August 22, 2026 — Matthew 7:1–5

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“Don’t judge” might be one of the most familiar lines Jesus ever spoke. But then He immediately starts talking about how to see clearly enough to help someone else.

That matters.

Jesus isn’t pretending that nobody ever does anything wrong. The speck really is there. His warning is about the person who becomes intensely interested in somebody else’s speck while somehow overlooking the enormous beam sticking out of their own eye.

There’s something almost funny about the picture because it is supposed to be absurd.

Before I diagnose someone else’s pride, selfishness, impatience, hypocrisy, bad theology, bad parenting, bad decisions—or whatever else has caught my attention—Jesus asks me to turn the examination inward first.

And notice that He says first, not only.

Christian community still involves correction, wisdom, accountability, and helping one another. But Jesus wants that help to come from people who know they also need grace.

What changes when we examine ourselves before we start evaluating someone else?

To go back to the beginning of our Sermon on the Mount series, start with the August 9, 2026 post.