Judge With Right Judgment

John 7:14-24
November 6, 2022
Abraham Hong

Sermon Script

We often judge by appearances. And we often judge with wrong judgment.

I’ve done so with food. I’ve ordered so many dishes at restaurants because their pictures looked good on the menus, only to find out that my judgment was wrong. I’ve done so with people. I’ve drafted so many players for fantasy leagues because their stats looked promising on the websites, only to find out that I am not as smart with sports as I thought I was.

We do this with everything. Judging by appearances. Judging with wrong judgment. And so the famous saying goes: Don’t judge a book by its cover.

In today’s passage, Jesus invited the Jews of his time to judge with right judgment and to not judge by appearances.

Here’s a quick summary of what happened in today’s passage. Jesus was teaching in the temple. And the Jews marveled. They saw Jesus as a mere human being who did not study or have any formal training. And they wanted to kill Jesus. They saw Jesus heal a man on the Sabbath. And so they judged Jesus.

They judged Jesus to be someone who was seeking his own glory. They judged Jesus to be someone of falsehood. They judged Jesus to be someone who was demon possessed (“You have a demon!”). They judged Jesus to be someone who was breaking the law of Moses.

This is so messed up. This is humiliation, this is redemptive-historical humiliation, in its purest form. Everything that the Jews judged Jesus with, everything that the Jews believed about Jesus, was completely wrong. They saw what they saw. They judged by appearances. They judged with wrong judgment. And, above all else, they judged the Judge of all.

Here’s why this is so messed up. Jesus did not seek his own glory. Jesus was not someone of falsehood. Jesus was not demon possessed. And Jesus did not break the law of Moses.

Jesus did not seek his own glory. Praise the Lord. His was seeking to serve the will of his Father and he was seeking to serve sinners who needed salvation. Do not judge by appearances, but judge with right judgment.

Jesus did not seek his own glory. Praise the Lord. He was not acting on his own. He was acting on the basis of the eternal covenant of redemption, a glorious covenant in which the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit decreed our salvation. It was in that covenant of redemption that Jesus decided to not count equality with the Father a thing to be grasped. It was in that covenant of redemption that Jesus vowed to empty himself by taking the form of a servant and be born in the likeness of men. It was in that covenant of redemption that Jesus freely accepted his mission of humbling himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross. Do not judge by appearances, but judge with right judgment.

Jesus did not seek his own glory. Praise the Lord. He did not teach in the temple in order to show off in front of everyone. Jesus taught in the temple in order to proclaim the amazing good news that he is the temple, that he is the Son of God, the second person of the Triune God, who has come to earth in order to save us and be with us. Do not judge by appearances, but judge with right judgment.

Jesus did not seek his own glory. Praise the Lord. Jesus was sent. Jesus was authorized. Jesus was all about his Father’s business. The Son loved the Father and the Father loved the Son. Do not judge by appearances, but judge with right judgment.

Jesus was not someone of falsehood. Jesus is the way, and the truth, and the life. It is impossible for our God to lie. For our God is without sin. Our God is abundant in truth and our God is truth itself who ultimately defines what is true. Do not judge by appearances, but judge with right judgment.

Jesus was not demon possessed. Jesus casted out demons from people. If Jesus was working for Satan, then why would he cast out demons and work against Satan’s kingdom? This does not make any sense. The truth is the opposite. Jesus came to destroy the works of the devil. Jesus came to crush the head of the serpent. Jesus came to attack and overcome and lay waste the kingdom of Satan. Do not judge by appearances, but judge with right judgment.

Jesus did not break the law of Moses. The people who sought to kill Jesus broke the law of Moses (You shall not murder). Even more so, no one keeps the law. No one is perfectly righteous before God. Only God is without sin. Only Jesus is perfectly righteous. Only our Lord and Savior kept the law and fulfilled the law. And the people were angry at Jesus for healing a man on the Sabbath because the Sabbath was supposed to be a day of rest from work and healing was work to them. But their anger was hypocritical. What if a son of theirs was born exactly eight days before the Sabbath and therefore required to be circumcised on the Sabbath day? Circumcision was work as well. And yet the work of healing is far greater and far more significant than the work of circumcision. How can circumcision be a good thing but healing be a bad thing? Do not judge by appearances, but judge with right judgment.

Now what do we do with this passage? It is easy to dismiss this text and just conclude that the Jews of Jesus’ time were wrong in their judgment of Jesus.

But the truth of the matter is this. We all are sinners. Every human being was created and made in God’s image to judge and assess and evaluate what is right and what is wrong. And every human being’s judgment has been destroyed by sin.

Adam did not judge with right judgment. He judged by appearances. He listened to the words of the serpent. He saw the fruit of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. He saw along with Eve that the tree was good for food and that it was a delight to the eyes. Adam judged God to be someone who was hoarding his own glory. Adam judged God to be someone of falsehood. Adam judged God to be an enemy and the serpent to be a friend. Adam judged God’s law to be something beneath him and breakable.

And every human being after Adam has basically done the same thing. That is the essence of sin. Judging with wrong judgment. This is huge. This is the bad news.

But the good news is this. Jesus came to save us. He made us a new creation in him. He gave us new minds and new hearts. And now as Christians we miraculously - by God’s grace, because of the Holy Spirit’s work of sanctification - we can and we will judge with right judgment.

This is amazing. So many people get Jesus wrong. And it is easy to judge Jesus with wrong judgment. But Jesus has given you the Spirit of wisdom and of revelation in the knowledge of him. Jesus made the eyes of your heart enlightened, so that you may know the truth and live with obedience and holiness and seek his glory. Jesus has forever changed you… so that you can truly know him.

Now you are growing in wisdom and discernment. Now you are getting better at walking by faith and not walking by sight. Now you are remembering more and more God’s love, God’s word, and God’s will. Now you are getting stronger against temptation and more eager to put off sin and put on Christ. You might still struggle to order the best dishes from the restaurant menus. You might still be inept at picking the best players for our fantasy leagues.

But Jesus loves you. And he saved you so that you can rightly judge - so that you can really know - who he is and what he has done for you.

So keep growing. Keep going. Keep reading your Bibles. Keep praying. Keep coming to church. Keep growing in the grace and knowledge of Jesus. We are striving to be better at judging with right judgment. We are striving to get Jesus right.

Soli Deo Gloria