Discussion Jumpstarter
Study leader reference - not a definitive answer
Question 1
The speaker paraphrases Matthew 7:1–2 as Jesus basically saying, “You get to choose how you’re going to be judged on Judgment Day”; what does that reveal about God’s justice and mercy, and how does it challenge the way you normally think about “final judgment”?
Another way to ask: If Jesus means we choose the standard God will use to judge us, what does that say about God’s justice and mercy? How does that change how you think about the final judgment?
Discussion Jumpstarter
Direct Answer
Based on the speaker’s teaching, God’s final judgment will be just and proportional—He will measure us by the same measure we use on others—and that should push believers to want mercy by practicing mercy now. It challenges the instinct to treat final judgment as only something God does “to us,” instead of something our own judging spirit helps shape.
- He quotes Matthew 7:1–2 and explains: “With what judgment you judge, you will be judged… you get to choose how you’re going to be judged on Judgment Day.”
- He frames it like a “poll from Jesus”: “A, mercifully and compassionately, or B, harshly and severely?”
- He says the “vote” is not words but life: “It’s what we do with our own life.”
- He warns: “If you want to be judged harshly… just go around condemning everybody else.”
- He connects his own generosity to this motive: “Hey, I want to get judged leniently. So I’m going to judge everyone else leniently too.”