Judge not, that ye be not judged.
For with what judgment ye judge, ye shall be judged: and with what measure ye mete, it shall be measured unto you.
And why beholdest thou the mote that is in thy brother’s eye, but considerest not the beam that is in thine own eye?
Or how wilt thou say to thy brother, Let me cast out the mote out of thine eye; and lo, the beam is in thine own eye?
Thou hypocrite, cast out first the beam out of thine own eye; and then shalt thou see clearly to cast out the mote out of thy brother’s eye.
Give not that which is holy unto the dogs, neither cast ye your pearls before the swine, lest haply they trample them under their feet, and turn and rend you.
Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you.
I want to read again, Matthew 7:5:
Thou hypocrite, cast out first the beam out of thine own eye; and then shalt thou see clearly to cast out the mote out of thy brother’s eye.
Lord, together today we stand as Your people and worship You, and look away unto Jesus. Yes, thank You for this time together. Thank You for not leaving us to ourselves. Lord, we thank You for Your presence. We thank You for Your precious Word.
We pray that we can hear from You today. We pray that You would give us revelation in Your Word. Open up the eyes of our hearts, that we can see; give us ears in our hearts that we can hear from You. Lord, we pray that You would speak to us. We come as Your bondmen to hear from You, in Jesus’ name. Amen.
Last week, we looked at the topic of discernment—specifically, discernment for the sake of protection. This time, we want to look at another reason for discernment, which is discernment for the sake of ministry.
As we said last time, there are two reasons we see in the Scriptures, besides our own benefit. The Lord gives us discernment for our own protection, and He also gives us discernment to help one another.
I was asked by several to speak slower, so I will try. I thought maybe it would help if I could share a brief outline initially, because someone else told me that last time they tried to take notes, but they could not take notes and listen because I talked too fast. So I apologize.
We want to break apart Matthew 7:1–6. We want to stay in this area, so this time it is going to be much simpler. We will stay right here, focusing on discernment.
Initially, we are going to look at the beginning of discernment. Here, we will see two prerequisites—two essential things that we need in order to enter into discernment. Then we will look at the process of discernment: when we are experiencing discernment, what principles are involved? Finally, we will look at the end of discernment: its purpose and result. Why does the Lord give us discernment? For the sake of ministry and for the sake of protection.
Starting in Matthew 7:1: “Judge not, that ye be not judged.” Because I like to share more positively, I compare this with the parallel passage in Luke 6. It says something very similar, but it sandwiches “Judge not, that ye be not judged” with two other phrases.
One is, “Be ye merciful, even as your Father also is merciful.” The second is, “Condemn not, and ye shall not be condemned.” If we take the phrase, “Judge not, that ye be not judged,” and put it within that package of being merciful and not condemning, then we can understand what the Lord means.
The term judge in the Scriptures is actually neutral. As I said last week, judging is not wrong in and of itself. Even condemning judgment is not wrong in and of itself; it depends on who is doing it, the reason, and the circumstance.
For an individual believer, condemning judgment is always wrong. The word judge can be used for condemning, and it can also be used for discerning. Sometimes Scripture uses the word in the sense of a judge passing judgment: this is good, this is bad; this is wrong, this is right. But it can also mean being able to tell what is really going on—to understand and discern the true situation. We call that good judgment.
Both of these are ways in which the term is used. But in Matthew 7:1, “Judge not, that ye be not judged,” is not talking about discernment. This time, it is talking about condemning. The opposite of this kind of judgment is mercy.
If we are going to have mercy, we cannot be condemners. We are a merciful people. As the people of God, we are the merciful people, and it is not our place to condemn.
Matthew 7:5 begins with an excellent word: “Hypocrite.” If we can memorize one word of Scripture today, let us all memorize that word: hypocrite. We are not calling each other names, remember that. But we let the Word of God call us names sometimes.
The word hypocrite is like a banner over the first four verses. Just as the Shulamite said in Song of Solomon, “His banner over me is love,” when it comes to condemnation and all the things going on in Matthew 7:1–4, the banner over it all is: hypocrite.
As we look through these verses, we should see that word: hypocrite, hypocrite. Let it resound in our hearts. When this hypocritical way rises up in us, we want to let the Word of God come in and say, “Hypocrite.” Let it convict us with that word.
As believers, we have received mercy. If we have received so much mercy, how can we not be merciful to others? If we have been forgiven so much, we must forgive others. Otherwise, we are hypocrites.
