Guarding Against A Judgmental Spirit

by Pastor Mark
July 31, 2026

 

Warning against making wrong judgments

We live in a world where many tend to be judgmental towards others. Such judgments are easily made on social media with anonymity. Often, when we see someone doing something wrong that has not met our “standards” of behaviour, we tend to criticise him or even condemn him. The danger of having such a judgmental spirit is very real, as we are quick to mete out such judgments. The Lord Jesus warned against having such a judgmental spirit as He taught the multitudes, especially His disciples. This is not the kind of spirit that a disciple should have. He emphasised the need to guard against having such a spirit.

Guarding against a judgmental spirit

“Judge not, that you be not judged.” (Matthew 7:1)

  1. The Lord Jesus taught against having a judgmental spirit.
  2. To judge is to have prejudices against others and to be critical of them.
  3. We would be fault-finding and condemnatory of others.
  4. We may find ourselves being self-righteous in how we see and treat others.
  5. The Lord gave a strong word not to make such judgments.

Facing the same judgment

“For with what judgment you judge, you will be judged; and with the measure you use, it will be measured back to you.” (Matthew 7:2)

  1. The Lord Jesus gave the warning of the consequences of having a judgmental spirit.
  2. When we make unfair judgments of others, we need to be prepared to be judged in the same way.
  3. Whatever way in which we measure others, the same measure would be applied to us also.
  4. We need to be prepared for this and to bear its consequences.

The danger of being hypocritical

“And why do you look at the speck in your brother’s eye, but do not consider the plank in your own eye?” (Matthew 7:3)

  1. The Lord Jesus needed to be candid and frank to those who were judgmental.
  2. These were very sensitive to the faults of others but were blind to their own sins.
  3. They were quick to point out the small faults (speck) of others but refused to deal with the greater sins (plank) in their own lives.
  4. The Lord Jesus described this as being hypocritical…a strong word to use…“Hypocrite! First remove the plank from your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother’s eye.” (Matthew 7:5)
  5. The Lord taught that we should first deal with our own sins before offering help to address the sins of others.

The challenge of having the right spirit

The Lord Jesus taught the kind of spirit that we should have rather than having a judgmental spirit. God can work in our lives and help us cultivate the different Beatitudes (Matthew 5:3–10). In being poor in spirit, we would learn to be humble and not be quick to judge. We would learn to mourn for our sins first. We would seek to be meek and not be reactive to the faults of others. We should seek to hunger and thirst after righteousness, and not be hypocritical. Let us be challenged to guard ourselves from having a judgmental spirit but rather to have a spirit that is humble and meek.

Back to Article Listing

More Articles

View more