Luke 6:37: Judge not, and you shall not be judged. Condemn not, and you shall not be condemned. Forgive, and you will be forgiven.

I think Judge not, and you shall not be judged are some of the most familiar words in the Bible.  I also think these words are some of the most misunderstood words in the Bible.  Perhaps you have been taught that Jesus is teaching us that all judging is wrong all of the time… many people think this is the point of the text.  Let’s compare Scripture with Scripture… we find a fuller explanation in Matthew’s account.

Matthew 7:1-6: “Judge not, that you be not judged. 2 For with what judgment you judge, you will be judged; and with the measure you use, it will be measured back to you. 3 And why do you look at the speck in your brother’s eye, but do not consider the plank in your own eye? 4 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? 5 Hypocrite! First remove the plank from your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother’s eye. 6 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.”

I trust it is abundantly clear that Jesus in not teaching us that all judging is wrong all of the time… obviously Jesus is asking us to judge what is holy and what are pearls just as He is asking us to judge who are dogs and who are swine.  Since Jesus is not talking about dogs that go “Woof Woof” and pigs that go “Oink Oink” Jesus is talking about people who are acting like dogs and pigs… and I think it is just as obvious that He assumes we know how to make that judgment.

Listen to J Vernon McGee relate a story about this:
I remember a Tennessee legislator friend of mine who was a heavy drinker.  He was wonderfully converted and is a choice servant of God today.  The other members of the legislature knew how he drank.  Then they heard he “got religion,” as they called it.  One day this fellow took his seat in the legislature, and his fellow members looked him over.  Finally, someone rose, addressed the chairman of the meeting and said, “I make a motion that we hear a sermon from Deacon So-and-So.” Everyone laughed.  But my friend was equal to the occasion.  He got to his feet and said, “I’m sorry, I do not have anything to say.  My Lord told me not to cast my pearls before swine.”  He sat down, and they never ridiculed him anymore.

This legislator was putting into practice the advice we find in Proverbs 26:5: Answer a fool according to his folly lest he be wise in his own eyes.

So then, let me ask what does Jesus mean when He says Judge not and you shall not be judged?  I think I can answer this best by an illustration by Ken Sande.
“I knew he was too proud to take criticism,” thought Anne, “ and now I have proof!”
On the previous Sunday, Anne had dropped a prayer card in the offering plate asking her pastor to stop in and pray with her when she went to the hospital for some minor surgery. When he failed to come by, she called the church secretary and learned that her pastor had already been to the hospital that day to see another church member.
“So he has no excuse!” she thought. “He was in the building and knew I needed his support, but still he ignored me. He’s resented me ever since I told him his sermons lack practical application. Now he’s getting back at me by ignoring my spiritual needs. And he calls himself a shepherd!”
After brooding over his rejection for three days, Anne sat down Saturday evening and wrote a letter confronting her pastor about his pride, defensiveness and hypocrisy. As she sealed the envelope, she could not help thinking about the conviction he would feel when he opened his mail.
The moment she walked into church the next morning, one of the deacons hurried over to her. “Anne, I need to apologize to you. When I took the prayer cards out of the offering plates last week, I accidentally left your card with some pledge cards. I didn’t notice my mistake until last night when I was totaling the pledges. I am so sorry I didn’t get your request to the pastor!” Before Anne could reply to the deacon, her pastor approached her with a warm smile. “Anne, I was thinking about your comment about practical application as I finished my sermon yesterday. I hope you notice the difference in today’s message.”
Anne was speechless. All she could think about was the letter she had just dropped in the mailbox three blocks from church.
Anne’s judging was sinful.  She thought she had all the facts, but she didn’t, did she?  Anne’s sinful judging put her in a very embarrassing position… one where she was going to have to humble herself and go to her pastor before he received that letter she wrote and ask for his forgiveness.

Again, let me point out all judging is not sinful.  Most of us are familiar with this text:

1 Corinthians 2:14: But the natural man does not receive the things of the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him; nor can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned.

Most of us, however, are not familiar with verse 15:

1Corinthians 2:15 But he who is spiritual judges all things, yet he himself is rightly judged by no one.
What do you do when you go shopping?  You make judgments all the time.  You buy this head of lettuce because it looks fresh-er than the others.  You buy this brand of soup because you like it better than the other brands.  You go shopping at this store because you believe you are getting a better value than at other stores.  Why did you purchase the automobile you are now driving?  You made a judgment.  Was it a good judgment?  Hopefully ☺

When we vote on church officers each year what are we doing?  We are making judgments.  1 Timothy 3 gives us the qualifications that are necessary to serve as pastor and deacon… so when we carefully and prayerfully examine the candidates lives to see if they line up to the criteria laid out in the Bible we are making judgments that are pleasing God.

