Careful How You Judge People
1“Don’t judge others unfairly, unless you want to get judged that way. 2The gauge you use to size up others is the gauge that will be used to size you up and down.3“How is it you can spot the tiniest speck in your brother’s eye, but you can’t seem to see that beam of timber in your own? 4Where do you get the chutzpah to say to your brother, ‘Hey, brother, let me take that speck out of your eyeball?’ Come on. How can you possibly do that when you can’t see past that plank in your own eyeball?
5“Can you spell ‘hypocrite’? First get that plank out of your own eye and then maybe you’ll be able to see clearly enough to get the speck out of your brother’s eye.
Pigs Don’t Wear Pearls
6“Don’t try giving something holy to dogs. They’ll tear you to pieces. Don’t toss your pearls to pigs. They’ll dance them into the dirt. [1]Ask If You Want Something
7“Ask, and you’ll get. Look, and you’ll find. Knock, and the door will open. 8Everyone who asks will receive. Everyone who looks will find. Everyone who knocks will see a door open up.9“If your son asked for some bread, would you give him a stone? 10If he asked for a fish, would you give him a snake? 11Listen, compared to God, you people are downright wicked. But if you wicked humans can give wonderful gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give you?
How to Treat Others
12“Ask yourself what you’d like others to do for you. Then do it for them. That’s the Law and the Prophets [2] summed up in one breath.Enter Here
13“Be sure to go through the narrow gate. Don’t go to the wide gate. It takes you down an easy trail to a dead end, where you’ll be destroyed. 14If you want to live, go through the narrow gate and take the hard trail. It’s the road less traveled. Most folks won’t find it.Beware of Wolves Dressed in Wool
15“Watch out for frauds who pass themselves off as prophets. They wear wool, pretending they’re sheep. But they have the heart of a starving wolf inside them. 16You’ll recognize them when you see what they do. People don’t pick grapes from a thornbush or figs from a cluster of thistles.17“A good tree gives us good fruit. A bad tree gives us bad fruit. 18A good tree doesn’t give us bad fruit. And a bad tree doesn’t give us good fruit. 19When we have a fruit tree that doesn’t give us good fruit, we cut it down and throw it into the fire. 20You’ll recognize the frauds when you see what kind of fruit they produce.
Some “Christians” Don’t Go to Heaven
21“Not everyone who says I’m their Lord will make it into the kingdom of heaven. The folks who make it are the ones who act like they belong there; they obey my Father in heaven.22“There’s coming a day when people will stand in front of me. Many will say, ‘Lord, you’re our master. Didn’t we serve you well? We taught people about you. We performed exorcisms. We did many other miracles.’
23“Here’s what I’ll tell them. ‘Excuse me, but we’ve never met. You’re no servant of mine. You serve sin. You need to leave now.’
Bad Idea: House on Sand
24“Everyone who hears what I’m teaching and does what I tell them to do is like someone who was smart enough to build a house on bedrock. 25Rain fell, the streams flooded, and the wind pounded the house. But the house stood firm because it was well built.26“But everyone who hears me and doesn’t do what I say is like someone who was dumb enough to build a house on sand. 27Rain came, the streams flooded, and the wind pounded the house. And the house collapsed into a total loss.”
