How to Treat Others

Sermon on Matthew 7:1-12

This year, we will continue with our sermon series on Matthew. In the Chinese service, we will be going through the life of Jesus. But for the Bilingual service, we will be focusing on parables. Why parables? It is because parables are rich with imageries. We can all relate to the journey of the Prodigal Son and the joy of the awaiting Father. These stories use details and descriptions to create a sensory experience for the listener. Parables evoke mental images, not only of the visual sense, but of sensation and emotion as well. We hope that these images are graphic and memorable and will leave you sermons with a lasting message.

Today’s passage is taken from the Sermon on the Mount. From previous sermons, we know that Jesus has come to be the King. He has come to restore the fallen kingdom. He has come to gather his people. But as we slowly come to realize, this king is no ordinary king. His kingdom and his people are also not the kind we are familiar with. We do not see the use of military to consolidate his power. We do not see the need of any official boundaries for land or citizenship for subjects. Instead, after gathering his people with healing and preaching, Jesus’ first official act as king is the giving of the law. The contents of this law are known to us as the Sermon on the Mount. In doing so, Jesus replicates the actions of Moses before the Israelites entered the promised land. This kingdom is special. It is the kingdom of God. It is the kingdom where God is the true King. As such, obedience to his will is what determines who his people are. This is why the giving of the law, in Jesus’ time just as in Moses’, is the foundation of this kingdom.

If your theology is such that Old Testament is about the law and the New Testament is about love and grace, you might be in for a rude shock. That kind of dichotomy simply does not exist in Matthew. Jesus spells it out plainly at the start of his sermon, 5: 17 “Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them. 18 For truly I tell you, until heaven and earth disappear, not the smallest letter, not the least stroke of a pen, will by any means disappear from the Law until everything is accomplished. 19 Therefore anyone who sets aside one of the least of these commands and teaches others accordingly will be called least in the kingdom of heaven, but whoever practices and teaches these commands will be called great in the kingdom of heaven. 20 For I tell you that unless your righteousness surpasses that of the Pharisees and the teachers of the law, you will certainly not enter the kingdom of heaven.”

Let these words sink in for a moment. In the kingdom of Jesus, the law is not abandoned, but made even more extreme. It is not only obeyed in practice, it must also be internalized in spirit. So beyond murder, thou shall not hate. Beyond adultery, thou shall not lust. Beyond perjury, thou shall not lie. Beyond limits on revenge, thou shall love your enemies. Furthermore, obedience to the law is easier when we are under public scrutiny and are mutually accountable. But in Jesus’ kingdom, this obedience is private as we are directly accountable to God. So, give privately, pray privately, fast privately and your rewards are with God in heaven.

Such extreme and private obedience to the law makes any true Christian unique and radical from others. “To be a follower of Jesus entails nothing less than becoming a visible alternative to the world.”[i] The law has been given by the King, to the people who desire to enter this kingdom. But make no mistake, “small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it (7:14).” We are called to a higher moral standard. We are serving a Lord and master who is perfect and demands perfection. We are good only when we are effectively the salt and light of the earth. Given such a calling, to be set apart for the holy mission, I guess it is unavoidable that we will feel special. After all, we must practice discernment in all that we do. In a way, we are like lawyers who must determine the legal implications of our decisions. We have to judge what is right and wrong. Good judgment is highly prized because the one who fulfills the law better, pleases God more. Ultimately, we have Jesus Christ as our model, and as we know, he is Judge over us all.

This is why it is extremely odd for many of us that in today’s passage, Jesus tells us not to judge. Isn’t judging part and parcel of Christian life? How do we know that we are living a more righteous life if not in comparison with others? This command is even more ironic given that Jesus himself was judging the scribes and Pharisees in this very Sermon on the Mount. Sad to say, if you were to tell non-Christians about this command, they would greet you with scorn and derision. They would tell you that judging others is practically the trademark of the Christians. They will share experiences of Christians who are often self-righteous and critical of others. How then can we make sense of Jesus’ command? To help us understand this, Jesus uses 3 imageries.

The first imagery is that of a person with a plank in his eye trying to remove a speck of sawdust in his brother’s eye. I’ve brought along this wooden board as a plank for my eye. I shall now attempt to remove the speck from my translator’s eye, the speck as represented by this toothpick. (Demonstration) What do you see? What did you feel? An image that is funny and frustrating at the same time. It’s funny because I look stupid doing an impossible task. It’s frustrating because you feel like saying to me, “You hypocrite, first take the plank out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother’s eye (7:5).” When you judge others, this is precisely the image you should remember. You are trying to remove your brother’s speck with a plank in your eye. The issue is not with the speck removal. The issue is with your blindness. Unless you see clearly, you cannot be the one to be removing specks from people’s eye.

