Judge Not......we all know this!!!

Why why why do us Christians set the worse examples???

Hi Ginad, I know we Christians are supposed to be better than that (judging others hypocritically, that is), but none are/have ever been perfect on this side of Glory since the Fall, well, save One, of course

That said, the Lord commands us to judge right from wrong and to make "righteous judgments" of others for their good/betterment, and for ours.

.........John 7
.........24 Do not judge according to appearance, but judge with righteous judgment.

In fact, just 5 verses after the famous "Do not judge..." verse in the Bible, Matthew 7:1, Jesus commands us to always be discerning/judge others worthy (or not) of continuing to hear the Gospel, and/or the rest of the Bible for that matter .. Matthew 7:6. God and His word are meant to be, 1. believed or 2. disbelieved, not sullied, demeaned, or mocked.

.........Matthew 7
.........6 Do not give what is holy to dogs, and do not throw your pearls before swine, or they will trample them under their feet,
.........and turn and tear you to pieces.

~Deut

We are even told to be discerning in the way we love others, yes? (never out of contempt for the sinner, but for their good, as well for God's glory, of course).

.........1 Corinthians 13
.........6 "Love .. does not rejoice in unrighteousness, but rejoices with the truth"

~Deut

I think that Matthew 7:1 is one of the most commonly misused/misapplied verses in the Bible.

Scripture is clear that we are to judge righteously and we are to “test” things and seek discernment. Matthew 7:1-3 deals with hypocritical judgement.

Whoops, concerning Matthew 7:6, I also meant to say that neither does the Lord intend the abuse of His laborers (IOW, those who possess beautiful feet .. Romans 10:15), so we must be discerning for that reason as well.

~Deut

Hi Acadia, I agree with you. From what I've seen (out here online anyway), I think it would be fair to say that while John 3:16 is considered the "central" verse in the NT by conservatives/evangelicals, Matthew 7:1 is seen as the central Biblical verse by both our liberal Christian friends and atheists alike.

I wonder why that is?

I even remember one chap who tried to combine the opening of Matthew 7:1 with the close of Matthew 7:12 so that he ended up with a verse that said, "DO NOT JUDGE, for this is the Law and the Prophets"

~Deut

I agree. We need to be very careful what we do with Scripture and that we don't try to make it say something it doesn't. Many do love to throw the "judge not" verse at anyone who would question any issue in this life. Context is so important.

This is the Introductions forum. Your OP is better suited for the Bible forum...

I'm sure that this new member will get a warm welcome there in the Bible Discussion Forum.

Hello Ginad, welcome to CC. I'm glad to have you here. Hope to see you around the forums.