“But I tell you who hear me: Love your enemies, do good to
those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who mistreat
you.” Luke 6:27-28
“Do not judge, and you will not be judged. Do not condemn,
and you will not be condemned. Forgive, and you will be forgiven.” Luke 6:37
“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? How can you say to your
brother, ‘Brother, let me take the speck out of your eye, when you yourself
fail to see the plank in your own eye? You hypocrite, first take the plank out
of your eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your
brother’s eye.” Luke 6:41-42
There’s so much
meat in this chapter that I couldn’t choose just one verse. I feel like the
bulk of what Jesus stood for and what he was about is very well illustrated
through his reactions to the persecution he suffered from the Pharisees in this
chapter as well as through all of the teaching he did with the Apostles in Luke
6. The illustration I like best is about the “plank of wood.” Unlike some of
the other verses I’ve written about the past few days, I know this verse very
well. I’ve completed and taught Bible studies based on this verse and “judging
ourselves first.” I can’t think of a
better way to describe what we do as humans than the speck of sawdust and the
plank of wood. If you think about it, every time we gossip or talk about
another person when they are not present, whether it is a frustration with a
co-worker or employee or even complaining about a spouse or a slight we felt
when we ran into an old acquaintance or former close friend, we are judging
them. When we talk about them, we are pronouncing
our judgment over them by pointing out the speck of sawdust in their lives. How often do we stop in the middle of these
conversations and consider whether or not we have our own speck or even worse,
a plank? Do we see the planks in our own
lives? I try to, and sometimes if I am honest with
myself and with God, I see them and decide to ignore them. Hey, I’m not perfect and never claimed to be,
but I don’t want to ignore the faults in my life forever, although I usually
have to take them and work on them one at a time. What I have learned is that if I ignore the
planks too long, I will become blind and unable to understand and resolve
things in my life that require me to look back at myself and see where I was at
fault. It’s important to stop now and
again and analyze life from that perspective. When there are underlying frustrations
between you and a spouse, friend, or family member, if you can look at yourself
first, asking questions, such as “why does this upset me so much?” and “how can
I respond differently to this problem?” or “what could I do differently and how
have I contributed to this problem?” As you answer these questions, you will
begin to see the problem from the other side. You can begin to see how the
other person must feel and where they are coming from. Then, all of a sudden,
you may feel a pang of regret… “why did I judge that person so harshly? I
shouldn’t have done that. I should have taken the time to consider why they
reacted as they did or what might be going on within them to cause them to
behave in such a way.” I believe that guilt or regret is often why we ignore
those planks in our eyes because it’s painful for us when we look at ourselves
in the mirror and attempt to remove them.
But, I believe it is a very necessary and important part of our growth
as human beings and of our journey to becoming more like Jesus. Love your enemies, pray for those who
mistreat you, do not judge…these are not easy things to do, but Jesus never
said life would be easy. He did say that his plans for us are good, to bring us
hope and a future, but first we must be willing to listen and able to not just
read the words and understand them, but to put them into practice. Do you have
any planks in your eyes that need to be removed today? I know I do…time to get
to work, but before I go, let me leave you with one of my favorite verses in
the Bible, the one that gives me hope when I am unsure of the future, when I
wonder what’s the point of working so hard as I will never be perfect, so why
even try? This is why… “For I know the
plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm
you, plans to give you hope and a future. Then you will call upon me and come
and pray to me, and I will listen to you. You will seek me and find me when you
seek me with all your heart.” Jeremiah 29: 11-13 J
If God can care that much about me and want that much for me, shouldn’t I at
least give him all I’ve got in the time he’s given me on this earth? I think
so…
1 comment:
Patsy and Ron like this.
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