A hypocrite is like an actor. It is not true. A hypocrite is playing a part—a false part. When we try to be a judge, when we try to sit down on a throne and judge, it is hypocrisy. It is not true. The Lord is after realness, not hypocrisy.
For us Christians, then, we want to look at this positively. One prerequisite for discernment is that we must be merciful. We discern in mercy.
When we discern, it has to pass through a filter, sort of like an air filter. When air goes through a good filter, all the rubbish stops there. One filter through which our discernment must pass is mercy. It must be forgiveness.
If we are seeing something, and it is not through the lens or filter of forgiveness and mercy, then it will turn into condemnation. Discernment—understanding something or seeing a situation without merciful eyes—is actually condemnation. It is actually judging.
Unless we are already based in mercy, we cannot discern. A couple of months ago, we looked at forgiveness. One thing we saw was that we are forgiven, and we are to forgive just as God has forgiven us in Christ Jesus.
When we forgive, we are not forgiving from our own strength, and it is not a weak forgiveness. It is utter, utmost, complete forgiveness, because forgiveness is actually in Christ. When someone is in Christ and we forgive them in Christ, they are as though they had never sinned against us, because Christ has never sinned against us.
Merciful people, in a way, walk around a little blind. I saw someone with sunglasses on last night—in the dark night. But that is the way we are, only even more so.
When you go to the eye doctor, sometimes they put those glasses on you. At first, you cannot see anything. Then eventually they lift something up, and you can see through a little hole as they test which lens is good for you.
This is kind of like our way. We need these glasses of mercy so that, initially, our reaction is, “I am blind. I do not see anything,” because everything is forgiven in Christ. We walk around mercifully.
Mercy does include discernment, and we will get to that later. But initially, we have to be clear: when we are going to discern, if we are not merciful, we will never discern properly or purely. It must be through forgiveness.
In Matthew 7:2, the Lord says that with the judgment we judge, we will be judged; and with the measure we mete, it will be measured unto us. Luke 6 says that this measure is pressed down, shaken together, and running over.
This may refer to the judgment that is to come. We shall all stand before the judgment seat of Christ, as 2 Corinthians 5 says. There is a judgment seat of Christ for believers. If we are not merciful now, the Lord will not be merciful then.
It is like the prayer the Lord taught us to pray: “Forgive us, as we also forgive others.” If you reverse it, it means that if we do not forgive others, the Lord will not forgive us.
As a merciful people who do not judge, we should take this as a warning. The hypocrite will try to rise up, but we say, “Hypocrite. Apply the cross.” The hypocrite will rise up and try to judge, but when we meet the Lord in that day, one thing that will be seen is how merciful we have been to one another.
What eyes do we see one another with? Through the blood of Christ. In a way, as a merciful people, we have bloodshot eyes. Our eyes are full of the blood of the Lord Jesus.
When we look around, naturally we may see many things. But through the blood, our eyes see the blood first. We have been forgiven so much. We cannot be merciful unless we have received mercy.
If today we are sitting here and have not received mercy—if we have not received forgiveness for our sins—it does no good to tell ourselves, “I should not judge.” All we can do is muster up strength and try to bite our lips.
But if we have been forgiven, we look to the Lord. In His light, we ask, “Is there anything not right with me and You, Lord?” If you find yourself judging someone else, ask, “Am I not walking in forgiveness?” As soon as you have been forgiven, your reaction is to forgive. It becomes natural.
The hypocrite is like the man in Matthew 18 whom we considered before. This bondservant owed so much, yet he went to his fellow bondservant and acted as if he could throttle him, get money from him, and put him into prison—as if he were the judge. But he was a forgiven one.
In Matthew 7:3, there is another thing going on. Not only are we judging, but how are we looking? Why are we looking at the mote in our brother’s eye while not observing the beam in our own eye?
Sometimes we do not think that we judge or condemn. We may feel that we are merciful. But one way to recognize whether we are condemning is to notice what we are observing. Naturally, unless we have received mercy, we will condemn rather than give mercy.
What happens naturally is that we look at the mote in our brother’s eye. You catch yourself actually staring—not necessarily physically, but inwardly. You are thinking about it. You are looking at it.
This is an inward thing, but the fruit of the inside comes out through the mouth. The fruit of condemnation is gossip. When we gossip, inwardly we are judging, and outwardly we are gossiping.
When gossip comes out, we should recognize, “Oh, I must be judging.” If we find that we are simply talking about someone, what are we doing? We are looking at the mote in our brother’s eye.
