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One of the most oft-quoted verses in the Bible, by non-believers and Believers alike, is Matthew 7:1a: “Do not judge….” Why do we love this verse?

tasteIt’s the principle of reciprocity. If I give you a pass on your sin, then I get a free pass on mine. And if I’m so magnanimous to give you a pass on something everyone knows is really wrong, then I get an even wider berth to do as I please. So, we give passes for gossip, adultery, gluttony, homosexuality, and any assortment of behaviors consistent with what are traditionally considered deadly sins and inconsistent with virtues. And, mostly, I give a pass to myself.

There are three problems with this kind of reciprocity.

First, I am confused about who provides the free passes. It’s not my opinion that matters. The only one with bonafide free passes is the son of God, Jesus, sent to give everyone a pass on every single one of our sins if we place our trust in Him. (John 3:16) So, the issue isn’t whether or not I give you a free pass, it’s whether or not you’ve received yours. And that free pass comes from admission of sin, confession of sin, and repentance from sin, so that we can have freedom from sin–not freedom or license to sin. (Galatians 5:13)

Second, I ignore that wide is the gate and broad is the road to destruction and plenty go that route (Matthew 7:13-14). By the same token, small is the gate and narrow the road leading to life, so I shouldn’t be so surprised that few find it. But, I also shouldn’t be so quick to usher so many down the wrong path by offering approval. (Romans 1:28-32)

And, in case we forget, the gate marked “Free Passes” is Jesus, not anyone’s opinion about anyone’s behavior. (John 10:9) I should always point to following Jesus, not what I alone accept or approve.

Third, when I say, “Who am I to judge?” I am still practicing the reciprocity principle and practicing ignorance of the Scripture referenced. Matthew 7:1 (“Do not judge…”) is the favorite verse of many who may not believe the rest of the Bible or who haven’t studied the rest of the passage. But Jesus goes on to say that we need to first get the blatant sin out of our lives (the log or the plank in our eye) so that we can clearly see to remove the speck of sin from someone else’s eye. The point that it’s a speck and not a log like our own really means, “Don’t criticize. Stop being a hypocrite.” The real reason I practice reciprocity is that I don’t want to bother with my own sin first. If I did, then I just might have the capacity to point to the One giving out the passes and quit criticizing.

[Funny aside: I don’t know many parents who start quoting, “Who am I to judge?” when their children step out of line. Seems like most of us are pretty willing to step in when it’s someone we truly love and want to seek the best.]

The rest of the story

If we read the rest of Matthew 7, Jesus offers other relevant insights into this issue of judging–which may be better understood as discernment or discrimination, instead of what some believe is the gift of criticism. Christians are clearly called to judge rightly and discern good from evil (1 Cor 2:15; 1 Thes 5:20-22). Here are four things Jesus tells His followers to judge from the Sermon on the Mount.

  1. Judge the audience. Don’t  throw pearls before swine. In other words, don’t bother offering wisdom and discernment to those who don’t want to hear it. They’ll just trample over it. (Matthew 7:6)
  2. Judge the source. Jesus says to watch out for false prophets who sound and look good, but don’t produce good fruit. In other words, are they producing others like them or producing others who are like Jesus? (Matthew 7:15-20)
  3. Judge the disciples. Jesus says not everyone who says to him, “Lord, Lord” will get to heaven. Instead, it’s the ones who do the will of God. (Matthew 7:21-23) He’s telling us this so we’ll know the difference. My hope for these is that they will follow God’s will and not just say they’re Christians. Same goes for me.
  4. Judge the foundation. Jesus say that those who build their lives on his words and practices his words have a strong foundation. But, those who hear his words and don’t practice them have no foundation. (Matthew 7:24-27) The foundation for how I think, feel, and act is (all of) the words of Jesus.

What should we do?

my opinionIn this same passage (Matthew 7:12) Jesus gives us the Golden Rule. I don’t like it when someone else just points out my faults without offering redemption. Who does? In the end, I want to direct all–including myself–to the One who’s giving out the free passes. God gives discernment to point to the Truth not to criticize or degrade others. And, Truth is a Person, not an opinion (John 14:6).

So, when it comes to getting a pass, I hope everyone gets one. But, that starts with admitting sin. Sin misses the mark, misses the standard of Jesus, who lived a perfectly free life. The issue isn’t the kind of sin. It’s that we’re bound to it. But, once we enter the narrow gate, with our free pass, we walk in wide open plains, free to please God.