Judging Others

Matthew 7: 1-11 ...First take the plank out of your own eye, and then you'll see clearly enough to take the speck out of your neighbor's eye. ...

This is a passage about learning empathy and practicing mercy. Mercy come from being able to see how yourself in your neighbor's predicament. Until we can see that we are all fallable and in need of God's grace, we find it difficult to love our neighbors as ourselves. Mercy implies judgement on our part, not comdennation, but judgement that comes from recognition of our neighbors troubles and our call to help them come to awareness of the Grace that God had made available to all.

This passage illustrates that we need first to recognise our own failings and need for Grace. Once we have seen our need for Grace we can do as Jesus told the adulterous woman and the woman at the well: Go and sin no more. If we truly work at this we will see that it is not easy and that we are continuously in need of Grace. Knowing this, we should judgeour neighbors with mercy and love.