Well, you can turn with me in your Bibles to Matthew chapter 7. Matthew chapter 7. This is a bit of extended application from the message this morning. Remember the Jews accused Jesus of being demon possessed and In that particular context, he defends himself, he refutes them by pointing out his miracle wrought in Bethesda.

He appeals to Moses to show that what he had done was not an infraction or transgression of the law. And then he laid down that principle concerning judgment. He says in John 7, 24, do not judge according to appearance, but judge with righteous judgment. So that'd be helpful for us to look at Matthew 7, verses one to five.

I'll read the passage and then we'll pray. Judge not that you be not judged, for with what judgment you judge, you will be judged. And with the measure you use, it will be measured back to you. And why do you look at the speck in your brother's eye, but do not consider the plank in your own eye?

Or how can you say to your brother, let me remove the speck from your eye, and look, a plank is in your own eye. Hypocrite, first remove the plank from your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother's eye. Amen. Well, let us pray.

Our Father in heaven, we thank you for the Word of God. We thank you that it's given by inspiration of you. It's profitable for doctrine, reproof, correction, and for instruction in righteousness. And certainly, this passage addresses a tendency in all of your people, in all of creation, to have a judgmental attitude and spirit with reference to others.

Give us wisdom concerning what the text says and means, and help us, God, by the power and the presence of the Holy Spirit. to put these things into practice in our own daily lives, to bring glory to you in a manner that is consistent with your revelation. Forgive us now for our sin and unrighteousness, cleanse us afresh in that precious blood of the Lamb, and God, fill us now with your Holy Spirit, and we pray through Jesus Christ our Lord, amen.

Introduction: The Sermon on the Mount

Well, this is part of the Sermon on the Mount. Of course, the Lord Jesus goes up onto a mountain and there he teaches. And we have all kinds of people drawing eye to him. There's those who are unconverted.

And so he preaches in a manner to show them the law and to show them their need for him. But as well, his disciples are attending also. So he is instructing the Christian in how he ought to live concerning his life before a holy God. And here in verses 1 to 5, he is making a prohibition against judgmentalism.

As I mentioned this morning, he is not saying there is never to be judgment. This is one of those misunderstood passages that we have in the Bible. In fact, Pastor Kirkpatrick in Surrey, I think, preached this one this morning. He's doing a summer series on commonly misunderstood Bible texts.

In Matthew 7, one to five is certainly one of them. So I wanna look first at the prohibition itself in verse one, secondly, the explanation in verse two, and then thirdly, the illustration in verses three to five. So let's

The Prohibition Against Judgmentalism

look first at the prohibition. And there's a few things I wanna consider.

Abuse and Misapplication of the Text

First, the abuse of the text. I think J.C. Ryle, hits the nail on the head when he says, the first portion of these verses is one of those passages of scripture which we must be careful not to strain beyond its proper meaning. It is frequently abused and misapplied by the enemies of true religion.

It is possible to press the words of the Bible so far that they yield not medicine but poison. How many times have we heard this text bandied about to try and teach that there ought never to be judgment? Oh, you Christians are so judgmental. Your own Bible says you're not supposed to judge.

Well, again, we need to properly understand what Jesus is addressing so that we can understand this text and understand this emphasis on judgment throughout Scripture. Now, in terms of the scope of the text, notice in verse one, judge not that you be not judged. If we lifted that out of the context, if we lifted it out of the Bible, if it was the only statement regarding judgment, then perhaps the opponents of Christianity would be right. Judge not that you be not judged.

It's so simple and so obvious. You're never supposed to ever render any kind of judgment whatsoever. You see, the issue is that this text is not disconnected from the rest of the Bible. It's not disconnected from the books of Genesis to Revelation.

This text is consistent with biblical teaching all throughout, and so we need to understand it in that larger context. So this cannot mean that a Christian is to never exercise judgment in the world. And I want to just give you various examples wherein it is right and where it is necessary for Christians to offer judgment.

Judging Dogs, Pigs, and False Prophets

In the first place, look at the next verse, verse 6. Do not give what is holy to the dogs, nor cast your pearls before swine, lest they trample them under their feet and turn and tear you in pieces. Brethren, that's a judgment call. At some point in our evangelism of a particular sinner, we ought to conclude that they're either a dog or a pig and no longer cast our pearls before them.

We are not to continue in a pattern of abuse or to, as far as we're able to, live at peace with all men, as Paul says in Romans chapter 12. But if a man is an expressed enemy of the gospel of our blessed Lord, after several attempts, after trying to win him over, after trying to argue him into the kingdom or tell him the truth, there is that emphasis that Jesus says, do not give what is holy to the dogs, nor cast your pearls before swine. He's not talking about actual canines. He's not talking about actual pigs.