What Jesus is warning us about when He says, Judge not is our tendency to make critical judgments in the negative sense… and this involves looking for others’ faults and, without valid and sufficient reason, forming unfavorable opinions of their qualities, words, actions, or motives.  In simple terms, it means looking for the worst in others.

When Adam sinned, we all sinned.  Everyone of us has inherited a sin nature… and this means we have a natural tendency to make mistaken, negative judgments. We see examples of this throughout the Bible.

After the Israelites conquered the Promised Land, the tribes of Reuben, Gad, and the half tribe of Manasseh returned to their allotted land and built an altar by the Jordan. When the other tribes heard about the altar, they assumed the worst and rashly assembled their troops to go to war against their brothers. Fortunately, before a battle began, those who had built the altar were able to explain its legitimate purpose and avoid bloodshed. (Joshua 22:10-34)

In 1 Samuel, we read how Eli, the high priest, made a hasty, critical judgment. When Eli saw Hannah praying in the temple, moving her lips but making no sound, he concluded that she was drunk. Only after harshly confronting her did he learn that she was communing with the Lord in a way that put Eli to shame. (1:12-17)

Even King David made critical judgments. When he fled from his son Absalom, a man named Ziba brought David a critical report regarding Saul’s son, Mephibosheth, saying that he had turned against King David.  Without waiting to hear Mephibosheth’s side of the story, David passed judgment against this innocent man and turned all of his property over to a false witness. (2 Sam. 16:1-4; 19:24-30)

When Jesus was doing miracles and healing the blind, the Pharisees stubbornly closed their eyes to the good He was doing and interpreted His actions in the worst possible way, saying that He was actually serving the devil. (Matt. 12:22-24)

In Acts 21:26-29, we see that Paul meticulously followed all of the Jewish customs as he prepared to come into the temple. Even so, the Jews assumed the worst, jumping to the conclusion that he had defiled the temple and should be stoned.

The book of Galatians teaches us that the Apostle Paul repeatedly was condemned falsely, not only by the Jews, but also by people from within the Christian community. Like many church leaders today, he learned the hard lesson that servants of the Lord are often misunderstood, criticized, and judged by the very people they are trying to serve.  This just comes with the territory.

Unfortunately we don’t need to look back thousands of years to see people making critical judgments of others.  Just think how easy it is for us to believe the worst about others’ motives or actions:

If someone delays answering an email or a phone call, is it easy to think the worst… to assume he is avoiding us or not being responsible?  Could it be that he never received the message? Could he be overwhelmed by other responsibilities?

If your employer fails to give you a raise, is it easy to assume he is unappreciative… is it easy to assume he has judged you wrongly? Could the company be struggling to keep the business going in the face of increasing competition and operating costs?

If someone at church seems unfriendly, is it easy to assume that person is proud and/or doesn’t like you?  Could it be that person feels awkward and unsure of himself, and is hoping that someone will reach out to him?

If you make a suggestion to one of the committees in the church and that committee doesn’t act on your suggestion, is it easy to conclude that the people on that committee are narrow-minded and just don’t understand or appreciate your opinions?  Could it be that God is leading them in a different direction?

I trust it is abundantly clear that we don’t have to go back 2,000 years to find people making critical (sinful) judgments.  We have a natural tendency to do this every day, and because of the noetic effect of sin, none of us are immune from this.

Listen to Ken Sande again: Instead of judging others critically, God commands us to judge charitably. The church has historically used the word “charitable” as a synonym for the word “loving.” This has resulted in the expression, “charitable judgments.” Making a charitable judgment means that out of love for God, you strive to believe the best about others until you have facts to prove otherwise. In other words, if you can reasonably interpret facts in two possible ways, God calls you to embrace the positive interpretation over the negative, or at least to postpone making any judgment at all until you can acquire conclusive facts.

For example, when Anne’s pastor did not visit her in the hospital, she should have realized that while it was possible that he was deliberately slighting her, it was also possible that he had not received her note or had some other valid reason for not visiting her… she said herself that her surgery was minor… perhaps someone else in the congregation had a crisis come into his/her life. If Anne had developed the habit of making charitable judgments, she would have believed the best about her pastor until proven otherwise. Believing the best about others is not simply a nice thing to do… it is not optional behavior… God commands it.  Remember, God judges charitably, even mercifully, passing over and putting up with many wrongs. He is kind to unthankful and evil people (Luke 6:35).

Jesus reinforces our responsibility to judge others charitably by the second great commandment, “Love your neighbor as yourself” (Matt. 22:39). Just think of how quickly we judge ourselves favorably!  When we are questioned or criticized, our natural response is to explain our actions in the best possible light and make excuses for any perceived wrong.  Since this is the way we tend to love ourselves, it is also the way we should love others.

