Judge Not (Matthew 7:1 In Context)

Matthew 7:1 may be the most popular verse from the Bible in our time.  It is often interpreted to mean that we are not to judge anyone's lifestyle or beliefs.  But is this interpretation actually correct?  Does never judging even make sense?  We will look at Matthew 7:1 and see what the Bible actually says.  

(Matthew 7:1)"Judge not, that you be not judged." (ESV) 

We are to be careful and cautious in making judgments.  In Matthew 7:2 we are told the judgment we use will also be the judgment used for us.  In Matthew 7:3-5 Jesus warns us against judging in a hypocritical way.  We should not worry about the speck in our brothers eye when there is a log in our own eye.  Then at the end of verse 5 Jesus tells us that once we remove the log in our own eye we will see clearly to remove the speck from our brother's eye.  This of course would require that we judge.  In Matthew 7:6 Christ refers metaphorically to those who continually and persistently reject the gospel as dogs and pigs.  We are told not to continue presenting the gospel to these people.  In order to identify the dogs and pigs we must judge.  

After Matthew 7:1 Jesus continually judges people throughout the rest of chapter 7.  He refers to people as evil (7:11), says many will go to hell (7:13-14), calls some false prophets (7:15), refers to some as workers of lawlessness (7:23), and refers to a foolish man (7:26).  

(John 7:24)"Do not judge by appearances, but judge with right judgment." (ESV) 

So we plainly see that all judging is not forbidden.  Hypocritical, self righteous, arrogant judging is what is actually forbidden.  We are to judge rightly with a humble spirit.  In 1 Corinthians 5:12 Christians are even instructed to judge those inside the church, excommunicating them if necessary.  

The concept of not judging people clearly does not come from the Bible.  So where does it come from?  It actually comes from what is known as postmodernism.  At the heart of postmodernism is the denial of absolute truth.  What underlies not judging is the rejection of truth.  And what underlies the rejection of truth is the rejection of God.  The idea of not judging does not come from Christianity but from unbelief.  

We must also point out that the idea of not judging does not even make sense.  When a person says that another person should not judge, he is judging the other person.  When someone says you should not tell another person he is wrong, that person himself is telling someone else he is wrong.  It is impossible not to judge.  The whole idea of not judging falls apart and reduces to absurdity.  It ends up refuting itself because it is opposed to God and his Word.

So we see that the concept of not judging is wrong and foolish.  It comes from people who do not want to be told what they do or what they believe is wrong.  They do not want to be confronted with the reality of their sin. They are suppressing the truth about God.  

We should not judge in a self righteous, hypocritical, or arrogant way but we should judge carefully.  We must judge in areas such as morality and doctrine.  We must proclaim the truth with love.  Our judging must be with a humble spirit.  It is not wrong to judge, it is wrong not to judge.    

Contend For The Faith

The main theme of the book of Jude is contending for the faith, rejecting false teachers, and standing for the truth.  Jude was the brother of James and half brother of the Lord Jesus.  He wrote this letter sometime around A.D. 66.  The book of Jude contains only one chapter.  

(Jude 1:3) "Beloved, although I was very eager to write to you about our common salvation, I found it necessary to write appealing to you to contend for the faith that was once for all delivered to the saints."  (ESV) 

Although Jude had desired to write to his fellow Christians about salvation, he was compelled to urge them "to contend for the faith that was once for all delivered to to the saints."  The "faith" referred to the gospel and all Christian teaching.  It was "once for all delivered to the saints."  This shows that the Apostles teaching which would become the New Testament in the canon of Scripture was already established and fixed.  Nothing more could be added to it.  We must point out that "saints" refers to all Christians, not just some special class of Christians.  

The Bible alone is the ultimate authority.  This stands in opposition to groups like the Mormons, the Roman Catholics, and many charismatics.  The Mormons insist the Bible is in error and add their own scriptures.  Roman Catholics insist that the Catholic Church tradition is an equal authority to the Bible.  Many charismatics insist that they receive direct revelation from God, making it equal to the Bible.  These groups and many others have rejected Scripture alone and have ended up in serious error.  

It is popular in our day for Christians to insist that we just need to love everyone.  After all it might not seem nice to contend for the faith, and it might not make people feel good.  But the Word of God disagrees, we are told to contend for the faith.  It means to contend for a thing combatantly.  In other words we are to battle for the truth and against error.  Truth should always be accompanied by love, and love must never be divorced from truth.  

Sound doctrine is of the utmost importance and Christians must contend for it.  Whenever false teachers arise they must be dealt with and refuted as we stand on the authority of the Bible alone.  It is not loving to allow error and false teaching to continue.