He is talking about human beings that display those characteristics. that are at odds with the God of the scriptures, that are at odds with the people of God, and that are not to be entreated. And so there is a judgment involved in the fact that we are called to judge who may be a dog or a pig. Secondly, we are called to judge in matters of doctrinal orthodoxy. Look at Matthew 7 at verse 15.

Beware of false prophets who come to you in sheep's clothing, but inwardly they are ravenous wolves. That's a judgment call. How do we discriminate? How do we understand?

How do we identify that? Well, we hold them up to the scripture. We judge them in light of the scripture. We judge their prophesying, their teaching, their preaching in light of God's holy truth.

If they come up short, if they are wanting, if they are lacking, then we judge them to be false prophets. Notice in verse 16, you will know them by their fruits. Do men gather grapes from thorn bushes or figs from thistles? Even so, every good tree bears good fruit, but a bad tree bears bad fruit.

A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, nor can a bad tree bear good fruit. Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. Therefore, by their fruits you will know them. By their fruits you will be able to judge them, you will be able to discern, you will be able to understand where they're coming from, and if they are false prophets, have no truck with them.

Turn over to the book of Galatians, another place where we see that we're called to judge in matters of doctrinal orthodoxy. In Galatians chapter 1 at verse 6, the apostle comes out of the gate and he says, I marvel that you are turning away so soon from him who called you in the grace of Christ to a different gospel, which is not another. But there are some who trouble you and want to pervert the gospel of Christ. But even if we or an angel from heaven preach any other gospel to you than what we have preached to you, let him be accursed.

As we have said before, so now I say again, if anyone preaches any other gospel to you than what you have received, let him be a curse. But Paul, that sounds judgmental. Absolutely, positively, it is judgmental. We are not to let heretics into Christian pulpits and distort the doctrine of justification by faith alone.

We're to chase them out. We're to have no truck with them. We're not to listen to them. We are to refuse and reject them.

That is a judgment call. Turn over the book of Philippians, Philippians chapter 3. Philippians chapter 3 verse 1, Finally, my brethren, rejoice in the Lord. For me to write the same things to you is not tedious, but for you it is safe.

Beware of dogs. Again, he's not arguing, he's not warning you against the canine down the street. He's not suggesting that pit bulls are always violent and dangerous and they're going to chew you up and they're going to chew your children up. No, the Judaizers, or rather the Jews, would refer to Gentiles as dogs.

So Paul takes up this moniker and describes the Judaizers, those who want to add works to faith, he calls them dogs. Notice verse two, beware of dogs, beware of evil workers, beware of the mutilation, those who are seeking to get you to be circumcised in order to complete the transaction betwixt you and God. This is a judgment call, brethren, and if persons say, well, that's not kind, that's not loving, that's not fair, we are to judge in the manner that God calls us to. Turn over to the book of Revelation, Revelation chapter 2, the church in Ephesus, the first letter to the seven churches of Asia Minor.

They are commended by Christ for having rendered judgment. We often remember the church at Ephesus for their problem, which was leaving their first love, but we don't often remember what they're commended for, and we should. Notice in 2.1, to the angel of the church of Ephesus write, these things says he who holds the seven stars in his right hand, who walks in the midst of the seven golden lampstands. I know your works, your labor, your patience, and that you cannot bear those who are evil, which in and of itself is a judgment call.

We're rendering the verdict that these persons are evil and therefore we're going to avoid that. But he escalates it. Notice, and you have tested those who say they are apostles and are not and have found them liars. And you have persevered and have patience and have labored for my name's sake and have not become weary.

So going back to Matthew 7, judge not, that you be not judged is not a universal statement. It is conditioned, it is contextual, it is in the life or in the orbit of the rest of God's Word.

Judging in Church Discipline

In a third manner, we are called to judge in matters of church discipline. So not only orthodoxy with reference to sound doctrine, but orthopraxy with reference to life and practice in Christ's church. Turn over to Matthew chapter 18. There we see detailed instruction on how to deal with somebody that has sinned against us.

Now I know the default position in the church is to avoid them, to never have any dealings with them again, but that's not God's Word. That is not the command of Scripture. We're supposed to fix our relationships. If we go to the altar and there we want to present our gift, and we remember that somebody has a problem with us, we go fix that relationship.

Because what happens horizontally affects the vertical relationship with God. And in the same token, if somebody sins against me, I'm not to just avoid them, I'm not just to write them off, I'm not just to think in my own head, they're dead to me and I'm not going to have any dealings with them. No, I need to man up and do what God Most High commands me to do and I need to go after them such that they can repent of their sin and have a right relationship horizontally and thus vertically. This is a judgment call.

