“Examine yourself”  

How do you look at others within your heart? What kind of feelings, emotions and thoughts do you get around people close and far? 

To truly delve deeper into this topic we must first of all understand the human condition, as written in scriptures. Jeremiah 17:9 says, “The human heart is the most deceitful of all things, and desperately wicked. Who really knows how bad it is?

Judging others comes either from foreknowledge, facts or a presumption based on what is seen, heard or thought or rather outward assumptions. This means that in order for us humans to judge correctly we must know the state of our soul and God. Meaning that only God has the power to see people’s hearts and has the ability to judge righteously/justly. The rest of us are shaped by our prejudices, motives and desires, these influences how we interact with others too.

So what does it entail to judge others? I believe it is looking at people and deciding within ourselves how to treat them, think about them and how they could be. We assume things about people’s character without knowing them just by looking at them outwardly. How they dress, walk, talk and look. But what does God say about judging others?

To judge is to have a final made up decision concerning a matter. Let’s see a few instances where judgment was involved. In the Gospel of John Chapter 7 we see a woman caught in adultery just about to be stoned by men who have surrounded her screaming and chanting all manner of words towards her. You see all these people were ready to kill her since it is written in the law that those who commit such sins must be stoned to death. But what does Jesus do? He says let them that have no sin throw the first stone, to no surprise none does. Why?  It’s because they all had sins too. 

Read it here. John 8:4-5,7,9 “Teacher,” they said to Jesus, “this woman was caught in the act of adultery. The law of Moses says to stone her. What do you say?” They kept demanding an answer, so he stood up again and said, “All right, but let the one who has never sinned throw the first stone!” When the accusers heard this, they slipped away one by one, beginning with the oldest, until only Jesus was left in the middle of the crowd with the woman. The accusers themselves were pointing fingers towards her forgetting to see their own sins.

Another example but of a different perspective is here in 1 Samuel and its about outward judgement based on what we see. Let’s look at 1 Samuel 16:7 But the LORD said to Samuel, “Don’t judge by his appearance or height, for I have rejected him. The LORD doesn’t see things the way you see them. People judge by outward appearance, but the LORD looks at the heart.” This happened when Samuel was sent by God to Jesse’s house to anoint Israel’s next king. But all the other sons of Jesse who were taller and handsome on the outside were not chosen by God, but David who was out tending the sheep was the one chosen since God knew his heart. The Bible does mention David as “a man after God’s own heart”. 

This brings me to the next point. Let’s start from the beginning of creation in Genesis 2:7-8,15-17 Then the LORD God formed the man from the dust of the ground. He breathed the breath of life into the man’s nostrils, and the man became a living person. Then the LORD God planted a garden in Eden in the east, and there he placed the man he had made. The LORD God placed the man in the Garden of Eden to tend and watch over it. But the LORD God warned him, “You may freely eat the fruit of every tree in the garden-except the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. If you eat its fruit, you are sure to die.”

You can clearly see that God gave a warning. Well Well, that didn’t take long before they disobeyed God’s command. Let’s look into that in Genesis 3:1-7 The serpent was the shrewdest of all the wild animals the LORD God had made. One day he asked the woman, “Did God really say you must not eat the fruit from any of the trees in the garden?”. “Of course we may eat fruit from the trees in the garden,” the woman replied. “It’s only the fruit from the tree in the middle of the garden that we are not allowed to eat. God said, ‘You must not eat it or even touch it; if you do, you will die.’” “You won’t die!” the serpent replied to the woman.  “God knows that your eyes will be opened as soon as you eat it, and you will be like God, knowing both good and evil.” The woman was convinced. She saw that the tree was beautiful and its fruit looked delicious, and she wanted the wisdom it would give her. So she took some of the fruit and ate it. Then she gave some to her husband, who was with her, and he ate it, too. At that moment their eyes were opened, and they suddenly felt shame at their nakedness. So they sewed fig leaves together to cover themselves. 

Do you see that? She saw that it was beautiful, and looked delicious then she wanted. Basically she still wanted what was told to them not to eat. Mmmh! Their desire for what was forbidden overcame their desire to obey God. And then they rebelled and fell into sin. Now they could see their nakedness which was not a thing to be ashamed of before when they walked with God faithfully. 

And even worse, after falling into sin they both avoided being accountable instead they shifted the blame to the next one. We are all like this in the world today. Let’s read that in Genesis 3:11-13 “Who told you that you were naked?” the LORD God asked. “Have you eaten from the tree whose fruit I commanded you not to eat?”  The man replied, “It was the woman you gave me who gave me the fruit, and I ate it.”Then the LORD God asked the woman, “What have you done?” “The serpent deceived me,” she replied. “That’s why I ate it.”  complete lack of responsibility taken from both. 

With that background on the origin of sin. Let’s bear in mind man’s sinfulness as we proceed further. We have to know that all mankind is born into sin. After the fall of Adam and Eve into sin all people were born into sin, since we all are their descendants. Reading from Romans 5:12 says, When Adam sinned, sin entered the world. Adam’s sin brought death, so death spread to everyone, for everyone sinned. This makes all descendants of Adam and Eve guilty of sin. Of whom we’re partakers of the consequences of their sins. Yes, when a leader sins their followers suffer. Even when our parents sin, the effects tend to affect their descendants. So it’s the same for us all. We are all born into this sin. The fallen man falls to the same sins of Pride and lust of the eyes and flesh, just as they did and so much more. 

