Everyone has to constantly avoid the stumbling block of being judgmental. Jesus had a lot to say about this sin that troubles us. Sitting in the seat of judgment can be very uncomfortable. Also, sitting in the seat of judgment tends to provide a breeding ground for feelings of superiority and thus destroy the spirit of humility and caring.

There are numerous reasons why no person is fully capable of passing judgment on another person. One reason is that we never know the whole facts or the whole person. How dangerous it is for us to make snap judgments. We do not always have the full picture of the situation. We may not know what goes on behind the scenes that cause the actions of others.

The story is told of a little boy who brought a card of honeybees to school. The bell rang and the class was called to order. For lack of a place to put the bees, the boy slipped the card into his back pocket. Every now and then the teacher would see him make an awkward movement and would call him down. After about the third time he was called down, he said, “Teacher, you just don’t know what’s behind the scene!” We, too, are guilty at times of not knowing “What’s behind the scene.”

Another reason why we are not capable of passing judgment on another person is that it is almost impossible for any person to be strictly impartial in his or her judgment. The bottom line for not being judgmental comes from Jesus. No person is good enough to judge any other person. Only the perfect person has a right to look for faults in others. Framed in a dozen words is excellent advice, “Be kind to everyone, for every person is fighting a hard battle.”

Edward Wallis Hoch and Joaquin Miller send a challenging message in these verses:

There is so much good in the worst of us,

and so much bad in the best of us,

That it hardly behooves any of us,

To talk about the rest of us.



And….



In men whom men condemn as ill

I find so much goodness still,

In men whom men pronounce divine

I find so much of sin and blot,

I do not dare to draw a line

Between the two, where God has not.





Dr. Curtis Coleman is Emeritus Dean and Professor of Religion and Philosophy at Athens State University.