Robert Burns, the Scottish poet, sat behind a finely dressed woman in church and saw the lice in her hair. His musing about her social pretensions led him to write, To A Louse.
“Oh, would some Power give us the gift
To see ourselves as others see us!
It would from many a blunder free us,
And foolish notion:
What airs in dress and gait would leave us,
And even devotion!”
Who among us has not said things like this in one way or another?
*His anger is so
destructive to his family;
mine is just what I must do to get my kids to fall in line.
*His bitterness is so
toxic to relationships;
mine is understandable given the terrible way I was treated.
*He is greedy;
I’m just trying to make a living.
*He is selfish;
I’m just being careful to provide for the future.
*He’s an idiot;
I’m just a ‘work in progress.’
Jesus offered a bit of insight, clothing His wisdom in humor.
He spoke of ‘plank in the eye’ syndrome. He tells us that before
we go after the speck of sawdust in our fellow Christian’s eye, it would be
best to take the plank out of our own! (Matthew 7:4-5) His point is obvious
– before you attempt to clean up another’s life, get your own in order!
Maturity of faith and character will bring about an honest estimate of
ourselves, a working knowledge of our strengths and our foibles, and a
willingness to apply the same measure to our own actions that we so quickly
apply to others.
What’s the harm in a little self-deception?
When we refuse the Truth about ourselves, willfully ignoring the conviction of the Holy Spirit, too outwardly focused to take time for honest reflection, we will inevitably slip deeper into deception and that will lead us into greater sin.
We Christians need not spend endless hours beating ourselves up or ‘staring at our navel,’ however we must remain open to correction by the Spirit and instruction from others. One of the most basic contributors to a genuine walk with God is a ruthless commitment to the Truth. Jesus says that the ‘truth will set you free.’ There is great liberation discovered in knowing who we are, what gifts we are given, what weakness waits to trip us up, and the overarching love of God that holds us secure!
When we accept ourselves and lean into God’s amazing grace, we are free to grow up, released from the childish ways that make us small and mean. We begin to walk in the will of God and into a divinely inspired love for others.
As we live authentically in the Spirit, He will keep us from judging others unfairly and make us into people of mercy.
There is a passage that is of great comfort to those who live in Truth and long for justice. It is a terrible threat to those who turn a blind eye to reality. It is God’s promise that one day who we are what we have done will be perfectly revealed. Christian, this is not about some scale that determines our eternal destiny, whether we go to Heaven when we die! That salvation is secured through Christ, alone. It is about justice. My prayer is that what we learn in this passage will both keep us faithful in obscure service and move us to deal with secret sin.
Spend some time with the word from the Word.
"The man who plants and the man who waters have one purpose, and each
will be rewarded according to his own labor. For we are God’s fellow workers;
you are God’s field, God’s building. By the grace God has given me, I laid a
foundation as an expert builder, and someone else is building on it. But each
one should be careful how he builds.
For no one can lay any foundation other than the one already laid, which is
Jesus Christ.
If any man builds on this foundation using gold, silver, costly stones, wood,
hay or straw, his work will be shown for what it is, because the Day will bring
it to light. It will be revealed with fire, and the fire will test the quality
of each man’s work. If what he has built survives, he will receive his reward.
If it is burned up, he will suffer loss; he himself will be saved, but only as
one escaping through the flames."
(1 Corinthians 3:8-15, NIV)
Ask God, the Holy Spirit, to work in your life and humbly
let Him shape You in His will.
Confess your sins without excuse and REST in His promise of grace and love.
Then, live in the Truth!
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