Luke 6:37-42 Judging Others
“Do not judge, and you will not be judged. Do not condemn, and you will not be condemned. Forgive, and you will be forgiven. Give, and it will be given to you. A good measure, pressed down, shaken together and running over, will be poured into your lap. For with the measure you use, it will be measured to you.”
He also told them this parable: “Can the blind lead the blind? Will they not both fall into a pit? The student is not above the teacher, but everyone who is fully trained will be like their teacher.
“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, ‘Brother, let me take the speck out of your eye,’ when you yourself fail to see the plank in your own eye? You hypocrite, first take the plank out of your eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother’s eye.”
Luke 6:43-45 A Tree and Its Fruit
“No good tree bears bad fruit, nor does a bad tree bear good fruit. Each tree is recognized by its own fruit. People do not pick figs from thornbushes, or grapes from briers. A good man brings good things out of the good stored up in his heart, and an evil man brings evil things out of the evil stored up in his heart. For the mouth speaks what the heart is full of.
Luke 6:46-49 The Wise and Foolish Builders
“Why do you call me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ and do not do what I say? As for everyone who comes to me and hears my words and puts them into practice, I will show you what they are like. They are like a man building a house, who dug down deep and laid the foundation on rock. When a flood came, the torrent struck that house but could not shake it, because it was well built. But the one who hears my words and does not put them into practice is like a man who built a house on the ground without a foundation. The moment the torrent struck that house, it collapsed and its destruction was complete.”
“Do not judge, and you will not be judged. Do not condemn, and you will not be condemned. Forgive, and you will be forgiven. Give, and it will be given to you. A good measure, pressed down, shaken together and running over, will be poured into your lap. For with the measure you use, it will be measured to you.”
Now Jesus is getting down to the nitty gritty! Some of the laws of the Kingdom of God appear so simple when they are actually so profound. Newton’s Third Law of Motion states that for every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction. This means that pushing on an object causes that object to push back against you, the same amount but in the opposite direction. There’s also a saying that “What goes around comes around!” While God sends rain on both the just and the unjust, if we want God’s richest blessings, we must bless others also.
“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, ‘Brother, let me take the speck out of your eye,’ when you yourself fail to see the plank in your own eye? You hypocrite, first take the plank out of your eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother’s eye.”
Are we really qualified to be sawdust inspectors? We love to pounce on others’ shortcomings, no matter how tiny they might be, conveniently ignoring the glaring failures in our own lives. One Christian writer has suggested that Jesus has based his illustration about a man with a beam in his eye on some real incident in which a man known to be a sharp critic of his neighbors is walking down the street, failing to pay attention while a carpenter coming the other direction is carrying a beam of wood over his shoulder. The local critic winds up with the corner of the beam striking his eye, forcing him to wear an eye patch for months.
What about fruit inspection? In Ghana, the Ashantis have a saying that it’s not the man who is cutting the path who knows whether or not the path is straight, but only the man coming behind. Steve Green has a song entitled “May Those Who Come Behind Us Find Us Faithful.” Want to know what kind of fruit you are bearing? Ask your family and friends, but be prepared for a shock. You might think you are doing very well, only to find that others feel your “fruit” is rotten and worm-eaten.
“Why do you call me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ and do not do what I say? As for everyone who comes to me and hears my words and puts them into practice, I will show you what they are like. They are like a man building a house, who dug down deep and laid the foundation on rock. When a flood came, the torrent struck that house but could not shake it, because it was well built. But the one who hears my words and does not put them into practice is like a man who built a house on the ground without a foundation. The moment the torrent struck that house, it collapsed and its destruction was complete.”
Why does Jesus seg into talking about wise and foolish builders? If we are unwilling to recognize our shortcomings and persist in judging others mercilessly, we are as foolish as a man who builds his house on a sandy watercourse where flood waters will rapidly tear it apart and carry it away.
Regarding judgement: God is the only One who truly knows the human heart. The rest of us are merely playing guessing games. We are currently on the edge of a situation in which some people have told vicious lies about others who have worked whole-heartedly and honestly for years. Authorities have listened to the lies instead of praying. Anybody can make the same mistake. Leave judgement to God and concentrate on loving and forgiving instead. What if you aren’t certain someone has done something wrong? You can always pray like this: “Dear God, only You know the facts of this situation. Please send Your light and Your truth into it so that the facts will come out. If someone has sinned, help me to forgive them, for I also need forgiveness for the many times I sin each day. Let Your Kingdom fully come and Your Will be fully done in the lives of all those involved. In the mighty and precious Name of King Jesus. Amen.” Remember to pray for others as you hope they will pray for you!
Abraham Lincoln once said, “You can fool all the people some of the time, and some of the people all the time, but you cannot fool all the people all the time.” No matter how hard we try, those around us will know if we are hypocrites bearing rotten fruit or if we work whole-heartedly and passionately for God. May God help us, so that we leave off judging and criticism and concentrate on bearing Godly fruits that will stand the test of time. If we persist, we are as foolish as the man who built on sand.
PRAYER: Father God, thank You for loving us and for caring for us. Lord, we confess that we are always eager to criticize others while we ourselves may be doing something worse. Help us to leave off criticism and judgement and concentrate on fulfilling Your perfect Will for our lives. Help us to remember that the measure we give out is the measure we will receive. In the mighty and precious Name of King Jesus. Amen.
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