Out of the abundance of the heart, the mouth speaks. The Lord says in Matthew 12 that every idle word men shall speak, they shall render account thereof in the day of judgment. Gossip is a form of judgment; it is not being merciful.
This is difficult when we are talking about discernment, because gossip can look very similar to sharing something with someone for the purpose of discernment. Sometimes there has to be some sharing for the sake of protection or ministry. But what is the difference? The difference is on the inside.
When we are gossiping, what is our purpose? Why are we talking about this person with someone else? We should ask ourselves that often. We may find ourselves wanting to talk about what is going on, but inwardly we do not feel toward that person as the Lord feels.
Sometimes we may have to share something with someone. But when that is necessary, there is sorrow in our hearts. There is sadness, and there is a sense of the Lord’s presence.
At other times, we become happier as we share about someone who is doing worse. Maybe it builds us up in a false way. We feel as though we are doing okay because of what someone else is doing. Or perhaps we simply feel good talking about people.
People say that unbelievers like to talk about the weather, but Christians like to talk about each other. When Christians get together, there is a danger that we start to talk about other people. But Christians should share Christ. Christians like to share Christ.
The hypocrite inside likes to share about other people. When we catch ourselves gossiping and observing the mote in our brother’s eye, we should recognize that this is not mercy.
We need to ask, “Am I being merciful? What is my reason for talking to this person? Is this toward some purpose, or am I just talking for the sake of talking?”
A gossiper is not only the one who speaks, but also the one who hears. Gossip is stopped if you cut it off. This can be hard, because it feels as though you might lose friends or be rude if you stop someone in the middle of a sentence.
But sometimes, by God’s grace and in a merciful way, we have to stop it. We cannot become people who judge others for judging. That becomes a big circle: “You are gossiping.” “Are you judging me for gossiping?” “Are you judging me for judging you?” We cannot do that either.
Whenever we see someone condemning, judging, or gossiping, what do we do? We react with mercy. Never condemn someone for condemning others. This is harder, but it is the way of Christ.
Sometimes, even in forgiveness, we discern that something does not feel right. We might say, “I really do not want to talk about this right now. Maybe this is unnecessary to discuss.” That is discernment in mercy.
As Christians, our ears should become like a bottomless pit, like a black hole in the universe. Something comes in, and you never see it again.
We may hear something or recognize something. We may even spiritually discern a situation. But as merciful people, normally and in most circumstances, no one else will hear about it. No one else will know about it.
It is not that something comes in through our eyes and then we immediately talk about it. Instead, it is like a black hole. Everything comes in, and we do not know where it goes.
There are some people in whom you can confide. You can talk with them and come to them for help, and they will not turn around and talk to others about your situation. This is a rare believer. It is a shame to us, but this is the way the Lord wants to encourage us to walk.
Praise the Lord, if we go forward in this way of discernment, we will be a merciful people. We will be like black holes with the things that come to us. We can hear much, give it back to the Lord, and forget about it—as if the person never even told us.
This is the Lord’s merciful way. If we do not pass through this way of mercy, we cannot move on to discernment, because we are not trustworthy. The Holy Spirit cannot entrust us with something if we will immediately blab about it.
Whatever so-called discernment we might have will certainly not be spiritual discernment, or at least it will not be pure discernment. The purifying work is mercy.
The passage says that we are looking at the mote, but we are not observing the beam in our own eye. We see a piece of sawdust in someone else’s eye, but we do not see that we have a large log in our own eye.
Another essential prerequisite for discernment is meekness. As a discerning people, we must know that we ourselves are weak and frail, just as everyone else.
Even though we may see something, we recognize that we are those who have had beams in our own eyes. Even if the Lord shows us some speck of dust or sawdust in another person’s eye, we recognize, “I have been forgiven so much. I have been forgiven far more than this one. I am the chief of sinners.”
This is our attitude. If, after praying, the Lord has us approach someone in order to restore a brother, we do it in meekness and humility, considering ourselves lest we also be tempted. We know that we are just the same. We are weak, and we can fail.
We do not come in a judgmental way—haughty, proud, or arrogant. We might see something and come with a smirk on our face: “Do you know that you are doing this? Do you see what is going on?” We may almost enjoy that someone else is failing, perhaps because it makes us feel better.
But the problem is that we are blind to ourselves. We do not realize that we have a log in our own eye.
I was talking to a young man today who had a black eye. He said he hit himself with a baseball bat and got a black eye. Now, if we have a beam in our eye, sometimes we hurt ourselves too, because we do not know where we are going.
