Rev. David Holwick F Life On the Level, #5
First Baptist Church
Ledgewood, New Jersey
February 10, 2013
Luke 6:37,39-42
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I. "Judge not, that ye be not judged."
A. This is Matthew's version, from the King James Bible.
1) Some pastors think it has become the best-known verse in
the Bible, beating out John 3:16.
2) Even people who never go to church, who don't believe in
Jesus, have memorized this verse.
a) Everyone wants to be accepted, as they are.
b) No one likes to be judged.
B. Every one of us has experienced it.
1) A person harshly criticizes something about us.
a) Often it is an authority figure: parent, teacher, boss,
maybe even a real judge in a courtroom.
b) There are a number of reasons they have a negative
opinion about us:
1> The way we dress.
2> The people we hang out with.
3> The moral choices we have made, or that they THINK
we have made.
2) They make us feel put down, ignorant, worthless, sinful.
a) What they say may in fact have some truth in it, but
it is conveyed in a condemning and unloving way.
b) A judgmental person can scar you for life.
c) If YOU are the judgmental kind, you'll soon have more
time on your hands.
Arnold Lazarus notes, "If you look around, you'll find
that most judgmental people are disliked and avoided.
The answer to Mom's reproach, 'Why don't you call your
mother more often?' if truthful would probably be,
'Because you're judgmental and tend to pick on me, so
it's unpleasant to talk to you.'" [1]
C. Christians have a well-earned reputation for being judgmental.
1) We have strong moral convictions, and often a pretty high
opinion of our own insight into people.
Conservative Christian social commentator Cal Thomas found
this out the hard way.
After Senator Edward Kennedy died, Cal wrote a column
that said while he disagreed with many of the senator's
views, he considered him a friend.
Kennedy had been very gracious to him, and Cal appreciated
it.
This opened the floodgates.
Scores of Christians wrote to castigate Cal.
Didn't he know about all the sexual sins of Kennedy?
Didn't he know Kennedy had tried to make a deal with the
Russians so he could defeat Reagan and become president
in 1984?
Cal Thomas recognized Kennedy's shortcomings.
But he did have a Christian perspective on it.
When a TV interviewer asked him, "Bottom line: [Was] Senator
Kennedy a good man?" Cal responded:
"Only God is good. The rest of us are sinners."
#63908
a) Religious people been prone to judgmentalism.
b) Indeed, Jesus was directing his sermon to religious
people just like us.
2) It is important to understand what Jesus is really saying.
a) It is then equally important to live it.
b) God will call you to account for how you handle it.
II. How the world understands "Do not judge."
A. Don't say anything negative at all.
1) No matter how deviant the behavior or odious the actions,
you cannot criticize them.
2) You might call this the Paula Abdul approach to life. [2]
a) On "American Idol" she was always the softie.
b) She always had something good and positive to say...
even if the person really stank.
3) The world thinks any mention of Christian morality is
nothing but judgmentalism.
B. This is not what Jesus means here.
1) He rejects judging as condemnation.
a) In verse 37, Jesus deliberately equates judging with
condemning.
b) On a positive note, he contrasts it with being forgiving.
c) Judging is a matter of pronouncing a sentence on a
sinner for their shortcomings, instead of trying to
help them.
2) Why Christians shouldn't condemn.
a) We have limited knowledge.
1> There are plenty of things about the other person
you don't have a clue about.
A> You may THINK you have them all figured out,
but you are wrong.
B> The Bible says you don't even really know what
makes yourself tick.
2> When we judge someone, we are usually taking one of
their actions and using it to explain their
entire character.
b) We have limited responsibility.
1> It is not our place to condemn people - that is
God's job, and his alone.
2> Our place is to love people, forgive them, and
challenge them to follow the Lord.
III. The world gets judging wrong.
A. To Jesus, judging does not mean you are never negative.
1) We can criticize people's sinful behavior.
2) Jesus taught and practiced moral discernment.
a) Jesus called some people pigs and dogs.
1> This is definitely a negative assessment!
2> He was referring to people who reject and debase God.
b) Jesus warns us about wolves (false teachers) which
requires an assessment on our part.
