We’re diving into a topic today that I have wrestled with deeply: Judgment. I used to be so judgmental, and while I’ve come a long way, God is still working on me. We’re focusing on Matthew 7:1-5, and I’m reading from the English Standard Version (ESV). If you can, open your Bible and follow along. It’s fascinating to compare different translations and see what each says. A resource I love for this is BibleRef.com, where you can see multiple translations stacked together.

Here’s Matthew 7:1-5 in the ESV:

Judge not, that you be not judged. For with the judgment you pronounce you will be judged, and with the measure you use it will be measured to you. 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? Or how can you say to your brother, ‘Let me take the speck out of your eye,’ when there is the log in your own eye? You hypocrite, first take the log out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to take the speck out of your brother’s eye.

Called Out

Anyone else get chills when they read that? Especially verse 5: “You hypocrite.” It feels like Jesus is sitting right across from me, saying, “Knock it off. Focus on yourself first.” This has been so powerful for me to learn and process through.

If you don’t know my story, I’ve shared a lot about it in previous episodes, especially in episode 1 and the “God, Where Were You?” episode. I grew up feeling incredibly judged by people who claimed to represent God, and that turned me into a judgmental person too. Ironically, I used to judge harshly people who looked like me. I have blue hair, an undercut, gauges, a septum piercing, and an industrial piercing with one tattoo but I hope to get more. I used to think terrible things about people who looked like me.

Fast forward to now, at 31, I say often that if 17-year-old me saw me now, she’d be embarrassed. I’m now the person I always wanted to be but was too afraid to embrace. I judged myself harshly and, as a result, judged others the same way.

Understanding the Context

Let’s highlight verses 1 and 2 again:

Judge not, that you be not judged. For with the judgment you pronounce you will be judged, and with the measure you use it will be measured to you.

This verse is often taken out of context. We cannot cherry-pick verses; we must understand the full context. Does this mean we can’t draw strong meanings from single verses? No, but we need to understand the whole picture.

How we judge others is how God will judge us. If we judge out of hatred, arrogance, or disrespect, that’s how God will judge us. We are called to judge righteously, out of love. Wanting to be right is not love. Judging someone because we don’t like them is not righteous love.

Jesus never said, “You have blue hair, you’re going to burn in hell.” He approached the heart and communicated kindly. I’ve written a blog post on how we should speak like Jesus, using the Samaritan woman as an example. Check it out on my blog at meandjesus.life; I’ll also link it in the show notes.

My Journey with Judgment

I used to operate out of anger, judging others harshly because I judged myself harshly. Starting my healing journey, which brought me back to the Lord, showed me that my judgment came from my own self-judgment. As I healed, I judged less and became kinder and more empathetic.

However, God revealed that I still judge others, particularly other believers, with a Pharisee-like behavior. If we aren’t extraordinarily self-aware of our judgment, it can take over our soul. The enemy can sneak in through our judgmental tendencies.

Judgment comes from our desire to reach a certain standard. If we feel convicted about something, we want others to feel the same. When they don’t, we think we are better. This leads to Pharisee-level behavior, thinking we can do things better than God.

The Slippery Slope

We need to stop measuring unbelievers by believer standards. The Bible says they will act like unbelievers. We are held to a different standard – we cannot judge the world as if they are believers. We are to love them first. Love doesn’t mean accepting bad behavior but accepting that Jesus died for them too.

There are people who did terrible things to me as a child, and it’s easier for me to accept that Jesus died for them than for someone who wronged me ten years ago. When I complain to God about the unfairness, He reminds me that it wasn’t fair for Jesus to die for me either. Fairness would mean no Savior.

Judging Righteously

We are called to judge righteously, in love. We need to judge as we want to be judged. Yes, hold people accountable, but not by calling them names or acting as Jesus wouldn’t. We need to be the example of Jesus in their lives.

Check out this post where I talk about speaking like Jesus.

You can’t exhibit negative behavior and then get upset when someone else does the same. That’s hypocrisy. We need to love people into change, being the light of God in their lives.

Conclusion

This might not be the most fun topic, but it’s so important. We need to act like Jesus. If you want to act more like Jesus, pick up your Bible. I’ve written a free six-day Bible study to help you find God’s vision for your life. You can find it in the show notes. Study how Jesus reacted, and He will guide you.

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