Part 13 - Do not judge, do not give what is holy to dogs and pigs
Sermon on the Mount
The Christian Character
Matthew 5:3 - 7:27
(Cf. Luke 6:20-49)
This is Part 13 in a 14-part series of studies I call “The Christian Character” as described by Jesus to a crowd of people on a Galilean hillside as he delivered what is more familiarly known as the “Sermon on the Mount.”
The 14 parts are as follows:
Part 1 – Introduction
Part 2 – Beatitudes – the poor in spirit
Part 3 - Beatitudes – those who mourn
Part 4 - Beatitudes – the meek, and those who hunger and thirst
Part 5 - Beatitudes – the merciful and the pure in heart
Part 6 - Beatitudes – peacemakers
Part 7 - Beatitudes – the persecuted and insulted
Part 8 - Salt of the earth and light of the world
Part 9 - Righteousness exceeding that of the scribes and Pharisees; divorce, oaths
Part 10 - Eye for eye, loving neighbor and hating enemy, being perfect
Part 11 - Three things to do, not to be seen by men and a model prayer
Part 12 - Laying up treasures, eye is the lamp of the body, serving two masters
Part 13 - Do not judge, do not give what is holy to dogs and pigs
Part 14 - Ask, seek, and knock; the narrow gate; false prophets; building on the rock
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Last week we examined Jesus’ teaching about laying up treasures in heaven, the eye as the lamp of the body, and the impossibility of serving two masters who are set against one another.
In Matt 6:19-34 Jesus tell us to lay up “treasures in heaven” and “not to worry” about life’s necessities.
We noted that in the original language, “lay up” is defined as “set aside” or “store up”. It is the same word Paul used in 1 Cor 16:2 -
“Upon the first day of the week let every one of you lay by him in store.” (KJV)
“Store” in the Corinthian letter is from the same word in the original language as “lay up” in Jesus’ sermon in Galilee.
The expression “lay by in store” has become and idiom of speech in the church, meaning “place your contribution in the tray as it passes by,” so that the work of the church may go on. But in the Corinthian passage, the NASB says “put aside and save,” and ESV says “each of you is to put something aside and store it up” both of which are more expressive of the original meaning. The purpose there was that those stored up gifts were to be given to Paul when he came to Corinth to be transported to Judea for the Christians suffering under a famine.
We observed that as it pertains to this teaching, the Christian character is well described by A. W. Tozier in his book, The Pursuit of God - Chap 2 “The blessedness of possessing nothing” -
“God created the heavens and the earth with ten thousand and more useful and pleasant
things for man’s sustenance and delight. And when God created man, within man was a heart, which could feel and love. Within man’s heart there is a shrine into which no one but God is worthy to come. It was made for God alone. Outside man, those ten thousand and more precious gifts shower daily upon us, every one being an instance of God’s love and caring for man. But sin introduced complications and made those very gifts of God a source of ruin to the soul. Our woes began when God was forced out of his shrine and things were allowed to enter. Within the human heart, things have taken over. Men no longer by nature have peace within their souls, but there in the moral dusk stubborn and aggressive usurpers fight among themselves for first place on the throne.”
“This,” says Tozer,
“is not just a metaphor, but an accurate analysis of the spiritual trouble of man.”
I agreed with Tozer. And I believe that all of Jesus’ teaching in Matt 6 and Matt 7:1-6 rest on the truth of that analysis, for it reflects that tug-of-war between what we know we should value--in summary, God enthroned within our hearts--and what we really value.
Those values – or treasures – drive our motivations, and our motivations drive our actions.
If what we really value the transitory blessings, and not their giver, we have allowed things to enter God’s place; i.e., possessions, comforts, entertainment, or prestige (the approval of men).
We cannot completely avoid using of temporal goods. We need some of this world’s goods and must have them in order to live; but there is a blurry and shifty boundary between our needs and our wants. Jesus wore clothing and ate food, but he did not place a high value on earthly things beyond what he needed to sustain life and achieve his mission.
