Grace, mercy, and peace be to you from God our Father and from our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ! Amen! Dear brothers and sisters in Christ:
Jesus said: “Be merciful, even as your Father is merciful. Judge not, and you will not be judged; condemn not, and you will not be condemned; forgive, and you will be forgiven; give, and it will be given to you” (Luke 6:36-37).
These words of Christ are often quoted. They are rarely ever misquoted. But what we may think of these words are often the opposite of what Jesus is saying here. I’m sure you have heard those words,“Judge not, and you will not be judged” even in Christian conversation. And often unbelieving pagans will use these words of Jesus to us Christians as a way to say, “You are in no position to judge!” So, what is Jesus meaning by those words: “Judge not, and you will not be judged”?
Well, first thing to note here is that these words of Christ have been misunderstood for centuries, but for different reasons.
In the Middle Ages, the people had a much different wrong understanding of these words of Christ than the popular wrong understanding of today. But both wrong understandings have a common misunderstanding. They are both taking Scripture out of context by cutting and pasting these words of Christ to fit what these false teachers want these words to mean.
First, let’s look at the old misunderstanding. In the Middle Ages, these words of Christ, “Judge not, and you will not be judged; condemn not, and you will not be condemned; forgive, and you will be forgiven; give, and it will be given to you” was taken by many in the church to mean that we must do something to earn salvation. In other words, Christ’s atoning death wasn’t enough for you and me to inherit salvation, so we have to do something.
These words of Christ were stern law that the Christian had to do so God would love them and then in turn receive His forgiveness. These words were used to scare Christians into submission so that they would get right with God to receive His divine mercy. Luther fought against this wrong interpretation, since there is nothing we can do to ever merit God’s love. We could never get right with God. It is only God who is able to get right with us, through His Son, Jesus Christ.
For most Christians today, we rarely think about that interpretation. But if you know any Roman Catholics, they still hold on to that way of thinking.
But most likely, you have heard those words of Christ “Judge not, and you will not be judged”meaning something entirely different. In this post-modern era, those words have become to mean that we are forbidden to recognize the sins of others and even our own sins. Those words have become to mean that we are to not judge at all, that we are not to discriminate between right and wrong.
So, is Jesus forbidding us from engaging in any kind of judgment? Well, if that is the case, then Jesus words here make no sense whatsoever. If we are not to judge, then what do we make of these Scriptural texts?
§ Jesus says in Matthew 18: “If your brother sins against you …” (Matthew 18:15a). How would we know what sin is without judgment?
§ Jesus says in John 7: “Do not judge by appearances…” (John 7:24a). Ok, this fits with the idea of never judging. But wait, Jesus isn’t finished, “But judge with right judgment” (John 7:24b). So, how would we know right judgment?
§ Jesus says in Luke 12: “Why do you not judge for yourselves what is right?” (Luke 12:57). So, what is right?
§ Jesus says in Matthew 7: “Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing but inwardly are ravenous wolves. You will recognize them by their fruits” (Matthew 7:15-16a). How do we know false teachers from true teachers without judgment? How are we to recognize fruits of faith without first judging the fruit?
§ St. Paul, inspired by the Holy Spirit, writes in Romans 13: “Let every person be subject to the governing authorities” (Romans 13:1). But don’t governing authorities judge?
§ And what are we to make of the Bereans in Acts 17? “They received the Word with all eagerness, examining the Scriptures daily to see if these things were so” (Acts 17:11b). How are we to know the validity of what the pastor says without studying the Scriptures?
So, clearly, the idea of never judging is not the case, since we are to judge. You see, the Bible is full of judgments between good and bad. Just think of Cain, Babel, David’s sexual sin, John the Baptist’s preaching, and Jesus judging the seven churches of Revelation.
What are the Ten Commandments? They are but God’s Law of judgment, which shows us our sin and serves as our guide in the way we ought to live and want to live.
Another way to think of judging is this: How can you be a judge of a court and not judge the law? How can you be a referee and not judge if play is fair? How can you be a teacher and not judge their student’s homework? How can you pick out which fruit to buy at the grocery store without placing judgment upon that fruit? How can a pastor not judge between false doctrine and true doctrine? How can you be a parent and not also discipline your child?
Clearly, we know the difference between right and wrong. We know that truth is different than fiction. So, what is Jesus saying here? Well, Jesus is not forbidding judgment, but when we judge we must think the way God thinks. Jesus is teaching us to become merciful just as God our Father is merciful.
You see, God is the ultimate judge, so we are not to judge according to our flawed way of thinking, according to our flawed understanding of things, but we are to think and judge like God. We are to think like God the Father. But how can we do that?
Well, when we make judgments, we must do so in the view of the mercy and grace of God. So, when we make any judgment, it should never be toward harsh condemnation or the rejection of the sinner – we never condemn anyone to hell, but we always lead the sinner toward forgiveness and reconciliation. God doesn’t show us our sin because He hates us. He shows us our sin, because He loves us. He shows us our sin, so that we would turn from it and receive His forgiveness.
So, we interpret “Judge not, and you will not be judged; condemn not, and you will not be condemned; forgive, and you will be forgiven; give, and it will be given to you” in light of what is said before them, “Be merciful, even as your Father is merciful” (Luke 6:36).
So, we speak what’s right for the sake of your neighbor. True love is always to speak the truth. So, if your child did something wrong, it is your duty to judge his wrongdoing in order to save him.
God’s inerrant Word speaks of judgment all the time. But whenever God speaks, He speaks judgment in order to save. He speaks of judgment as a warning. He speaks of judgment out of His love.
For Jesus says, “For out of the heart come evil thoughts, murder, adultery, sexual immorality, theft, false witness, slander. These are what defile a person” (Matthew 15:19-20a). Likewise, St. Paul, inspired by the Holy Spirit writes, “Now the works of the flesh are evident: sexual immorality, impurity, sensuality, idolatry, sorcery, enmity, strife, jealousy, fits of anger, rivalries, dissensions, divisions, envy, drunkenness, orgies, and things like these. I warn you, as I warned you before, that those who do such things will not inherit the kingdom of God” (Galatians 5:19-21).
God is the judge. And He warns us against those evil things that come from the sinful flesh and the sinful heart.
Now, none of us here today are as pure as the wind driven snow. We are all filthy as we are stained with sin. And yet, God calls on all of us to judge ourselves and to judge one another. But, again, we don’t judge using our flawed reason and thinking. We judge only as God judges as He has revealed in His Word.
So, what does being merciful like God look like in practice? Well, it looks like this: When you judge, first recognize your sin, fully acknowledge your sin, since your first judgment must be upon yourself, but out of your love for the other, it is your responsibility to help the other by speaking of their sin so to lead them to repentance and forgiveness. Now, speaking of judgment is never easy, since no one ever takes delight in speaking words of judgment. So, we speak as sinners to fellow sinners with always in mind the gospel that “God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through Him” (John 3:17).
At one time, we were all God’s enemies, and we all deserved what was coming to us – eternal death and hell, but He gave us Christ instead, who took upon Himself our judgment as He suffered and died our punishment as He hung on the cross. Because of that judgment, we are now forgiven and reconciled to God. By faith in His Son, God the Father has given us forgiveness out of His divine mercy! So, when we judge, we judge like God our Father, who is merciful, as we confess our sin, speak God’s Word of judgment, and proclaim the forgiveness won for everyone in Christ! Amen.
The peace of God, which surpasses all understanding,
keep your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus, our Lord. Amen.
+ SOLI DEO GLORIA +
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