$h!t Jesus Says, Part Twelve: Don't Judge

Jesus  knows that moral superiority is toxic to any community. And that hypocrisy will only pollute this sacred space. By helping us to recognize our shared humanity and brokenness, Jesus levels the playing field...

Last week, I said something about the Presidential election and how most people have already chosen their side.

But as someone rightly pointed out to me there are a few undecided voters out there who makes the race wildly unpredictable.
 
Pollsters and statisticians are working overtime to make the right prediction. and while they're doing that, bookmakers are finding new ways to take advantage of the odds.

​While there’s a 50/50 chance your candidate will win, there’s a 100% chance both sides will sling mud at the other.

It would be a drastic understatement to say politicians love pointing every flaw and failure of their opponents while conveniently ignoring their own. And it shouldn't surprise any of us because these types of hypocrites have been around forever – in government, media, and even the church.

When a culture like ours is obsessed with morally superiority, it’s just way too easy to be critical of others.  But Jesus calls us to a different standard— a life of humility, self-reflection, and grace. In today's passage, we will hear what Jesus thinks about the hypocritical nature of judgment, particularly among his followers.

“Do not judge, so that you may not be judged. For the judgment you give will be the judgment you get, and the measure you give will be the measure you get. Why do you see the speck in your neighbor’s eye but do not notice the log in your own eye? Or how can you say to your neighbor, ‘Let me take the speck out of your eye,’ while the log is 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 neighbor’s eye.         (Matthew 7:1-5 NRSV) 

The command is pretty basic and simple: “Don’t judge, or you will be judged.” It's not one of those sayings Jesus has that requires much thinking. In fact, it's so easy to understand by the masses that it would be unusual to find it printed on a novelty tea towel.

Despite its broad appeal, many Christians will ignore this golden rule of sorts. Settling instead to fall into the same hypocrisy Jesus condemns the Pharisees of.
 
You might remember me talking about those guys. They are the one's Jesus calls "blind guides" because they are quick to enforce the rules on others but slow to look at their own hearts. They obsess over minor rules like tithing spices, but miss the bigger picture of justice, mercy, and faithfulness (c.f. Matthew 23).
 
To put it into today's context, Jesus might say something like, “Woe to you, Senators and sly foxes, who criticize others for not securing borders but refuse to pass the necessary legislation to do so.” Or perhaps a little closer to home, “Woe to you who preach against homosexuality while secretly hiding in the closet.”
 
Now, to be fair, we cannot escape life without making critical judgement calls. But we can critique others without condemning ourselves. Notice the quirky, little parable Jesus gives us about someone with a huge plank protruding from their eye trying to pick out a tiny speck of sawdust from someone else’s eye.

The absurdity of the image underscores this point: you can’t help others see clearly if you’re blinded by your own faults.
 
Jesus is not saying don’t help others with their “specks,” just address your own “planks” first. Be humble and self-aware, recognizing your own imperfections before judging others. This is a great way not to be hypocritical.

But it’s also a great way to follow Jesus who calls us to “repent,” to make a change in the way we think that can transform the way we see ourselves in relationship to God and others.
 
So, Just as Jesus looks within us, so too must we first look in the space between our head and heart where our words and deeds are born. 

I love the way Carl Jung reminds us how "Everything that irritates us about others can lead us to an understanding of ourselves."

​I believe if we take the time to do some honest, self-examination, we can change the way we see the world - viewing it with the eyes of a compassionate heart rather than one that condemns.

 
If we are being honest with ourselves, we know that we are all need grace and love. They are part of the essential nutrients for our spiritual health. According to Dietrich Bonhoeffer: "When I judge, I am blind to my own evil and to the grace granted to the other person."

To recognize our limitations is, in many ways, is to receive what God through Christ has to offer us: Grace upon grace.
 
This spiritual journey we are on is not a competition; it’s not us versus them any more than it's me against you. It's about walking together towards God’s steadfast love knowing that no one is morally or spiritually better than anyone else on this path.

Like Paul pointed out in Romans, “We all fall short of the glory of God” (Romans 3:23). Each and every one of us is in need God’s grace – no matter how big or small our need is.
 
