Loving with God’s Love – Matthew 7

“Judge not, that you be not judged. For with what judgment you judge, you will be judged; and with the measure you use, it will be measured back to you. And why do you look at the speck in your brother’s eye, but do not consider the plank in your own eye? 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? 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

In Matthew 5:20, Jesus urged His followers to pursue a righteousness that was greater than that of the scribes and Pharisees. The scribes and Pharisees presumed themselves more righteous than others due to their perceptions of them.

Jesus advocated for fair judgment because we will be judged in the same way that we judge others. Jesus was for love, forgiveness, and goodness to others. If we want more of those things from God, we should give more of them to others. [1]

According to the teaching of some rabbis in Jesus’ time, God had two measures that He used to judge people. One was a measure of justice and the other was a measure of mercy. Whichever measure you want God to use with you, you should use that same measure with others. [2]

Jesus used the illustration of a person with a plank of wood in his eye trying to remove the speck of wood in his brother’s eye. He rightly called such behavior hypocrisy. Jesus helps us to realize that we tend to be far more tolerant of our own sin than we are of the sin of others. [3]

In John 8:7, when the religious leaders brought the woman taken in adultery to Jesus, He said to them, “He who is without sin among you, let him throw a stone at her first.” The scribes and Pharisees were guilty of rejecting God’s Messiah. They turned many people away from the only One who could save their souls from eternal hell. Their sin was like a plank compared to the woman’s speck.

In Matthew 26:6-13, the disciples spoke against the woman who anointed Jesus with oil. They asked, “Why this waste?” Jesus said she did a good work that would be remembered.

We are more apt to render fair judgment to others when our hearts are filled with God’s love. Romans 5:5 says, “God’s love has been poured out in our hearts through the Holy Spirit who was given to us.” Paul blessed his readers with grace. For example, in Romans 1:7, he wrote, “Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.”

1 Peter 4:8 says, “Above all, maintain an intense love for each other, since love covers a multitude of sins.” I remember when I first fell in love with my wife. At that time, she seemed to me like an angel. My intense love for her helped me to see all the good in her.

God is full of intense love for people. I must confess that I am seldom like God in this regard. So, I must start each day by praying for His love to fill me so I can love as He loves by His grace.

When I love with God’s love, I am more apt to think the best of others. When I love with God’s love, I am more apt to see and affirm the good in others.

“Do not give what is holy to the dogs; nor cast your pearls before swine, lest they trample them under their feet, and turn and tear you in pieces.” Matthew 7:6

How do we discern dogs and pigs from good prospects for the kingdom? Wild dogs and pigs exemplify creatures whose gods are their stomachs. They live to please their flesh.

Hypocrites prefer a world where performers are treated lavishly, and genuine followers of Christ are despised and hated. Authentic followers of Christ expose imposters by being Christlike.

Jesus fed the dogs and swine, He spoke to hypocrites, but He reserved the pearls of His teachings for His disciples. Disciples leave everything to follow Him. They are yokefellows with Christ. They put their hand on the plow and don’t look back. They deny themselves, pick up crosses and follow Jesus Christ.

When I think of modern day disciples, I think of missionary couples like Hudson and Marie Taylor, Jim and Elizabeth Elliott, and Jonathan and Rosalind Goforth.

“Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives, and he who seeks finds, and to him who knocks it will be opened. Or what man is there among you who, if his son asks for bread, will give him a stone? Or if he asks for a fish, will he give him a serpent? If you then, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father who is in heaven give good things to those who ask Him!” Matthew 7:7-11

Ask… seek… knock! Jesus urged us to be persistent in prayer. Receiving is the reward of asking. Finding is the reward of seeking. Having an open door to God is the reward of knocking. [4]

The image of knocking also implies that there is a door that can be opened. [5]

Hans Von Staden made this statement about prayer, “When man works man works; when man prays, God works.” A.T. Pierson once said, “Every step in the progress of missions is directly traceable to prayer.” [6]

God works through prayer because prayer requires a relationship with Him.

Jesus made it clear that God doesn’t have to be persuaded or appeased in prayer before He will give good gifts to us. He wants to give to us even more than what we ask for.

Martin Luther wrote, “Prayer is not a battle to force a reluctant God to act, but rather an act of engaging with His pre-existing, loving willingness to help.” [7]

“Therefore, whatever you want men to do to you, do also to them, for this is the Law and the Prophets.” Matthew 7:12

Philippians 2:3-8 says, “Do nothing out of rivalry or conceit, but in humility consider others as more important than yourselves. Everyone should look out not only for his own interests, but also for the interests of others. Make your own attitude that of Christ Jesus, who, existing in the form of God, did not consider equality with God as something to be used for His own advantage. Instead He emptied Himself by assuming the form of a slave, taking on the likeness of men. And when He had come as a man in His external form, He humbled Himself by becoming obedient to the point of death—even to death on a cross.”