Continuing with the next part of the sermon on the mount:
Matthew 6:22-24 ESV The eye is the lamp of the body. So, if your eye is healthy, your whole body will be full of light, but if your eye is bad, your whole body will be full of darkness. If then the light in you is darkness, how great is the darkness! No one can serve two masters, for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and money.
The eye is a window. It is the port of entry by which light enters our bodies. Like a mirror, the window has a lot to do with the way things appear. If it is colored, dirty, bent, or cracked, it affects the appearance of what we look at through it.
When Jesus rebuked the scribes and Pharisees as “blind guides,” (twice in Matthew 23) he didn’t mean they were literally blind. He meant they saw things in a different “light,” – a light that is not a light at all, but darkness. According to v23 above, the “light within them was darkness.” And, Jesus says,
“How great is that darkness.”
I suggest that while literally true, this is to be understood figuratively. The light that gets into a person’s heart and soul is affected by the spiritual state of the eye through which it passes. It seems similar to Jesus saying on another occasion to John in the revelation on Patmos Island, writing these words to every one of the 7 churches:
“He that has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.”
The meaning is clear. If you have ears attuned to the things of the Spirit, you will listen to what the Spirit says. It is the same with the eye.
Matthew 6:24 ESV "No one can serve two masters, for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and money.
How does one “serve money?” Money has no meaning or value apart from its usefulness as a medium of exchange. As currency, it is not evil, having a valid purpose. The possession of material things is not a sin. Material things are here for the support necessary to sustain our lives, but there is a point at which the acquiring of material things can become our lives’ driving passion. That point is when we place our trust in those material things rather than the One who gives them.
The root of evil lies in inordinate and excessive craving for money – the evil is in the craving, not in the money craved. God wants us to belong exclusively to Him.
Along with that thought, in the next verse Jesus says:
Matthew 6:25-34 - Read
Does this mean we ought to make no provision for our bodily needs, and to make no plans for the day after today? Think about that, while we read two other passages.
2 Thessalonians 3:6-13 ESV - Read (If anyone is not willing to work, let him not eat.)
1 Timothy 5:8 ESV – Read (if anyone does not provide for his relatives…)
These passages teach us to act responsibly. In the sermon in Galilee, what is Jesus saying not to do?
The essence of Jesus’ teaching here is: act responsibly as you trust - not distrust - God for the things you need for your life. God gave you life, and he is able to sustain it. Jesus does not teach against planning and managing the affairs of our lives, but against being fretful and stressed out about things God has promised to supply.
End of review
Part 13 - Do not judge, do not give what is holy to dogs and pigs
In the 7th chapter of Matthew, we see Jesus, while still teaching within the broad framework of Christian (Christlike) character, turning his attention to the matter of judging:
Matthew 7:1-2 ESV “Judge not, that you be not judged. For with the judgment you pronounce you will be judged, and with the measure you use it will be measured to you.
I want to spend some time with this because in personal conversations I find that most of us are of a divided mind about judging. On the one hand, we think if it right and proper – in fact we consider it our duty - to judge others and point out their shortcomings, because we only do so for their own good. Or that’s what we tell ourselves. But on the other hand, the most straightforward approach to what Jesus said is the one that seems to settle all our questions once and for all. Whatever else may be said in favor of judging, Jesus says:
Do not judge. (NASB)
Read for yourself what Jesus said - verse 1, “Judge not, the you be not judged.” (KJV)
There’s no hemming and hawing, no quibbling about this or that situation and circumstance, just “judge not,” and the very compelling reason to not judge. Shall we then take his plain, direct, and easily understood commandment on its face? By not speaking to any exceptions, does Jesus mean there are not exceptions? Or should we look at judging as a nuanced matter?
We find ourselves in a corn maze of questions about how we can and should recognize others’ sins, and act on that knowledge – yet not judge, let we be judged?
Judge is from the Greek krino, (pr. kree'-no) which means to distinguish, i.e. decide (mentally or judicially); by implication to try, condemn, punish, avenge, conclude, determine, esteem, sue at law, ordain, call in question, or pronounce sentence.
