Matthew 7:1-6 – Do not nitpick

In these verses, Jesus warns believers against condemning others. He does not want us to set ourselves up as moral wardens and become critical of each other. Obviously He is not referring to the magistrates and judges who are paid to arbitrate and help people to settle their disputes. He is referring to those who are judgmental. In context, Jesus had the scribes and Pharisees of His day in mind. These were the people who had the tendency to feel that they were better than others. Just because they knew the law better than most ordinary folks, they felt they had the divine right to be critical of others. Of course not all of them were like that. There were pious and respectable scribes and Pharisees who were good examples. But by and large, many were critical.

Today we also have people in our churches who strut around like modern “Pharisees”, and being critical and judgmental of others. Such people would nitpick at the smallest of issues that are mundane and inconsequential. Such people are usually blind to their own faults that are often time much bigger than the tiny issue that they see in others. Using a hyperbole, Jesus’ advice is for such people not to be hypocrites. They ought to go look at the mirror and remove the log that is in their eyes before they complain about the tiny speck of dust in the eyes of others.    

We must not overestimate ourselves. For if we do, we will set out to look out for the moral failures of others. In so doing, we will set ourselves up as God, and play the role that He alone has the right to. As Christ’s disciples, we must not be judgmental. For with the standard we use on others, we will be measured by that same standard. When we rightly estimate ourselves, we will realize that we also have flaws. This will enable us to be more magnanimous when dealing with the flaws of others. 

Verse 6 seems like a contradiction. If we are not to be critical, how would we know who are dogs and pigs? In context again, the Jews referred to Gentiles as dogs. They also do not eat pork so they wouldn’t have anything to do with pigs. Pearls are truths of the Kingdom found in the Gospel. So what’s Jesus intention here? His point is this: Gospel with Kingdom truths can only be appreciated by Kingdom people. Those who are not in the Kingdom won’t be able to appreciate it. Hence, it would be an exercise in futility to try to get them to make sense out of it, unless they become a person of the Kingdom as well. The issue is this: while we must share the Gospel and Kingdom truths with people who may not fully appreciate them, we must guard it like a treasure in our own life.