Judge Not: False Doctrine

HARK! said:

To judge, or not to judge, that is the question.

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judgement must be tempered by edification and exhortation. For instance a friend is going down the wrong road, losing his/her faith. You would start talking to them like this. I would like to encourage you in your faithfulness to The Lord.

HARK! said:

To judge, or not to judge, that is the question.

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In the OP, you quoted Matthew 7:1-2,

“Judge not, that you be not judged. For with what judgment you judge, you will be judged; and with the measure you use, it will be measured back to you."

But you seem to have missed the later verses, Matthew 7:15-20,

“Beware of false prophets,
who come to you in sheep’s clothing,
but inwardly they are ravenous wolves.

You will know them by their fruits.
Do men gather grapes from thornbushes or figs from thistles?
Even so, every good tree bears good fruit, but a bad tree bears bad fruit.

A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, nor can a bad tree bear good fruit.

Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire.
Therefore by their fruits you will know them."

That sounds like a call to assessment/discernment to me (which is another form of judgment). Since they both occur in the same chapter, I am inclined to believe that the dividing line between them is assessment vs. condemnation.

HARK! said:

Are we to exercise judgement?
Edit

1. *
   Judge justly
   3 vote(s)
   33.3%
2. Judge not
   6 vote(s)
   66.7%

So these are the results so far.

Should I infer that of those those who responded, that 2/3 would let their 8 year old children play with ouija boards; you know...as not to be judgemental?

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Well I would never let that happen.

HARK! said:

The very next verse; and the rest of my OP made that perfectly clear. I don't know what you are misunderstanding.

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I don't see a distinction being made between the relationship of the saints to each other, and their relationship to the world. Both answers in the poll are correct. Yes, we exercise the sound judgment of discretion in our dealings with the world. This has gotten a lot of discussion today. We are to at least refrain from being judgmental among the brethren. There is also a distinction made in terms of leadership and maturity.
Galatians 6:1. Brethren, if a man be overtaken in a fault, ye which are spiritual, restore such an one in the spirit of meekness; considering thyself, lest thou also be tempted.
This clearly requires sound judgment. There are two very distinct uses of the word.
There is a judgment unto condemnation, which we should refrain from, lest we be judged.
There is judgment that brings discretion, discernment, to make sound decisions in life. Once this distinction is made, you can answer the poll questions.
Hebrews 4:12. For the word of God is living and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the division of soul and spirit, and of joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.
By the living word, the Spirit of Truth, we can make sound judgments, and have the wisdom to speak, or act; or hold our peace.
Peace

HARK! said:

(CLV) Mt 7:1
"Do not judge, lest you may be judged,

So many read that verse and stop short; to say that we should exercise judgement, concerning the wicked. That we should just turn a blind eye to wickedness and go off into a day dream singing, "la la la - la la." "I have no responsibility to see the world for what it is." "There is no wrong; there is no right in my eyes. It's all on the Father's hands"

The very next verse:

(CLV) Mt 7:2
for with what judgment you are judging, shall you be judged, and with what measure you are measuring, shall it be measured to you.

YHWH calls us to righteous judgement. This falls in line with what is mentioned just a few verses later:


(CLV) Mt 7:12
All, then, whatever you should be wanting that men should be doing to you, thus you, also, be doing to them, for this is the law and the prophets.

Yahshua doesn't contradict himself.

(CLV) Jn 7:24
Be not judging by the countenance, but be judging just judging."

Again he tells us to judge justly.

(CLV) 1Co 6:3
Are you not aware that we shall be judging messengers, not to mention life's affairs?

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In James 4:11-12, inspired James, Jesus' brother says to us, "do not slander one another. Anyone who speaks against a brother or sister or judges them speaks against the law and judges it. When you judge the law, you are not keeping it, but sitting in judgment on it (NIV)."

You are right to say that believers must judge. But what kind of judging must they do without violating Jesus' command not to judge?

On the one hand, we must discern what sin is in order to avoid it. On the other hand, we must not judge or condemn people by looking down on them. The latter kind of judging only belongs to God, while we must distinguish among various actions according the Bible's principles in order to follow God the way he wants us to.

I get your message loud and clear:
"I may not be right, but I'm never wrong."

HARK! said:

Matthew 18:15-17 New Matthew Bible (NMB)
15 Moreover, if your brother trespasses against you, go and tell him his fault between him and you alone. If he hears you, you have redeemed your brother. 16 But if he does not hear you, then take along with you one or two others, so that in the mouth of two or three witnesses every matter may be established. 17 If he does not hear them, tell it to the congregation. If he does not hear the congregation, take him as a heathen man and as a publican.

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Yes I understand. The Lord is unwilling that any would perish, so we must be willing to never give up on a person. Saved or unsaved.

HARK! said:

How would you define condemnation?

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I define it as calling for one's eternal punishment. Only God can do that [Romans 12:19].

HARK! said:

I can't say that I've given up on anyone; but I'm extremely wary of some.

What do these words mean to you?

"take him as a heathen man and as a publican."

"so He gave them up to a reprobate mind"

"shake off the dust from your feet when you leave that house"


I've learned that there are so many who haven't heard the truth. How much of our very short lives do we spend with people who won't hear it?

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Judgement brings condemnation. Temperance brings edification.

Those who judge will be judged by the same standard. If I tell someone they're going to hell for living in sexual sin... which is true... and it turns out that at times I use my computer or phone to look at what ought not to be looked upon, then I would be a hypocrite.

However, by the grace of God, I don't set my eyes upon filth. Therefore when I'm witnessing or ministering and I'm talking to someone who's living in fornication or adultery and they claim to be a Christian, I rightly tell them that they are not a Christian and unless they repent they will perish.

Sam81 said:

I rightly tell them that they are not a Christian and unless they repent they will perish.

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You can clearly state that Hell is the consequences of living in sin, never turning away.
What you cannot do is say that since you are living like this, you must now go to Hell.

It is the hope of all evangelicals that everyone should live long enough to repent. Their death before that is a waste of good Blood. (Some will die in their recklessness, anyway, but we have no desire to hasten that.)

Sabertooth said:

You can clearly state that Hell is the consequences of living in sin, never turning away.
What you cannot do is say that since you are living like this, you must now go to Hell.

It is the hope of all evangelicals that everyone should live long enough to repent. Their death before that is a waste of good Blood. (Some will die in their recklessness, anyway, but we have no desire to hasten that.)

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Jesus's blood is not wasted. The Lamb's Book of Life is big enough only for those in it.

Sam81 said:

Jesus's blood is not wasted. The Lamb's Book of Life is big enough only for those in it.

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(That speaks to free will vs. predestination, a topic for a different thread.)