Judgement or Discernment?

Many times when we point out that something is wrong, people quote Matthew 7:1, “Judge not, that ye be not judged,” and accuse us of being hypocritical for judging them.   Once again, they have not taken the time to see what the passage actually says.  We live in a world that puts a lot of stress on the first impression.    We judge people based on that first impression, or pre judge them, based on their race, gender, style of dress, and manner of speaking.   Such judgments are known as prejudice and is the kind of judgment Jesus is talking about here.     

Matthew 7:2-5 continues, “For with what judgment ye judge, ye shall be judged: and with what measure ye mete, it shall be measured to you again.  And why beholdest thou the mote that is in thy brother's eye, but considerest not the beam that is in thine own eye?  Or how wilt thou say to thy brother, Let me pull out the mote out of thine eye; and, behold, a beam is in thine own eye?  Thou hypocrite, first cast out the beam out of thine own eye; and then shalt thou see clearly to cast out the mote out of thy brother's eye.” 

We will be judged by the same standards we judged others, and to a similar degree.  Most of the time we judge others based on what we know about ourselves.  A habitual liar usually assumes everyone else is a liar, and a thief assumes others will steal if they get the chance.  Jesus said before we judge others about such things we need to address such problems in our own lives.  Frequently, we find that we are projecting our own attitudes on them rather than seeing what they are really like. Such prejudices lead to unjustified and unfair discrimination. 

Discrimination is not in itself a bad thing.  It simply means to recognize the differences between things, and make choices accordingly.   For example, we would discriminate between a drink of water and a glass of vinegar.   If we did not have the ability to discriminate, most people would not survive to adulthood.   We need to make sure that our discrimination is based on truth rather than unfounded prejudices.   While we can’t accurately tell what a person is like by their appearances, we can observe their actions and make at least an educated guess, as Matthew 7:20 tells us, “…by their fruits ye shall know them.”   

    

With this in mind, Jesus warned, “Give not that which is holy unto the dogs, neither cast ye your pearls before swine, lest they trample them under their feet, and turn again and rend you,” in Matthew 7:6.  By observing the person’s behavior, we can get an idea of their attitude,, and Jesus said don’t waste your time trying to placate those who are only concerned with their own greed.   Like a pack of feral dogs or feral pigs fighting over some food, as soon as it is gone, they may turn and attack you.    It is worthwhile to learn to differentiate or discriminate between those who appreciate what they are given and those who are just out to get as much as they can as easily as possible.     

Many people see this as a contradiction with Matthew 5:38-42, “Ye have heard that it hath been said, An eye for an eye, and a tooth for a tooth: But I say unto you, That ye resist not evil: but whosoever shall smite thee on thy right cheek, turn to him the other also.  And if any man will sue thee at the law, and take away thy coat, let him have thy cloak also.  And whosoever shall compel thee to go a mile, go with him twain.  Give to him that asketh thee, and from him that would borrow of thee turn not thou away.”  It is not a contradiction but warning to be careful in our efforts to help others.  In their efforts to help all refugees, many countries are finding out they have allowed the destruction of their society, for example.   While we ought to go beyond the minimum to help others, there are limits as to how far we should go.