast, not with old leaven, neither with the leaven of malice and wickedness; but with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth.⁹ I wrote unto you in an epistle not to company with fornicators: ¹⁰ Yet not altogether with the fornicators of this world, or with the covetous, or extortioners, or with idolaters; for then must ye needs go out of the world. ¹¹ But now I have written unto you not to keep company, if any man that is called a brother be a fornicator, or covetous, or an idolater, or a railer, or a drunkard, or an extortioner; with such an one no not to eat. ¹² For what have I to do to judge them also that are without? do not YE JUDGE them that are within? ¹³But them that are without God judgeth. Therefore put away from among yourselves that wicked person.

Here I have highlighted some parts of this Chapter that I want you to see.  The Apostle Paul was writing this to the Corinthians at the close of this three year’s residence in Ephesus.  Paul was bringing correction of error brought about by the carnality of believers at Corinth, they were in an immoral condition.  So FIRST Paul had to JUDGE their condition in order to bring gentle correction.  There was a man that slept with his father’s wife, and they were compromising and he accused them of being proud and not mourning over this sin among them, and had allowed the man doing this  not be corrected or “taken away from among them”.  He reminded them that this can affect the whole body…just like leaven (yeast).  He reminds them they “become who they associate with” (not to keep company with fornicators among brethren).  He reminds them of a previous letter he wrote that they will be in the company of fornicators of this world, or with covetous, or extortioners, or with idolaters, because they cannot go out of the world.  But he reminds them that if  any man that is called a brother, (Christian in your church) be a fornicator, coveteous, idolater, railer, drunkard, or an extortioner, with SUCH AN ONE, NO NOT TO EAT!  He also says God will judge those that our without (on the outside of the brethren in the world), but asks the question, do not ye JUDGE them that are within??

So we see here that a LEADER is correcting the CHURCH to hold the BRETHREN accountable within themselves…and not to become complacent to the sin among the body of Christ.

If we DO NOT say anything to our brother’s or sister’s about where they are “STUCK’ in their SIN—we become “INDIFFERENT” and I would have to beg the question…is this really LOVING THEM??  Or is this enabling them to continue in their bondage because of our lack of courage and fear of gentle confrontation—which is a self-ish motive for not confronting? 

IS the OPPORSITE of LOVE…..”INDIFFERENCE”??

Or….can love grow with the right amount of gentleness and correction…and allow these brethren to become ALL that GOD intended??

We see Paul continuing this subject…as you can even hear maybe his complete frustration with them going to law against each other in 1 Corinthians 6…

1 Corinthians 6:1-8 ¹ Dare any of you, having a matter against another, go to law before the unjust, and not before the saints? ²Do ye not know that the saints shall judge the world? and if the world shall be judged by you, are ye unworthy to judge the smallest matters? ³ Know ye not that we shall judge angels? how much more things that pertain to this life? ⁴ If then ye have judgments of things pertaining to this life, set them to judge who are least esteemed in the church. ⁵ I speak to your shame. Is it so, that there is not a wise man among you? no, not one that shall be able to judge between his brethren? ⁶ But brother goeth to law with brother, and that before the unbelievers.⁷ Now therefore there is utterly a fault among you, because ye go to law one with another. Why do ye not rather take wrong? why do ye not rather suffer yourselves to be defrauded? ⁸ Nay, ye do wrong, and defraud, and that your brethren.

We see here where Paul is asking them in regards to this particular issue , “are ye unworthy to judge the smallest matters?”.  He reminds them that “we shall judge angels…and asks again if there “is not a wise man among you? No, not one that shall be able to JUDGE between his BRETHREN?

So in these two chapters…we see where “holding the BODY of Christ, the brethren accountable amongst themselves…is RECOMMENDED by the Apostle Paul himself!  Paul is correcting them for NOT JUDGING amongst themselves those caught in sin.

Galatians 6:1—¹ Brethren, if a man be overtaken in a fault, ye which are spiritual, restore such an one in the spirit of meekness; considering thyself, lest thou also be tempted.

We are to help RESTORE in the spirit of meekness (gentleness and humility).  We can only RESTORE and bring correction if we look and judge where a person is struggling within their life.

We again…are to NOT have this self-rightous judgment, and we are definitely NOT to JUDGE by APPEARANCES, by what is on the OUTSIDE. 

John 7:24–Judge not according to the appearance, but judge righteous judgment.

Let us be slow to pronounce guilt based on hearsay…and let us presume innocence until sufficient evidence can prove guilt beyond reasonable doubt.  Let the goal be restoration (2 Corinthians 13:11).   We must be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ forgave us (Ephesians 4:32). 

But I do believe we are called to help bring RESTORATION to our brother’s and sisters in Christ by speaking LIFE and TRUTH into their lives…righteous judgment.

THIS ……….IS……..CORAGEOUS………..LOVE!!