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The Lord gives the examples of the lilies of the field growing, and the grass of the
field (verses 29, 30) and says, "How much more will He (the Father) clothe you, O you
of little faith?". There is therefore no need to worry about eating, drinking or clothes
(verse 31). These are what the darkened pagans run after and the Father knows we need
these things (verse 32). The Lord then sums up this section of the sermon:
"But seek first His kingdom and His righteousness and all these things will be given to
you as well, therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about
itself. Each day has enough troubles of its own" (6: 33, 34, N.I.V.).
It is noteworthy that it is the disciples who are described by Christ as those of "little
faith" (see also 8: 26; 14: 31; 16: 8), whereas to two Gentiles, who were outsiders,
he ascribed "great faith" (8: 8-10, 15: 28).
The all important thing is to get priorities right--first, God and His Kingdom, and then
follow the normal needs of life and all other temporal things which are necessary.
The habit of criticism.
The Lord now deals with the common habit of criticizing others:
"Do not judge, or you will be judged. For in the same way you judge others, you will
be judged, and with the measure you use, it will be measured to you" (7: 1, 2, N.I.V.).
The verb here is krino from which we get the word `critic'. This is censoriousness,
sharp unjust criticism which is a violation of the law of love and is so easy to do. Other
people's faults stand out clearly to us, but our own are often forgotten. It is possible that
here the Lord is alluding to current sayings, similar to our proverb about "those who live
in glass houses":
"Why do you look at the speck of sawdust in your brother's eye and pay no attention
to the plank in your own eye? How can you say to your brother, `let me take the speck
out of your eye', when all the time there is a plank in your own eye? You hypocrite, first
take the plank out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck
from your brother's eye" (7: 3-5, N.I.V.).
The point here is that criticism should begin with ourselves before we judge other
people. And if it does, the probability is that we shall not criticize others because we
shall have enough to occupy us in seeking to correct our own faults. Also the Lord warns
that the judgment that we mete to others will one day be applied to ourselves.
The Apostle Paul suffered much from the harsh criticism of others, but remembering
that it is the Lord's assessment of us that finally matters, he said to the Corinthian church:
"I care very little if I am judged by you or by any human court; indeed I do not even
judge myself. My conscience is clear, but that does not make me innocent. It is the Lord
Who judges me. Therefore judge nothing before the appointed time; wait till the Lord
comes" (I Cor. 4: 3-5, N.I.V.).