Don't Judge Me!
You’ve heard the statements before: “You can’t judge me!”, or “Don’t judge me!” These statements do hold some truth, but likely not for the reason most users of them would think. Centuries of misinterpretation notwithstanding, we (Christians) should recognize that, biblically, we can't judge anyone with a measuring stick that’s from the one we will be judged by. The bible says "Do not judge others, and you will not be judged. For you will be treated as you treat others. The standard you use in judging is the standard by which you will be judged." (Matthew 7:1-2) In other words, if we would attempt to consign someone to hell (“That murderer is going to hell!”), or even to heaven (“Grandma was a beautiful person – I just know she’s going to heaven!”), we are wrong and risk judgment ourselves.
The reason judgment gets tricky is because of a language issue; what tends to get missed in translation of this phrase (so often thrown around in anger) is that, in the original language, the verb for "judge" speaks of the condemning judgment that only God can dispense at His discretion – only He has the authority to determine one's eternal destination.
Having said this, it should be stated that the Christian can’t pass judgment primarily because we can't pass sentence – we don’t have that authority. However, at the same time we must recognize that, biblically, we ARE to be fruit inspectors – let that sink in for a moment… It's God’s accountability system, especially (but not exclusively) regarding those of us who claim to be His. So what does that mean? It means that, if you know me to be someone who professes to be a follower of Christ, when I’m not acting like a follower of Christ – when my fruit doesn’t reflect Christ as my root – then you can call me on it. The bible says “Now I urge you, brethren, note those who cause divisions and offenses, contrary to the doctrine which you learned, and avoid them.” (Romans 16:17) At the same time, Paul also says to note (“mark”) those who walk like him (Paul), chasing after God and His word.
So, while we’re not called to pronounce final judgment on anybody at this point, we ARE to be fruit inspectors; this begs a question for all of us to answer: “Is the fruit of your life telling the truth about the root of your life?”