Misquoted | Don't Judge

·24 min·2 clips

Pastor Adam Schell finds a jury duty summons in his mailbox and wonders if he can use a Bible verse to get out of it.

The episode is a solo sermon by Pastor Adam Schell. He begins by sharing a personal anecdote about finding a jury duty summons in his mailbox after a summer vacation. People suggested he could use the Bible verse 'do not judge' from Matthew 7:1 to get out of jury duty, which leads him to the sermon's topic. Schell introduces the church's current series, 'Misquoted,' which focuses on correcting misunderstandings of scripture. He identifies Matthew 7:1 as one such misunderstood passage. Schell provides context, noting the verse is part of Jesus's Sermon on the Mount. He examines the Greek word 'krino' to explore the meaning of 'judge.' The pastor then argues that a world without any judgment would be chaotic, using the examples of a legal system collapsing and church leaders like abusive pastors or the Southern Baptist Convention cover-up going unaccountable. He references historical figures like Martin Luther King Jr., Dietrich Bonhoeffer, and Mother Theresa as examples of necessary moral judgment. Schell emphasizes that the Bible contains other passages, like Galatians 6:1-2, that instruct believers to hold each other accountable. The key shift comes when he reads Matthew 7:1-5 in full, highlighting Jesus's metaphor about removing the plank from one's own eye before addressing the speck in another's. Schell concludes that Jesus's teaching is about self-accountability preceding the judgment of others. He applies this to personal life areas like family, finances, and health. The sermon ends with a prayer asking God to help listeners see and remove their own faults before helping others.

As heard by us

A personal sermon uses jury duty and childhood embarrassment to ground a warm reflection on judgment and correction.

Adam Schell shapes a sermon on judgment and correction around two familiar moments: finding a jury-duty summons after summer vacation and recalling a childhood mistake while reading about the Great Barrier Reef.

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Why you'd press play

You might rethink your reaction to criticism after jury-duty mail, a mispronounced reef, and one very familiar classroom sting.

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