RIGHTEOUS JUDGEMENT (Part 1/2): when is is right to judge?
"Do not judge according to appearance, but judge with righteous judgment."
John 7:24
Perhaps one of the most quoted statements in today's culture is, "You shouldn't judge."
Yet Jesus Himself said:
"Do not judge according to appearance, but judge with righteous judgment."
So what did He mean?
Jesus was not forbidding discernment. He was warning against hypocritical, prideful, and condemning judgement.
Righteous judgement begins by asking not, "What do I think?" but rather, "What has God said?"
Before we attempt to correct others, we must allow God to search our own hearts. Before we speak truth, we must do so with humility and grace.
Three things that make judgement sinful:
✅ Hypocrisy
✅ Condemnation
✅ Pride
The safest people to help others are those who regularly allow God to correct them first.
As followers of Jesus, we are not called to be fault-finders. We are called to see people through God's eyes and respond according to His truth.
Reflection Question: Before offering an opinion about someone else's life, have I first invited God to examine my own heart?
Prayer
Father God, search my heart and guard me from pride, hypocrisy, and condemnation. Teach me to see people as You see them and to walk in both truth and humility that I learn to judge righteously.. In Jesus' name, Amen.
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