John 7:24 NKJV Do not judge according to appearance, but judge with righteous judgment.”

Unfortunately, some believers have a bad habit of judging unbelievers and believers alike. If they find flaws in someone, that are not like their own, instead of praying for them or talking with them, they openly judge them.

Believers can judge others, but there’s a right way to judge and there’s a wrong way to judge. As we can see from this verse, judging based on appearances is wrong.

So, if we see a person smoking a cigarette, it’s wrong to say they’re a sinner or unholy. That cigarette has nothing to do with their righteousness. Our righteousness comes from Christ alone (Rom. 5:19).

If we see a woman who is wearing clothes that we feel are too revealing, it’s not our place to judge them based on their appearance and say they’re dressing like a whore and are causing men to lust. We don’t know anything about her story, but we want to criticize her clothing. That’s wrong. Our job is to pray for her and if we really have love for them as some believers claim, go speak with her about their attire. 

So, what is righteous judgment? Righteous judgment is judging the actions of a person who is doing something contrary to God’s word. If we see someone doing something contrary to God’s word, we can say their actions are a sin. That’s where it ends. What we do next will determine if judge unrighteously. If we label them, criticize them, and don’t offer to help them in some way, we’re judging unrighteously.

It’s common knowledge that Christians are seen as judgemental. Christians judge because other people sin differently than them. Let’s put an end to unrighteous judgment and only judge righteously.