Q.
What does John 8:15 mean? I thought Jesus is the coming judge.
A.
He is. Jesus had just encountered the Pharisees, who had attacked His record. So Jesus pointed out to them that they judged (arrived at their conclusions) according to the flesh; they formed estimates by their finite, unregenerate minds.
Jesus, therefore, contrasted Himself with their puny thinking. “I judge no one” means that Jesus did not evaluate in the same way that they did. His ministry at that moment wasn’t judicial sentencing but saving. However when He judges, it is in perfect knowledge, because He is the truth.
In verse 16 the word “if” might be better rendered “when,” noting that He is indeed coming to judge all. Unlike the Pharisees, Christ will judge not on appearances but according to reality.
This article appeared in the “Q & A” column of the Baptist Bulletin (July 2000) by Norman A. Olson.