Notice in 1815. Moreover, if your brother sins against you, go and tell him his fault between you and him alone. If he hears you, you have gained your brother. But if he will not hear, take with you one or two more, that by the mouth of two or three witnesses every word may be established.

And if he refuses to hear them, what do you think they're doing? They're rendering a judgment. They're witnessing the process. They have heard the events and details, and they are saying, yeah, this guy is unrepentant.

This guy has found wanting. This guy is not doing what he's supposed to do. So notice in verse 17, and if he refuses to hear them, tell it to the church. But if he refuses even to hear the church, let him be to you like a heathen and a tax collector.

That's a judgment. We render a judgment upon a sinning brother that does not repent. We treat him like a heathen and a tax collector. You see this in 1 Corinthians 5 as well.

The apostle upbraids the Corinthian church because there was an instance of a man who had his father's wife. And the apostle says, you knew about this and you were arrogant about it? Paul says, get him out of the midst. If he's unrepentant, remove him from the life and context of the local church.

That is a judgment call.

Judging Sins of the Eldership

Fourth, we are called to judge in matters concerning the sins of the eldership. Turn over to 1 Timothy chapter 5. Again, focusing on what the text does not teach. It does not teach that there ought never to be any sort of judgment rendered whatsoever.

We are called to judge who may be a dog or a pig. We are called to judge in matters of doctrinal orthodoxy. We are called to judge in matters of church discipline. We are called to judge in matters concerning sins in the eldership.

Look at 1 Timothy 5, 17. Let the elders who rule well be counted worthy of double honor, especially those who labor in the word and doctrine. For the scripture says you shall not muzzle an ox while it treads out the grain, and the laborer is worthy of his wages. do not receive an accusation against an elder except from two or three witnesses. Again, what's in view?

There's a judgment call that's going to be made upon this particular elder. It must be done with due process. It must be done in the light of biblical redemption. It must be done in light of the laws of witnesses in Deuteronomy 17 and 19.

And then notice what happens in verse 20. Those who are sinning rebuke in the presence of all that the rest also may fear. That's a judgment, brethren, that the church renders on a sinning elder. And then finally,

Judgment in Civil and Church Disputes

we are called to judge in civil disputes, both in the church and in the civil sphere. Turn back to 1 Corinthians 6. 1 Corinthians 6, just to see an emphasis on the judgment that the church is supposed to render when there is a dispute among brothers within that church. Notice in 1 Corinthians 6, one, dare any of you having a matter against another, go to law before the unrighteous and not before the saints. Do you not know that the saints will judge the world?

And if the world will be judged by you, are you unworthy to judge the smallest matters? Do you not know that we shall judge angels? How much more things that pertain to this life? If then you have judgments concerning things pertaining to this life, do you appoint those who are least esteemed by the church to judge?

I say this to your shame. Is it so that there is not a wise man among you, not even one who will be able to judge between his brethren? But brother goes to law against brother, and that before unbelievers. Don't go to the pagan judge, don't go to the heathen.

Rather, the church ought to be able to render sufficient judgment in these particular matters. So again, an odd emphasis by the Apostle Paul, if judge not lest you be judged, is a universal statement that requires never judging anyone. And then of course, Romans chapter 13. Romans chapter 13, verses 1 to 4.

Let every soul be subject to the governing authorities. For there is no authority except from God, and those which exist are appointed by God. Therefore, whoever resists the authority resists the ordinance of God, and those who resist will bring judgment on themselves. For rulers are not a terror to good works, but to evil.

Do you want to be unafraid of the authority? Do it as good, and you will have praise from the same. For he is God's minister to you for good, but if you do evil, be afraid. For he does not bear the sword in vain, for he is God's minister and avenger to execute wrath on him who practices evil." Now brethren, generally this applies, right?

Civil government has the right and prerogative given to it by God to render judgment. and then to punish in light of that violation of law up to and including the death penalty. Christians can function as civil magistrates. We're not Anabaptists. If you get a job in the civil government and your job is to render judgment, God's not at war with you.

That is not a problematic situation. That is not something that he will say is a wicked endeavor on the part of God's people.

Meaning of the Prohibition

What we have in Matthew 7 verse 1 is not an unqualified and universal prohibition to never engage in judgment. We've just seen the opposite. It is rather a prohibition against a particular activity that we are all prone to do when dealing with our brothers in Christ. He's condemning judgmentalism.

He is condemning our everyday conduct with one another. That's the context of the Sermon on the Mount. Turn back to Matthew chapter 5 to see the Sermon on the Mount in this way. Notice in chapter 5 verses 38 to 42.