With that understanding in mind let’s dive into the main theme found in Matthew 7:1-6 “Do not judge others, and you will not be judged. For you will be treated as you treat others. The standard you use in judging is the standard by which you will be judged.  “And why worry about a speck in your friend’s eye when you have a log on your own? How can you think of saying to your friend, ‘Let me help you get rid of that speck in your eye,’ when you can’t see past the log in your own eye? Hypocrite! First get rid of the log in your own eye; then you will see well enough to deal with the speck in your friend’s eye. 

When we look into these verses. The central point is that it’s very important to self-examine rather than to outwardly project onto others what we might think or feel. The truth is that whenever you point a finger at someone’s weakness, chances are very high you’re very blind to your own. Since your mind is occupied with the mistakes of others, you will definitely ignore yours. In such a case one cannot fully diagnose what’s wrong within themselves fully. 

The Bible is not teaching us here to ignore bad behavior, but the Bible is teaching us to be careful so as not to fall into the same behaviors and also not to see ourselves as better than them. Knowing that all mankind is born into sin because of their rebellion, what should be our attitudes towards others? Romans 3:12 All have turned away; all have become useless. No one does good, not a single one.” No one can say they are without sin. So how then can one consider themselves better than another? Romans 3:23 says, For everyone has sinned; we all fall short of God’s glorious standard. Scripture says all have sinned.Who can judge and how? 

Knowing all these, lets redefine our perspectives on how to live life the right way. We all have to first admit our sins to God so we can be cleansed and taught the right way of life, before we can point fingers at others since we all have sinned as we’ve seen written in the Bible. As believers what should be the right attitude towards others, sin, self and God?

Believers have to come before God as people who know they are sinners, who are then saved by God’s grace and given life. Ephesians 2:5,8 says that even though we were dead because of our sins, he gave us life when he raised Christ from the dead. (It is only by God’s grace that you have been saved!) God saved you by his grace when you believed. And you can’t take credit for this; it is a gift from God.

You see it’s all an act of God’s love and mercy. It’s Him who can save and forgive sins. Knowing fully well that we cannot repay for our sins helps us to have the right perspective for living life correctly towards God and others. Only a truly humble heart can see its own weaknesses and mistakes. Proverbs 16:18 Pride goes before destruction, and haughtiness before a fall. 

Pride puffs up but humility takes one low. And God only acknowledges those with humble hearts. 1 Peter 5:6 So humble yourselves under the mighty power of God, and at the right time he will lift you up in honor. A puffed up heart cannot see its own mistakes and neither can it be corrected. But a truly humble heart will easily recognise its need for mercy and grace. So the question is where do you stand?

Lastly, in order for us to walk humbly before God we must apply these principles taught to us practically in our lives so as to ensure we are able to live well within our communities. Remember, Believers are called to be separate from the world, by behavior and action. The Bible says, you are the light of the world. Matthew 5:14,16 “You are the light of the world-like a city on a hilltop that cannot be hidden. In the same way, let your good deeds shine out for all to see, so that everyone will praise your heavenly Father.

People have to see the light believers carry and their example has to be one that glorifies God and that includes also how we treat others. Believers are called to live holy lives, apart from sin, pride and all kinds of lusts. 1 Peter 2:11-12 says, “Dear friends, I warn you as “temporary residents and foreigners” to keep away from worldly desires that wage war against your very souls. Be careful to live properly among your unbelieving neighbors. Then even if they accuse you of doing wrong, they will see your honorable behavior, and they will give honor to God when he judges the world.

Since they now know the way of life they ought to walk in it as written in Ephesians 4:21-24 Since you have heard about Jesus and have learned the truth that comes from him, throw off your old sinful nature and your former way of life, which is corrupted by lust and deception. Instead, let the Spirit renew your thoughts and attitudes. Put on your new nature, created to be like God-truly righteous and holy.

Jesus said the greatest commandment is love to God and your neighbor. Why? Because love seeks no harm towards others. And when we live by those principles we would not seek to point fingers towards others but ourselves first. Matthew 22:37-39 Jesus replied, “‘You must love the LORD your God with all your heart, all your soul, and all your mind.’ This is the first and greatest commandment. A second is equally important: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’

Finally as James 1:19-25 says: Understand this, my dear brothers and sisters: You must all be quick to listen, slow to speak, and slow to get angry. Human anger does not produce the righteousness God desires. So get rid of all the filth and evil in your lives, and humbly accept the word God has planted in your hearts, for it has the power to save your souls. But don’t just listen to God’s word. You must do what it says. Otherwise, you are only fooling yourselves. For if you listen to the word and don’t obey, it is like glancing at your face in a mirror. You see yourself, walk away, and forget what you look like. But if you look carefully into the perfect law that sets you free, and if you do what it says and don’t forget what you heard, then God will bless you for doing it.

To finish 2 Corinthians 13:5 warns us all to, Examine yourselves to see if your faith is genuine. Test yourselves. Surely you know that Jesus Christ is among you; if not, you have failed the test of genuine faith.

More Bible Verses to read on your own: Revelations 3:14-22, 1Kings 3:1-14, Exodus 34:11-16, Romans 3:20-24, Romans 5, 1 Corinthians 2:14-16, 5:6.

 Mathew 13,15:1-39,23.  Galatians 5:9, Jeremiah 9:23-24.