As we move forward in Jesus’ Sermon on the Plain, we come to his words about “judging.” Though it is easy to mis-read and misunderstand this block of teaching, if we read it carefully in light of all that Jesus says, either directly or through the rest of scripture, what we discover is that this text asserts that disciples of Jesus are becoming more and more like Jesus, and thus, they are becoming more and more generous with grace. When we recognize both our own desperate need for grace and God’s abundant provision of grace, we inevitably become women and men who generously dispense grace to others too.