But especially if we go to someone before we ourselves have been dealt with, and we go haughtily, we will hit them in the eye with our own beam. This is the problem with natural discernment.
We may go to help someone, but we have so many problems ourselves. Though we may be trying to help, because we have not recognized that we ourselves first need to be dealt with by the Lord, we end up knocking each other in the head. We go to help, but actually poke their eye out, because we cannot see clearly.
When I was a child, my mother once tried to take a splinter out of my hand. She did not see very well, and she had a needle. The hole left afterward was so large, and it hurt. I never let her do it again.
Later, as a teenager, I remember my dad doing it. He was a medical doctor, wearing his glasses, and he got in there and took it right out. There was no problem.
That is the point. We need to avoid going naturally, arrogantly, and improperly, because we will hurt someone. How do we even know that we see correctly when there is a beam in our own eye?
We may think that we see oak wood in someone else’s eye, but perhaps it is only their eye reflecting our own case. Sometimes that happens, because we do not know what is really underneath or what is really happening.
These are the prerequisites. This is the beginning of discernment. If we do not have these things, we cannot move on.
Having these things, what is the procedure of discernment? What principles do we need when we actually discern? The passage continues: “Thou hypocrite, cast out first the beam out of thine own eye.”
The first principle is that discernment cannot be natural discernment. It must be spiritual discernment. Natural discernment will hurt the other person, and we cannot even see clearly. Spiritual discernment comes from the Holy Spirit.
All discernment must come through the Holy Spirit and by the Holy Spirit. Forgiveness is always in Christ, but discernment is always by the Holy Spirit.
Remember the glasses of mercy. We do not want to see anything except what the Holy Spirit lifts up and allows through a small window. When He reveals something, He reveals it for a purpose.
We really do have a beam in our own eye, and this is why we cannot naturally discern. There are natural ways of discerning. You can go to school, take classes, read people’s posture, facial expressions, handwriting, and the way they walk. Perhaps you can pick up some things naturally.
But 1 Corinthians 2:14–15 says that the natural man cannot receive the things of the Spirit of God, because they are foolishness to him. Spiritual things that the Lord wants to show us must come in the spirit; they must come deep within. They cannot merely come in our minds.
The passage says that the spiritual man discerneth all things, because the way of discernment is spiritual. It also says that the spiritual man is discerned of no man.
This is where natural discernment comes into fault. Naturally, we may discern something about how people or animals react. But when it comes to a Christian, people have a harder time, because a Christian is led by the Spirit. There is something else within them. There is another way about them.
A spiritual person may be sitting a certain way, but you have no idea what is going on. They may do something that another person does, and you think you understand their circumstances. But only the Lord knows.
Even our natural discernment is limited. As Christians, we lay that down. We do not want to move into psychic powers, trying to read minds, or anything like that. Why do that? Even that is limited.
But the Holy Spirit searches the hearts and minds. He knows everything, and He will not give us too much. If the Holy Spirit shows us something, it is for a reason. This is why we want only spiritual discernment.
The second principle is closely connected: “Cast out first the beam that is in thine own eye.” If discernment is by the Holy Spirit, then we also receive dealings from the Lord.
Spiritual discernment comes out of our own dealings. We are dealt with first, and then we can discern. Discernment comes from having been dealt with.
Before the Lord, we cannot discern ourselves rightly. Paul says in 1 Corinthians 4 that he does not examine himself, nor does he care about man’s examination; it is the Lord who judges. On that day, the Lord will make known everything, even the secrets of our hearts.
Yet later, in 1 Corinthians 11, Paul says, “Examine yourselves.” It is the same word. In a way, discern yourselves. These are not contradictory. We do not examine ourselves by ourselves, but we do examine ourselves before the Lord.
In Jeremiah 17:9, it says that the heart is deceitful above all things. If we try to examine ourselves by ourselves, we are like hypocrites, acting as if we understand. We go around in circles like a dog chasing its tail. It may be funny, but it is of no profit.
Have you ever done this? You sit there thinking, “What I just said—was that wrong? Maybe that was wrong. Maybe it was right. Maybe because that person looked down, this was wrong.” We get so confused.
The heart can deceive us. It is incurable. Who can know it? That is the question in Jeremiah 17:9. Who can know our hearts? The answer is in Psalm 139: “Search me, O God, and know my heart.” Only God can know our hearts.
