Judge Not?

 I was reading yesterday from the book Questioning Evangelism: Engaging People's Hearts the Way Jesus Did by Randy Newman. In the couple of pages I was reading he was talking about judging. Oftentimes people will quote Matthew 7:1 if they feel a Christian is trying to talk to them about a possible wrong-doing, or if they see someone headed down a bad path, “Do not judge, or you too will be judged." In Randy's book he spoke of the original wording used in this passage and that though it was translated to "judge" (and that is a close translation), it's really more of a "condemning judgment" that was being referred to. Jesus Himself has pointed out sin. It isn't that we shouldn't call out sin or try to help someone if we see them going in a wrong direction. We should however not judge others from a place of self-righteousness, but out of love and concern.

In Luke 6:42 Jesus says, "How can you say to your brother, ‘Brother, let me take the speck out of your eye,’ when you yourself fail to see the plank in your own eye? You hypocrite, first take the plank out of your eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother’s eye."

In this passage He's not telling us we shouldn't point out the wrong-doings of others, for at the end he says...then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother's eye, but that we should first make sure we are not in a similar situation ourselves, while "looking down on" someone else. He doesn't want us to be hypocritical. We don't point out sin in others to elevate ourselves. We should only do it with the intention of helping another person. We should not just sit back and watch while a brother or sister is on a path of self-destruction.

This is such a difficult topic. I know when God calls us to do this, to remove our "planks" and remove the "specks" from another's eye, it can be painful and we are often afraid to say something that may offend someone, but we have to look out for one another. 

And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds, not giving up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but encouraging one another—and all the more as you see the Day approaching.
Hebrews 10:24‭-‬25 NIV

For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.
Romans 6:23 NIV