You can make judgements
The words we use and how we use them are fruit. Our actions are fruit as well. The seed was planted and once it grows we will hear it or see it from the person the seed entered. The question we should ask is this... “was that seed from God or Satan?”This is why you will know people by their fruit. Fruit is what you hear them saying or what you see them doing. You can make a judgement about it. But you can not use a judgement to write someone off (question someone's salvation). This kind of judgement is called condemning. Those who judge this way will also be judged the same way.
Matthew 7 New International Version (NIV)
Judging Others
7 “Do not judge, or you too will be judged. 2 For in the same way you judge others, you will be judged, and with the measure you use, it will be measured to you.
3 “Why do you look at the speck of sawdust in your brother’s eye and pay no attention to the plank in your own eye? 4 How can you say to your brother, ‘Let me take the speck out of your eye,’ when all the time there is a plank in your own eye? 5 You hypocrite, first take the plank out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother’s eye.
The scripture above tells us to look inwardly first before trying to see outwardly. We must ask God to clean our hearts. Then and only then we can see outwardly clearly. And when we do... we must help a brother or sister in Christ remove the sawdust from his or her eyes... not condemn them. As for people who have not accepted Jesus yet... we don't have to judge them because the word has. They are still under the curse of the law. Our prayer for them should be that they come to salvation through repentance (2 Peter 3:9).
Now... as for making a judgement about what you see for you to determine if you want to be connected to that tree... you must look at the fruit (what you see).
God’s fruit is found in Galatians 5:22-26.
Galatians 5:22-26 New International Version (NIV)
22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23 gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law. 24 Those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. 25 Since we live by the Spirit, let us keep in step with the Spirit. 26 Let us not become conceited, provoking and envying each other.
Satan’s fruit is found in Galatians 5:19-21
Galatians 5:19-21 New International Version (NIV)
19 The acts of the flesh are obvious: sexual immorality, impurity and debauchery; 20 idolatry and witchcraft; hatred, discord, jealousy, fits of rage, selfish ambition, dissensions, factions 21 and envy; drunkenness, orgies, and the like. I warn you, as I did before, that those who live like this will not inherit the kingdom of God.
Jesus says you will know them by WHAT YOU HEAR THEM SAY AND WHAT WE SEE THEM DO. So many people have chosen not to make a judgement about what they see and have been devoured by people who were counting on you not following Jesus instructions around assessing. You have been so afraid to make a judgement about what you see because you did not have full context of how the word 'judge' was used in Jesus day. When they judged they wrote somebody off. When we make judgements this is for us personally to determine if that is a tree we should be connected to at the moment.
Alot of pain from bad connections could have been avoided if people would have made a judgement about the fruit. The world has you so afraid of the word 'judge' that you blindly connect with people who are showing you bad fruit. Then you tell yourself, "who am I to judge?" You have set yourself up for unneccessary struggle.
By the way... you made a judgement to read this in its entirety. So you in fact judged whether it was something you wanted to entertain in your mind.
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