When it comes to examining ourselves before the Lord and receiving His dealings, our condition must be that we come to the Lord Himself. We say, “Search me, O God.” This is a prayer we should pray often: “Search me, O God, and know my heart. See if there be any wicked way in me.”
When we do this, we can see in His light. Psalm 36:9 says, “With Thee is the fountain of life: in Thy light shall we see light.” Not in our own light—our own light is darkness—but in His light we see light.
There is a kind of symmetry here. When we are discerned by the Lord, it is in His light. Then, when we discern someone else, it can only be in the light of God. These things should match like a mirror.
The Lord discerns us by the Holy Spirit and in His own light, according to truth. When we discern someone else, it has to be the same way. It must be only by the Holy Spirit.
This light is the light of life. John 1 says, “In Him was life; and the life was the light of men.” We live by the Holy Spirit and walk in the Holy Spirit. As we do, His life shines light on all that is dark and all that is not of Christ.
The process of discernment is that we are living by the Holy Spirit. In ourselves, He exposes the things of darkness. This applies as we discern others: it can only be by the Holy Spirit.
In 1 John 1, there is an inward exposing as we live by that life. As we grow and walk in the light, God shows us more. He is like a lamp unto our feet. He gives us enough light to walk a little further toward God, who is light.
There is the full measure of the glory of God, but we are only walking in that direction. He gives a little light unto our feet. He shines a little and says, “This is darkness.”
He always shows both things. He does not only show us how wretched we are; He also shows us how wonderful Christ is. When He exposes darkness, He exposes it with light—and light has reality.
I was sharing the gospel with a Buddhist man who was interested in opposites: darkness and light, heat and cold. He said that you cannot have a God without an evil. But there is a difference.
Darkness is only the absence of light. Light is what is real; darkness is merely where light is not. In the same way, heat is something real, while cold is the absence of heat.
With the Lord, it is that way. He is real. He is according to truth. When His life is lived, it is real, and it exposes what is not real.
The blood of Jesus Christ, God’s Son, cleanses us from every sin and washes away the darkness. Inwardly, this is happening; outwardly, it also happens in fellowship with the saints.
Perhaps we read a good book, hear a message, or talk with someone. Suddenly, what they share reveals Christ, and we realize, “That is Christ, and that is not what I am doing.” You know what I mean?
There are people you may not like talking to because it seems to happen every time. The more they share, the more you say, “Oh, this hurts. Stop.” But praise the Lord.
If we want to walk in the light, let us fellowship more with those who walk in the light. The more we fellowship with them, the more the blood of Jesus Christ, God’s Son, cleanses us from all our sins.
First John 1:7 says that if we walk in the light as He is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood cleanses us. In real fellowship, light increases, and the blood washes us clean.
The Lord grows us and matures us, showing us more and more—a little at a time. He is a lamp unto our feet, not a spotlight showing everything. If He showed everything at once, we would be burned away.
But He shows us a little, then more and more. Sometimes He uses circumstances too. The Holy Spirit works from above, arranging our circumstances and dealing with us.
It is like having a log in your eye. You think you have ten feet before you reach a wall, but somehow, fifteen feet away, you get hit. The board pushes back into your head. I hope that does not sound bad.
What I mean is that, because we have a log in our eye, we walk through the world and circumstances begin to hurt us. Things come at us and knock us around until we realize, “Something must be in my eye. Whenever I walk this way, it hurts.”
Then it is exposed. The Holy Spirit is arranging our circumstances and dealing with us. He sees the full light of God; we see only the little bit we have received.
We should be faithful with what we have received. He always brings us further and further. He knows what to do, He knows our way, and He knows what we can and cannot handle. That is up to God as He arranges our circumstances.
We cannot manufacture our own way of improvement, but we can be faithful with what He has shown us. Sometimes we fall; sometimes we mess up. To walk in the light, we have to come, confess, and turn back.
Sometimes we sin, and the Lord convicts us. He puts the word in our hearts and says, “You have sinned.” Then we confess our sins, and because God is faithful and righteous, He forgives us and cleanses us.
This is a principle of discernment. We want to see the mirror image: as we go before the Lord, discernment comes by the Holy Spirit and in His light.
It is not that you stand before the Lord, are discerned, have the log removed from your eye, and then go to your brother outside the light to take something out of his eye. As soon as you step outside the light, your log comes right back.
But as we stand in the Lord’s light and remain in His presence, having been dealt with by Him, then we can go to our brethren and help them. We can stand in the light and help.
