Matthew 7:1-6
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
Click to readd passage
I once came across a story where a husband complained to his wife that their neighbour’s house looked very dirty. The next day he was amazed to find his neighbour’s house spick and span. When he told his wife about it, she replied “It was our window that was terribly dirty. I just cleaned it this morning”.
Boy, don’t we sometimes jump to the wrong conclusion when we are too quick to judge.
Our text begins with the exhortation “judge not, that you may not be judged”. But the renowned theologian John Stott cautions, “Our Lord’s instruction cannot be understood as a command to suspend our critical faculties in relation to other people…and to refuse to discern between truth and error, goodness and evil”. Instead it should be read in conjunction with the rest of today’s text.
In essence, the Lord is warning us to stay away from practicing double-standards and hypocrisy. Bishop Robert Solomon observes, “we tend to idealise ourselves and demonise others so that we can look better than others”. It is important to keep in mind that the Christian faith is not practised in isolation but as a community. When we are too quick to pass judgments, we not only risk hurting or stumbling others, but we could also undermine the unity in the Body of Christ.
One way to restrain this tendency is to keep in mind that we will be judged by the same standards we use to judge others.
After King David committed the double sins of adultery and murder in his affair with Bathsheba, God sent the prophet Nathan to confront David. Nathan did not point the finger directly at the king. Instead, he told David the story of a poor man who had his only ewe lamb taken away from him by a rich man to entertain his visitor. Upon hearing this, David was infuriated and, as king and judge, he pronounced, “the man who did this deserves to die”. At that, Nathan said, “this man is you” (see 2 Samuel 12:1 – 7).
It is suggested that one reason we see the fault in others but not in ourselves is because consciously or unconsciously we assume we are better than others. Whether it is due to pride or ignorance, a superior mindset will inevitably breed a critical spirit in us. Hence, the Lord instructs us to first take the log out of our own eye, and then we will see clearly enough to take the speck out of our brother’s eye. In other words, we are to be circumspect as exemplified by the prophet Isaiah. Before he judged the people he lived with to be of unclean lips, he first confessed his own lips were unclean (Isaiah 6:5).
Whereas in today’s text the Lord reminds us not to judge others, in His golden rule he urged us “whatever you wish that others would do to you, do also to them” (Matthew 7:12). Hence, should we wish to judge others, we should first ask ourselves if we wish to be judged the same way by others.
Our text closes with an unusual exhortation: “Do not give dogs what is holy, and do not throw your pearls before pigs”, which has been extensively debated over the ages. For our purpose, it suffices for us to mention that in Jewish culture, calling others dogs or pigs are highly offensive and derogatory, and the Lord is not licensing us to condemn people as such. Instead, He is reminding us to be discerning in our dealings with others.
Reflection:
The line between being discerning and judgemental is often a thin one. Much therefore comes down to what is in our hearts. In the Beatitudes, the Lord said “Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God”. Is our heart pure when we express an opinion on someone? Do we intend to sincerely edify or wholly criticise someone? Would we have others do to us what we are doing to them?
Prayer:
Create in us a clean heart, O Lord. May the words that proceed from our mouths always be gracious and seasoned with salt. Remove from us any critical spirit and superior mindset. Instead, put in us a new heart and a spirit that is from you so that we will always be circumspect, be quick to listen and slow to speak in order to help build up the Body of Christ. In Jesus’ Name we pray. Amen
Click to readd passage
I once came across a story where a husband complained to his wife that their neighbour’s house looked very dirty. The next day he was amazed to find his neighbour’s house spick and span. When he told his wife about it, she replied “It was our window that was terribly dirty. I just cleaned it this morning”.
Boy, don’t we sometimes jump to the wrong conclusion when we are too quick to judge.
Our text begins with the exhortation “judge not, that you may not be judged”. But the renowned theologian John Stott cautions, “Our Lord’s instruction cannot be understood as a command to suspend our critical faculties in relation to other people…and to refuse to discern between truth and error, goodness and evil”. Instead it should be read in conjunction with the rest of today’s text.
In essence, the Lord is warning us to stay away from practicing double-standards and hypocrisy. Bishop Robert Solomon observes, “we tend to idealise ourselves and demonise others so that we can look better than others”. It is important to keep in mind that the Christian faith is not practised in isolation but as a community. When we are too quick to pass judgments, we not only risk hurting or stumbling others, but we could also undermine the unity in the Body of Christ.
One way to restrain this tendency is to keep in mind that we will be judged by the same standards we use to judge others.
After King David committed the double sins of adultery and murder in his affair with Bathsheba, God sent the prophet Nathan to confront David. Nathan did not point the finger directly at the king. Instead, he told David the story of a poor man who had his only ewe lamb taken away from him by a rich man to entertain his visitor. Upon hearing this, David was infuriated and, as king and judge, he pronounced, “the man who did this deserves to die”. At that, Nathan said, “this man is you” (see 2 Samuel 12:1 – 7).
It is suggested that one reason we see the fault in others but not in ourselves is because consciously or unconsciously we assume we are better than others. Whether it is due to pride or ignorance, a superior mindset will inevitably breed a critical spirit in us. Hence, the Lord instructs us to first take the log out of our own eye, and then we will see clearly enough to take the speck out of our brother’s eye. In other words, we are to be circumspect as exemplified by the prophet Isaiah. Before he judged the people he lived with to be of unclean lips, he first confessed his own lips were unclean (Isaiah 6:5).
Whereas in today’s text the Lord reminds us not to judge others, in His golden rule he urged us “whatever you wish that others would do to you, do also to them” (Matthew 7:12). Hence, should we wish to judge others, we should first ask ourselves if we wish to be judged the same way by others.
Our text closes with an unusual exhortation: “Do not give dogs what is holy, and do not throw your pearls before pigs”, which has been extensively debated over the ages. For our purpose, it suffices for us to mention that in Jewish culture, calling others dogs or pigs are highly offensive and derogatory, and the Lord is not licensing us to condemn people as such. Instead, He is reminding us to be discerning in our dealings with others.
Reflection:
The line between being discerning and judgemental is often a thin one. Much therefore comes down to what is in our hearts. In the Beatitudes, the Lord said “Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God”. Is our heart pure when we express an opinion on someone? Do we intend to sincerely edify or wholly criticise someone? Would we have others do to us what we are doing to them?
Prayer:
Create in us a clean heart, O Lord. May the words that proceed from our mouths always be gracious and seasoned with salt. Remove from us any critical spirit and superior mindset. Instead, put in us a new heart and a spirit that is from you so that we will always be circumspect, be quick to listen and slow to speak in order to help build up the Body of Christ. In Jesus’ Name we pray. Amen