“Judge not according to appearance, but judge righteous judgement.” – John 7:24
THE SAINTS WHICH SHALL JUDGE the world are the redeemed, exclusively. For contrary to the Catholic cult’s unbiblical and farcical definition of the word “saint”, the Bible teaches that only those whose sins have been washed away by the blood of Christ are saints. The imputed righteousness of Jesus Christ is the only thing that determines sainthood, not good works, or lifestyle, or the admiration of many. An unsaved person – such as those who believe salvation comes through their good works – has no right to claim the title of “saint”, however pious and devout they may claim to be, or however they place in the idolatrous veneration and hierarchy of Satanic false religions as Catholicism.
But this is only an aside, for the primary purpose of this article – that “judging” is absolutely biblical and necessary – has already been covered by the above paragraph. For in outlining the proper definition of the word “saint”, I have pointed out errors, and presented the truth. In a word, I have discerned. This is but a synonym for judging. We have eyes, and ears, and a working mind, for the very purpose of discerning and processing what we encounter. We are commanded to be sober and vigilant (1 Peter 5:8), because the devil appears as an angel of light (2 Corinthians 11:14), and seeks whom he may devour while lurking beneath a façade of false righteousness. We are commanded to believe not every spirit, but try the spirits whether they are of God: for many false prophets are gone out into the world (1 John 4:1).
Our Lord Jesus Christ commanded his disciples to “be ye therefore wise as serpents, and harmless as doves” (Matthew 10:16). The New Testament is replete with commands to reprove, rebuke, exhort, with all longsuffering and doctrine (2 Timothy 4:2). Them that sin rebuke before all, that others also may fear (1 Timothy 5:20). Wherefore rebuke them sharply, that they may be sound in the faith (Titus 1:13). And, we must not forget when Paul withstood Peter to the face, because the latter had fallen prey to Judaic heresies (Galatians 2:11-14).
And yet, in spite of the innumerable and intelligible commands throughout the Scriptures to rebuke sin and refute heresy, there are many so-called “Christians” who will accuse those who expose evil of being “legalists” and “Pharisees.” They will decontextualize Matthew 7:1 and distort John 8:11 to pressure faithful Christians into feeling guilt and shame over obeying God’s commandments. They will insist that the slightest act of noticing wickedness and false doctrines – much less warning against them – is “not Christ-like”, because “who are you to judge?”
Who am I to judge? I shall tell you who I am. I am a child of God, born again by the Spirit of God and washed in the blood of Jesus Christ, not because of anything I can do, but because I believe with all my heart that my only hope for heaven lies in what Christ did for me, in dying on the cross to pay for my sins with his blood, in being buried, and in being bodily resurrected three days later. And because I am a child of God, I am obliged to obey his commands to hate evil (Psalm 97:10), to reprove the unfruitful works of darkness (Ephesians 5:11), to earnestly contend for the faith which was once delivered unto the saints (Jude 1:3), to speak the truth in love (Ephesians 4:15), to judge righteous judgement (John 7:24).
Consider how Paul admonished the carnal church at Corinth, where such slimy phrases as “don’t judge” likely abounded:
“Do ye not know that the saints shall judge the world? and if the world shall be judged by you, are ye unworthy to judge the smallest matters? Know ye not that we shall judge angels? how much more things that pertain to this life?” – 1 Corinthians 6:2-3
My brethren, we were not fashioned to go through the world as stupid vegetables, totally oblivious to our surroundings. Everything in life revolves around making judgements. The act of judging is as necessary a function of our existence as breathing. If I decide that I like water better than iced tea, I have pronounced judgement. Does that mean I am guilty of being “not Christ-like”? Of course not! You see, everyone judges; only hypocrites pretend otherwise.
The hypocrites may say such things as, “You have no right to condemn somebody else.” But what saith the Scripture? “He that believeth not is condemned already, because he hath not believed on the name of the only begotten Son of God” (John 3:18). Whether I condemn somebody or not, God’s holy law has already condemned them as guilty sinners who must pay for their sins in hell for eternity. By warning them of their impending everlasting destruction, and giving them the gospel as their only hope for heaven, we are doing them the greatest possible service we can. The same people who rebuke Christians for warning unbelievers about the Lake of Fire are hypocrites, to be sure, for they are exercising the very judgement they claim to oppose. But beyond this, their criticism of such biblical activity indicates they would rather a person go to hell, than be offended by the truth of the gospel. After all, in case of the latter, this might come across as “being judgemental”, and “That’s just not how Christians should behave.”
Or, perhaps the hypocrites will attempt to neutralize righteous judgement, by insisting that “we can’t know somebody’s heart.” But what does that matter, when Jeremiah 17:9 declares that the heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked? Proverbs 23:7 tells us that as he thinketh in his heart, so is he. And Jesus said that we shall know men by their fruits (Matthew 7:16-20), not their façade of exterior “spirituality”, because everything which defiles a man comes forth from his heart (Matthew 15:18-20). Because the condition of a man’s heart is a separate topic from whether or not what he says is true or false, this charge of “not being able to know the heart” is an illogical diversion which crumbles easily when examined in light of the Scriptures.
Thus far, I have defended biblical judgement against the false charges of fools and hypocrites. But this is not to say that all judgement is biblical. There is most certainly a form of “judgement” which is wholly unscriptural, and that is the “judgement” of gossip, of slander, of condemning others upon flimsy accusations and false premises. The “judgement” which God hates is the “judgement” of holding others to a much higher standard than you hold yourself, and the “judgement” of thinking yourself to be less of a sinner than others, and the “judgement” of putting others down to make yourself look better. I mince no words in stating you who do these despicable things are wicked, repulsive, and disgusting hypocrites who had better leave off your loathsome and pathetic behavior before God chastises your haughty souls.
Perhaps you HYPOCRITES who complain about God-fearing Christians “being judgmental”, should remove the beam from their eye, before looking for the mote in another’s eye. Perhaps you HYPOCRITES who complain that Christians who obey God are “being judgmental” should read the Bible, and see that men of God in both testaments exposed sin, and preached against wickedness, and upheld the truth. Perhaps you HYPOCRITES who complain about God-fearing Christians “being judgmental” should read about Jesus Christ, whom you self-righteously claim to love even though you do not keep his commandments (and are in fact ignorant of his commandments), and see how frequently and thoroughly he rebuked evil, and exposed wickedness, and stood for the truth against this cowardly spirit of apostate “compromise” which you so readily embrace.
CONCLUSION
O Christian, you ought never be ashamed at exercising biblical judgement. There is no reason to recoil from proclaiming that Jesus Christ is the only way to heaven (John 14:6), and that men will burn in hell forever unless they believe on his name (John 3:3), and his name alone (Acts 4:12). There should be no shame in obeying God’s command, by exposing wickedness in all its forms (Psalm 94:16). Neither ought you hesitate in teaching what the Bible teaches. The truths of Scripture are to be proclaimed, not whispered; believed, not doubted; lived, not merely known.
Dear reader, do not be dissuaded and discouraged by hypocrites and fools. Stand up, stand up for Jesus, ye soldiers of the cross! Lift high his royal banner; it must not suffer loss! Keep judging, keep rebuking, keep contending earnestly for the faith that was once delivered unto the saints. For the saints not only have every right to judge everything, but the very command of Christ to do so. Let us get busy for God, my brethren, and judge righteous judgement.