Training - Day 8: Genesis 23-24, Matthew 7

Matthew 7 is a continuation of Jesus' famed Sermon on the Mount.

I have to admit, I'm very confused. If anyone is reading my blog and has any insight, that would be great.

It starts out saying "Do not judge, or you too will be judged". Okay, I think I get that. We don't know the heart of other people or what point on their journey they are on so it's not our place to judge them. He then talks about the measure we use to judge others will be used to judge us as well. I think he's saying to make sure that we spend more time examining our own hearts than other people, but does God judge us according to how we judge others? Or is it a more absolute standard? Or maybe he's not talking about God's judgement but of other people who use our standard against us if we are guilty of the same thing?

Then in vs 6 Jesus says: "Do not give dogs what is sacred; do not throw pearls to pigs." Does that relate to the verse before, after, or is it random? I don't really understand what he is referring to there at all.

Then in vs 15-23 Jesus talks about identifying false prophets by the fruit they bear. vs. 19 "Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire." I understand what he's saying (and will be thinking all day on the fruit that I bear) but I am surprised that it's the same chapter that spent the first 5 verses talking about "don't judge" and then shortly after that he talks about recognizing people by their fruit. What's the distinction between "judging" and "recognizing good fruit"? Does he just mean discerning whose advise to follow versus publicly criticizing?

I do get the point that is being made over and over: don't just hear the words Jesus says - do them. Faith isn't faith without action. (James 2:17) Faith isn't faith without fruit. I think this is where my training heats up: moving from hearing the word to concentrating on bearing fruit.