RASH JUDGMENT
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Matthew 7:1-3 |
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Judge not, that ye be not judged. For with what judgment ye judge, ye shall be judged: and with what measure ye mete it shall be measured to you again. And why beholdest thou the mote that is in thy brother’s eye, but considerest not the beam that is in thine own eye? KJV |
Do not judge, or you too will be judged. For in the same way as you judge others, you will be judged, and with the measure you use, it will be measured to you. Why do you look at the speck of sawdust in your brother’s eye and pay no attention to the plank in your own eye? NIV |
Most days I watch the news on TV, and I will confess here and now that I find it very hard indeed to keep critical thoughts to myself. I find I can’t help but judge others when I hear things like:
- A man convicted of drunk driving and killing a pedestrian was set free by the Magistrate. It was his third offence for driving under the influence.
- A 10-year-old boy was left to drown in a pond by Police because none of them had received water rescue training.
- Yet another Government official has been caught in a sting accepting cash for questions. This is the third time in as many months that officials have been caught accepting bribes.
- A Mother has been found guilty of deliberately setting fire to her own house and killing her three children in order to gain the affections of the man who is living with her.
- Another 250 people have died as a result of a rocket being fired into a busy marketplace in a town near Jerusalem.
This list could go on and on, such is the state of our society in which there is so much that is unashamedly wrong and to expect people to withhold criticism and judgment might be considered as wrong in itself because most people would find it almost impossible not to be angry and critical. And yet Jesus says: Don’t judge.
With this in mind, I have looked up the meaning of the word criticise:
- Assess (v) where one analyses, evaluates, appraises and critiques.
- Censure (v) where one condemns, slates, slams, disapproves and nit-picks.
As you can see there is a big difference between the two meanings and I must admit to feeling a little better after finding this out because I have been convicted for being somewhat critical and judgmental of others, and of falling into the trap of it becoming a habit.
As Christians we are supposed to analyse and evaluate what we see, hear and read and to judge it by what the Scriptures say and not to make rash judgments. Jesus is not saying that we should abandon our discernment but rather compare it with what He has told us in the Bible and this is because there is nowhere else to go and also because the Holy Spirit is the only One who is in a true position to criticise.
In the Book of Acts, we are told of The Bereans:
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Acts 17:11 |
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Who received the Word of God with all readiness of mind and searched the Scriptures daily whether those things were so. KJV |
For they received the message with great eagerness and examined the Scriptures every day to see if what Paul said was true. NIV |
- We should not judge motives, only God can do this.
- We should not judge by appearance.
- We should not speak evil of another.
So often we see fault in others not realising that the same fault, if not bigger, is in ourselves.
As Oswald Chambers puts it: If I see the mote in your eye, it means I have a beam in my own eye. Every wrong thing that I see in you, God locates in me. Every time I judge, I condemn myself. Stop having a measuring rod for other people. There is always one fact more in every man’s case about which we know nothing.
It is interesting that the opposite of criticism is praise.
We need to remember that if God judged us like we deserve, we would be in Hell, but He does not, because He judges us through what Jesus did on the Cross of Calvary.
May God help us to be less critical and to praise more. We can begin afresh with praise and thanksgiving for our wonderful Saviour, Jesus, without whom we would all be lost.