Apples and Oranges

Matthew 7:1-5

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

3 “And why worry about a speck in your friend’s eye^[c] when you have a log in your own? 4 How can you think of saying to your friend,^[d] ‘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.

These days, as our society becomes increasingly tolerant of false religions, it seems that Matthew 7:1-5 are the favorite verses of hostile talking heads and highly visible pastors alike. With this series of verses, those who are less interested in answers than conflict feel that they have delivered the proverbial sucker punch to sometimes unprepared Christians. Additionally, because of the current societal climate, more and more young Christians take these verses to mean that they shouldn't bother their non-Christian friends but should rather, tuck tail and run. Thankfully, Jesus is not done delivering his message:

Matthew 7:15-20

15 “Beware of false prophets who come disguised as harmless sheep but are really vicious wolves. 16 You can identify them by their fruit, that is, by the way they act. Can you pick grapes from thornbushes, or figs from thistles? 17 A good tree produces good fruit, and a bad tree produces bad fruit. 18 A good tree can’t produce bad fruit, and a bad tree can’t produce good fruit. 19 So every tree that does not produce good fruit is chopped down and thrown into the fire. 20 Yes, just as you can identify a tree by its fruit, so you can identify people by their actions.

Wait a minute, verse 20 tells us that we 'can identify people by their actions'. Merriam-Webster defines 'identify' as 'establishing the distinguishing characteristic of an individual'. This sounds much like the classic parental advice to 'be careful who you hang out with' and the Proverb that warns us that 'Those who walk with the wise will become wise, but a companion of fools suffers harm (Prov. 13:20)." This mindset sounds contradictory to the first set of verses we looked at. However, when we look at the definition of judge ('to form an opinion...') we realize that identity is based on fact and judgment is based on opinion. With that in mind, the practice of looking for fruit before yoking yourself to someone else becomes not wrong, but in fact, the best practice. It's not judgment, it's discernment of truth.