1> He tells us, "By their fruit you will know them,"
which means we have to be fruit inspectors.
B. It is not just the perfect Jesus - the Apostle Paul did it too.
1) He orders the church in Corinth to discipline a morally
corrupt man.
a) First, you assess what they have done.
b) Second, if they are found to have serious sin, and
refuse to repent, you have to deal with them. 1 Co 5:5
2) We cannot condemn anyone to hell (like the Inquisition tried
to do) but we can warn them where they are headed.
C. Genuine moral discernment is always appropriate.
1) I even found a secular philosopher's webpage that argued
the "moral appraisal of other people's lives is
inescapable, and absolutely necessary for our
survival." #63909
2) It is how we express our moral judgment that really matters.
a) Paul tells us to speak the truth - but in love.
b) There is always the danger that our legitimate moral
responsibility to be discerning can morph into
harping criticism.
IV. How to judge rightly.
A. The key is found in John 7:24.
"Stop judging by mere appearances, and make a right judgment."
1) Superficial, snap judgments are always wrong.
2) It is tempting to write people off just because of the
color of their skin, the status of their job (or lack
thereof) or even their religious convictions.
3) You need to dig below the surface, and this usually requires
getting to know the person, and their issues, on a
deeper level.
B. Before you judge, you need an accurate assessment of yourself.
1) You are a student, not a teacher.
a) You have to know what you don't know.
b) Otherwise you are the "blind leading the blind."
1> We love to pool our ignorance, thinking that if
others agree with us, we must be right. Not so!
2> Humility is the best tool you can have for helping
others correct their mistakes.
c) Jesus is the only valid teacher.
1> He will always be above us.
2> We must strive to be like him.
2) You need to deal with your own issues first.
a) Jesus uses obvious humor to depict a typical judge.
1> They are doing sawdust inspection, but ignore the
plank in their own eye.
2> Jesus says you CAN point out sawdust - but only
after you get rid of the plank.
b) Don't be a hypocrite.
Paul points out in Romans 2:1 --
"You, therefore, have no excuse, you who pass judgment
on someone else, for at whatever point you judge the
other, you are condemning yourself, because you
who pass judgment do the same things."
1> Of course, it is different with you.
A> You have excuses, reasons, rationalizations.
2> The reality is that many Christians are most
sensitive about the sins they themselves are
susceptible to.
3> You need to repent before you can expect others to.
C. Healing should always be the goal.
1) Only point out sin if it can bring them back to God.
2) It can be done in a positive, affirming way.
V. There is a Judge who will get it right every time.
A. We will all stand before God.
1) The opinions other people have about you won't matter.
2) God's opinion will, very much.
B. Only forgiven people will not be condemned.
1) What will God's judgment be of you?
2) Have you accepted Jesus as your Savior?
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SOURCES FOR ILLUSTRATIONS USED IN THIS SERMON:
[1] “Are You Making Judgments… or Being Judgmental?” Arnold A. Lazarus, Ph.D.
and Clifford N. Lazarus, Ph.D. Adapted from THE 60-SECOND SHRINK:
101 STRATEGIES FOR STAYING SANE IN A CRAZY WORLD, by Arnold A. Lazarus,
Ph.D. and Clifford N. Lazarus, Ph.D. (Impact Publishers).
<http://www.selfgrowth.com/articles/Lazarus2.html>
[2] “Don't Be Judgmental, Be Discerning,” Raj Raghunathan, Ph.D. in Sapient
Nature , May 10, 2011, <http://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/~
sapient-nature/201105/dont-be-judgmental-be-discerning>.
#63908 “Judgment vs. Judgmentalism,” Cal Thomas, September 1, 2009,
<http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2009/sep/1/judgment-vs-judgmentalism>.
#63909 “Counter-Culture Advice: Be Judgmental,” “Ryan,” May 11, 2012,
<http://www.ryansrantings.com/?p=1177>.
These and 35,000 others are part of the Kerux database that can be
downloaded, absolutely free, at http://www.holwick.com/database.html
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