The nature of God is to pour Himself out on others. The Father poured Himself out by giving His Son to be the sacrifice for humankind’s sin. The Son poured out Himself by being that sacrifice for our sin. The Holy Spirit poured Himself out by coming to dwell in us who believe in Jesus.

“Enter by the narrow gate; for wide is the gate and broad is the way that leads to destruction, and there are many who go in by it. Because narrow is the gate and difficult is the way which leads to life, and there are few who find it.” Matthew 7:13-14

The narrow gate is Jesus. He is the only way to the Father. The reason that He is difficult to find is because there is a broad way that tends to dominate the vision and conversation of people. The broad way offers that which is appealing to the physical senses. The narrow way is spiritually discerned. Only Jesus can reveal it to someone via His Word and Spirit.

Donald A. Carson wrote, “Jesus is commanding His disciples to enter the way marked by persecution and rewarded in the end.” [8]

“Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ravenous wolves. You will know them by their fruits. Do men gather grapes from thornbushes or figs from thistles? Even so, every good tree bears good fruit, but a bad tree bears bad fruit. A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, nor can a bad tree bear good fruit. Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. Therefore by their fruits you will know them.” Matthew 7:15-20

The first step to combating false prophets is to simply beware of them. Donald A. Carson wrote, “The Gospel’s enemies conceal their hostility and try to pass themselves off as fellow believers.” [9]

William Barclay wrote, “The basic fault of the false prophet is self-interest. It can be expressed by a desire for gain or an easy life, a desire for prestige, or the desire to advance one’s own ideas and not God’s Word. We should pay attention to their manner of living. Do they behave in righteous, humble and faithful ways. We should pay attention to the content of their teaching. Are they speaking God’s Word. Is their theology man-centered or Christ-centered. Do they seek to tickle their hearers’ ears? Are people growing in Christlikeness or just being entertained? Are people falling away from the faith? Are they bearing good fruit? Whose glory are they seeking?” [10]

“Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father in heaven. Many will say to Me in that day, ‘Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in Your Name, cast out demons in Your Name, and done many wonders in Your Name?’ And then I will declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness!’” Matthew 7:21-23

Lawlessness is the character trait of the antichrist. He does whatever evil he wants to do to people and feels no remorse. He delights in deceiving and exploiting people.

Our Lord Jesus Christ surrendered Himself to the law of love. I am glad that Jesus did not do miracles and prophesy for selfish reasons. Everything that Jesus did began from love.

We must confess that Jesus is Lord but we must also do as He would do. This warning of Jesus applied to people who say things to Jesus or about Jesus, but don’t really mean them. They believe there is some kind of value in the words but their heart and soul is not in them. They may go to church but live as any other person does otherwise. [11]

“Therefore, whoever hears these sayings of Mine, and does them, I will liken him to a wise man who built his house on the rock: and the rain descended, the floods came, and the winds blew and beat on that house; and it did not fall, for it was founded on the rock. But everyone who hears these sayings of Mine, and does not do them, will be like a foolish man who built his house on the sand: and the rain descended, the floods came, and the winds blew and beat on that house; and it fell. And great was its fall.” Matthew 7:24-27

The foundation of our lives proven in the storm. Proverbs 10:25 says, “When the whirlwind passes by, the wicked is no more, but the righteous has an everlasting foundation.” F.F. Bruce wrote, “Wherein lay the second builder’s folly? Not in deliberately seeking a bad foundation, but in taking no thought of foundation.” [12]

We need to do more than hear the Word. We need to line up our practices with it.

“And so it was, when Jesus had ended these sayings, that the people were astonished at His teaching, for He taught them as one having authority, and not as the scribes.” Matthew 7:28-29

Jesus Christ spoke from God. When I ask the Lord to reveal to me the correct interpretation of the Scriptures, He helps me to see Him in the text that otherwise would have been hidden from me. His Holy Spirit brings to my mind other passages in the Bible that help me to interpret the text. I also look at commentaries, but even then, I am asking the Holy Spirit to bear witness to that which is of God. Thus, preparing messages becomes a wonderful time of fellowship with the Lord, and a blessing to pass onto others. Glory to God!



[1] Enduring Word Commentary
[2] Ibid
[3] Ibid
[4] Ibid
[5] Ibid
[6] The Hour that Changes the World by Dick Eastman
[7] Google Sources
[8] Enduring Word Commentary
[9] Ibid
[10] Ibid
[11] Ibid
[12] Ibid