Matthew 7:1
Judge not, that ye be not judged.
Talk about sin and salvation to an unsaved person, and a favorite come-back or defense is a misuse of the verse above. The unbeliever would like to make you believe that if you talk to him about sin and salvation, you are judging or condemning him. So you are the guilty one, according to the Bible.
Of course, we find such a tricky approach amusing, and we need to inform such folks that they are already dead in trespasses and sins (judged) and have no hope of life unless they receive Christ.
But what about believers? Are they entirely free of this kind of twisted thinking? After talking to some believers, have you ever been left with this feeling: "Don't talk about my sins, and I won't talk about yours." Closely related to this is the thinking that what a person doesn't know, he won't be responsible for. Poor judgment!
Does the Bible actually condemn judging as such? We know it is necessary for all of us to make various judgments (decisions) every day. This is true even in Bible study. What you believe and strive to stand for in regard to The Bible is a judgment.
In John 7:24, the Lord told His critics, Judge, not according to the appearance, but judge righteous judgment. Before making a judgment on anything, gather all the available facts before acting. This is what a court of law is supposed to do. In the verse above, Matt 7:1, just the opposite is implied. It is the unjustified condemnation of someone else that is given as a warning here.
Most serious of all, though, is how we judge God. Instead of letting an all-wise God plan and direct our lives, we fall back on human wisdom. Many people in the world think of God as some sort of absentee landlord. Do we? Many times, young people judge God as indifferent and unfaithful in the marriages they enter into. They won't trust Him to provide a Christian wife or husband, as the case may be. They will marry in haste to an unbeliever and spend the rest of their lives regretting it with bitterness and tears.
Evidently, we all must appear before the judgment seat of Christ (2 Cor 5:10) to receive the things done in the body, whether it be good or bad. Will this accounting we give include how we judged our Lord in this life?
