Playing The Judge?

We interact and live with all kinds of people. There are people that are ‘staples’ or more consistently seen in of our living, like our family, spouse or kids we live with, the people at work or the peers in your class. There are also other random people that just pass us by from our day to day. We meet, rub shoulders and have different engagements around us. And because we are all sinners, surely there will be differences, some conflicts and then, there will come some form of judgement being developed because we all have our own set of standards and expectations based on how we are brought up, our principles, our value system and such. When all these clashes with the way someone’s character or behaviour is like around us, there is where we struggle with accepting, loving, embracing flaws of others and holding back on being critical, even in our thoughts. 

One of the hardest things I read as a believer was this verse in 1 John 4:20, “Whoever claims to love God yet hates a brother or sister is a liar. For whoever does not love their brother and sister, whom they have seen, cannot love God, whom they have not seen.” I thought it was such a difficult thing God was asking me to do. I used to think, “I love God, I serve Him, but there are just certain people that are not likeable, stepping on our toes in some ways, or downright mean, right? So is it so wrong to not like that person such that God is now telling me I am a liar and that I do not really love Him?” It seems like a harsh statement from God because we live in a real world with real sinners to face. But let Jesus give us a deep and good heart check today, if anyone of us is struggling with being judgmental or unable to love another.

In Matthew 7:1-5 says, “Do not judge, or you too will be judged. For in the same way you judge others, you will be judged, and with the measure you use, it will be measured to you. “Why do you look at the speck of sawdust in your brother’s eye and pay no attention to the plank in your own eye? How can you say to your brother, ‘Let me take the speck out of your eye,’ when all the time there is a plank in your own eye? You hypocrite, first take the plank out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother’s eye.” Now, these verses may be a painful heart check for a lot of us, but it is also a necessary reflection. In the first 2 verses, it gave us a very clear head start of understanding the outcomes of playing “judge” on another person. The thing is, no human standard of righteousness can ever meet God’s righteous standard of judgment, because in the first place, no one is entirely righteous and good. So we are greatly mistaken if we think we are in a place to evaluate or critic someone else, because with the same way we judge the person, our heart’s intention and motives will also be judged (verse 2). So brothers and sisters, when we are face with another person’s sinful or undesirable behaviour or words, what is your first reaction? Are we quick to judge them or do we find ways to restore? Only when we truly know and reflect on the gracious mercy that Jesus has on us. That we, unrighteous and flawed sinners in our own ways, have received His merciful judgement and generous grace. Then, can we look at others through the rightful perspective of God and discerning how to handle our relationship with them. 

And in verse 5, it gave us a practical step to first take. That is “to take the plank out of our own eye before we even see clearly to remove the speck from someone else’s eye.” This means, instead of being quick to be “judge and jury”, we should first examine ourselves and be self-critical before we critic another. Are we are living a faith that is in step with the Lord? Do we have any self-driven motives or assumptions about this person or situation?  In the timeline where Jesus shared these words, the religious leaders of Israel are vigorously following the Mosaic law, but they were also adding in their own versions of the law. Through this, they uphold their status as “holy and spiritual” people while condemning those who do not match up to these checklists. This is fully illustrated in the verses above, where they are quick to point out someone’s speck of sin, yet they do so while excusing their own faults. Now, this is basically self-righteousness in action, where we overlook our own flaws while putting higher weightage on our own standards of right and wrong, over God’s counsel and mercy. When that happens, we are also blinded in our  faith living, because there is discrepancies in the way we discern ourselves in the God’s truth and we are also blinded from showing mercy or understand the struggles another person might face.
However, when we truly understand and are humbled by God’s grace and mercy on our personal weaknesses and sins, then can we have the right foundation in relating to other sinners around us. Then can we “see clearly” to lean on the Lord and to correctly look at others with God’s love, that same love that was exercised on us. When we “remove our own plank” and see ourselves in God’s light of mercy, then can we help to “remove the speck” on someone else’s vision and have the heart to restore them, instead of condemning them. 

The ultimate result is not to prove we are right or to tear the other person down. It is to first have our views and standards of righteousness re-adjusted to be God-centered. Then, the more we hold fast to our understanding of who God is and how He lavishes us with undeserved grace and mercy, the more we will desire to seek His counsel and look at  people around us through His perspective. So brothers and sisters, in what way are you prone to judge others harshly? It is not easy but may this call for self reflection and examination help us deal with looking at the faults of others in the right light. God bless.