How Do We Keep Judgement Out of Our Hearts?

Pastor Kara Diaz
 

“Do not judge others, and you will not be judged. For you will be treated as you treat others. The standard you use in judging is the standard by which you will be judged.”
— Matthew 7:1-2

If you’ve received Jesus Christ as your Savior and LORD, then you’ve been rescued from the kingdom of darkness and brought into the Kingdom of Light. The next step? “Seek first the Kingdom of God.” That doesn’t just mean loving God—it means learning to do things His way, living by His principles.

In this message, Pastor Kara focused on one of those principles: sowing and reaping, especially in the area of judgment vs. mercy.

Jesus took the full weight of God’s judgment on Himself. He didn’t come to condemn us—so we’re not to judge others either. We’re called to sow mercy, because what we sow is multiplied back to us.

“There will be no mercy for those who have not shown mercy to others. But if you have been merciful, God will be merciful when He judges you.”— James 2:13 (NLT)

Pastor Kara taught us that judgment is the story we create about what we observe. For example, if someone cuts you off in traffic—that’s an observation. The judgment is the story you make up about why they did it. That story brings unnecessary pain. That’s why God tells us to guard our hearts.

Judgment keeps us from dealing with our own stuff. It holds us in sin. But mercy is the way out.

Pastor Kara gave a strong warning about the most dangerous kind of judgment: self-judgment. The enemy wants you to believe Jesus’ blood wasn’t enough. She said, “If Jesus forgives you, but you won’t forgive yourself, then you’re judging that you are superior to God!”

To forgive others, we must first believe that we are fully forgiven.

“Who is a God like You, who pardons wrongdoing and passes over rebellious acts? He does not retain His anger forever, because He delights in mercy.”— Micah 7:18

God delights in showing mercy—and as Kingdom citizens, we are called to be carriers of mercy to others.

Pastor Kara encouraged us to ask the Holy Spirit: “Help me get into their shoes and see their heart.” When we do that—and guard our hearts—we begin to see people the way God sees them. That’s when we start living out the Kingdom principle of mercy.



To hear the full message and learn the practical tools Pastor Kara shared to overcome a judging heart, CLICK HERE.