"PARDON ME, BUT WHAT'S THAT IN YOUR EYE?"
Written and preached by David P. Nolte

MATTHEW 7:1-5

1. HE WARNED AGAINST JUDGING OTHERS:
1. First, let it be said that this Scripture cannot stand alone without all the other Scriptures dealing with judging. If we consider these verses, we will see that Jesus is not forbidding all judgement, end of sentence, period, but only a certain kind of judgment. He forbids a harsh, proud, hyper-critical, unloving, unreasonable, hypocritical attitude. He is not speaking about court room judgment, Titus 3:1 and Romans 13 show that. He is not talking about a judgment of open and obvious sin, 1 Corinthians 5:5 proves that. He's not talking about judging false teaching, 1 Timothy 1:3 makes that clear. Judging can be anything from pronouncing guilt (as in a courtroom), to merely being discerning (as in judging a distance) or telling the difference between things (like garbage and food), or just being prudent (as in exercising sound judgment). Note these Scriptures on judging:
1. Jesus indicated to the Pharisees who judged harshly, that we are to "judge with righteous judgment." John 7:24.
2. Paul says, "When I wrote to you before, I told you not to associate with people who indulge in sexual sin. But I wasn't talking about unbelievers who indulge in sexual sin, or who are greedy or are swindlers or idol worshipers. You would have to leave this world to avoid people like that. What I meant was that you are not to associate with anyone who claims to be a Christian yet indulges in sexual sin, or is greedy, or worships idols, or is abusive, or a drunkard, or a swindler. Don't even eat with such people." 1 Corinthians 5:9-11 (NLT). That's a kind of judging.
3. Galatians 6:1 says "Dear brothers and sisters, if another Christian is overcome by some sin, you who are godly should gently and humbly help that person back onto the right path. And be careful not to fall into the same temptation yourself." Now, think about it. You cannot do that without first making a judgment that something is sin. And we don't get to make up what is sin and what is not. God has told us what is sin, so we are merely echoing His judgment in this area.
4. 1 John 4:1 says we are to "test the spirits" because many false teachers are in the world. That's a form of judging.
5. Jesus said, "Don't give what is holy to unholy people. Don't give pearls to swine!" Matthew 7:6 (NLT). How do you know who is unholy or who is swine without some basis of judgment?
6. Jesus said, "You hypocrite, first take the plank out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother's eye." Matthew 7:5 (NIV). He is not flat out forbidding us to help remove a speck in another's eye.
2. Let's put that together and let's not use this verse as an excuse to refuse to judge, to discern, to recognize and to distinguish the difference between right and wrong as God declares right and wrong. So, what kind of judgment is Jesus forbidding? Given all the above, I conclude that
1. Jesus forbids "Unrighteous judgment." That is, judgment based on unrighteous standards, judgment based on unrighteous motives, judgment based on an unrighteous critical spirit, judgment based on unrighteous self-righteousness.
2. He insists that we judge the teaching we hear. Is it true or is it false?
3. Paul forbids judging non-Christians, but calls for judging those who claim to be Christians but who live lives of flagrant sin.
4. He instructs us to be gentle and humble when we judge sin in a believer's life, with an intent to restore the one caught in sin.
3. Now even in those areas where we are commanded to judge, here are some reasons to go slow and be prayerfully deliberate:
1. We don't always know all the facts. A reporter was once searching for a story about the laziness and, when he saw a man in his field, sitting in a chair and hoeing his weeds concluded that this had to be the ultimate in laziness. He rushed back to his car to start his story when he looked back a second time and what he saw changed his entire outlook. He saw that the man had no legs. So what seemed at first to be a story of laziness turned into a story of great courage.
2. We may be viewing things from our own distorted perspective. A mother at a soccer game was hollering all sorts of instructions to her daughter. She judged that she was playing poorly. The exasperated girl said,"Mother, if you think it's so easy, you come out and play my position." A matter of perspective.
3. While we are judging another we often fail to do an acceptable job of judging ourselves. A person with a judgmental or critical spirit seldom looks at himself with the same scrutiny with which he looks at others. "They're stubborn, I'm just stable. They're stingy, I'm merely frugal. That's hypocrisy."
4. Our motives may not be altogether pure. We may be harsh with those we don't like, and soft on those we do like.
4. One evening several college students spread Limburger cheese on the upper lip of a sleeping fraternity brother. When he woke, he sniffed, looked around, and said, "This room stinks!" He walked into the hall and said, "This hall stinks!" Leaving the dormitory he exclaimed, "The whole world stinks!" And that's how the self-righteous, critical, unkind, proud, hypocritical judge views others when he fails to check himself first. "They all stink." he says .. But the odor may be closer to home.