It is important to understand we should look for “reasonable ways” to believe the best about others. We are not called to close our eyes to the truth or to make judgments that are contrary to clear facts.  If we hear somebody tell a bold faced lie or say something vicious, we must rebuke that person (and we must do it with humility).  But if we only hear second-hand information or observe an act that could be interpreted in different ways, God calls us to withhold judgment and think the best until proven otherwise.
The call to judge others charitably is not something new. It goes all the way back to the Ten Commandments and is consistent with hundreds of years of church doctrine. In Exodus 20:16 God says, “You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor.” The church has historically interpreted this commandment not only to forbid lying but also to require charitable judgments. Luther’s Small Catechism teaches that this commandment means, “We should fear and love God so that we do not tell lies about our neighbor, betray him, slander him, or hurt his reputation, but defend him, speak well of him, and explain everything in the kindest way.”
Similarly, the Westminster Larger Catechism teaches that this commandment requires “preserving and promoting truth between man and man, and the good name of our neighbor,…a charitable esteem of our neighbors; loving, desiring, and rejoicing in their good name; sorrowing for and covering of their infirmities; freely acknowledging of their gifts and graces, defending their innocence; a ready receiving of a good report, and unwillingness to admit of an evil report, concerning them….”
The phrase “charitable judgments” may sound new to many of us today, but the concept itself has deep roots both in the Word of God and the teaching of the church. Therefore, we need to make the effort to ensure this attitude is deeply rooted in our hearts as well.

So when God says Judge not we need to understand the balance that is required on our part.  Listen to Ken Sande on this:
First, God’s command to be charitable does not require us to believe that an action is good when there is significant evidence to the contrary. Although we should always give people the benefit of the doubt, we should not ignore clear indications that things are not as they should be. In fact, excessive charity can lead to denial and blind us to issues that need to be faced. Ignoring these symptoms only delays dealing with a problem in its early stages. This can lead to disastrous results, as David discovered when he ignored indications that Absalom was turning the people of Israel against the king (see 2 Samuel 15:1-6).
Therefore, if you see signs of a significant problem, it is appropriate to investigate the matter, ask questions, gather reliable information, and draw necessary conclusions (Proverbs 18:17). If it appears that someone has done something wrong, and if that wrong is too serious to overlook (Proverbs. 19:11), you should go to that person and find out whether you are assessing the situation accurately (Matthew 18:15; Luke 17:3). As you approach him, you should speak tentatively instead of conclusively. For example, instead of saying, “You lied about why I was not at the meeting last night,” you might say, “Perhaps I misunderstood what you said, but it sounded like you accused me of deliberately missing the meeting last night.”
As you talk with the other person, you should give every opportunity for a reasonable explanation. If you did misunderstand the situation, you will have avoided needless offense. Conversely, if your concerns prove to be legitimate, God can use your loving confrontation to help the person face up to and overcome harmful actions (Gal. 6:1-2; James 5:19-20).
Second, charity does not require that we accept without question everything people tell us. Nor does it require that we naively entrust ourselves to people who do not have legitimate authority or have not proven themselves to be worthy of our trust. Since we live in a fallen world, charity must always walk hand-in-hand with discernment and wisdom (Phil. 1:9-10; James 3:14-17).
Third, the call for charitable judgments should not be used to stifle appropriate discussion, questioning, and debate. If people have sincere concerns about a matter, they should not be brushed aside with, “Just trust us.” Instead, their concerns should be reasonably explored, and a genuine effort should be made to find a just and mutually agreeable solution (1 Pet. 5:2-3). At the same time, once a matter has been examined and those in authority have reached a biblically valid decision, others should respect that decision and trust that God will work through it, even if it is not the course they would have preferred (Heb. 13:17).
Finally, charity does not prevent the exercise of redemptive church discipline. When the leaders of a church believe a member is caught in a sin, they have a responsibility to seek after him, like shepherds looking for a straying sheep (Matt. 18:12-14; Gal. 6:1). If he will not repent, the church should continue to confront him lovingly and bring to bear whatever discipline is necessary to help him see the seriousness of his sin and be restored to the Lord (Matt. 18:15-20).
One thing we must never judge is another person’s motives. Only God knows another person’s heart… all we can see is the fruit.  And while God has called us to be “fruit inspectors,” He has forbidden us to judge the motives that lie behind the fruit.

We must never say things like, “All he cares about is money,” or “She likes to go first so she can impress everyone,” or “He is too proud to listen to advice,” or “What he really wants is to make sure he has more influence than I have,” or “She is just too stubborn to admit she is wrong.”  Although these judg-ments may be true, we do not know that for sure.  This is sinful judging.

Let’s say a young married lady is guilty of adultery.  Could there be several possible motives for this one action?  Yes.

She could be poor.  Instead of paying the landlord in money, she could (sinfully) choose to pay off her debt the old fashioned way.

She could be a lover of pleasure more than a lover of God.

She could have had a fight with her husband and her motive is to hurt him… revenge.

