Judge not, that you be not judged. For with the judgment you pronounce you will be judged, and with the measure you use it will be measured to you. Why do you see the speck that is in your brother’s eye, but do not notice the log that is in your own eye? Or how can you say to your brother, ‘Let me take the speck out of your eye,’ when there is the log in your own eye? You hypocrite, first take the log out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to take the speck out of your brother’s eye. | Matthew 7:1–5
I have found that one of the verses that people know, regardless of whether or not they are a Christian, is Jesus’ statement to judge not, that you be judged, and the following analogy of the log and the speck. Often this is used to criticize Christians for holding a universal moral standard that they use to ‘judge’ what is right and wrong. The hypocrisy is rightly recognized, but is used to shut down the beneficial aspects of holding to God’s ideal.
It is fair to say that Christians should spend less time trying to fix the sin of the world and more time self-reflecting on their own sanctification. To this end, Jesus could have said not to point out the log in your brother’s eye and to remove the log in your own (or speck for speck), because it is not about the size of the sin, but on who is responsible for it. While it is not wrong for Christians to make a moral judgment on sin, it is our own personal sin that we should be working to remove. Likewise, it is the ideal that we have been called to that should be the focus of our efforts.
This is important in the section that we just worked through in our Sunday services from Ephesians 5-6: Paul’s household code. In it, Paul lays out a vision for husbands, wives, parents, children, bosses, and employees. In each of these, he calls the person in the role to follow God’s example of how to lovingly serve through the position you find yourself in. As we saw last Sunday, this gives agency to people in even the most difficult relationships, because you can always uphold your integrity and worship, no matter how the people around you are acting.
The problem for us is: we are too focused on how others are failing to recognize the freedom we have been given. Husbands get frustrated by the ways that their wives fight their leadership. Wives focus on the bad choices that their husbands have made (and why this justifies not following them). Parents get overwhelmed with disobedient children; children feel restrained by the rules their parents make. Bosses complain about those who work for them, and few people feel their bosses do a great job. We not only have opinions about this, but use this to cover our own shortcomings. We make excuses for ourselves based on the other side of these complementing relationships.
As we do this, we allow their failure to define us. In some ways this is inevitable; sin has real life consequences. Other people’s sin will have an affect on our lives. We don’t need to compound the sin, however. When we use the failure of others to justify our own selfishness and pride, it only makes matters worse. While we can blame this on others, we are still going to have to live with it.
The alternative that we are offered in these household rules is to focus on the log in our own eye. Not to simply admit that we are sinners, but to make an effort to conform ourselves to God’s way. As we do this, a few things happen:
1. We become more aware of our own sin and failings
As we become acquainted with the log in our own eye, we go from being a victim of other people’s sin to part of the problem. As we try to fix these things and fail, we are confronted by the reality: we are not who we want to think we are. We can begin to appreciate the person on the other side of these relationships who continues to put up with us, in spite of this.
2. We get better at the part we play
While we don’t overcome everything, we can move closer to the ideal we are called to. Practice does not make perfect, but it does make better. If you commit to serving in the ways that God has called you to, you will improve in the role that you have been called to. This will benefit others, as you become the servant you were made to be, and it will ultimately benefit you.
3. We make it easier for others to serve us
The ideals that Paul gives us here fit with the metaphor of the body that is used for the church, where each part acts for the benefit of others and receives from others what it needs. One of the major reasons why we aren’t willing to do our part is because we don’t trust that others will do theirs. We act selfishly to protest ourselves. When we focus on our own role, we make it much easier for people to believe that they can do their part and still be cared for. This is not inevitable. Sometimes, you will create the space for people to serve and they will choose not to. The likelihood of others doing their part greatly increases as we live out the role(s) that we have been given.
Focusing on the log in our own eye allows us to worrying about what we can’t control and to improve what we can. Jesus is not just calling out hypocrisy, He is inviting us into a better way of living, where all of the energy that goes into blame and shame can be used to grow and improve. If we followed His guidance, we would be much closer to heaven (which will be everyone serving one another completely).
Jesus isn’t encouraging us not to judge because there aren’t things to call out or because He wants us to live and let live. He is calling us to aim our tools of discernment on our own lives and to play our role, trusting that He will work out the parts that are beyond us.