But if you bite and devour one another, take heed that you are not consumed by one another.

— Galatians 5:15

One of the commandments God has given us is found in the Sermon on the Mount and it should be familiar to most of you: “Judge not, that you be not judged. For with what judgment you judge, you will be judged. And with the measure you use, it will be measured again for you” (Matthew 7: 1-2). Most of us, I suppose, have heard that, but many of us have not heeded it, and that to our own hurt and detriment.

Christ said that we are not to be fault-finders for we will be judged. One New Testament scholar has said that this means that if we judge others we will receive judgment from them upon our lives here. That is true. But also, in the final Judgment of God, He will judge us at that time for trying to take His place as the Judge of all the earth. God’s judgment is perfect and righteous. Ours is frequently anything but that.

We should look for ways to encourage and build others up, not to tear them down. God doesn’t want us to be fault-finding busy-bodies. Self-righteousness is miles apart from real righteousness.

Question to ponder:
Are there any areas in your life where you could be less judgmental?