Do Not Judge?

October 11, 2023

Besides perhaps John 3:16, one of the best-known Bible verses by those outside of Christ is Matthew 7:1 which says, “Do not judge so that you will not be judged.” (Matthew 7:1 NAS95) These words have become a battle cry for many in the world.  When a Christian points out sin in this world, here comes the reply, “Don’t judge!”  When some behavior is decried as evil, you may hear the refrain, “Jesus said don’t judge!” What did Jesus mean by these words?  Did He mean that Christians should not make determinations or statements about what is right and wrong, what is good and evil?

Of course, Jesus did not mean any such thing.  Christians must be able to distinguish between good and evil.  We must “abhor what is evil and cling to what is good.” (Romans 12:9 NAS95) This requires that we must distinguish, according to the word of God, what is good and evil.  A judgement must be made!  We are to “have our senses trained to discern good and evil.” (Hebrews 5:14b NAS95).  To have this discernment is a mark of Christian maturity.  In 1 Corinthians chapter 5, the apostle Paul instructs the church at Corinth to judge those who are within the church and to “remove the wicked man from among yourselves.” (1 Corinthians 5:13 NAS95) In this case of flagrant sexual immorality, the church needed to make a judgement about what was right and what was wrong and act accordingly.

What then did Jesus mean when He said, “Do not judge”?  The context indicates that Jesus is speaking of hypocritical judgment where we would criticize and condemn another when we ourselves are practicing the same, or worse.  We should not try to remove the speck in our brother’s eye when we have a wooden beam in our own.  We must be careful to not harshly condemn one another, because by our standard of measure, it will be measured back to us.

But we must never let the world talk us into blurring the lines between right and wrong.  We must never let them cow us into believing that there are no standards of morality.  Christians must judge what is right and what is wrong according to the word of God and we must stand upon the truth.   

—Scott Colvin

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Posted by Scott Colvin

The Road to Spiritual Maturity

March 29, 2022

One of the great tragedies in life is for one to claim a longstanding relationship with Christ and yet be very immature spiritually.  This is something that should not be.  It is comparable to a baby who fails to thrive.  When a baby doesn’t grow physically, we know that something is very wrong.  In the same way, if we examine our own lives and see that we have not grown spiritually, we should be very alarmed.  Something is very wrong.  Sometimes Christians go through life with the same fleshly attitudes and behaviors that we had before we came into Jesus.  Very little changes.  Little to no fruit is produced.  Christ seems to have little impact.  On the other hand, we all know brothers and sisters in the Lord who have changed completely since meeting Jesus.  They grow and bear fruit and are a blessing to those around them.  The question is, why do some go on to maturity and some do not?

If we are going to mature in the Lord, we must be feeding on the word of God.  Just as a baby will not grow without milk, so a Christian will not grow without feeding upon the word.  Peter writes, “…like newborn babies, long for the pure milk of the word, so that by it you may grow in respect to salvation…” (1 Peter 2:2, NASB) If you and I are not feeding on the word, there will be no growth.

If we are going to mature in the Lord, we must be practicing righteousness.  There will be no growth if we only talk about the things of the Lord but do not practice them.  As we see in Hebrews chapter five, “But solid food is for the mature, who because of practice have their senses trained to discern good and evil.” (Hebrews 5:14, NASB) Practice brings the ability to discern good and evil, and this is a mark of spiritual maturity.

Finally, if we are going to mature in the Lord, we must take opportunities to grow through trials.  Those who are mature have allowed the Lord to mold and shape them in the fires of suffering.  As James says, “Consider it all joy, my brethren, when you encounter various trials, knowing that the testing of your faith produces endurance.  And let endurance have its perfect result, so that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing.” (James 1:2-4, NASB) Trials, if endured with a God-centered, joyful attitude, will lead us to be perfect (mature), and complete. 

Let us examine our own lives and, with God’s help, press on to greater spiritual maturity.

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Posted by Scott Colvin