| Online Bible Study - John Series - Lesson 14 |
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Goal
The Goal of This Lesson
Learning what it means to “judge with righteous judgment”. John 7:24 (NKJV)*
21 Jesus answered and said to them, “I did one work, and you all marvel. 22 Moses therefore gave you circumcision (not that it is from Moses, but from the fathers), and you circumcise a man on the Sabbath. 23 If a man receives circumcision on the Sabbath, so that the law of Moses should not be broken, are you angry with Me because I made a man completely well on the Sabbath? 24 Do not judge according to appearance, but judge with righteous judgment.”
At the end of this Lesson, you should be able to understand and share with others the answers to the following questions: 1. What does it mean to “judge with righteous judgment”?
2. How do we “judge with righteous judgment”? Summary
Lesson Summary
“I can of Myself do nothing. As I hear, I judge; and My judgment is righteous, because I do not seek My own will but the will of the Father who sent Me.”
1. Judge with righteous judgment. Jesus says, “Do not judge according to appearance, but judge with righteous judgment” (John 7:24).
Jesus tells us that to judge with righteous judgment is to seek the “will of the Father”. He says, “I can of Myself do nothing. As I hear, I judge; and My judgment is righteous, because I do not seek My own will but the will of the Father who sent Me” (John 5:30).
Therefore, to “judge with righteous judgment” is to judge a matter as Jesus does, which is to seek the will of the Father.
2. How to judge with righteous judgment. In order to “judge with righteous judgment”, we must follow Jesus’ example.
Jesus says, “I can of Myself do nothing. As I hear, I judge; and My judgment is righteous, because I do not seek My own will but the will of the Father who sent Me” (John 5:30).
As Jesus demonstrated, to judge with righteous judgment, we must not seek our own will, but the will of the Father. To accomplish this, we need to, as Jesus did, hear from the Father. Once we hear from the Father, we are to be obedient and do what the Father instructs us.
Now how do we hear from the Father?
By His Spirit. It’s through His Spirit the Father will make known His words to you. “For the LORD giveth wisdom: out of His mouth cometh knowledge and understanding. He layeth up sound wisdom for the righteous: He is a buckler to them that walk uprightly. He keepeth the paths of judgment, and preserveth the way of His saints. Then shalt thou understand righteousness, and judgment, and equity; yea, every good path.” (Proverbs 2:6-9) (KJV).
Therefore, to judge with righteous judgment, you will need to hear and receive the Lord’s wisdom, which comes from the Holy Spirit.
Lesson
Lesson: Judge with Righteous Judgment
In our last lesson, we learned that according to the Scriptures “unbelief” is either not knowing the word of God or not acting on the word or promises of God. We saw the unbelief in Jesus’ brethren, the Galileans, and Pharisees because all of them did not believe that Jesus was the Messiah for they did not know how to “judge with righteous judgment” the Messianic prophecies. This Lesson will focus on what it means to“judge with righteous judgment” on matters such as doctrine and how to judge accordingly. What is “righteous judgment”? Jesus says, “Do not judge according to appearance, but judge with righteous judgment” (John 7:24).
Jesus tells us that to judge with righteous judgment is to seek the “will of the Father”. He says, “I can of Myself do nothing. As I hear, I judge; and My judgment is righteous, because I do not seek My own will but the will of the Father who sent Me” (John 5:30).
Therefore, righteous judgment is judging a matter as Jesus does, which is to seek the will of the Father.
 Key Scriptures: “I can of Myself do nothing. As I hear, I judge; and My judgment is righteous, because I do not seek My own will but the will of the Father who sent Me”(John 5:30). “Most assuredly, I say to you, the Son can do nothing of Himself, but what He sees the Father do; for whatever He does, the Son also does in like manner” (John 5:19).
First, in order to “judge with righteous judgment”, we must follow Jesus’ example. After reading the Key Scriptures, we learn that Jesus does nothing apart from the Father. Likewise, we need to do the same.
Second, as Jesus demonstrated, to judge with righteous judgment, we must not seek our own will, but the will of the Father. To accomplish this, we need to, as Jesus did, hear from the Father. Once we hear from the Father, we are to be obedient and do what the Father instructs us.
Jesus reveals that to hear from the Father, we will need to receive, follow, and listen to the Holy Spirit. “37 On the last day, that great day of the feast, Jesus stood and cried out, saying, "If anyone thirsts, let him come to Me and drink. 38 He who believes in Me, as the Scripture has said, out of his heart will flow rivers of living water." 39 But this He spoke concerning the Spirit, whom those believing in Him would receive; for the Holy Spirit was not yet given, because Jesus was not yet glorified” (John 7:37-39).
