Now the judgement Jesus is talking about where he says "Do not Judge, or your too will be judged." is found in Matthew 7:1. This passage is offend referred to and grossly misinterpreted. In fact the judging that the our culture is talking about and the judging that Jesus is talking about are two different things. The judgement that our culture is talking about is really "conviction." When you tell someone that they are doing something wrong or that they are "sinning," they naturally feel uncomfortable and many times will respond, "don't judge me."
Of course this uncomfortable feeling is natural but our culture has associated this feeling in a negative way, many times referring to it as "shamming." Well, If you reprimand a child for stealing a cookie when catching them in the act, are they not going to feel uncomfortable or shame? Of course they will, or they should anyway, they may even tear up! Why would we associated this natural feeling in such a negative way? We want our children to know that stealing is wrong don't they? We wouldn't want them to feel good when they steal things, do we? Of course not, we want their conscience to kick in so that when we (the parent) are not watching, they wont' steal!
Now no one wants to be wrong, more over no one wants to be wrong in the eyes of God himself! So if you believe that there is a God and someone tells you that you are actively breaking God's law, how do you think you would feel? Of course you are going to feel convicted and you may even ask, "what am I doing that is wrong" or "where does God say that I am doing something wrong?" Nowadays people don't even have to process those questions and thoughts that arise out of conviction. No we have found away to dismiss our natural feelings by covering them up with an attitude of pride and the famous phrase, "don't judge me."
The hard truth of the matter is that our culture has become so callused that it no longer understands conviction, and God forbid if we ever hear something convicting we can say that we are "offended." Not only is the feeling of "judgment" illogical as in order to feel judged one must be sentenced but this phrase is just a clever cover up to a deeper issue. Lets be real here, the deeper issue is a prevailing attitude that says, "I don't want to think about God or his morality, don't convict me, it makes me feel bad." When one is convicted by something established in God's word, they cannot disagree with it. So what do they do? They run to a clever, made up defense phrase that drops the issue.
We have established that there is no actual judgment taking place, only conviction. In fact, this conviction is something that is intended to prevent future judgment. (We don't want our child stealing cookies in minute and cars the next!) Going back to the Bible when Jesus says "Do not judge, or you too will be judged." (Matthew 7:1) The judgement Jesus is referring to actually has to do with carrying out the judgment of the Torah law! Now, in the story of the adulterous woman in the early part of John chapter 8, a woman has been caught in adultery and is about to get stoned. Remember according to the Torah law, stoning is the rightful sentence or judgment that is to take place upon this woman! (Leviticus 20:10)
We must remember the Torah law was the bedrock of Jewish culture in the days of Jesus. People lived and died by these words. Now as New Covenant believers, we know are no longer under the law but the Spirit, which is love. Since we are no longer under the Torah law, we have no right to stone someone to death for breaking Torah. We are not to be the judge and we are not to carry out judgment. This right only belongs to Jesus. Jesus has forgiven us of our sins, we who are we to carry out judgment on others? This is what Jesus is talking about when he is telling us not to judge others. (This is not saying Jesus was against the death penalty, that is a different topic.)
Now getting back to story of the adulterous women. We see that Jesus offers the woman grace, by telling her to "go and sin no more." So here it is, Jesus is acknowledging that this woman is a sinner and guilty of adultery. (I suppose this is offensive, but it's much better than the alternative, isn't it?) Secondly Jesus tells her to not sin anymore. Does Jesus expect this woman to be perfect? Well, what Jesus is saying to this woman is much more profound and much more "Jewish" than what meets the eye.
The idea Jesus is conveying when he says "go, and sin no more," is called "teshuva" תשובה. "Teshuva," in Hebrew literally means "return." Of course this word is not just any word but it is a concept. The concept is "returning to God," which is why it it literally means "return." It's about returning to a perfect state. Now, in order for this to happen after one sins, one must acknowledge the sin, and consciously turn away from it, returning back to God and his word. This is EXACTLY the concept that Jesus is sharing with the adulterous woman!
Now you maybe puzzled how am I pulling out a Hebrew word that is not literally in the original Greek text? Well, because I am not pulling out a word, I am pulling out a Hebrew concept. This concept is woven into the fabric of the story because it is the context. Not only that, but this scripture itself is breaking down a Hebrew thought to the reader in the Greek language. Their are two people who will pick up on this when they read it, those who posses the Spirit of God or those with a solid understanding of Judaism.
The Jewish idea of Teshuva is really what we call in the English language, repentance! Jesus is basically telling this woman that she is a sinner and needs to repent. She is "missing God's mark" and must turn from adultery, back to God. Of course if we fast forward to 2015 and Jesus tells someone to "Go, and sin no more," or "repent," how many people would respond "Don't judge me!" God's word tells us that we all sin and fall short of God's glory. (Romans 3:23) We all "miss the mark." My question is, when did telling someone that they are missing God's mark so that they can avoid God's future judgement, an offense?
Maybe if we had an immediate consequence to our sin, like there was 2,000 plus years ago, maybe then we would appreciate someone telling us to repent! Instead we get met with debate, mockery, and guilt. This is how twisted our culture is and how far removed God's word and principles have become. When God's people stray away from God's word, the enemy has a field day. (According to Jewish thought, you can not separate God from His word, they are one and the same.)
Isn't it fascinating how off track we can get if we run away from the context of the Bible? Isn't it amazing how far off simple cliche phrases, with no grounds can deceive us? This is what happens when we are not rooted in God's word! This is why it is so crucial to seek God for yourself and to study His word! If we are not rooted in His word, we are defenseless and it's only a matter of time until we will be uprooted. It's much more difficult to pull out a plant that has deep roots, isn't it?
We couldn't possibly be at a better time and place to return to the roots of Christianity, to return back to God and His word.
"Teshuva" is something both the church and the world is in desperate need of, now more than ever.