David Bahn – Reflections

“Judge not, and you will not be judged; condemn not, and you will not be condemned; forgive, and you will be forgiven; ³⁸ give, and it will be given to you. Good measure, pressed down, shaken together, running over, will be put into your lap. For with the measure you use it will be measured back to you.”

³⁹ He also told them a parable: “Can a blind man lead a blind man? Will they not both fall into a pit? ⁴⁰ A disciple is not above his teacher, but everyone when he is fully trained will be like his teacher. ⁴¹ Why do you see the speck that is in your brother’s eye, but do not notice the log that is in your own eye? ⁴² How can you say to your brother, ‘Brother, let me take out the speck that is in your eye,’ when you yourself do not see the log that is in your own eye? You hypocrite, first take the log out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to take out the speck that is in your brother’s eye.

I’m pretty happy with how I’m treated at the gym where Diane and I work out. There is not an excessive amount (or too little amount?) of Spandex. And the other much younger folks there seem genuinely welcoming and happy to have us in the class. I am definitely the oldest person in the class, and I have to modify in some manner almost all of the workouts we do. But it seems to be a no-judgement zone. No body shaming. No finger-pointing. No eye rolling.

Everyone has his or her own issue. We all have our unique challenges. I’ve got plenty to work on myself without worrying about how well my gym partner is doing – except to help her if she falls.

The church should be such a place as well. This is made clear in the teachings of Jesus. “Judge not, and you will not be judged; condemn not, and you will not be condemned,” he says. Take the log out of your own eye before you try to remove the log from your brother’s or sister’s eye. 

This could be regarded as wisdom literature: advice for getting along well in life. Jesus knew his Old Testament. These verses echo Old Testament themes about judging, forgiving, and giving. They are very much like the wisdom literature of Proverbs. These writings reflect how life typically works under God’s design but are not absolute promises. The book teaches discernment and virtue, shaping the heart and mind to walk in the fear of the Lord, which is the beginning of wisdom.

But Jesus was not prone to espouse wisdom literature without some deeper application. In other words, these are important markers of followers of Jesus. These are markers of Jesus’ disciples. The world is full of judgmental people, who refuse to forgive, and close their wallets and bank accounts with two-factor authentication. And those two factors are greed and hubris. Jesus would say to that, “It shall not be so among you.”

Let the church be a no-judgment zone. Leave the judging to God. He’s much better at it. His judgment fell on Jesus so that we can approach the throne of God’s grace in faith and receive the blessings Jesus earned by his life of perfect obedience to these and all of God’s laws.