th1bill
5th June 2008, 05:29 PM
In chapter six, Jesus has just finished teaching us how to pray and that we must learn to rely upon God for our every need. Now the LORD, our God, is about to instruct us in the use of the wisdom God has imparted to us.
Mat 7:1 Judge not, that ye be not judged.
Mat 7:2 For with what judgment ye judge, ye shall be judged: and with what measure ye mete, it shall be measured unto you.
Mat 7:3 And why beholdest thou the mote that is in thy brother's eye, but considerest not the beam that is in thine own eye?
Mat 7:4 Or how wilt thou say to thy brother, Let me cast out the mote out of thine eye; and lo, the beam is in thine own eye?
Mat 7:5 Thou hypocrite, cast out first the beam out of thine own eye; and then shalt thou see clearly to cast out the mote out of thy brother's eye.
The lost man will often stop with the first verse, after all, you don't want to ruin your life, filled with sin, and most, even the Christian, will stop at the end of verse 2. As Jesus has stated in the second verse, we must never judge a person by stricter standards than we will want to be judged by. At the same time we are given the Ten Commandments (Exo. 20) and the first five books of the Old Testament are known as the Books of the Law because we are shown, down to the last detail, how to obey them.
Jesus is teaching us, verses 3 through 5, that when we judge that we must first make ourselves right with God. That does not mean that we can sin the same sin if we keep our mouths shut to the sins of another. We are taught, through out the Bible, that God seeks after a righteous people to call His own. We are also taught, through out the scriptures that we are to grow in His grace every day of our lives here on this Earth. As His servants we are to be examples and to never lead, even a child into sin. If we do not do our very best to live a righteous life and others see us claiming the name of Christ, they will follow our example and we will be guilty of leading them into sin, just as surely as if we have driven them there at the point of a gun.
Mat 7:6 Give not that which is holy unto the dogs, neither cast your pearls before the swine, lest haply they trample them under their feet, and turn and rend you.
In verse 6 we learn that we are to judge. Without judging the circumstances and the mettle of the person we are in danger of making ourselves and the Gospel into Canon Fodder to the lost man. In another verse of scripture, Jesus taught us to be ready to kick the dust off our feet and to seek the person that is ready to hear the truth. Without judgment, one will stand there for all eternity, witnessing to the same lost man and thereby make him or herself useless to the work of the Kingdom.
Mat 7:7 Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you:
Mat 7:8 for every one that asketh receiveth; and he that seeketh findeth; and to him that knocketh it shall be opened.
Not only does Jesus teach us to pray, He is now teaching us to be proactive in our prayers. At some point in the Christians life he or she must learn to seek after God to do for them the things that they are not able to do without Him.
Mat 7:9 Or what man is there of you, who, if his son shall ask him for a loaf, will give him a stone;
Mat 7:10 or if he shall ask for a fish, will give him a serpent?
Mat 7:11 If ye then, being evil, know how to give good gifts unto your children, how much more shall your Father who is in heaven give good things to them that ask him?
God has opened His vault to us and to access it we need only to live our lives in service to Him. If we are going to serve God we must learn to follow His directions. In the Great Commission we are instructed to make desciples of men, everywher. If I walk up to a Muslim and begin to witness to him I must first judge him as being wrong and unsaved. If we are going to help the protitute break free of her sin, we must judge her as an unrepentent sinner before we can minister to her.
Mat 7:12 All things therefore whatsoever ye would that men should do unto you, even so do ye also unto them: for this is the law and the prophets.
When you see that eighteen year old getting drunk every night and putting notches on his belt to record his sexual adventures, will you just e silent, and allow him to work his way into Hell or will you judge his sin and seek to plant a seed that might, one day germinate and be harvested, later, by another Christian?
Mat 7:1 Judge not, that ye be not judged.
Mat 7:2 For with what judgment ye judge, ye shall be judged: and with what measure ye mete, it shall be measured unto you.
Mat 7:3 And why beholdest thou the mote that is in thy brother's eye, but considerest not the beam that is in thine own eye?
Mat 7:4 Or how wilt thou say to thy brother, Let me cast out the mote out of thine eye; and lo, the beam is in thine own eye?
Mat 7:5 Thou hypocrite, cast out first the beam out of thine own eye; and then shalt thou see clearly to cast out the mote out of thy brother's eye.
The lost man will often stop with the first verse, after all, you don't want to ruin your life, filled with sin, and most, even the Christian, will stop at the end of verse 2. As Jesus has stated in the second verse, we must never judge a person by stricter standards than we will want to be judged by. At the same time we are given the Ten Commandments (Exo. 20) and the first five books of the Old Testament are known as the Books of the Law because we are shown, down to the last detail, how to obey them.
Jesus is teaching us, verses 3 through 5, that when we judge that we must first make ourselves right with God. That does not mean that we can sin the same sin if we keep our mouths shut to the sins of another. We are taught, through out the Bible, that God seeks after a righteous people to call His own. We are also taught, through out the scriptures that we are to grow in His grace every day of our lives here on this Earth. As His servants we are to be examples and to never lead, even a child into sin. If we do not do our very best to live a righteous life and others see us claiming the name of Christ, they will follow our example and we will be guilty of leading them into sin, just as surely as if we have driven them there at the point of a gun.
Mat 7:6 Give not that which is holy unto the dogs, neither cast your pearls before the swine, lest haply they trample them under their feet, and turn and rend you.
In verse 6 we learn that we are to judge. Without judging the circumstances and the mettle of the person we are in danger of making ourselves and the Gospel into Canon Fodder to the lost man. In another verse of scripture, Jesus taught us to be ready to kick the dust off our feet and to seek the person that is ready to hear the truth. Without judgment, one will stand there for all eternity, witnessing to the same lost man and thereby make him or herself useless to the work of the Kingdom.
Mat 7:7 Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you:
Mat 7:8 for every one that asketh receiveth; and he that seeketh findeth; and to him that knocketh it shall be opened.
Not only does Jesus teach us to pray, He is now teaching us to be proactive in our prayers. At some point in the Christians life he or she must learn to seek after God to do for them the things that they are not able to do without Him.
Mat 7:9 Or what man is there of you, who, if his son shall ask him for a loaf, will give him a stone;
Mat 7:10 or if he shall ask for a fish, will give him a serpent?
Mat 7:11 If ye then, being evil, know how to give good gifts unto your children, how much more shall your Father who is in heaven give good things to them that ask him?
God has opened His vault to us and to access it we need only to live our lives in service to Him. If we are going to serve God we must learn to follow His directions. In the Great Commission we are instructed to make desciples of men, everywher. If I walk up to a Muslim and begin to witness to him I must first judge him as being wrong and unsaved. If we are going to help the protitute break free of her sin, we must judge her as an unrepentent sinner before we can minister to her.
Mat 7:12 All things therefore whatsoever ye would that men should do unto you, even so do ye also unto them: for this is the law and the prophets.
When you see that eighteen year old getting drunk every night and putting notches on his belt to record his sexual adventures, will you just e silent, and allow him to work his way into Hell or will you judge his sin and seek to plant a seed that might, one day germinate and be harvested, later, by another Christian?