Matthew 7:1-5 contains one of the most misunderstood and misused verses in the Bible. Sometimes this verse is misused intentionally, and sometimes it is because of a lack of understanding. For those that read and accept the Bible as the word of God on a routine basis the context becomes clear. For those who just hear the phrase and that it is from the Bible, it can be confusing.
7 “Do not judge others, and you will not be judged. 2 For you will be treated as you treat others.[a] The standard you use in judging is the standard by which you will be judged.[b]
3 “And why worry about a speck in your friend’s eye[c] when you have a log in your own? 4 How can you think of saying to your friend,[d] ‘Let me help you get rid of that speck in your eye,’ when you can’t see past the log in your own eye? 5 Hypocrite! First get rid of the log in your own eye; then you will see well enough to deal with the speck in your friend’s eye.
Does Jesus really mean we should not judge anyone for any wrong behaviors? No. This would be extremely inconsistent with the full body of God’s word to apply this scripture in this way.
From a quick check on common sense we can see from the Old Testament that God has always communicated to man both right and wrong behaviors and motivations. There are plentiful examples in the Old Testament (e.g. Mosaic law) where God actually instructed Moses in the appropriate punishment for wrong behaviors that were to be judged and administered by man. This system was there in part to enable governing, protecting, and leading a godly group of people and to clearly identify and cut off ungodly behavior so it did not become more widely acceptable.
We can certainly apply this today in a commons sense comparison. Who among those who say we should not judge anyone is also calling for us to do away with court systems and free everyone from prison who has been convicted of violent crime? We can all imagine where that road leads… to anarchy, not to godliness.
Pausing and dwelling on Matthew 7:1-5, we see an obvious reminder from God that we need to start by focusing on addressing our own sin. The more we come before God and ask Him in our lives and hearts the further we travel on the journey to holiness and godliness… and the better we are able to help others around us.
Note that Jesus does not say we should not help remove the spec from our friend’s eye, just that we must start with ourselves. Both the log and the spec should be removed.
As we hold ourselves to the standard of godliness revealed in the Bible and take action to eliminate or change our behaviors and our motivations from sinful to righteous, we are also positioned to more effectively help others to see the same godly standards and apply them in their own lives. We do not help others by accepting their sin… we help them the same way we help ourselves… by identifying the sinful motivation and behavior and by rejecting it.
As we are on the journey toward righteousness ourselves and recognize we an never achieve a truly holy standard by ourselves, we should also recognize the grace, mercy and love that Jesus offers to us and we should similarly extend that to others.
A last thought is that we must remember that God judges based on the heart where we as men can only judge effectively based on observable behaviors and actions. We must challenge ourselves to “24 Look beneath the surface so you can judge correctly.” [John 7:24]
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