The Sin of Judging Others
Scripture Reading — Matthew 7:1-5
“Do not judge, or you too will be judged.”
—Matthew 7:1
Gregory Boyd shares in his book Repenting of Religion that he sat at a mall and watched people walk by. He observed that some are thin, while others are obese. Some are better looking than others. He watched people’s interactions with one another and judged that some are godly while others are not.
A question came to his mind: What is my commentary on people accomplishing? He noted that his judgments of others satisfied his own need to feel superior.
The Bible calls us to bless others and not to curse them (Romans 12:14). Boyd wondered if in this exercise he was blessing or cursing people. Suddenly he was convicted and stopped what he was doing. Instead he changed course to ask God’s blessing on every person who walked by and to appreciate that God created each of them unique. He gave thanks for each person and observed their incredible worth.
Can you identify with Boyd’s judging of others? He points out that our separation from God and others began as Adam and Eve ate fruit from the tree that God had commanded them not to eat from (Genesis 3:1-7).
Judgment is for God alone, but Satan continually tempts us to venture into this restricted area. While we are responsible to discern, our calling is to love, and we are unable to do that when we judge others.
Lord, forgive us for judging others. Help us to leave judgment to you. May we help to bring life by following your command to love others as ourselves. In Jesus, Amen.
About the author — John Kuperus
Since he was young, John Kuperus has had a passion that everyone would know Jesus. Spreading the good news that “Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners” (1 Timothy 1:15) is very important to him. To be better equipped for missions, John attended Reformed Bible College in Grand Rapids, Michigan. He applied these skills with marketplace evangelism in a business he started in Sussex, New Jersey. This calling continued to follow him, so John attended seminary and became a minister in the Christian Reformed Church, serving a church in Ontario for eight years. Currently he serves as a missionary for Youth with a Mission (YWAM). He witnesses Jesus changing lives as people walk out of the darkness into the light. John is married to Helen, and they have seven children.
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