Why did Jesus say that when you judge, you have a plank in your eye? What does this blindness refer to? Brothers and sisters, this is why I describe to you the extreme and private obedience to the law earlier in the sermon. If you really understand the high calling that is demanded of you, you would appreciate just how impossible they are to achieve on your own. The laws of Jesus are even more righteous than that of the scribes and Pharisees. But they are only so because Jesus the King is here with us to lead us through. Therefore, all disciples of Jesus must live out this Christ-like life. But they do this fully dependent on Jesus, struggling with their weakness, but barely scraping by and conquering them by God’s power. If this is how we live, meek and pure in heart before God, living by the grace and mercy of God, who are we to judge others who are just like us, we who have no righteousness apart from God?

Therefore, anyone who is judgmental and critical of others is blind. They are blind to their own helplessness before God’s holiness. They are blind to their self-righteousness. They are blind to their idolatry. I call it idolatry because they thought their own meager efforts deserve worship and praise. This is why their error is like a plank compared to their brother’s speck. If you do not know how to rely on God, how can you possibly lead your brother to the only source of strength? When you judge, you are blind. There is no way you can remove the speck in your brother’s eye. When you start seeing specks, and you feel judgmental, remember this image. Go back to your relationship with God. With your plank removed, then you can help others with humility and love. Only when you see God clearly, then you can bring others to God.

The second imagery of judging is that of pearls before swine. Unfortunately, this imagery is difficult to demonstrate because I don’t own any pigs. If I give pearls to my translator, you know very well that I’m never getting it back. So let’s use our imagination. What happens when you throw pearls to pigs? Well, pigs cannot appreciate pearls. They want food. They may trample them under their feet thinking it’s rubbish, and then attack you for the lack of food. But the problem lies not with the pearls. They are valuable to the right person. The problem is not with the pigs. They can be appreciative if given the right food. The imagery tells us that the problem is with the giver. In throwing pearls before swine, the giver makes the mistake of giving the wrong things to the wrong receiver.

The dogs and pigs in the imagery refer to the Gentiles. It is a nickname of an unfortunate insulting nature because the Jews sees the Gentiles as unclean, like dogs and pigs. But the purpose of the imagery is not to insult the gentiles, unlike the Chinese idiom 对牛弹琴. The foolishness lies with the giver who fails to realize that pigs have no use of pearls. Similarly, the laws of Jesus are sacred and good. But they are only meant for his people, the disciples of Jesus. They have no value to those who are outside the kingdom and covenant. In this case, the gentiles refer to non-Christians. There are some Christians who judge non-Christians because they do not conform to our moral code. They are just as foolish as a person who throws pearls before swine. If we remember this imagery well, we will be wiser in our interactions with non-Christians. As a member of a multi-religious society, we would also consider public policies which are sensible to all.

The final imagery is that of a loving father. The purpose of this imagery is to spell out how generous and considerate our God is. “7:11 If you, then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give good gifts to those who ask him!” The key to this verse are the words “good gifts”. The gift must be generous, or it would not be a gift. The gift must be considerate, or it would not be good. There are some who forget these key words, which is why they misinterpret the earlier verse “7:7 Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you.” Yes, you shall be given, you shall find and the door will open. But this happens only if it is considered generous and considerate to God, and not always by our considerations.

The context of this imagery is prayer in Luke. But the context of this imagery in Matthew is not prayer, but on judgment and obedience to the law. We want to enter through the narrow gate. We want to be counted as God’s people. But we know that it would not be easy. In this context, what is your heart’s desire? What would you ask? What do you seek? Which door are you knocking? I don’t know about you, but my desire is mercy and forgiveness. I want more love from God. I want more of his kind comforting words. I want him to say “good and faithful servant, let me make your work complete. My grace is sufficient for you.” I believe if it is this that I ask, seek and knock, I will be given, I shall find and I will open the door.

This is why the passage ends with the command “So in everything, do to others what you would have them do to you”. We are told to ask, to seek and to knock. But in ending with this command, we are also told to answer, to give and to open the door. I’m sure we do not like God to be judging us. We want mercy and forgiveness. Well, this is the exactly what we should be doing to others. Give them grace. Give them an encouraging word. We want good gifts from God. We may do well be forgiving and generous to others too.

Today, we are given 3 imageries in relation to the topic of judging others. On the image of speck and plank, we should understand that, as fellow Christians, we all live fully dependent on God. Judging them only reveal the blindness to our own self-idolatry. As for non-Christians, our laws are meaningless to them, just like the imagery of pearls before swine. Judging them only shows we don’t know what we have, and we don’t know what we are doing. We conclude with the image of God the loving heavenly Father. His grace towards us is a constant reminder to be forgiving and charitable to one another.

Footnote:
[i] Stanley Hauerwas, Matthew (Brazos Theological Commentary), p 84. Hauerwas was inferring this from Bonhoeffer.