Judgement vs. Discernment

This week I was stumbled upon Matthew 7:1 in my daily devotion reading and started thinking about judging others. In this passage Jesus asks us not to Judge others. At the same time Paul in I corinthians 2:15 Paul states that any man who is spiritual will continue to judge all the time. So what does it mean to not judge other people but at the same time continue judge every information that comes to you ?

When you judge some one it disassociates you from the person/or the people you judge. On the other hand you have to be able to differentiate good from bad for your functioning. In order for you to do this you need to be able to discern what is the right thing. When you judge some one it makes you superior to the other person on the other hand when you discern it makes you feel equal. Jesus says we are all sinners and hence we are all equal and we are saved only by God's Grace so one person is not superior to the other person by anything.

Matthew 7 goes on to say that we should remove the plank from our eyes before trying to remove the spec from your brother. I can relate to this a lot. When I was growing up whenever somebody comes over from the US and wants to drink mineral water I would pass judgement on them. Now when I go back from the US it bothers me that I am doing the same thing as the people I passed judgement on. It restricts your choices on what you can do because you would have to fear judgement.

The next question is what about a christian who is a judge is it a bad thing. Does the bible prohibit that ? There are instances in paul's letters where he requires this set of new christians to be discerning and protect themselves. All of us who live in a society are obliged to discern for the sake of the community that they live in. This creates a collective set of good and evil. This becomes the laws in the society. In order for this to be enforced some people should be authorized to pass judgement based on the laws. Through out history God placed kings/prophets and judges in judgement of the israelites. These judges should understand that it needs to be done with the highest empathy, humility.