JW subtitle extractor

The text for today is “stop”
—“stop judging.”
That seems to indicate that it’s happening.
Just as evidently it did in the first century
when Jesus spoke those words,
it’s happening now.
So we ask some questions
about this particular series of verses
in Matthew chapter 7:
What is meant by “judging”?
What’s “the straw”?
What’s “the rafter”?
And this expression in verse 2,
“measuring out,”
what’s that all about?
Well, let’s begin
with the word “judging” itself.
What does it mean?
What does it not mean?
Well, evidently it does not mean
that we are to make no judgments whatsoever.
That wouldn’t be in harmony
with what Jesus said,
actually, later in chapter 7.
You’ll notice in verse 6 he mentions:
“Do not give what is holy to dogs,”
in other words,
those who don’t appreciate spiritual things.
We’d have to make a judgment:
‘Is this person like that?
Should I take the message elsewhere?’
Another judgment can be found here
a little bit further down in verse 13.
Jesus says: “Go in through the narrow gate,”
as opposed to the “broad . . . and spacious.”
Well, a person would have to make a judgment.
Which one is “the narrow gate”?
And in verse 15:
“Be on the watch for the false prophets.”
Once again, who are they?
A judgment is involved.
So, clearly, Jesus was not referring
to any and all judgments that we have to make
in harmony with his words here in chapter 7.
The Watchtower pointed out very clearly
that Jesus was referring to being judgmental,
or overly critical of others.
So how can we apply this counsel?
Well, to do so, we have to understand
our next question, and that is,
What’s “the straw”
that he mentioned here in these verses?
Well, The Watchtower explained concisely
that the straw is any minor defect
that we may notice in another person
that we seize upon
to make a judgment or to view it critically.
These little, minor defects could be real,
but they also might be imagined,
as we’ll see in just a moment.
So, what’s a minor defect?
Well, a person may say something thoughtless
or do something or say something unkind.
Well, isn’t that true of virtually all of us?
We all say things that we later regret,
but the person who’s judgmental, or critical,
seizes upon that minor flaw
and makes an issue out of it
or tells about it to others.
Or we might see
what we think
is a straw in another person’s eye,
and we judge that as a flaw.
For example, personal opinions
—the apostle Paul in Romans chapter 10
referred to differing opinions.
What was he addressing?
Well, there was a problem
in the first-century congregation.
After the Mosaic Law ended,
some were clinging
to some of those traditions of the Law.
Well, if they had been Jews
their entire life,
perhaps it was hard for them
to say the Sabbath
was no longer to be kept
or perhaps it was hard for them
to accept that certain meats
could now be eaten.
But the reality is this:
When the Law ended,
those things became optional.
The kind of meat a person ate
and even whether they chose to observe
a certain day of the week
for rest and worship
was all now optional.
So the problem was, though,
as Paul wrote in Romans chapter 14,
that these different opinions
were creating a problem.
Some were judging others for their choices.
Well, in reality, they had the right
to make those individual choices
since the Mosaic Law no longer existed.
So, really, if a person made an issue
about those things back then,
it was an imaginary straw.
Well, today, the same could happen with us.
Every day, our brothers and sisters
make different choices.
They make different choices
in their dress and grooming,
the way they spend their money,
their choices in food and health care.
They may not be our choices,
but do we have to make an issue about it?
Do we have to become judgmental, or critical?
At Bethel, there are guidelines
that have been established
by the Branch Committee
and “the faithful and discreet slave”
here at Warwick.
Do we really have all the facts
as to why those guidelines were established?
Or do we instantly become critical:
‘Oh, I wonder why we have
to do this or do that at Bethel’?
Well, again, very likely those guidelines
were established with a good reason.
So for us to assume
that there’s some sort of flaw
in the guideline
probably indicates we see
an imaginary straw here at Bethel.
Another example of an imaginary straw
would be when we perhaps judge
another person’s motives.
Motives are something that by definition
we cannot see on the surface.
But we could misjudge someone
if we become critical, or judgmental.
For example, a sister is outgoing,
and we judge her as being flirtatious.
Or a brother,
perhaps an elderly brother, is shy;
we judge him
as being unfriendly or even mean.
Well, how could we possibly know, right?
It’s just what a person sees on the surface.
We’re imagining a straw
that really doesn’t exist.
And the same could be said
with any situation.
A person is appointed a regular pioneer,
a brother a ministerial servant.
Do we judge that person’s motive
or rejoice with them?
It’s true
that some of our brothers and sisters
may disappoint us at times,
but the reality is
we shouldn’t assume their motives are bad.
So, what’s the straw?
It’s a minor defect,
an imperfection
that could be real
but is often imagined.
What about the rafter?
Well, the rafter Jesus indicated
was more serious than a straw.
Jesus indicated in verses 3 and 4
of our scripture here in Matthew 7
that it’s hypocritical
to judge another person.
Why is that?
Well, The Watchtower said this:
“By drawing attention to the faults of others
“while having greater faults himself,
an individual makes himself appear
to be something he is not.”
That’s hypocritical.
It’s also wrong
—“a rafter,” if you will, in our eyes—
if we put ourselves in the place of God.
At James 4:12, it says:
“There is only one
who is Lawgiver and Judge . . .
But you, who are you
to be judging your [brother]?”
Well, this is why the God’s Love book said:
“Jehovah gave us our conscience
to judge ourselves,
not to judge others.”
So if we put ourselves in the place of God,
that’s a major rafter.
Another rafter could be lack of love.
We may be trying
to make ourselves look taller
by pushing others down.
Well, that’s unloving
because by pushing someone down
—criticizing them, perhaps openly—
we’re damaging their reputation.
We could be creating discontent
in the congregation or here at Bethel.
It’s serious—isn’t it?—
to have a lack of love,
because in 1 John chapter 3 it says:
“The one who does not love remains in death”
—serious.
So a rafter could include being hypocritical,
being presumptuous
and putting ourselves in the place of God,
or just plain being unloving.
What about that expression in verse 2,
“measuring out”?
Well, essentially,
what Jesus meant there was
that you get what you give.
People who are ungenerous
in their estimation of others
will likely be viewed critically by others,
so the judgmental person
is judged more harshly.
One faithful sister observed,
“If someone is critical of others,
they will likely be critical of you.”
So, what happens?
We tend to avoid them, don’t we?
How might a person become judgmental?
Well, often it’s human imperfection,
isn’t it?
Imperfection—we have pride, we have envy,
we have insecurities,
and even self-righteousness
that can all distort the way
we see our fellow brothers and sisters.
But a person can stop.
Jesus said so, didn’t he?
“Stop judging.”
A person can stop
by examining their own heart:
‘Have I become a critic?
Am I constantly looking
for the flaws on others?’
And we have to remember
that the original critic is Satan.
He was critical of Jehovah,
he was critical of the righteous man Job,
and we know he’s critical of us.
So we can pray about the matter.
Perhaps we can work with the person
that we happen to be critical of
—work with them in service,
get to know them better.
We had a beautiful video called
Remove the Rafter
that is now a part of Lesson 56
in our Enjoy Life Forever! book.
So if we stop judging, we’ll be happier.
We’ll have better relationships at home
and with our friends.
We’ll have better, more loving congregations
and a more inviting, pleasant environment
here at Bethel.
We’ll preserve our relationship with Jehovah,
who will be a lot less likely
to judge us adversely.
So, no doubt,
we want to have Jehovah measure out to us
a favorable judgment.
We can do so if we stop judging.

Jonathan Smith: “Stop Judging” (Matt. 7:1-3)