You have heard that it was said, an eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth. But I tell you not to resist an evil person. But whoever slaps you on your right cheek, turn the other to him also. If anyone wants to sue you and take away your tunic, let him have your cloak also.

And whoever compels you to go one mile, go with him too. Give to him who asks you and from him who wants to borrow from you, do not turn away. This is not a prohibition against locking your front door. It's not a prohibition against telling a criminal offender that I'm not going to allow you to rape my wife or my daughters.

The common understanding or misunderstanding of this text would do away with locks, would do away with guard dogs, would do away with alarm systems. I mean, after all, we're supposed to turn the other cheek, right? You're done with my daughter, the wife is down at the end of the hallway. That's not what's in view.

It is a petty, vindictive, judgmental spirit in day-to-day life that was exhibited by the Pharisees and the scribes. The religious people are the ones that Jesus has issues with in the Sermon on the Mount. with reference to everyday ethics. Yeah, as far as you're able, don't be vindicatory. Don't be a petty, judgmental individual.

Don't be that person that's always exacting a pound of flesh. But if you are brutally assaulted, if you are mugged on the way home from church tonight, which I hope doesn't happen, Jesus doesn't condemn you calling the RCMB. Jesus doesn't condemn you sitting with the artist that's going to sketch out a picture of the bad guy. And Jesus doesn't condemn you if you go into court and you swear and tell the whole truth concerning this particular barbarian, and he ends up getting thrown in prison or executed.

Christ is not at war with that. Christ is at war with the kind of judgmental spirit exhibited by the Pharisees and oftentimes exhibited by God's people in churches today. Calvin says these words of Christ do not contain an absolute prohibition from judging. but are intended to cure a disease which appears to be natural to us all. We see how all flatter themselves, and every man passes as a fair censure on others.

This vice is attended by some strange enjoyment, for there is hardly any person who is not tickled with the desire of inquiring into other people's faults." It's a fault-finding methodology that Christ is denouncing. You see that again in verse 5. Hypocrite, first remove the plank from your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from who? From your brother's eye.

This has to do with your daily interpersonal relationships. It has nothing to do with the rendering of a judgment by the church in an ecclesiastical setting on a man's doctrinal unorthodoxy or heterodoxy or heresy or his continual patterns of sin. It has nothing to do with that. So if a church excommunicates a sinful offender, it is not legit for outsiders to, well, that's not right.

You're not supposed to judge. You have no understanding whatsoever of what the Bible says, and yet you're gonna try to beat us up with Bible verses that you don't know? Now, in terms of the meaning of the text, very clearly, the command forbids a nitpicking, fault-finding, petty approach to our brother's shortcomings. Judge not that you be not judged.

Again, we see this in the illustration in verses four and five, or three to five. And why do you look at the speck in your brother's eye, but do not consider the plank in your own eye? That is a nitpicky, petty, fault-finding mindset. It's inconsistent with that principle of love in 1 Corinthians 13, 7.

Love bears all things, it believes all things, it hopes all things, it endures all things. And the mandate given by the Apostle Paul in Colossians 3, 13, bearing with one another and forgiving one another. See, the Apostle says that we're supposed to forgive one another even as God in Christ forgave us. If God has forgiven us of a multitude of sin and transgression, we ought to be forgiving toward our brethren.

Now, again, there may be those instances where we have to employ Matthew 18, but for the most part, brethren, we can let love cover a multitude of sins. That is a legitimate option that presents itself to the people of God that will hopefully protect us from the mindset that is condemned here. Again, Ryle says, what our Lord means to condemn is a censorious and fault-finding spirit, a readiness to blame others for trifling offenses or matters of indifference, a habit of passing rash and hasty judgments, a disposition to magnify the errors and infirmities of our neighbors and make the worst of them. This is what our Lord forbids.

It was common among the Pharisees. Osborne adds this, he says, the key component is the absence of love. So the command is contextually conditioned by the reality that on your day-to-day life, you're not supposed to be the fault-finding, censorious person that imitates the Pharisees instead of has God's Word lodged in their hearts. So the prohibition is not universal, it is not unconditional, but rather it finds itself in the context of the larger emphasis in Scripture.

Now back to verse 1, judge not that you be not judged. Look at chapter 7 and verse 12. Therefore whatever you want men to do to you, do also to them, for this is the law and the prophets. We call that the golden rule.

And it goes man to man. How I want to be treated, I should treat you. How I don't want to be treated, I shouldn't treat you that way. Well, the judgment in verse 1, judge not that you be not judged, it doesn't mean horizontally.

It means God work. And as we move through this particular passage, that's the one who brings chastening upon the brother that engages in this particular sin. And that's a great sort of a stimulus, isn't it? Judge not that you be not judged.

