Judge Not, That Ye Be Not Judged (4)
Bob Jones
Originally published in Faith for the Family, July/August, 1973. Used by permission.
Part One ♦ Part Two ♦ Part Three ♦ This is Part Four
In Part One, Dr. Jones dealt with the preceding context of Matthew 7:1, “Judge not, that ye be not judged…” and discussed the meaning of the word, ‘judge,’ noting that the kind of judgment that is prohibited is judgment based on selfish desires.
In Part Two, Dr. Jones wrote about the context following our text, showing that Jesus qualifies what he means in the midst of the sermon itself, in fact calling for judgment of a different kind, not prohibiting all judgment altogether.
In Part Three, Dr. Jones also discusses following context, dealing with the idea that men use false judgment, calling good evil and evil good and believing that God will approve of them all the same.
Next, our Lord describes two kinds of people — the wise and the foolish. He speaks of one man who built his house on a rock. What is the foundation upon which the wise man builds his house? It is the sure foundation of the Word of God. 
“He hears My Word,” Jesus says, “and he does what My Word says.” The other man builds his house on the sand. Jesus explains, “That man hears My Word, but he does not do as My Word says he should do.” The house of that man is not built upon a sure foundation.
The foundation is the Word of God. The house that is referred to is the house of a man’s works. It does not have to do with a man’s salvation. Remember, our Lord is talking to His disciples. He has already told them how He deals with the sinner. Now He says, I am talking to you. You have heard My Word. If you do what I tell you to do, you are building on a sure foundation. When the winds blow and the waves roll and the storms assail, your house will stand, for it is built upon a firm foundation — obedience to My Word. But if you build on sand you hear My Word, but you do not do it; you build your life on your own opinion — “Great will be the fall thereof!”
When God says “Do this!” you must not have the attitude of “No, I will do that.” God’s Word says, “Come out from among them, and be ye separate … and touch not the unclean thing; and I will receive you” (II Corinthians 6:17). “Think on that which is pure” (Philippians 4:8). “Do not look on the appearance, but judge according to righteousness” (John 7:24). Righteous judgment has to be the judgment of a righteous God; and God gives His judgment of a situation in His Word. Over and over again He commands you to obey His Word. If you build your life on obedience to His Word, your house will stand.
There is coming a day in which God will judge all things. He shall try every man’s work by fire to see of what sort it is — gold or silver or precious stones, or wood or hay or stubble. Fire refines gold and silver; it destroys straw. If you do not build upon the right foundation, your works cannot withstand the fire. You shall be saved, yet so as by fire (I Corinthians 3:10-15). “The foundation of God standeth sure, having this seal, The Lord knoweth them that are his” (II Timothy 2:19). The Lord knows His own; but it is how one builds, and on what one builds, that determines whether or not the house is going to stand and whether or not anything will be left after the fires of judgment try the work.
You are building a house, and every day you are adding to it. Your life is that house. Storms are sure to come — all who love God and live Godly in Christ Jesus can expect to see difficult times in America. Some will fall by the wayside. The reason is that they are building their houses upon the desire for popularity and the approval of men. They are building their houses on the schemes of the ecumenicists — “going along,” trying for popularity and eager to be “on the bandwagon.” They are building their houses on their own wisdom and on the desire to please men and to prove how intellectual they are. But in the day when trials shall arise and sorrows shall roll and human wisdom shall fail, great will be the fall thereof! Only that house which is built on the Word of God is sure; and you can build on the Word only as you yield yourself to obey it. You are to obey God’s Word which tells you to judge righteous judgment, and not judge according to appearance only. You are to judge the fruits of men; but you are to judge by what the Word of God says about that fruit. The standard is what God has to say — not what men think or how something may look.
Then, having made your judgment in obedience to God’s command and in line with God’s Word, you must speak out boldly in condemnation of anything that is contrary to God’s Word. That is a part of the job you are to do for God on earth. A good minister is supposed to condemn evil. Paul instructed Timothy to do that (I Timothy 5:20; 6:3-5; II Timothy 4:2). You owe it to the flock of God to decry false teaching and false teachers. To remain silent when God cries out is sin. God said to the prophet, “Cry!” The prophet asked, “What shall I cry?” (Isaiah 40:6). He did not say, “Lord, I am afraid to cry.” The important thing always is “What shall I cry?” It is a horrible thing to “cry” your own opinion, and it is a terrible thing not to cry the Word of God.
“Judge not, that ye be not judged.” Do not judge by your own opinion; judge by the Word of God which judges all things. The entrance of God’s Word gives light, we are told (Psalm 119:130); and that light is not distorted by a mote or beam in the eye. When the sure and true light of the eternal Word of God shines on each thing, it reveals the innermost secrets of the heart and the results of the life. It judges inwardly, outwardly, and righteously. “We are sure that the judgment of God is according to truth” (Romans 2:2).
Author’s bio as it originally appeared when published: Bob Jones, Litt.D., L.H.D., LL.D., D.D., is chancellor and chairman of the board of trustees at Bob Jones University in Greenville, South Carolina, and editor of FAITH for the Family. When Dr. Jones was sixteen, his father, the late Dr. Bob Jones, Sr., founded the school that bears the family name. Five years later the son was named acting president; and in 1947 he succeeded his father as presidenta position he held until 1971 when he passed the reins of that office to his son Dr. Bob Jones, III, and stepped into the newly created position of chancellor.
Dr. Jones passed away November 12, 1997.