Sermon on the Mount, Part 8–Others

Do Not Judge Others

1 “Do not judge others, and you will not be judged. 2 For you will be treated as you treat others. The standard you use in judging is the standard by which you will be judged.

Matthew 6:14-15 - "If you forgive those who sin against you, your heavenly Father will forgive you. But if you refuse to forgive others, your Father will not forgive your sins."

• James 4:11-12 - "Don’t speak evil against each other, dear brothers and sisters. If you criticize and judge each other, then you are criticizing and judging God’s law. But your job is to obey the law, not to judge whether it applies to you. God alone, who gave the law, is the Judge. He alone has the power to save or to destroy. So what right do you have to judge your neighbor?"
• Matthew 18:21-35 - Parable of the Unforgiving Debtor
• John 3:16-21 - "For God loved the world so much that he gave his one and only Son, so that everyone who believes in him will not perish but have eternal life. God sent his Son into the world not to judge the world, but to save the world through him. There is no judgment against anyone who believes in him. But anyone who does not believe in him has already been judged for not believing in God’s one and only Son. And the judgment is based on this fact: God’s light came into the world, but people loved the darkness more than the light, for their actions were evil. All who do evil hate the light and refuse to go near it for fear their sins will be exposed. But those who do what is right come to the light so others can see that they are doing what God wants."
• John 5:22-23 - "In addition, the Father judges no one. Instead, he has given the Son absolute authority to judge, so that everyone will honor the Son, just as they honor thedate Father. Anyone who does not honor the Son is certainly not honoring the Father who sent him."
• John 12:47-48 - "I will not judge those who hear me but don’t obey me, for I have come to save the world and not to judge it. But all who reject me and my message will be judged on the day of judgment by the truth I have spoken."
• John 9:39 - “I entered this world to render judgment—to give sight to the blind and to show those who think they see that they are blind.” (Remember the Beatitudes - "God blesses those who are poor and realize their need for him, for the Kingdom of Heaven is theirs."; spiritual blindness is failing to recognize our spiritual poverty)

3 “And why worry about a speck in your friend’s eye when you have a log in your own? 4 How can you think of saying to your friend, ‘Let me help you get rid of that speck in your eye,’ when you can’t see past the log in your own eye? 5 Hypocrite! First get rid of the log in your own eye; then you will see well enough to deal with the speck in your friend’s eye.

• James 2:12-13 - "So whatever you say or whatever you do, remember that you will be judged by the law that sets you free. There will be no mercy for those who have not shown mercy to others. But if you have been merciful, God will be merciful when he judges you." (NKJV - "Mercy triumphs over judgment.")
• Luke 6:37-38 - “Do not judge others, and you will not be judged. Do not condemn others, or it will all come back against you. Forgive others, and you will be forgiven. Give, and you will receive. Your gift will return to you in full—pressed down, shaken together to make room for more, running over, and poured into your lap. The amount you give will determine the amount you get back.”
• APPLICATION: Judge yourself. Our business is not to judge others, but to show them mercy, just as we have been shown mercy. "Give as freely as you have received!" (Matthew 10:8b)

6 “Don’t waste what is holy on people who are unholy. Don’t throw your pearls to pigs! They will trample the pearls, then turn and attack you.

• "What is holy" and "pearls" -- the treasures of wisdom and knowledge contained within the Scriptures. Preach the Gospel to all, but do not waste your time and efforts on those who adamantly reject the Word. Like the parable of the sower, our responsibility is to sow and scatter the seed, and to nurture what grows.
• Matthew 10:14 - "If any household or town refuses to welcome you or listen to your message, shake its dust from your feet as you leave."
• APPLICATION: If someone will not receive your message, move on.

Effective Prayer

• Follow up on teaching on prayer (Matthew 6:5-15)

7 “Keep on asking, and you will receive what you ask for. Keep on seeking, and you will find. Keep on knocking, and the door will be opened to you. 8 For everyone who asks, receives. Everyone who seeks, finds. And to everyone who knocks, the door will be opened.

• James 1:5-8 - "If you need wisdom, ask our generous God, and he will give it to you. He will not rebuke you for asking. But when you ask him, be sure that your faith is in God alone. Do not waver, for a person with divided loyalty is as unsettled as a wave of the sea that is blown and tossed by the wind. Such people should not expect to receive anything from the Lord. Their loyalty is divided between God and the world, and they are unstable in everything they do."
• John 14:13-14 - "You can ask for anything in my name, and I will do it, so that the Son can bring glory to the Father. Yes, ask me for anything in my name, and I will do it!"
• John 15:7 - "But if you remain in me and my words remain in you, you may ask for anything you want, and it will be granted!"
• John 16:23-24 - "At that time you won’t need to ask me for anything. I tell you the truth, you will ask the Father directly, and he will grant your request because you use my name. You haven’t done this before. Ask, using my name, and you will receive, and you will have abundant joy."
• 1 John 5:14-15 - "And we are confident that he hears us whenever we ask for anything that pleases him. And since we know he hears us when we make our requests, we also know that he will give us what we ask for."

9 “You parents—if your children ask for a loaf of bread, do you give them a stone instead? 10 Or if they ask for a fish, do you give them a snake? Of course not! 11 So if you sinful people know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your heavenly Father give good gifts to those who ask him.

• Luke 11:11 - "...how much more will your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him.”
• James 1:17a - "Whatever is good and perfect comes down to us from God our Father, who created all the lights in the heavens."
• 1 John 3:18-24 - "Dear children, let’s not merely say that we love each other; let us show the truth by our actions. Our actions will show that we belong to the truth, so we will be confident when we stand before God. Even if we feel guilty, God is greater than our feelings, and he knows everything. Dear friends, if we don’t feel guilty, we can come to God with bold confidence. And we will receive from him whatever we ask because we obey him and do the things that please him. And this is his commandment: We must believe in the name of his Son, Jesus Christ, and love one another, just as he commanded us. Those who obey God’s commandments remain in fellowship with him, and he with them. And we know he lives in us because the Spirit he gave us lives in us."

APPLICATION: Be in right relationship with God and with others, and ask with right motives in faith and confidence.

The Golden Rule

12 “Do to others whatever you would like them to do to you. This is the essence of all that is taught in the law and the prophets.