Daily Devotional
"For with the judgment you pronounce you will be judged, and with the measure you use it will be measured to you."
Matthew 7:2
Jesus does not simply say do not judge; He says do not judge because there is a consequence. The verse uses what scholars call a divine passive. It does not name who does the judging or the measuring, but everyone in that crowd knew He meant God. Out of reverence they often left the divine name out of the sentence. Whatever measuring cup you swing at your brother, God picks up that same cup and measures you with it.
This is the terrifying flip side of the Beatitudes. Jesus had already said, blessed are the merciful, for they shall receive mercy (Matthew 5:7). Here is the warning underneath the blessing. If you are harsh, you are asking for harshness. If you are merciless, you are asking for a mercilessness you cannot survive. The standard you use becomes the standard used on you from the throne of heaven.
And here is why setting ourselves up as judge is so dangerous. We are not qualified. We cannot see the heart. We do not know the story. The grouchy coworker may be running on a sleep deficit caring for a special needs child, but we render a verdict without the evidence. James 4:11-12 reminds us there is only one Lawgiver and Judge. To take that seat is a small act of treason, climbing onto a throne that is not ours.
Today's Challenge
If God measured me today with the exact measuring cup I use on others, how would I fare? Whose story have I judged without knowing the evidence?
Prayer
Lord, I tremble to realize that the measure I use on others is the measure I am inviting on myself. Forgive my harshness. Help me extend the mercy I so desperately need from You. You alone see the heart and know the story; teach me to leave the judge's seat to You. In Jesus' name, Amen.