This definition of the word “judge” (in both the original and our language) shows that it is a very elastic word, able to stretch around several meanings depending on the situation at hand. As a case in point, doesn’t another person’s sin place a responsibility on us to proactively condemn his actions for his own good?
Let us take the question to the bible. There we find that Jesus tells us not to judge, yet other passages tell us to do things that endemically require judging. What is our conclusion and the appropriate response?
Let’s consider some of them. One such is Jesus’ exhortation later in this same chapter, “Beware of false prophets,” as he says, “by their fruits you shall know them.” How are we to recognize and beware of false prophets except by judging their fruit?
Furthermore, James wrote:
James 5:19-20 ESV My brothers, if anyone among you wanders from the truth and someone brings him back, let him know that whoever brings back a sinner from his wandering will save his soul from death and will cover a multitude of sins.
How can we do that without judging the one who is sinning in some way? And isn’t it an act of protective love to – in this way – judge others who are sinning?
Are we to be like Hamlet and say:
“To judge or not to judge? That is the question.”
Most importantly for our purposes today, when Jesus said in Matt 7:1-5 that we are not to judge, it can’t mean nothing. What does Jesus want us not to do?
We can easily spot flaws in others, and we can also treat every flaw as a fatal flaw and treat those flawed people with contempt. But that is not Christlike. That is a kind of judging we are not to do. To Christ, a flawed character is a character in need of redemption. Clearly, Jesus doesn’t want us to be inordinately critical of others while ignoring or denying our own faults.
The disincentive for that kind of judging is in verse 2 - we will be judged according to the way we judge. We saw that principle spelled out with regard to forgiveness in Matt 6:14 (just following Jesus’ model prayer):
Matthew 6:14 ESV …if you forgive others their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you…
Receiving forgiveness from God depends on our forgiving others. What does this mean? It means there is actually a sin God will not forgive. The one sin God will not forgive is the sin of unforgiveness. It is by that principle God’s judging of us varies by how we judge - or do not judge - others.
Read on:
Matt 7:3-4 Why do you see the speck that is in your brother's eye, but do not notice the log that is in your own eye? Or how can you say to your brother, ‘Let me take the speck out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to take the speck out of your brother's eye.
There is a natural human tendency to want to “fix” people in whom we perceive a defect, and to act on that tendency - “Here, let me fix you.” At that very moment, the person we want to “fix” may be thinking about “fixing” us.
Let’s dig deeper.
Judging others is really judging ourselves:
Romans 2:1-3 ESV “Therefore you have no excuse, O man, every one of you who judges. For in passing judgment on another you condemn yourself, because you, the judge, practice the very same things. We know that the judgment of God rightly falls on those who practice such things. Do you suppose, O man—you who judge those who practice such things and yet do them yourself—that you will escape the judgment of God?”
Three times Paul mentions practicing things. What’s the context? Let’s read just part of it.
Read Romans 1:28-32
Paul says the Christians at Rome have no excuse for judging those around them who were doing these things?! These are not trivial, incidental, or debatable points of minunderstood doctrine! These are gross sins by anyone’s definition!
Read on.
Why were the Christians at Rome in no position to judge their Gentile neighbors?
Rom 2:1 …”you, the judge, practice the very same things!”
What?! Really?!
The Christians who were reading Paul’s letter at Rome were practicing the things we just read about?!
What about our sins? Mine? Yours? Are we excused – or more easily forgiven - because our sins are of a less serious variety of sin? Whether I think my sins are trivial or the most hideous transgressions a human could ever commit, my sins drove Jesus to the cross. In view of this, how picky can we afford to be in judging others for the kinds of things they do – and not stand in grave danger of undergoing a picky kind of judgment we can’t possibly withstand?
In the beatitudes, Jesus said:
Blessed are the meek … merciful … peacemakers.
These are not the beatitudes of a person of judgmental temperament.
Let’s continue.
