By David ReayMonday 1 Aug 2022LifeWords DevotionalsDevotionsReading Time: 2 minutes
“Do not judge, or you too will be judged. For in the same way you judge others, you will be judged, and with the measure you use, it will be measured to you. “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. (NIV)
It is easy to misunderstand Jesus’ words as telling us never to criticise others. Not true. Constructive criticism from someone who cares can be life enhancing. The problem is having a judgemental spirit which presumes to know all the facts and tends to write others off accordingly.
And this judgemental spirit expresses itself in being very concerned with others’ faults while not doing anything about our own. Indeed, we can focus on others’ failings as a means of avoiding facing our own failings.
Let’s face it, we can’t make ourselves as we wish to be, so let’s not get angry at others when they fail to become who we wish them to be. I am not perfect, so I ought not to get too worked up at the imperfections of others.
Our frustrations with ourselves can often spill over into getting frustrated with others. We need to embrace the fact that while we work on our imperfections, God loves us as we do this work. He doesn’t wait till we reach a certain standard before offering his love to us. And we are to treat others the way he treats us.
Blessings,
David