"Judge Not, That Ye Be Not Judged"
By: Gary Colley (Dec. 1980)
Many have misused this command of the Lord (Mt. 7:1-2) to teach that Christians are not to make judgments! Nothing is further from the truth. The full context shows that judging without knowing the facts will cause us to be judged by the same measure. We are prone to make hasty decisions. The result of hasty decisions may be partiality and prejudice. We must be "double sure", especially in our conclusions about the Lord's church and our brethren. Let us consider our manner of judgment in view of how we want to be judged.
Describing the care and consideration we are to have for one another, Paul, the peerless apostle said, "Charity sufferth long, and is kind; charity envieth not; charity vaunteth not itself, is not puffed up, Doth not behave itself unseemly, seeketh not her own, is not easily provoked, thinketh no evil; rejoiceth not in iniquity, but rejoiceth in the truth; Beareth all things, believeth all things, hopeth all things, endureth all things. Charity (love) never faileth" (1 Corinthians 13:4-8).
We Christians are to judge! We are to be sure, however, that we make proper and correct judgments. We are to "do unto others (in judging), as we would have others to do unto us" (Matthew 7:12).
The seventh chapter of Matthew shows that we are to judge the hypocrite (7:5), sensual and unholy men acting like dogs (7:6), the difference in the broad way and the narrow way (7:13), false prophets (7:15), discerning (judging) between good and evil (7:16-20), and between the saying of the Lord and the foolish teachings of men (7:24-27). "Wherefore, my beloved brethren, let every man be swift to hear (the truth), slow to speak (our opinions), slow to wrath: For the wrath of man worketh not the righteousness of God" (James 1:19-20).
We exhort all to take caution as to first impression...taking time to examine the facts completely...doing nothing foolish simply because of first impressions...and may we all submit to the Will of God in all things.