Jesus instructs us to look within ourselves before we look at another person with contempt. For it’s in our removing of the plank that we clear our vision. And change our perspective. Instead of seeing others as objects of judgment, we can see them as God sees us – as beloved children made from love for the purpose of love.
 
When we see and understand others this clearly, we can become very generous with our love, mercy, and grace. We must learn to see beyond the kind of thinking that separates people into "good" or "bad," "right" or "wrong." We must remove the blinders from our eyes and see the divine presence in everyone.
 
Remember from last week what Jesus said? “I am the vine, you are the branches” (John 15:5). We’re all made in the divine image of God. And we all draw from the same source for our nutrients. Any part of us that don’t produce the fruit of God’s love, must be removed. Starting with that giant, protruding plank.
 
When we see ourselves and others as part of a larger, unified whole, we can move beyond our rigid divisions towards true compassion and understanding. We can become people who stand for peace and justice for all.
 
Again, Jesus is speaking to the folks who will become the Church. He knows that moral superiority is toxic to any community. And that hypocrisy will only pollute this sacred space. By helping us to recognize our shared humanity and brokenness, Jesus levels the playing field allowing us to approach correction with a humble heart of love rather than smug soul of condemnation.
 
In his book A Community of Character, Stanley Hauerwas reminds us that, "The church is the body of Christ, constituted by practices that form people who can recognize their need for forgiveness and, therefore, are able to forgive others."

To truly follow Christ is to reflect his love and grace, starting with how we love God, love others, and serve both. Such a posture can lead to a deeper relationship with God and others, instead of pushing them both away.
 
Jesus straight up tells us to, “Love one another as I have loved you” (John 13:34). He’s not saying overlook someone’s faults or sins but remove the blinders from our eyes and hearts, so you can see people the way he sees them. And love and forgive them like he does.
 
This is the kind of shit Jesus says to inspire us to actually love both our neighbor and ourselves (Mark 12:31). He shows us how to do it, so we will mirror his mercy, reflecting his grace in ways that exemplify his call to “Forgive and you will be forgiven” (Luke 6:37).
 
Jesus says and does a lot of things worthy of being printed on a tea-towel, most of which could be summed up with this saying: “Do to others what you would have them do to you” (Matthew 7:12). 
 
As we embrace his name, let us lead by his example—welcoming people with open arms, no matter who they are, who they love, or who they vote for. Henri Nouwen reminded us that “Those you have deeply loved become part of you.”

Since there will always be people to love, we will always have one another as part of who we are. As the inner community of our heart becomes wider, “the more easily you will recognize your own brothers and sisters in the strangers around you.”
 
Let’s be a community of the heart—a place where love is abundant, grace is offered freely, and judgment is tempered by humility. Instead of criticizing others, lets look inward; asking God to reveal our planks. Instead of calling out others’ faults, lets examine our lives to ensure we are living out God’s will for us with integrity.
 
Jesus clearly says, “The measure you give is the measure you will receive” (Matthew 7:2) You might call this karma, the principle of what goes around comes around. For me it’s a reminder to be mindful of what God continues to do in my life so that I can be generous with my love and abundant with my grace.
 
As we unlock the space between us, may we embody Christ’s compassion throughout Anamesa, helping others to feel God’s love. And see Jesus for who he truly is the one who reminds us, “The eye is the lamp of the body. If your eyes are good, your whole body will be full of light” (Matthew 6:22).
 
Our eyes reflect and reveal our truth, especially in the ways we see others in need. Just as a “healthy” eye sees with purity, hypocrisy blinds us spiritually.
 
Using another crazy illustration, Jesus drives this point home saying, “If your eye causes you to stumble, it should be cut out and thrown into the fire.”
 
But before things get that drastic, maybe we should first remove the planks from our own eyes so we can see more clearly the Way of the One who looks over the crowd and begins to say, “Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God” (Matthew 5:8)
 
 
 
Work Cited:
Bonhoeffer, Dietrich. Life Together: The Classic Exploration of Faith in Community. (Harper & Row, 1954).
Hauerwas, S.. A Community of Character: Toward a Constructive Christian Social Ethic. (University of Notre Dame Press, 1981).
Jung, Carl G. Aion: Researches into the Phenomenology of the Self. (Princeton University Press, 1951).
Nouwen, Henri J.M. You Are The Beloved. (Convergent, 2017).