Stop Judging Me!

How many of us have quoted Scripture when we don’t want to be held accountable? “Don’t judge me!” we scream. The meaning of ”not judging” that is used in Scripture has little to do with looking the other way when someone sins.

“Be merciful, just as your Father is merciful. ‘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.’” –Jesus (Luke 6:36-38) NIV.

Judging in the context used by Jesus is a reference to “giving people the benefit of the doubt when they hurt you.” It is a direct allusion to Leviticus 19:15, which says, “Do not pervert justice; do not show partiality to the poor or favoritism to the great, but judge your neighbor fairly.”

Also keep in mind the Hebrew word for neighbor is “rea,” which means friend and enemy.

The Scripture of Leviticus 19:15 is an instruction from God to judge fairly, giving others the benefit of the doubt, such as when someone hurts you and you say, “He only did that because he was hurting or was angry” as apposed to, “He is a jerk! Hang him.”

The way we judge by giving the benefit of doubt is the way others will judge us. If I am quick to assume the worst in others, then others will be quick to assume the worst in me. However, if I am a person who is quick to assume the best, then others will assume the best in me when I hurt them.

Jesus lived by what he taught while being nailed to a cross, when he said, “Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing.” (Luke 23:34) NIV.

There is a rabbinic saying from the Oral Torah of the Jews, which states, “Judge every person in favorable terms.” (Mishnah, Avot 1:6).

Jesus is a fair judge who looks for a reason to pardon, rather than a reason to punish.

Judge the motives of others in the way you would appreciate being judged.

Forever learning,
Johnny