Note 46 at Mt. 7:1: On other occasions, Jesus told people to judge (Lk. 12:57; Jn. 7:24). The disciples told people to judge (Acts 4:19; Rom. 14:13; 1 Cor. 5:12; 6:2; 10:15; 11:13; 14:29). Paul judged (1 Cor. 5:3; 2 Cor. 5:14). There are many examples of people judging. Paul prayed that our love would abound more and more in all judgment (Phil. 1:9). In the light of these scriptures, it is evident that there must be a right and wrong type of judging. In Luke 12:56-57, Jesus uses the words "discern" and "judge" interchangeably. As defined by the New American Heritage Dictionary, "judge" can mean many things from "condemn" to "appraise, to form an opinion about; to think or consider." There certainly is nothing wrong with discerning or appraising a situation or person. Quite the contrary, we need to try the spirits (1 Jn. 4:1). Judging, when done as discernment, is good.

It is the condemning type of judgment that is wrong. This is denounced in other scriptures (Rom. 14:4,10,13; Jas. 4:11) because of the reasons stated in Matthew 5:22. We can defer passing sentence on people to God and know that He will have perfect judgment (Rom. 2:2; Rev. 20:13).

Also notice that in these scriptures, Jesus is not forbidding judgment, but rather is warning to be careful with our judgment because we will be judged accordingly. This same principle is stated in Romans 2:1-3 and James 2:12- 13. There are certain cases where we have to pass a condemning sentence as Paul did (1 Cor. 5:3-5; 1 Tim. 1:20) or as a judge would today. Pastors and elders are charged with rebuking and even disciplining church members (1 Tim. 5:20; Rev. 2:12-16,18-20), but it is not something to be done lightly. This warning constrains us to be certain that we have heard from God and are not simply venting our own frustrations.