“Stop judging by mere appearances, but instead judge correctly.” — John 7:24 (NIV)

At a luncheon honoring a former colleague, I found myself sitting at a table with women I had never met before. Soon we began to chat amicably, exchanging information about ourselves. Surprised to hear I had recently retired, one woman asked me how I spent my days. I briefly shared about my projects and the different ways my husband and I serve our local church. 

“Oh, well,” she observed, “at least you’re following your dreams, right?” 

Spoken in a condescending tone, her words conveyed the message: Too bad your projects aren’t more impressive. But doing something you love must be a consolation. Until that moment, I had been content with my work as a retiree. But suddenly I saw myself through her eyes, and I felt small and insignificant. 

I don’t believe she intended for me to feel this way. She simply made a snap judgment based on her own standards and what she knew of my situation. I get it. Living in such a fast-paced world we’ve all learned to quickly assess the people and situations around us. I often don’t even think about what criteria I use in my own judgments. If I did, I’d be surprised at how easily the standards of this world influence the conclusions I reach. 

While making such snap judgments may come easily, Jesus specifically warned us against this practice:

Stop judging by mere appearances, but instead judge correctly.” (John 7:24 NIV)

Jesus spoke these words while teaching at the Feast of Tabernacles (John 7:14). At this time in His ministry, the crowd held conflicting beliefs about Him (John 7:12-13). The religious leaders led the camp of those who rejected Jesus. And a superficial judgment formed the basis for their rejection. 

These men prided themselves on obeying not only the law of Moses, but also additional rules known as the oral tradition. In their eyes, when Jesus healed a man on the Sabbath (John 5:1-16), He violated the law (Exodus 20:8-11). 

In His teaching, Jesus pointed out their error which had blinded them to the miraculous healing:

“Now if a boy can be circumcised on the Sabbath so that the law of Moses may not be broken, why are you angry with me for healing a man’s whole body on the Sabbath? Stop judging by mere appearances, but instead judge correctly.” (John 7:23-24 NIV)

The Greek word translated here as appearances, opsis, means the act of seeing, but can also be translated as face or countenance. In English we say “on the face of it” when we describe how something seems when we first experience it. The implication is that our opinion may change if we know or think more about the situation. This is the meaning we see used in this verse.

The Pharisees didn’t look beyond their own standards of righteousness and failed to see their inconsistency. They allowed boys to be circumcised on the Sabbath, but they rejected a miraculous healing as a violation. If they had searched the Scriptures, they would have seen God’s heart (John 7:17-19). The One who gave the law always elevated mercy toward others over strict adherence to it (Matthew 12:1-8). But because they imposed their own superficial criteria, they found Jesus ~the Son of God~ lacking. 

The same is true for us. If we allow the world’s values to frame our thinking, we will reach false conclusions. Only God’s perspective and principles will lead us to make correct judgments.

When I look to His Word to define my efforts post-retirement, I know God appreciates all that we do for Him (1 Corinthians 15:58). He doesn’t assign different values to the type of work we do ~ the world does. As I let His truth sink in, peace and contentment returned to my soul.

The woman’s words that day stung, but I’m grateful for them. They show how easily any of us can jump to the wrong conclusions ~ if we allow the values of this world to influence our thoughts. We don’t have to blindly accept other people’s opinions or judgments of us ~ we can learn to filter them through God’s truths. 

Lord, it’s so easy to let the world influence our judgments. Please help us be people who look deeper, and who seek Your perspective.  When we do, we know You will give us the discernment we need to make correct and godly judgments. In Jesus’ name, Amen.