Don't be the nitpicker. Don't be the fault finder. Don't be the Pharisee. Don't be the guy that has to see himself as the policeman for every single individual in the life of Christ's holy church.

That's not your job. That's not your area of competence. That is not what you have been called to do. And understand that if that is the tack that you take, you will be judged for it by God most high.

That right there should lead all of us to consider and ponder the emphasis in the text so that we don't fall prey to engaging in an abuse of our place.

The Explanation: Judgment Measured Back

Now notice secondly, the explanation, the explanation that he gives. So he gives a prohibition, verse one, judge not that you be not judged. And then in verse two, four, with what judgment you judge, you will be judged. And with the measure you use, it will be measured back to you.

Notice the standard of judgment. We saw this this morning. Jesus says in John 7, 24, do not judge according to appearance, but judge with righteous judgment. That text itself assumes that we will judge.

That text assumes and commands that we judge. It just demands that we judge in a manner that is consistent with God's holy word, that we judge with a righteous judgment. It's not our feelings. It's not our emotions.

It's not our offense. It's not, oh, we don't like that. It's what God's word has to say. That's the standard of judgment that we are to employ in the various ways we are called to judge.

And with reference to interpersonal relationships, we're not supposed to do it at all. fault-finding, nitpicking, petty approaches to our neighbor. So the prohibition in John 7, 24, do not judge according to appearance. I cited a few passages. Exodus 23, don't give deference to a poor man in your courtroom.

Judge him based on the facts of the case. Don't give deference to a rich man in your courtroom. Judge him with reference to the facts of the case. And then the several emphases in the Old Testament and New that God does not show partiality.

I cited a particular commentator. He says, to show partiality in a judgment is not to give a judgment that is just because of love or deference or fear or the status of a person, which things have nothing to do with the case. That doesn't, I mean, if you love somebody, that doesn't change the contours of the case. As lovers of God and lovers of men, we want justice to be served.

And so we don't defer, or we don't prefer, or we don't engage in partiality. So that's what Christ is saying here. He says in verse two, for with what judgment you judge, you will be judged. And I take that as by God.

And with the measure you use, it will be measured back to you. It doesn't mean that God's going to enter into a nitpicking, fault-finding, petty attitude. But He is going to judge you based on that particular sin that you undertake on your own behalf. In other words, when you violate God's holy law, expect judgment, expect chastisement.

Expect God to come to deal with you. That's the focus in verse 2. For with what judgment you judge, you will be judged. If you're a nitpicking, fault-finding, petty individual that Jesus is denouncing here, judgment is going to come your way.

And with the measure you use, it will be measured back to you. You get rid of the Word of God, you let your preferences reign supreme, you let feelings and emotions call the day. Well, then God is going to deal with you, not that way, but according to His law, against the sin that you have undertaken.

The Illustration: Speck and Plank

And then notice, thirdly, the illustration in verses 3 to 5. Now, this illustration is typical of our blessed Lord. He used kind of hyperbolic things to illustrate points. Remember in Matthew 23, when he's upbraiding the scribes and the Pharisees, and he says, you strain out the gnat, but you swallow the camel.

Brethren, I have to believe somebody in the crowd smiled. I have to believe that somebody in the crowd got tickled when he said that. You can envision it. You can see it.

You can see these Pharisees trying to strain their wine because they didn't want any impurities in there. And so they take great pains to make sure not a little gnat falls into their wine. And yet you swallow the camel? Again, brethren, he uses that hyperbole to illustrate the point.

And he does the same thing here masterfully. Notice what he says in verses three to five. First, you have the illustration proper. Verse three, why do you look at the speck, the speck of sawdust in your brother's eye, but do not consider the plank or the log in your own eye?

Now, that right in and of itself should give all of us cause to pause. This type of fault finding takes effort on the part of the fault finder. Certainly, you have better things to do than look for specks in your brother's eyes, don't you? Yes, possibly.

You see, this takes effort to be this kind of a sinner. It actually means more work than just obeying Jesus at this particular point. This type of fault finding is a betrayal of the law of liberty. James invokes the law of liberty in James 2, 12, and 13 in a context dealing with partiality.

He says specifically, so speak and so do as those who will be judged by the law of liberty. For judgment is without mercy to the one who has shown no mercy. Mercy triumphs over judgment. Thirdly, with reference to the illustration proper, why do you look at the speck in your brother's eye but do not consider the plank in your own eye?

This type of fault finding is a rejection of biblical procedure. You're not supposed to do this. You're supposed to understand that when it comes to matters, not only in the law courts, But when it comes to matters in our daily interaction, one with another, Proverbs 18, 17 is binding upon all men everywhere. The first to plead his cause seems right until his neighbor comes and examines him.

