“Judge not, that you be not judged.” It is perhaps the most commonly quoted verse in the Bible. Found in Matthew 7:1 the verse addresses what is a common problem: hypocrisy and legalism. But one thing it certainly does not do is prohibit judging.
Judging has been given a bad name. It's become a four letter word. The word has become more offensive with the rise of the secular belief that “your truth is ok for you, my truth is ok for me.” The only way one can judge someone is if they have a set of morals and if everyone has different standards than no one has the ability to judge anyone else. But there just so happens to be a standard, and that standard is the Bible. A Christians morals will reflect that of God's perfect word.
Which brings me to my main focus: a Christian's judging of another Christian.
Before we move further, I would like to define judging. Some say it is condemning which in a way is true. The Greek word krino implies that someone who judges is putting themselves in the place of God. This is why Matthew 7 is so important, we cannot be hypocritical or condemning of our brother lest we put ourselves in the position of God. That should not be the focus of our judging. In fact when it comes to correcting another Christian the Bible never says we should judge them but instead we should rebuke and exhort them to do right(2 Tim. 2:4). So we should always be focused on correcting our brothers for their own good, not for our the sake of judgment.
Now how does the Bible suggest we deal with a brother who has done wrong? In Matthew 18:15-17 Jesus tells us: "If your brother sins against you, go and show him his fault, just between the two of you. If he listens to you, you have won your brother over. But if he will not listen, take one or two others along, so that 'every matter may be established by the testimony of two or three witnesses. If he refuses to listen to them, tell it to the church; and if he refuses to listen even to the church, treat him as you would a pagan or a tax collector. “
But there are cases where a Christian sins against more than his brother. If a brother teaches or does something wrong that affects other Christians than it is our responsibility to correct him with the offended parties present. Perhaps this seems contrary to the verse in Matthew, but it is not: in Galatians 2 Paul openly rebukes Peter in front of the entire congregation for Peter's hypocritical actions. It was not quiet and behind doors because the offense was affecting the whole church at Antioch.
So in conclusion, no we should not hypocriticallly condemn our Christian brothers. However, we have a right and responsibility to show them when they've gone wrong. We need to remember that when we do show them that it is in love and teaching and not judgment and disdain. After all we're just as capable of making mistakes as anyone.
On top of all this we need to be open to rebuke. If a brother shows us that we are at wrong we should be open to his correction and willing to humble ourselves and change. We should not be quick to judge when we cannot take correction ourselves.
So true. Well said!
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