11Do not speak against one another, brethren. He who speaks against a brother or judges his brother, speaks against the law and judges the law; but if you judge the law, you are not a doer of the law but a judge of it.
One of the most common refrains among Christians is that we should not judge others. Scripture is clear about not judging another’s motives (see Matt. 7:1–5, Rom. 14:10–13). Yes, we must recognize there is a place for “tak[ing] the speck out of your brother’s eye,” but only after ruthless self-examination and honest evaluation of our own sin and shortcomings. We must “first take the log out of [our] own eye” (Matt. 7:5). The apostle Paul sees both sides of this issue as well: judging others must be preceeded by self-judgment:
Brethren, even if anyone is caught in any trespass, you who are spiritual, restore such a one in a spirit of gentleness; each one looking to yourself, so that you too will not be tempted. (Gal. 6:1)
The word “judge,” used in our passage in James, is generic and carries no moral value in itself. However, it is used here in connection with “speaking against” others. When our words become like Pharisaical weapons “against” others, when we use the law like a hammer to condemn others, we become abusers of the law. Of course, we enjoy the knowledge that our salvation is not dependent on our keeping the law or doing any good works, but our sinful nature also enjoys using the law to enforce conformity in others to what we think is right or wrong.
We must ask ourselves, “Am I guilty, then, of using NT truth as a form of Christianized law”? The teachings of the NT contain many mandates that could be treated as Christian “oughts” and “shoulds.” For example, we should not do anything to cause a weaker believer to stumble (1 Cor. 8). But when we use that teaching to criticize and condemn those who engage in an activity that we think is “unchristian,” have we not turned our interpretation and application of Scripture into a form of NT law? In so doing, we have misused the NT teaching on the “law of love,” as a compelling argument to prohibit certain activities with the emotional and spiritual weight of guilt and shame. When we so use NT teachings, we conveniently put ourselves above others, as administrators of God’s holiness in other people’s lives. This is what the Pharisees did, and Jesus soundly denounced it!
If we are genuine in humbling ourselves in the presence of the Lord and not seeking our own exaltation, then we will spend less time judging others and more time judging ourselves.
Lord, I confess the horrible sin of using your Word as a weapon against others.
I understand this and,’of course, agree with this. In the case of the people who support / vote for an agenda that supports (and now even celebrates) abortion and sexual perversion of LQBTQ – is it ok to try to show them that these are acts that offend God and are evil? Or if you do this – are you “judging” – as in these verses?
Thanks for your question. The unfortunate thing is that there are things in both major political parties that come short of the Christian standard of righteous living. For example, the president elect (Republican) holds a view on abortion rights that I could not agree with. But, the other party holds an even more permissive view of that topic. So in either case, a person would vote for someone who holds and promotes a biblically inadequate view of abortion.
We are called to judge sinful acts, which we should do, but we need to be careful of judging the person as though they must answer to us. It is perfectly permissible from the Christian point of view to present the side of an issue that shows the folly of rejecting God’s standards. Non-Christians, especially those who reject theism of any kind, will act and vote like non-Christians. That is to be expected, unbelievers acting like unbelievers. On the other hand, if a Christian adopts a LGBQT lifestyle or endorses such, then we should talk with them (if we have the courage) about what God thinks about that. To disagree with someone’s life style or choices is not judgmentalism. Our response takes courage along with humility. I hope this is helpful. Chuck G.
I don’t think it’s judgement of their salvation, just their actions that may not align with the word of God. Just be careful not to compartmentalize sin. If you don’t like a “celebration” of abortion or homosexuality, be sure you have that same energy for adultery, pornography, pride, lies, greed, lust, not listening to the Holy Spirit, etc. The problem in this country is, we have placed a magnifying glass on abortion and homosexuality, and turned a blind eye and deaf ear to the things Jesus spoke on when he walked amongst man.