Henry David Thoreau said, “The mass of men lead lives
of quiet desperation.” In general, most
people are very aware of what is wrong with them and don’t have any idea of
what to do about it. Moreover, they
don’t want others to know that they are flawed. Too late! If you have spiritual
understanding, you will know that “all have sinned” …. “There is none
righteous” … “all we, like sheep, have gone astray” … “we are jars of clay” …
we have no hope, but for Jesus!
Our tendency is to try to hide our imperfections .. or at minimum make excuses for them … and condemn the imperfections in others. Jesus spoke of the speck and the log.
“Why do you see the speck that is in your brother's eye, but do not notice the log that is in your own eye? Or how can you say to your brother, ‘Let me take the speck out of your eye,’ when there is the log in your own eye? You hypocrite, first take the log out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to take the speck out of your brother's eye.” — Matthew 7:3-5
Well, if you knew how to do that – you wouldn’t have the struggle you have would you? The truth that we refuse to embrace is that we can only live our new live if we yield our lives fully to God and stop trying to become “good” on our own; living in fear that people might find out that we are failing miserably.
The Apostle John wrote “For all that is in the world—the desires of the flesh and the desires of the eyes and pride of life—is not from the Father but is from the world. And the world is passing away along with its desires, but whoever does the will of God abides forever.” — 1 John 2:16-18
It’s our pride or the lack of confidence in our faith that drives us to judgement of the imperfections in others, all the while trying to hide or deny our own. “Denial is not a river in Egypt!” – Pastor John Baker, Celebrate Recovery That is not to say that we ignore sin, or the fact that there should be consequences for sins. You who have spiritual understanding should see the struggle of the soul for what it is .. the need for Jesus .. new life in Him. You were once lost but now your found .. was blind but now you see.
How did Jesus respond to sinners? He told them to repent .. to have faith in Him. They did not all do that then … and they do not all do that now … Just be careful that you don’t sin in your eagerness to find fault in others or deny your own. In psychology the term is “projection”. Where a person projects their shortcomings onto others. It is easier .. less stressful if you can deal with your problem in someone else’s life. (Speck and Log) In this case, the speck you see is merely a reflection of the log in your own eye. The bottom line is that when we do that, our focus is on ourselves and not on Jesus. So stop looking at others, even stop looking at yourself, and look to Jesus.
Our tendency is to try to hide our imperfections .. or at minimum make excuses for them … and condemn the imperfections in others. Jesus spoke of the speck and the log.
“Why do you see the speck that is in your brother's eye, but do not notice the log that is in your own eye? Or how can you say to your brother, ‘Let me take the speck out of your eye,’ when there is the log in your own eye? You hypocrite, first take the log out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to take the speck out of your brother's eye.” — Matthew 7:3-5
Well, if you knew how to do that – you wouldn’t have the struggle you have would you? The truth that we refuse to embrace is that we can only live our new live if we yield our lives fully to God and stop trying to become “good” on our own; living in fear that people might find out that we are failing miserably.
The Apostle John wrote “For all that is in the world—the desires of the flesh and the desires of the eyes and pride of life—is not from the Father but is from the world. And the world is passing away along with its desires, but whoever does the will of God abides forever.” — 1 John 2:16-18
It’s our pride or the lack of confidence in our faith that drives us to judgement of the imperfections in others, all the while trying to hide or deny our own. “Denial is not a river in Egypt!” – Pastor John Baker, Celebrate Recovery That is not to say that we ignore sin, or the fact that there should be consequences for sins. You who have spiritual understanding should see the struggle of the soul for what it is .. the need for Jesus .. new life in Him. You were once lost but now your found .. was blind but now you see.
How did Jesus respond to sinners? He told them to repent .. to have faith in Him. They did not all do that then … and they do not all do that now … Just be careful that you don’t sin in your eagerness to find fault in others or deny your own. In psychology the term is “projection”. Where a person projects their shortcomings onto others. It is easier .. less stressful if you can deal with your problem in someone else’s life. (Speck and Log) In this case, the speck you see is merely a reflection of the log in your own eye. The bottom line is that when we do that, our focus is on ourselves and not on Jesus. So stop looking at others, even stop looking at yourself, and look to Jesus.
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