You’ve Been Judged

An Exposition on the Book of James Part 17

If you haven’t yet, please check out part 1 of this series. The ideas of the book of James are all centered around the idea of a perfectly forged faith that makes us perfect.

It has been said that pride is the twin of every other sin. And while this may be true, infidelity – that is, unbelief – is the root of every sin. These are very hard to separate, as pride is the outcome of unbelief. The first sin in the Garden was infidelity. Eve doubted God’s word. This manifested itself as pride and disobedience. When true believers are living in a manner that is inconsistent with the Word of God, there must be some root of unbelief underlying this sin.

In James Chapter 4, verses 11 and 12, James revisits an idea he started in chapter one concerning faith. In verse 21, he said, “Wherefore lay apart all filthiness and superfluity of naughtiness, and receive with meekness the engrafted word, which is able to save your souls.” This idea of engrafting is to become one with, to grow into, to join yourself with, and to let it flow through you. The Word of God is powerful. If we join ourselves to it in understanding and in practice, we receive wisdom, and it is able to save us, both physically and spiritually.

James also revisits the idea he hammers out in chapter 3, concerning our words and conversation. Here, in chapter 4, he brings out a new aspect of our words. He links our criticism of our brother to infidelity. If we are judging our brother, we are usurping the rule of the Bible. If we are not following the Bible, it is because of unbelief. I know many, myself included, would say, “…But I believe the Bible.” However, if we speak evil of our brother, we are showing our unbelief in the Word of God. We have set ourselves up as judges over the law.

There is a lot of misunderstanding around the topic of judging. A judge is one who determines if the written laws or precedents apply and then passes out judgments. Then he decrees something and passes out a judgment. There is only one Judge, this is God. He weighs the laws, knows all the facts, and passes out punishments and rewards. This is his place. He does allow men to make judgments based on his law. The reason that stealing is not okay is because God deems it so. The reason murder is wrong because the Word of God condemns it. Adultery, fornication, pride, lying, back-biting, sowing discord, rebellion, sodomy, disobedience, etc., are all condemned in the law. James is obviously not suggesting that we let all of these moral evils go unpunished.

James is not suggesting that parents cannot discern when their child is lying to them and decree a judgment on their actions. This would violate clear scripture. He is not saying that rapist and murderers – when proven guilty – should go unpunished. He most certainly is not telling pastors that they should not preach against the moral wrongs of their day – else Paul and James would be at odds, and James would even be preaching against his very own letter because he offers some strong admonition.

James must be saying that we cannot speak evil of a brother – or even a fellow man – without due cause. This word evil is just a word that means, in our modern vernacular, bad. We are not supposed to speak badly of a brother – or sister, for that matter. He can, and must, discern the character of people we encounter and interact with. What we must not do is slander them – that is, to speak badly of them without sufficient proof. We must not impose a view upon them based on our ideals. We can, and should, use the Bible as a standard of righteousness and hold one another to that standard in the Lord. not becoming a judge, but a minister. not an overseer but a brother, not as a Lord but as a fellow servant – with all meekness, humility, and fear.

One thing we must remember is that God is the law-giver and He is the ultimate Judge. It does not matter what some earthly court has decided. God will judge from His throne, and He will judge rightly. If you have been on the receiving end of a bad judgment, I urge you not to appeal to man. Take your grievances to the One whose court is always in session and cast your petition at His feet. The God of all the world will make it right, if not in this world, in the one to come after. This requires a great deal of faith. To be willing to be defrauded until the time shall come when God will ultimately pass out a verdict against those who have violated you, yet this is what we are called to do. Therefore, we must also remember that our actions shall be judged by him. God will always perform equity.

James 4:11&12 KJV

Speak not evil one of another, brethren. He that speaketh evil of his brother, and judgeth his brother, speaketh evil of the law, and judgeth the law: but if thou judge the law, thou art not a doer of the law, but a judge.

There is one lawgiver, who is able to save and to destroy: who art thou that judgest another?

S.T.
Acts 20:24
"But none of these things move me..."

Edited 1.24.2026