Matthew 7:6 ESV “Do not give dogs what is holy, and do not throw your pearls before pigs, lest they trample them underfoot and turn to attack you.
When I left my hometown to attend my second year of college, the bible I had carried since I was 10 years old was badly worn, so I bought a new one – a nice leather-bound bible that would fit in the outside pocket of a suit coat. It was a tight fit, but it would go in my pocket. It was a very short time later that I came home from church and laid the coat with the bible in the pocket across the bed, to be hung up later.
I had a puppy that chewed through the pocket and chewed up my new bible. Not just the leather cover but lots of the pages were destroyed. I tried to salvage it by making a vinyl cover and gluing it on but finally threw it away. It was hard, because I don’t throw away worn out bibles, but that one was rendered unusable by the puppy.
The dog had no idea what a treasure he was destroying – not just because it was my new bible, but because of the treasures it contained.
But is Jesus really speaking of four-legged dogs and hogs? Did Jesus actually describe PEOPLE in these terms? It seems that he did.
If - as it seems - he is talking about people:
• who are they?
• and what holy thing are we not to give them?
Deeds of kindness? The word of God? Our own forgiveness? Shall we refuse to serve the Lord’s supper to some people because they’re not worthy of it?
My understanding is that this pertains to people who do not want the words of truth, grace, and salvation; and who by their rejection set themselves in opposition to God and his sovereignty, treating the teachings of Jesus and the apostles with disdain.
In sending out the twelve disciples with authority over unclean spirits, he gave them instructions which included this:
Mark 6:10-11 ESV And he said to them, “Whenever you enter a house, stay there until you depart from there. And if any place will not receive you and they will not listen to you, when you leave, shake off the dust that is on your feet as a testimony against them.”
It isn’t a matter of whether those people weren’t worth every effort to save them from the flames of everlasting torment. It’s a recognition of reality: You cannot force-feed the gospel and the blessings of the Christian life to people who just don’t want to hear it.
We can present the gospel in the most appealing and persuasive way, but we cannot control others’ acceptance or rejection of it. Some people are dedicated, unyielding rebels, and they will reject the gospel. Just as the dog and the hog do not recognize the beauty of pearls, the two-legged ones have no appreciation of holy things.
Jesus does not love human “hogs” and “dogs” less than he loves those who eagerly accept and act on the precious gospel. “He is not willing that any should perish.” In referring to them in this way, Jesus isn’t speaking about their value, but their conduct.
Then what are we not to give to these “dogs” and “hogs” (i.e., that which is holy, and pearls)? Pearls?
Where else have we seen pearls spoken of figuratively?
Matt 13:45-46 – (a very short parable)
ESV Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant in search of fine pearls, who, on finding one pearl of great value, went and sold all that he had and bought it.
The man sold everything that was second-best in order to obtain the best.
What is the pearl in this parable? What – among the treasures in the bible my puppy chewed up – was most precious?
The gospel, which is the power of God for salvation to every one who believes. The gospel is the nucleus of every copy of the bible.
Why is it so precious? The precious pearl the man desired so fervently to possess symbolizes the way into the eternal city.
Look at Revelation 21:21 –
“And the twelve gates were twelve pearls, each of the gates made of a single pearl, and the street of the city was pure gold, like transparent glass.”
We come to salvation and heaven from many backgrounds and experiences, but we all have the same undergirding need. Whatever your nationality, background, educational status, prosperity, health, or a dozen other variables, your way into the eternal city is by means of a pearl. The king and the beggar go into the city through a gate. The gate is a pearl.
Jesus said
Do not throw your pearls before pigs, lest they trample them underfoot, and turn and attack you.
Clearly, some people are unwilling to receive the implanted word. With eye-rolls, deflecting, and vicious mockery and ill-treatment of you, and the things you count most precious, the scoffers can wound, and maybe kill you.
This teaching presents a practical difficulty of communication and patience that confronts every Christian. Let us find its application in each of our lives with sobriety and care for those who are perishing in a lost world.