Earlier in Proverbs 18, he says, he who answers a matter before he hears it, this is folly, it is wickedness. And so you're going after the speck in your brother's eye, all the while you've got a beam. You've got a log, you've got a pole hanging out of your eye. It is absolutely ludicrous that we engage in this sort of thing.

Fourth, this type of fault finding is a failure to come to grips with one's own shortcomings, failures, and sins. The guy with the speck understands your issue, but you don't understand it. You've got a beam hanging out of your eye, and you've come after him for a piece of sawdust in his eye. Okay, let's deal with the sawdust, brother, but let's deal with that beam.

Let's try to extricate that log that's hanging out of your eye that you're swinging around indiscriminately at everybody around us. John Stott says we have a fatal tendency to exaggerate the faults of others and minimize the gravity of our own sin. Yeah, that's absolutely positively true. And then screw tape to Wormwood in C.S.

Lewis's book, Screw Tape Letters. He says, aggravate that most useful human characteristic, the horror and neglect of the obvious. The guy's got a pole hanging out of his eye, right? He says you must bring him to a condition in which he can practice self-examination for an hour without discovering any of those facts about himself which are perfectly clear to anyone who has ever lived in the same house with him or worked in the same office.

That is what this text is dealing with, this fault-finding, nitpicking attitude where you've got bigger issues than the person you're actually coming after. And then oftentimes, this type of fault-finding may involve what psychologists call projection. I'm gonna come after the sawdust that's in your eye, all the while neglecting the log that's in my own. They both come from the same place, brethren.

They both come from the same tree. And so with reference to this, it is absolutely ludicrous, and Jesus condemns it by way of this illustration.

The Indictment: Hypocrite

Notice he then makes this indictment based on this illustration. Verse five, he says, hypocrite. Hypocrite, now that is applied to unbelievers in chapter 6, 2, 5, and 16. So in chapter 6, 2, 5, and 16, it's applied to unbelievers, but it's not confined to them.

Jesus calls these nitpicking fault finders, these censorious souls, these do-gooders for all that is good and holy when it comes to the policing of sawdust, but have no concern whatsoever with reference to beams. He calls them hypocrites. Spurgeon says, Jesus is gentle, but he calls that man a hypocrite who fusses about small things and others and pays no attention to great matters at home in his own person. Why do you look at the speck in your brother's eye, but do not consider the plank in your own eye?

Or how can you say to your brother, let me remove the speck from your eye and look, a plank is in your own eye? Imagine going for eye surgery, and your eye surgeon happened to be blind. That might give you cause to reflect. This isn't the best place for me.

Or perhaps you are able to go to Arizona, and you're going to go visit the Grand Canyon. And you're going to shell out the dough to get the guy to tour down to the bottom of the canyon. And the guy shows up with his team of burros, and he happens to be blind. And he says, saddle up, partner.

We're going to shimmy down right into the bottom of the canyon. I'd say, nah, I don't think so, man. I am not going to do this. I wouldn't trust a blind man to pack my parachute.

I wouldn't trust a blind man to fly my plane. And with reference to a blind man doing eye surgery on me, nope, not going to happen. Again, that's a judgment call, too. Judge not, lest you be judged.

I'll take the effort on that one, or I'll take the liability on that one. Do you see what Jesus is saying? You got this beam hanging out of your eye, and you're coming over here and saying, brother, let me get that sawdust out of your eye. That is hypocrisy.

The Corrective: Remove Your Own Plank

Now notice the corrective in verse five. Hypocrite, first remove the plank from your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother's eye. Now there's a couple of ways that this could go. The plank has a general reference to sin. deal with your own sin, so you're in a right posture to deal with the sins of others.

That doesn't mean you're sinlessly perfect. It doesn't mean you're without blemish. It doesn't mean you're wholly harmless and undefiled. But in terms of a general comportment and pursuit of holiness, you got it together.

And so you're in a better position to police the sawdust in the eyes of your lesser fellows. Or the plank has a specific reference to the attitude condemned in verses one and two. You're a nitpicker, you're a fault finder. If the goal is to try to fix your brother's eye, it's not good to have sawdust in the eye either.

It's a good corrective, it's a good help, it's a good ministry for us to undertake. It's just hypocritical when you happen to have a log hanging out of your eye. And so the emphasis may be on deal with yourself in this particular way, and then come to your brother in a spirit of gentleness and love. Lloyd-Jones says if you really do want to help others, and to help rid them of these blemishes and faults, and frailties and imperfections, First of all, realize that your spirit and your whole attitude has been wrong.