When we receive the Spirit of God, we will now be able to hear from the Father. “For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, these are sons of God”(Romans 8:14). It’s through His Spirit the Father will make known His words to us (Proverbs 1:23). “For the LORD giveth wisdom: out of His mouth cometh knowledge and understanding. He layeth up sound wisdom for the righteous: He is a buckler to them that walk uprightly. He keepeth the paths of judgment, and preserveth the way of His saints. Then shalt thou understand righteousness, and judgment, and equity; yea, every good path.” (Proverbs 2:6-9) (KJV).
Therefore, to judge with righteous judgment, you will need to hear and receive the Lord’s wisdom, which comes from the Holy Spirit. In order to do this, we must judge and see through Jesus’ eyes, have His heart, hear His voice, and walk in His love.
In the next Lesson, we will examine how Jesus handled the circumstances involving a woman who “was caught in adultery, in the very act” (John 8:4).
Harmony of the Gospel
Harmony of the Gospel
The “Harmony of the Gospel" is a reference feature of the Interactive Online Bible Study. As we study John chapter by chapter, we also will look at parallel passages in Matthew, Mark, and Luke that let us see the harmony of the Gospel accounts. Although there are four accounts, there is only one Gospel of Jesus Christ.
Contradiction in the Scriptures?
Jesus tells us, “Do not judge according to appearance, but judge with righteous judgment” in John 7:24. Yet in Matthew 7:1 and Luke 6:37, He teaches, “Judge not, and ye shall not be judged”. Is this a contradiction?
No.
Jesus is addressing two entirely different situations. In John 7:24, Jesus addressed how to judge matters such as doctrine not “according to appearance, but judge with righteous judgment”, while in Matthew 7:1, Mark 4:24, and Luke 6:37, Jesus addressed how we are to not judge people.
We will learn in the next Lesson that Jesus tells us not to judge people according to the flesh or by what we see (John 8:15). The reason is simple, “For with what judgment you judge, you will be judged; and with the measure you use, it will be measured back to you. 3 And why do you look at the speck in your brother's eye, but do not consider the plank in your own eye? 4 Or how can you say to your brother, ‘Let me remove the speck from your eye’; and look, a plank is in your own eye? 5 Hypocrite! First remove the plank from your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother’s eye” (Matthew 7:1-5).
Therefore, in order to judge people or their actions, we need to have Jesus’ discernment, wisdom, and heart. To have His judgment, you will need His Spirit because when “He, the Spirit of truth, has come, He will guide you into all truth; for He will not speak on His own authority, but whatever He hears He will speak; and He will tell you things to come. 14 He will glorify Me, for He will take of what is Mine and declare it to you. 15 All things that the Father has are Mine. Therefore I said that He will take of Mine and declare it to you” (John 16:13-15). We cannot judge others apart from Jesus. We must see people through Jesus’ eyes, have His heart, hear His voice, and walk in His love if we are to judge with righteous judgment.
Discussion
You should now understand the answers to the questions posed at the beginning of the lesson. The answers are provided below:
1. What does it mean to “judge with righteous judgment”?
Answer. It means to judge a matter as Jesus does.
2. How do we “judge with righteous judgment”?
Answer. As Jesus demonstrated, to judge with righteous judgment, we must not seek our own will, but the will of the Father. To accomplish this, we need to hear from the Father, as Jesus did. Once we hear from the Father, we are to be obedient and do what the Father instructs us by His Spirit.
Practical Application
 The Lesson of the Two Servants.There were two servants of the King. One served the King and performed admirably, but also did other duties that the King did not call him to perform. The other also served the King and performed to his abilities those duties to which he was called in a most excellent manner.
1. Which served the King better?
Answer. Unless we know the King’s heart on this matter, we should not judge whether either servant served the King better. That is the King’s judgment and prerogative. We really should not judge others in their service to the King unless the King requires it of us and has placed us in a position to do so. We are called to work out our own service or salvation and not that of others.
2. Should the King thank the second servant for his services?
Answer. No. If the servant is doing what is required, the King does not need to thank the servant for the work done even if it had been done in excellence. Jesus says, “Does he thank that servant because he did the things that were commanded him? I think not. So likewise you, when you have done all those things which you are commanded, say, ‘We are unprofitable servants. We have done what was our duty to do’”(Luke 17:9).
If you have any questions or comments on this lesson regarding what it means to“judge with righteous judgment” and how to do judge accordingly, you can email us at
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