Category: Introspection

Judging Others

“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 6:42 (NIV) Cynicism and criticism are alive and well. Intake a few moments of a reality television show and you will quickly discover that our culture thrives on judging others. The standard we use for others is usually vastly different than the standard we use on ourselves. Jesus confronted the error of judging others without first examining our own lives. We have a way of making ourselves feel good about our own condition by fixating on the worst in others. We tend to use a microscope to view others and then an out-of-focus pair of binoculars to examine ourselves. Our view of others and our view of ourselves become skewed. Hypocrisy is the act of appearing to be something you are not. Jesus says that once you address the plank in your own eye, then you will be able to see others clearly. “Test me, O LORD, and try me, examine my heart and my mind; for your love is ever before me, and I walk continually in your truth.” Psalms 26:2-3 (NIV) “Search me, O God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts. See if there is any offensive way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting.” Psalms 139:23-24 (NIV) Once you have prayed and asked God to reveal sin in your life, confess your sin and receive God’s provision of forgiveness. Now it is time to yank the plank! Pursuing God, Stephen Trammell Executive Pastor

Conflict Resolution Family Introspection Jesus Judging

Family Spats (6)

“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, ‘Let me take the speck out of your eye,’ when all the time there is a plank in your own eye? 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.” Matt 7:3-5 (NIV) You always find what you are looking for. If we want to find fault in someone, we won’t have to look far. It is so easy to discover inconsistencies in others. When it comes to examining the lives of others, we have the eyes of an eagle. Detecting defects in others has a way of boosting our self image and stroking our ego. We tend to look through the microscope to view others and then choose to view ourselves through rose colored glasses. Jesus lobbed a major teaching on the value of proper introspection. He uncovered our human tendency to view others critically while viewing ourselves gently. Jesus even used the explosive word, hypocrite. When we critique others unfairly and then hide behind a mask that conceals our authentic current reality, Jesus exposes our hypocrisy. What if we began viewing ourselves in light of the holiness of God? What if we began to view ourselves in light of God’s Word? Our response would be like that of Isaiah, “Woe to me! I am a man of unclean lips!” (Is. 6:5). Remember, man looks at the externals, but God looks at the heart (I Sam. 16:7). Let’s deal with the gigantic log in our own eye and stop judging others for the speck in their eye. To help us find what God wants us to look for, consider praying daily through the Ten Commandments (Ex. 20:3-17) and praying daily through the fruit of the Spirit. “Moses said to the people, ‘Do not be afraid. God has come to test you, so that the fear of God will be with you to keep you from sinning.’” Ex 20:20 (NIV) “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law.” Gal 5:22-23 (NIV) I think God is calling me to be a logger so that the fruit of the Spirit will be evidenced in my life and through my life for His glory. Pursuing God, Stephen Trammell Executive Pastor

Confession First Introspection

First

“‘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, “Let me take the speck out of your eye,” when all the time there is a plank in your own eye? 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.’” Matt 7:3-5 (NIV) We tend to judge others by a different standard than we judge ourselves. When we look at ourselves, we tend to use a filtered lens that makes us look pretty good. When we look at others, we tend to utilize the most powerful microscope to examine their lives. We can be rather selective by choosing someone who will make us look good. The truth is, everyone looks good from a distance. Proximity affects accuracy. Jesus is giving us a new lens to view ourselves and others. Instead of bypassing the reality of a massive plank in our own eye in order to identify the speck of sawdust in our brother’s eye, Jesus wants us to examine our own life first. “For I know my transgressions, and my sin is always before me.” Psalms 51:3 (NIV) “‘Woe to me!’ I cried. ‘I am ruined! For I am a man of unclean lips…’” Isaiah 6:5 (NIV) “If we claim to be without sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us.” 1 John 1:8 (NIV) Introspection paves the way for realization of God’s impartation of grace in which we live and breathe. God already knows about the plank. Be quick to remove it and be slow to critique the speck in your brother’s eye. Pursuing God, Stephen Trammell Executive Pastor