When Is It Time to Judge?

     To judge or not to judge—that is the question. In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus told us, “Judge not, that you be not judged” (Mt. 7:1-3). In other words, the way we judge others will come back on us. This is the principle of sowing and reaping. The context also warns us not to judge hypocritically.
    James expands on this concept, saying “There is one Lawgiver, who is able to save and to destroy. Who are you to judge another?” (James 4:11-12). So does Paul in Romans 2:1-3. He tells us that “we know that the judgment of God is according to truth against those who practice such things.”
     Later, in Philippians 1:9 Paul declares, “And this I pray, that your love may abound still more and more in knowledge and all discernment.” The Greek word for discernment here is aisthesis, which refers to perception, understanding, and judgment. It carries the idea of cutting through hazy matters, such as morality, in order to size things up correctly.
    This issue of haziness is crucial. We know from 1 Corinthians 2:11 that only God knows what is in the heart of a person. Only God sees the hidden things in each of us. Only God recognizes the purposes and motives of the heart (soul). As believers, we are not yet fully perfected in Christ, so we have to be careful to discern rather than make a final judgment.
    Jesus spoke about this kind of discerning judgment in Luke 12:56-57, when He chastised the religious leaders because they could “discern the face of the sky and of the earth, but how is it you do not discern this time?” Hebrews 5:14 uses a derivation of the same word to tell us that this kind of discernment comes with spiritual maturity. In fact, it is vital that we exercise this God-given ability in order to discern both good and evil. The Greek word means to make a judicial ruling, to separate thoroughly what is of God and what is of the Devil.
     So how do believers do this while at the same time acknowledging that we are still on the journey with Christ to transform our minds according to God’s Word?
      Once again, we turn to the One who is the Truth and the Word for the answer. Jesus said in the Sermon on the Mount that one thing we must do is to look at the fruit (Mt. 7:16). Every tree reproduces itself through the fruit, for the fruit carries the seed of life in it. You can identify the type of tree by its fruit because the Genesis principle is that every tree and creature produces after its own kind. A good tree will bear good fruit; a bad tree will bear bad fruit. “Therefore, by their fruits you will know them.” The Greek word for know here is ginosko—the kind of knowledge that comes through study and careful observation. The fruit is the person’s  or an organization’s lifestyle.
       The Chronos Lesson: So the issue is not so much whether or not to judge, but how we judge. Since we are not all-knowing like God, we cannot know everything that must be known in order to judge rightly. Because we are not perfect like God, we run the risk of condemning a person out of our own imperfections. It is a common peculiarity of humans that the things that bug us the most can often be something we exhibit ourselves. Let’s face it, are any of us able to cast the first stone?
       We are, however, responsible for observing the fruit so that we can determine what is godly and what is evil. Part of being light and salt in this world is to bring God’s revelation of truth to the world to help them see the distinction. But because God designed humans with a will, we cannot force our choices on others. Sometimes they just have to see the consequences of their actions—to see how bad the fruit is—in order for them to recognize that the “tree” is not good.
      This is also why we cannot legislate morality. Laws, by definition, require an agreed upon standard of right and wrong. Yet our culture today is based on relativism. That is, individuals determine what is right and wrong for themselves. By rejecting God as the Creator and Supreme Being, society has no basis for determining what is right and wrong behavior. Practically speaking, if we look back through history, every attempt to legislate morality has backfired.
      This is why Paul warns us, “Therefore judge nothing before the time, until the Lord comes, who will both bring to light the hidden things of darkness and reveal the counsels of the hearts. Then each one’s praise will come from God” (1 Cor. 4:5). In the meantime, we can and must observe the fruit and discern rightly according to God’s truths.
      Why is this appointed time tied to the Lord’s return? It is because at the rapture, we shall be perfected and conformed thoroughly to Christ. Then and only then will we have the full capacity to judge rightly, in all truth, and without hypocrisy. It is also when we will stand in complete agreement with God and our Lord to execute His righteous judgments as the heavenly court at the appointed time.