Because we have had the oak log dealt with, we become—not merely experts in the sin of oak—but people who know how it comes out. Yet notice how large our own part is and how small theirs is.
The Lord may show us only a speck of dust—a little bit of oak dust—in another person. But He deals with a whole log in us. This is a true principle: when the Lord is going to use us for discernment, the measure in which He works in us is much greater than the measure He may use through us to help someone else.
Paul says, “Death worketh in us, but life in you.” If you feel that you are going through unnecessarily hard times—beyond what seems necessary for your own spiritual life—perhaps the Lord is dealing with you further so that you can help others.
He does not deal with us only for our own benefit. He deals with us to help other people. When we are discerned before the Lord, He does not stop as soon as some dust has been removed. He deals with us thoroughly so that we might become usable.
When we have been dealt with, we come in humility, meekness, and mercy, and then we can see clearly. Matthew 7:5 says, “Then shalt thou see clearly.” If we do not go that way, we will not see clearly.
Sometimes the Lord gives us discernment for ministry, but He gives it to us only to pray. Most of the time, He may show us ten things, and we begin to pray. Yet we may only help the person with one thing—not all ten.
Sometimes we pray from afar. Sometimes the person comes to us asking questions or seeking help. Sometimes, after praying, the burden becomes so great that we must go to that brother or sister and share something to help them.
In any case, as we are sharing with someone, two things must be going on. Even if we do not know what is wrong with us, we come to the Lord immediately and say, “Lord, cleanse me with Your precious blood.”
“Lord, do not let me stand here in darkness. Do not let me try to help someone in my own light. If there is anything I do not even know about, cleanse me. Search me, O God.”
At the same time, as we try to help someone, there is a dealing at that moment. We cannot have our own hearts and thoughts in the way. This is a definite cross.
Some people cannot listen. We cannot listen because, while someone is talking, we do not clear the way simply to hear them. We immediately begin thinking about what we will say next, or something else we need to do—perhaps the dishes. Our minds wander around.
It takes a definite dealing, right at that moment, to become a blank slate. If someone comes to talk, we simply listen to all of it.
As we listen, we want to discern by the Holy Spirit. The Spirit is shining, and the light is there. But we cannot have everything else going on inside. We have to be blank slates.
This is not natural, especially if, in our normal time, our minds are wandering. Sometimes we go to read the Bible and say, “I cannot get past one chapter. I read this, and then suddenly my mind is somewhere else. This connects to that, and I have such a wandering mind.”
We can pray before reading the Bible, and sometimes the Lord gives a special grace. But really, the problem is that in our normal life our minds are wandering. We walk here and there through the day without our minds set on things above.
We do not govern our minds. We do not think what we want to think; we let our thoughts go wild. So, of course, when we sit down quietly with the Bible, our thoughts go wild. And when someone comes to share and we are to listen, we do not really listen.
This is especially the experience of young people. One big complaint is that the older ones do not listen to them. I do not know whether you have heard that complaint.
Perhaps I know what happens. When you are a little child, your mother is doing something, and you come tapping her: “Mommy, mommy, mommy, mommy.” Because children talk so much all the time, mothers learn how to do one thing while children are trying to get their attention.
I do not know if it is that or something else, but sometimes when a young person comes, not many adults will simply sit there, look at them, listen, and purely listen.
Immediately, we want to correct them. We want to hurry up, dismiss what they are saying, or think lightly of it. But if we can be like a blank slate—if we can listen and receive everything—then the Holy Spirit will rise up and give us discernment.
Then the Holy Spirit will show us where to help and what to do.
The first time I met someone who listened in that way, I did not know what to do. It was so rare to meet such a good listener. I was talking, and suddenly realized that this person was really listening.
They listened so much that it felt as though they were pulling the words out of me. There was nothing else going on with them. They were not waiting and saying, “Yeah, yeah, yeah, hurry up, hurry up.” They were not doing any of that.
Instead, I came to talk, and they listened so intensely that I realized, “I had better watch what I am saying.” Normally, perhaps I do not watch my words as much because people are not really listening. I just have to push it through.
But in this case, the person was soaking it in. Everything was exposed before them. They knew my fumbling around; they knew everything that was going on.
This is the way of spiritual discernment. If we are going to have spiritual discernment in that moment, it has to go through the cross. It has to be a cross experience.
Right at that moment, we look to the Holy Spirit. We look in the light that He would give us discernment. At the same time, we deal with ourselves so that only Christ remains. We can listen in Christ. We can do this by God’s grace.
