“Judge not, that you be not judged.  For with the judgment you pronounce you will be judged, and with the measure, you use it will be measured to you.”  Matthew 7:1-2 ESV¹

Read Matthew 7:1-14 & Luke 6:37-38

To the rational mind, racism, sexism, and all forms of prejudice are senseless. After all, who of us chose the color of his/her skin? Which of us decided before our birth which gender we would be? Who among us had any input on who his/her ancestors were? Did any of us get to vote for the color of his/her eyes, or height, or body structure? Who got to pick his/her personality, strengths, or weakness? Though it is not rational, most of us harbor some kind of prejudice. Why is that?

We are afraid of differences. Fear entered the world when sin entered the picture. “[Eve] took of the [forbidden tree’s] fruit and ate, and she also gave some to her husband who was with her, and he ate. Then their eyes were opened, and they knew they were naked. And they sewed fig together leaves and made themselves loincloths” (Genesis 3:6-7). When they sinned, they realized their differences. They were afraid; the differences made them feel vulnerable, so they tried to hide. Fear still drives many of our thoughts, words, and actions.

We believe lies. Children aren’t born prejudice, but they are born selfish. This innate self-centeredness is fertile ground for prejudice to be taught. Somewhere along the line, all prejudices started with someone being told a lie. That lie, told long enough and loud enough, coupled with experiences which seem to substantiate that lie, make the lie seem like the truth. Those lies become beliefs and are passed on accordingly. “Satan is the father of lies” (John 8:44). Satan is the one who causes division; he is the one who ultimately benefits when lies are believed and passed on.

We have a natural propensity for hate. Hate is so prevalent in our nature that we don’t often realize it. We may not hate those of another race, or gender, or world view. But our hate shows up in everything from the conflicts in our own families to rivalries between sports teams. There is nothing wrong with a good discussion over differing views or some friendly competition, but we must be careful not to misplace this natural desire to fight. We all do have an enemy to fight; the desire to hate and fight is in us on purpose. We do have a righteous struggle, and it is not “against flesh and blood, but against … the spiritual forces of evil” (Ephesians 6:12).

Through the power of the Holy Spirit, we can overcome the fear, lies, and hate that feed prejudice. “God gave us a Spirit not of fear but of power and love and self-control” (2 Timothy 1:7). Jesus is “‘the Way and the Truth and the Life’” (John 14:6). Jesus came and defeated sin and death and “will soon crush Satan under [our] feet” (Romans 16:20). We have been given “the whole armor of God, that [we] may be able to stand against the schemes of the devil” (Ephesians 6:11). But even those of us who are in Christ and filled with the Spirit, need some serious instruction in the area of prejudging.

Remember to whom these words were originally spoken. This teaching wasn’t for the masses who were following Jesus for the excitement or for the free hand-outs, but it was for those who were serious enough about being discipled by Jesus that they climbed a mountain to be near Him and to hear what He had to say. These words are still part of the Sermon on the Mount which began to be recorded way back in chapter 5 of Matthew.

These disciples probably thought they were completely pure in their desires, thoughts, words, and actions, but to these serious ones, to these who desired to help others, Jesus had strong words, “’You hypocrite[s]’” (Matthew 7:5). We just might be in the same boat. These exhortations still apply today to many of us who have committed our lives to Christ.

According to Jesus, we might not see ourselves in a true light. “‘Why do you see the speck that is in your brother’s eye, but do not notice the log that is in your own eye?’” (Matthew 7:3). We can’t always see clearly, because we tend to excuse our own faults. It is easier for us to focus on the failures of others than to look honestly at our own shortcomings. We tend to judge ourselves by our intentions but others by their actions. This keeps us from seeing the whole truth.

We can be very prideful. We naturally think we are right. Because of that, we think we have the ability to fix others. “‘How can you say to your brother, “Let me take the speck out of your eye,” when there is the log in your own eye?  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’” (Matthew 7:4-5). Because of our blind spots, we can jump to conclusions, and we don’t realize our own limitations. If we don’t take the proper time to humbly work through our own faults with Jesus, we won’t have what will we need to legitimately help others.

We may not actually care about other people. “‘So, whatever you wish that others would do to you, do also to them’” (Matthew 7:12). If we genuinely cared about others, we would rely on the power of the Holy Spirit to put ourselves in their shoes, and we would be able to treat them with the understanding, the dignity, and the respect that we want them to give to us. Our sometimes-elevated view of ourselves and our needs prevents us from truly considering and understanding the plight of others.

Down underneath, we might not really believe there are consequences to judging. Because of our entitlement to our own opinions, we can recklessly dole out prejudgments without ever thinking we will receive back judgment ourselves. But prejudice is not a one-sided thing. “‘Judge not, that you be not judged. For with the judgment you pronounce you will be judged, and with the measure you use it will be measured to you’” (Matthew 7:1-2). What comes around, goes around. “For whatever one sows, that will he also reap” (Galatians 6:7).

We just might believe we have the right to judge. We may think we have some kind of enlightened view on something in particular, and we simply must share it. But “what gives you the right to make such a judgment? What do you have that God hasn’t given you? And if everything you have is from God, why boast as though it were not a gift?” (1 Corinthians 4:7 NLT²). If we know something others don’t know, we didn’t discover that on our own; God gave us the wisdom, but we may only be holding a piece of the puzzle. The ones whom we are tempted to judge might have other pieces of the puzzle. Only God sees the entire picture.

Now, there is right and wrong, and there are some things that need to be judged. Those judgments are to be made by God. “God is a righteous judge” (Psalm 7:11); “He will judge the peoples with equity” (Psalm 96:10). And there are people who will someday be given the right to judge; “the saints will judge the world” (1 Corinthians 6:2). But, according to Revelation 20, “those to whom the authority to judge [is] committed” (Revelation 20:4) appear to also be the ones who have been beheaded for their faith. If beheading is the prerequisite for the position of judge, I am not sure I want it!

A word to the wise, to the one who has, with the help of the Holy Spirit gone through the difficult work of removing all logs from his/her eyes, and who has been so humbled in the process that he/she has no prejudice left: Jesus says this one has gained a treasure. It is a treasure that is intended to be shared, but Jesus gives this warning. “‘Do not give dogs what is holy, and do not throw your pearls before pigs, lest they trample them underfoot and turn to attack you’” (Matthew 7:6). Be careful with whom you share pearls of wisdom. Not everyone is ready or worthy of them. “‘If anyone will not receive you or listen to your words, shake the dust from your feet [and move on]’” (Matthew 10:14). But the fact that there are “dogs” and “pigs,” means that there are some who are “non-dogs” and “non-pigs.” Some people are ready and need to receive that which God has given you. Don’t let past rejection stop you from finding and feeding them. If you don’t know where to start, “‘ask, and [the direction] will be given to you, seek and you will find, knock, and it will be opened for you. For everyone who asks receives, and the one who seeks finds, and to the one who knocks it will be opened’” (Matthew 7:7-8).

The thing about judging is that is says more about the one judging than the one being judged. What are your judgments saying about you?

¹ Scripture quotations marked with ESV are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version (ESV), copyright 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. All Scriptures are taken from the ESV unless otherwise noted. To aid in understanding, I have capitalized references to God.

² Scripture quotations marked NLT are from The Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright 1996, Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Wheaton, IL 60189 USA. To aid in understanding, I have capitalized references to God.