She could have something in her past she wants to hide and the person with whom she committed adultery threatened to expose that secret unless she slept with him.

She might be bored with life and looking for excitement.

She might have gotten emotionally involved with someone other than her husband and one thing led to another.

In other words we cannot say what her motive was even though we know what she did.  The Bible teaches us that God alone can see into the heart and discern a person’s motives (see 1 Samuel 16:7; Psalm 44:21; Proverbs 16:2). When we believe that we too are able to do this, we are guilty of sinful presumption.

The Bible warns us that the longer a person indulges in sinful habits, the more mastery they have over that person.

Psalm 109:18-19: As he clothed himself with cursing as with his garment, So let it enter his body like water, And like oil into his bones. 19 Let it be to him like the garment which covers him, And for a belt with which he girds himself continually.

2 Timothy 2:16: But shun profane and idle babblings, for they will increase to more ungodliness.

What a dreadful judgment! If you do not flee from the habit of judging sinfully, this attitude will enslave you more and more and do increasing harm to you and to those around you.

It is one thing to discover where our sinful nature is deceiving us, but is another to know how to escape its clutches.  The only way to break free from the habit of making sinful judgments is to trace them to their source and cut them off at the root.  To do this we must deal with our heart.

James 4:1-12: Where do wars and fights come from among you? Do they not come from your desires for pleasure that war in your members? 2 You lust and do not have. You murder and covet and cannot obtain. You fight and war. Yet you do not have because you do not ask. 3 You ask and do not receive, because you ask amiss, that you may spend it on your pleasures. 4 Adulterers and adulteresses! Do you not know that friendship with the world is enmity with God? Whoever therefore wants to be a friend of the world makes himself an enemy of God. 5 Or do you think that the Scripture says in vain, “The Spirit who dwells in us yearns jealously”? 6 But He gives more grace. Therefore He says: “God resists the proud, But gives grace to the humble.” 7 Therefore submit to God. Resist the devil and he will flee from you. 8 Draw near to God and He will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners; and purify your hearts, you double-minded. 9 Lament and mourn and weep! Let your laughter be turned to mourning and your joy to gloom. 10 Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord, and He will lift you up. 11 Do not speak evil of one another, brethren. He who speaks evil of a brother and judges his brother, speaks evil of the law and judges the law. But if you judge the law, you are not a doer of the law but a judge. 12 There is one Lawgiver, who is able to save and to destroy. Who are you to judge another?

These verses describe two of the most common sources of sinful judgments. The first is selfishness. When others stand in the way of what we want, our old nature rises up to remove any and all obstacles by tearing them down and attacking what credibility and influence they have over us.

A second source of sinful judgments is pride. Thinking that we are better than others, we set ourselves up as the ultimate arbiter of truth.  Pride whispers in your ear “You know more about this than others… your way is better than those other ways… you understand the truth about these things.”   But when we do this we are imitating Satan by trying to play God (vs. 7, 12).  Pride leads me to believe I think that my beliefs, my convictions, theology, and doctrines are better than others, and as a result I look down on anyone who disagrees with me (cf. Gal. 5:26).

Selfishness and pride are not the only roots of sinful judgments.  Self-righteousness, insecurity, jealousy, self-pity, prejudice, and unforgiveness can also result in thinking the worst about others.

Think for a moment about the many different relationships that you have with the people God has brought into your life. I trust there are at least several people in your life whom you find easy to love. Perhaps these people have blessed you in some way. You like and respect them so much that if someone else should criticize them, you automatically think, “Oh, that could not be true!”  No matter what they are accused of, you instinctively believe that there must be a good explanation for what they have done.

At the other end of the spectrum are people who are prickly… people who are very difficult to love. They may have disappointed you, disagreed with you, or hurt you in some way. If you are like most people, you find it easy to not like these people. Critical attacks stick like Velcro and favorable reports slide off like WD 40.  No matter what these people do, it is difficult for you to think the best about them.

What is it that makes you think the best about some people and the worst about others?  Yes, some people are easier to like than others… some people have habits we find annoying. But in many cases the difference is found not in these other people, but in the way we choose to think about them. If someone has not benefited me, agreed with me, supported me, fulfilled me, satisfied me, or otherwise demonstrated love for me, it is much harder to love him… it is much harder to judge him charitably.

I want to close with something Ken Sande wrote:

Help Me to Judge Rightly
Lord, help me to judge others
as I want them to judge me:
Charitably, not critically,
Privately, not publicly,
Gently, not harshly,
In humility, not pride.
Help me to believe the best about others,
until facts prove otherwise-
To assume nothing,
to seek all sides of the story,
And to judge no one until I’ve removed
the log from my own eye.
May I never bring only the Law,
to find fault and condemn.
Help me always to bring the Gospel,
to give hope and deliverance,
As you, my Judge and Friend,
have so graciously done for me.