2. HE CAUTIONED US TO TAKE CARE OF OUR OWN SHORTCOMINGS FIRST:
1. If we really spend adequate time cleaning up our own act, we will be kindlier disposed to others.
2. But many are like Lucy. Linus asked her, "Why are you always so anxious to criticize me?" She answered, "I just think I have a knack for seeing other people's faults." "What about your own faults?" asked Linus. Her response was, "I have a knack for overlooking them." Here is a good rule for that kind of critics: first reform yourself.
3. Do you lust, lie, cheat, covet, hate, slander, vaunt yourself over others? Are you critical, harsh, overbearing, and mean spirited? Don't overlook them, but deal with those sins first - then you can prayerfully help somebody else.
4. One woman came to see this truth. She could see right into her neighbor's apartment across the alley. She could see her as she sewed or read each afternoon. One day she noticed that the view through the window had become indistinct. She couldn't understand why the woman didn't wash her windows. She decided to do some housecleaning, including washing her own windows. Later that day, she sat down and glanced out the window. she was amazed! She could clearly and distinctly see her neighbor sitting by her window. She said to herself, "Well, finally she washed her windows!" But what really happened was that her own windows were the ones that had needed, and finally received, washing.

3. HE SAID THAT IF WE HAVE TAKEN CARE OF OUR AFFAIRS, WE CAN HELP OTHERS:
1. Once we've managed to take the plank out of our own eye, when we have humbled ourselves with an awareness of our own propensity to sin, then we can, with a spirit of magnanimity and humility, help remove the speck from our brother's eye.
2. The one who has genuinely faced his or her own sins should have a heart of patience and compassion with others. Instead of seeing them as "sinners to be damned" we would see them as "fellow strugglers to be helped."
3. The one who has overcome an addiction can help the addict. The one who has overcome lust, can help another with sexual failures. The one who has overcome a negative spirit can help a habitual critic.
4. Edgar Dunlap was an attorney who, years ago, served on the Board of Education in Gainesville, Georgia. While touring an elementary school one day, he saw a boy carving his initials on a desk. Dunlap shouted for the boy to stop. "What's the matter with you kids today? When I was in school, none of the boys dared to deface public property like this!" A few days later someone stumbled upon an old desk in the school basement. Carved on the top of the desk were six names. The first name was none other than Ed Dunlap. The old attorney took the desk top with him and mounted it on his office wall. He said, "I keep that there to remind me to be more tolerant about the things kids do."

Instead of being harsh and critical in our spirit, we are to be merciful toward other people. There will be times when we will have to make a judgment, but if we consider our own life and our own sins and our own motive, and our own weaknesses, it will help keep us from making unfair and wrong judgments against others. If we do not make careful and Biblical judgments, then we will never be able to help others. When we lovingly tell others that if they do not surrender to Jesus, they will not have eternal life, we are not condemning, we are stating God's judgment in order to help. We must remember that Jesus did not come to condemn but to save. Any kind of judgments we may exercise must always dovetail with His - and be in agreement with His will and His purpose and His word and His heart. That kind of judgment is like a doctor who tells a patient what the disease is and how to get well. Take a look at your own heart today and judge whether or not you are in the faith; whether or not you are living for Jesus; whether or not you can know that you have eternal life. And having looked at your heart, give it all to Jesus and let Him change all the wrong to right, the dark to light, and the blindness to sight. His amazing grace waits not to judge you but to save and change and benefit you. Come to that grace.