This spirit of judging and hypercriticism and censoriousness that is in you is really like a beam contrasted with a little mote in the other person's eye. Again, most of us are open to correction. I hope we're God's people. We're blood-bought.

We have the Holy Spirit. we hopefully will say with a hearty amen the proverb that says, faithful are the wounds of a friend. So when a friend comes to us, a brother comes to us, a wife comes to us, a husband comes to us, it's not always easy initially to hear that, but hey, they're after my good. They want my betterment. They want my growth and grace.

They want me to live a sawdust-free life. That's a blessing. But if their attitude is one of censoriousness and nitpickiness and pettiness and judgmentalness that is absolutely offensive, I'm okay with dishonest in my eye. I'm going to be all right with that.

In verse 5, while it is possible that the critic here is to be understood as aware of his own failings but concealing them, it is more likely that he is criticized for failing to apply the same standards to himself that he applies to others, like David in his response to Nathan's parable in 2 Samuel 12. Remember that? Oh, David is incensed. David is outraged.

David wants the death penalty for that rich man who took the little ewe lamb from that poor man and he cooked him up and barbecued him so that his friends would have something to eat. Oh, David's just incensed and outraged. He says, and thus being aware of the inconsistency of his behavior. The tendency is there to never deal with anyone else's sin because we're cowards.

But when we do deal with other people's sins, let us do it from the posture of not having a beam hanging out of our eyes when we come to correct the sawdust eye of our fellows.

Application: Overcoming Judgmentalism

In conclusion, first of all, the manifestation of judgmentalism, that's what's condemned. It's judgmentalism. It's not the idea of judging in those contexts specified earlier. The origin of this particular sin, it's Adam and our condition in Adam, but even as believers, we have remaining corruption.

And typically, it's pride. Typically, it's arrogance. Typically, it's virtue signaling. Typically, it's a better than thou attitude that we manifest.

And it's manifested particularly in pettiness, fault finding, being hypercritical. Brethren, it's tough to live under a hypercritical situation. Parents, remember this particular task as you're rearing your children. Yes, lay down the law of God.

Yes, lay down the rules that you have instituted in your home. But understand, brethren, that a hypercritical spirit is something that exacerbates people, exasperates people. Excessive eagerness, curiosity, and peevishness. Secondly, the gravity of judgmentalism, the gravity of this particular sentence.

It's very curious to me that in the context of a local church, if a brother stood up in a prayer meeting and said, you know, I went out and visited a prostitute last night, we'd be outraged and we'd call for church discipline. Or a brother stood up and he said, you know, Jesus is a creature, the watchtower is right. I'm gonna deny the triunity of God most high. We would be incensed and outraged.

And yet judgmentalism, it's just part and parcel of church life. It's just the way it is. It's right there with gossip. It's right there with slander.

It's right there with that hypercritical attitude. Somehow that doesn't, you know, get on our radar screen in terms of those things that we condemn and show outrage concerning. But with reference to the gravity, it is the arrogant assertion of authority over others. Who made you the judge and jury over other people?

Solomon says, keep your heart with all diligence, for out of it spring the issues of life. I don't know of a proverb by Solomon where he says, keep the heart of your fellows with all diligence, for out of it spring the issues of life. They need your constant surveillance to make sure they're always on the alert. Secondly, it is an expression of self-righteousness, isn't it?

You got a beam in your eye and you're coming after the sawdust of other. I think there's problems there and those problems are self-righteousness. It is thirdly, a demonstration of a lack of charity. It's not loving to do it in that manner.

Again, it's good to be the sawdust extractor from the eyes of your brethren if you do it in a spirit that is charitable, if you're doing it with a remedial attitude. If you're just criticizing incessantly your wife or your husband to the point where they want to go live on a roof or live out in the wilderness, that's not the right attitude or the right spirit. And then as well, it is a practical denial of the doctrine of remaining corruption. The doctrine of remaining corruption, while we don't justify sin, while we don't justify sadost in the eyes, we understand that that will always be the case.

It's like Jesus said concerning the poor. The poor you will always have. On this side of heaven, the remaining corruption, we will always have. And then finally, the prevention of judgmentalism.

And this isn't, you know, Jim Butler guru giving you all the things that you should do. Just some encouragements, some suggestions, some ideas to ponder so that we guard against this idea of judgmentalism. I'd suggest, first of all, we seek the gracious influence of the Holy Spirit. If by the Spirit you put to death the deeds of the body, then you shall live.

Romans chapter 8 and verse 13. We need the Holy Spirit, brethren. He's the Holy Spirit. We're not.

We need His influence. We need His gracious presence in our lives to hopefully keep us from this attitude condemned by our Lord. Secondly, seek to apply biblical law to all matters of judgment. That's the reality.

