Discussion Questions Sermon Series N Commandments Week 4 - Judge Not

After Jesus’ death and resurrection, his followers couldn’t re-embrace a temple religion. They were left with Jesus’ odd assortment of commandments—impossible to imagine before the resurrection but made possible by the resurrection. These commandments would fuel a movement that changed the world. Perhaps the most popular commandment among those who don’t follow Jesus is “judge not.” It’s the one Christians are most often accused of violating. It’s also one of the most misunderstood of Jesus’ commands. 

1. Talk about a time when your first impression of a person was wrong. How did what you later learned about the person change your relationship with him or her? 

2. Read Matthew 7:1–5. What is one group of people you tend to judge? Why is it so tempting for you to judge them?

3. What would it look like for you to be heartbroken over the sin of the people you identified in the previous question instead of simply judging them? How can their sin help you recognize your own sin? 

4. When you size others up, do you tend to write them off (condemn them) or walk away (avoid their problems)? Why do you think you respond the way you do? 

5. Have you been sized up recently but refused to listen and instead wrote the person off as being judgmental? If so, what is one thing you can do this week to listen to the feedback you’ve received and begin to make changes?

6. Who is one person you need to stop writing off or walking away from? What is one thing you can do this week to put aside judgment and love that person? How can this group help and support you?

You size people up and write them off, walk away, or refuse to listen. We all do it. But if the sin of others doesn’t break your heart, it’s probably because your heart has never been broken over your own sin. Self-righteousness is the thing Jesus despised most. Judge not. 

“Do not judge, or you too will be judged. For in the same way you judge others, you will be judged, and with the measure you use, it will be measured to you.”
Matthew 7:1–2 

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