Matthew 7:5 says, “Then shalt thou see clearly to cast out the mote out of thy brother’s eye.” Verse 6 speaks of not giving holy things to dogs or casting pearls before swine. We considered last week the matter of protection.
But first, there is also the reason of ministry. Discernment is for a purpose. We are not judging people, but when the Lord gives discernment, it is for a reason.
When we see something, we can ask, “Lord, is this from You? Is this from Your Spirit? Is there some reason for this?” We see something happen and begin to pray.
We may not know inwardly whether it is by the Spirit or our own mind. We may just be feeling something. But begin to pray. If you see something, pray for that one.
You cannot go wrong. If, as you are praying, you are stopped and sense that there is no need to pray about it—that you just need to be merciful—then forget about it.
But if, as you pray, something rises within you—if prayer rises within you and you have a burden for that person—then this is for ministry. It may be a ministry of prayer. It may become more than that, but at least the Lord has given us some ministry.
Sometimes I wonder whether this topic applies because perhaps we do not really care to minister to one another. We enjoy mercy in the sense of not confronting anyone, not losing friends, and not being difficult. We may not enjoy the time that it takes to help someone.
But if we can see the beauty of this purpose of discernment, we will ask the Lord, “Increase us in spiritual discernment. Increase our measure.”
Hebrews 5 says that solid food is for the mature, while milk is for the immature. The immature handle the word of grace, but the mature handle the word of righteousness.
It says that the mature have, on account of habit, exercised their senses—their spiritual senses—to discern good and evil. These ones are growing in maturity.
Our measure of spiritual discernment depends on our measure of spiritual life. As we grow and are discerned before the Lord, that is the measure in which we will be able to discern before one another. It is the measure in which the Lord may use us to help one another.
Real love for one another means that we actually want to help one another. Sometimes we may not want to grow spiritually for our own sake. But when we have a friend, a brother, or a sister in the Lord, we begin to feel responsibility.
If you have ever had a new believer come to you for help, or helped lead someone to the Lord, it is like a parent with a little baby. Many immature parents have children, but often, as soon as they have children, some maturity begins to happen.
Though they may have wasted their days on partying and other things for themselves, suddenly, because of this baby, they say, “I dare not do all that now. I have a responsibility.” We see people grow up quickly.
Perhaps one thing that stops us from growing is not caring for one another. It also stops us from sharing the gospel. We do not see the real situation.
It stops us from helping the saints if we do not see them falling away. If you have seen saints whom you care for deeply fall away, apostatize, or go after the world, you understand something of this burden.
If we will not grow spiritually for our own sake, will we grow spiritually for the sake of helping others? If we will not care simply for the Lord’s sake, will seeing someone fall by the wayside cause us to say, “Lord, I must consecrate myself fully to You. I want to pay the price to help someone else”?
“I want to pay the price. If it costs me this much, I want to pay that price. I do not want to just let this happen.”
One time, I saw my best friend from school days in a coffin. I said, “Lord, I want to pay the price to effectively preach the gospel.” I had failed in that case. I had a burden and a leading to go share with him, but I did not do it.
I said, “Four more months, four more months, and then I will go do it. When the time is right, let me learn some new verses. Let me pray enough times that it is overwhelming.”
I have seen believers apostatize from the faith and others fall away from the Lord. Do we not care for this purpose of ministering to one another? If we care, we will receive the dealings and pay the price.
Even if we feel, “Who am I?” we can pray. If we begin to grow, the Lord may show us something. You may be the more immature one, and He may show you something regarding someone more mature. He may not have you go correct them, but He may have you pray.
Spiritual discernment is needed not only for our own growth, but for one another. We really love one another.
Matthew 7:7 says, “Ask, seek, knock.” In a way, this is another subject, but it flows well after discernment because discernment, through and through, is by prayer.
When we look at this, we may say, “This is too much. How can we do this?” Only by God. He is able to do it. Therefore, we must come to Him and pray.
If we need to be merciful, we need to pray. If you have an enemy, pray for your enemies. Pray, and in your prayer forgive them in Christ. By God’s grace, do not merely muster it up. Say, “I forgive them,” even if you do not feel it.
We must come mercifully, and we pray that way all the way through. The banner over condemnation is hypocrite, but the banner over discernment is prayer.
Prayer shows that we depend on the Lord. Prayer shows that we cannot do this by ourselves. We come to the Lord and pray, “Search me. Deal with me. Increase my spiritual life, Lord. Search me.”