Do not judge according to appearance. to whims, to preferences, to emotions, to dreams. No, you judge with righteous judgment, which is the word of the living and true God. Thirdly, pursue humility and kill pride. The pursuit of humility by killing pride is a helpful way to minimize the logs so that you can deal faithfully with the sawdust, or so that you can minimize the tendency or the temptation to engage in this kind of fault-finding endeavor.

And then fourthly, understand the biblical doctrine of sin and how it is true of you. You and I have remaining corruption. You and I may have a tendency or proclivity, I don't want to offend, but we could actually have some self-righteousness in us. We could actually have a judgmental attitude in us.

We could actually be the fault-finding nitpickers that Jesus here condemns. We need to understand the limitations of our own heart that we may not be the best police officer to go about on this particular task. We need to understand remaining corruption in ourselves. Spurgeon said, instead of beholding with gratified gaze the small fault of another, we should act reasonably if we penitently consider the greater fault of ourselves.

But then, fifthly, understand the biblical doctrine of sin or remaining corruption and how it is true. of others, right? Are we demanding something that we ourselves can never pony up? That was the problem with the Pharisees. They lay burdens upon you that they themselves cannot carry.

It is absolutely crucial that we not only understand that we're in this boat of remaining corruption ourselves, but so are our wives, so are our husbands. A child who confesses faith in our Lord Jesus doesn't go through some time warp and start exhibiting himself as 30. He's still gonna be childish. He's still gonna have foolishness in him.

Oh, how could you ever claim to be a Christian? Brethren, guard against that tendency. There is remaining corruption here, there is remaining corruption there, and we do well to remember that of our fellows. And then I would suggest finally, value, esteem, and love your brother.

Value, esteem, and love your brother. Don't be a judge or a hypocrite, but be a brother. Encourage, love, exhort, be kind. If it is something that you feel constrained to go to them, go with the spirit of gentleness and affection and with a genuine desire to see them won for our Lord Jesus Christ, not in this sort of celebratory manner.

Wow, I can't believe, you know, smirk, smirk, giggle, giggle, that you actually did that. I can't understand that. I'm just so holy and righteous and pure and I've never done that. That's the attitude that Christ herein condemns.

And so by God's grace, may we conduct ourselves in a manner that is consistent with his word. I suggest it sins at this level. that oftentimes do far more damage in the churches of Jesus Christ than does a minister or a person standing up and saying, you know, let's just all deny the deity of Jesus and become Unitarians. Let's all deny the deity of Jesus and become Arians. No, that's usually, I mean, it happens to be sure, but it's this kind of a mindset.

It's this kind of an attitude. It's gossipy, slanderous, judgmental people that do positive harm and destruction to the churches of Christ. Let us deal with our own logs before we go to the sawdust of others. to praise God for Christ because we're going to sin. We are going to be nitpicky.

We are going to be judgmental. Perhaps you're thinking now, man, I did this to my wife or I said this to my husband. I kind of do this on a regular basis. I really need to stop.

Well, you're not going to go to heaven because you stop. I mean, you certainly need to stop, because if you don't, that evidence is that you've never come to the Savior. But we go to heaven based on the fact that Christ never sinned this sin, that Christ was not nitpicking, that Christ was not petty, that Christ was not a fault finder in the manner that He condemns in this particular passage. It is His righteousness, it is His death, it is His resurrection by which we stand.

So not to minimize the import of the tax, to call us to a pursuit of those things that are pleasing in a sight, but at the end of the day, let us rejoice in the gospel of our salvation. Well, let us pray.

Closing Prayer

Father, we thank you for your Word, we thank you for the clarity and the consistency of it, and I pray that you'd give us ears to hear and hearts to receive these things, and bless us and our families, bless us as individuals, as a church, and help us to function properly as citizens in civil society. We ask now that you would go with us, that you would cause your face to shine upon us, that we would know your peace and presence in our own hearts and lives, and that you would keep us by your grace and for your glory in the coming week. And we ask this through Jesus Christ, our Lord. Amen.

We'll close with a brief time of meditation.

Scripture References

• Exodus 23:1
• Deuteronomy 17:1; 19:1
• 2 Samuel 12:1
• Proverbs 4:23; 18:13; 18:17
• Matthew 5:38-42; 6:2; 6:5; 6:16; 7:1-5; 7:6; 7:12; 7:15-16; 18:15; 18:17; 23:24
• John 7:24
• Romans 8:13; 13:1-4
• 1 Corinthians 5:1; 6:1; 13:7
• Galatians 1:6
• Philippians 3:1-2
• Colossians 3:13
• 1 Timothy 5:17; 5:20
• James 2:12-13
• Revelation 2:1