As the Lord searches us, we can look to Him when we see something. If the Lord brings something up, we ask, “Lord, is this from You? Is there some reason You are showing me this?” Then we begin to pray for our brethren.
The more we are praying for one another, the more ministry will be going on. Ministry must come from being ministered to by the Lord, and it must come from dependence on Him.
If we are growing in the Lord, we have a supply. It might take four hours with the Lord to spend one hour with a saint. But thank the Lord, this is the way it works. The deeper our dealings go, the more we are able to help.
We have different groups. Sometimes I feel that if two or three would rise up and make mention of everyone in their group every day—if just a few would do it in every geographical group—what a difference it would make.
How many would be left out then? If everyone who comes on Sunday is being prayed for by someone—perhaps by more than a few—then no one is left out.
As people pray, the Lord may give them discernment. At the least, they may contact one another. If you have ever prayed for someone, then when you see them, you smile a lot. You pray for them, and suddenly you really like them.
When you pray for someone and see them, you want to share with them. You may not tell them that you have been praying for them, but sometimes you shake their hand and somehow know: “That one must be praying for me.” The Lord does something.
In prayer, it touches two sides. First, it touches us; then it touches them. It all goes through the Lord. We pray to the Lord, and He sends the prayer back down and deals with us.
You pray for someone regarding something, and the Lord asks, “What about your log?” As we start to pray, we are dealt with. As we pray through the Lord and receive our dealings, the Lord answers our prayer and touches the other person.
It is a matter of prayer all the way through, if it is going to be ministry. We pray through most of our ministry, and then the Lord may lead us on to something else.
Let us take one quick principle from the verse about not casting pearls before swine or giving holy things to dogs. There is discernment to know the situation and know how much to share.
As believers, when we fellowship with one another, the Lord gives us discernment for knowing how much to share.
If you see a hundred things, do not share all hundred. It has to pass through the Lord’s filter. He will show you what to share, because only He knows how much someone can handle.
In a Bible study group, we may discern a situation, but we do not always share the full measure of what we have been going through. With some people perhaps we can share more, and with others less. But we can share Christ.
Paul did this. In 1 Corinthians 2–3, he says that he shared with them at a certain level. He shared what they needed. There was a mystery and wisdom that he spoke among the mature, but because the Corinthians were carnal, he focused on what they needed at that time.
At that time, they needed the message of the cross: Christ and Him crucified. As people mature, more may be shared. It is according to the level where they are.
When we discern, we need to know this. Perhaps we receive ten things. We pray for all ten, but perhaps only share one or two.
Consider a new believer sharing in a meeting. Maybe you see five things that were not right. You pray for them. Perhaps the Holy Spirit has shown you those things because you are abiding in Christ.
But if you share all five things with that new believer, they may never open their mouth again. You will crush them. When we help someone, we share according to the Lord’s leading—only what He shows us to share, not everything.
A young preacher may go to an older preacher and ask for help. If the older preacher shares all one hundred things he sees, the young preacher may never get up again. It is overwhelming.
This is like God shining His light. We need to learn the symmetry. God shines His light, but only to the degree we can handle. The full intensity of God’s light would wipe us out.
This is the way. The Lord gives us wisdom in this matter.
I want to pray that the Lord would encourage us today to be a merciful people. Through mercy, we have discernment. Through mercy and discernment, we really care for one another.
May the Lord build us up together, mature us ourselves, and enable us to mature one another. Let us pray.
Lord, we come to You and confess that by ourselves we cannot see clearly. All our discernment is rubbish.
We look to You, Lord, that You would mature us spiritually. Show us that inward way of walking. Show us this way, Lord, that as we walk by the Spirit and mature in the Spirit, we can see and receive from the Holy Spirit.
Lord, we pray, do not hold back on us so that we do not receive the dealings from above. Do not hold back on us so that we will not cast out the log that is in our own eyes.
Lord, we pray today: if there is anything going on with us, if there is some log or beam in our eye that is keeping us from fully filling up the measure of ministry that You have given to us, expose it and show it to us.
If there is one thing, or two things, in our own lives stopping us from serving You, Lord, we pray right now: search our hearts and expose it. Show it to us.
Do not let us, through neglect, fail to minister to Your people. Do not let us neglect this way. Discern us, Lord, that we can be usable in Your hands and usable to discern others by Your grace.
We thank You for Your mercy. We come and plead the precious blood. Even as You are showing us things, cleanse us with that precious blood.
We turn to the light and away from darkness. We pray in Jesus’ name. Amen.