Matthew 7:1-5 The Message (MSG)
“Don’t pick on people, jump on their failures, criticize their faults— unless, of course, you want the same treatment. That critical spirit has a way of boomeranging. It’s easy to see a smudge on your neighbor’s face and be oblivious to the ugly sneer on your own. Do you have the nerve to say, ‘Let me wash your face for you,’ when your own face is distorted by contempt? It’s this whole traveling road-show mentality all over again, playing a holier-than-thou part instead of just living your part. Wipe that ugly sneer off your own face, and you might be fit to offer a washcloth to your neighbor”
Jesus is addressing the habit of our natural life to see faults in others while overlooking our own. He has not called us to a ministry of correcting others flesh. To find fault in another is to release the boomerang of judgment that will surely come back to you. Our eyes see in the natural realm the fruit of others lives and never look to the heart to see the root that causes the fruit. While we may be spirit filled it demonstrates that we are yet babes in the outer court using natural light as a substitute for discernment. Many dream of the deeper Christian life, of moving in continuous fellowship with the Lord not realizing that the greatest testimony of that reality is how we relate to His people. We don’t dispense with the “old life” and its habits in one sublime moment of surrender. We do it consistently by choosing the right tree (life instead of knowledge) everyday, in every situation. We lead others into the wide-open space of His life changing grace by the example of our lives. How long has it been since you confessed to another believer that you had offered them in word or deed less than the Lords best. Be the first to demonstrate true heart repentance. A soft heart is the result of a beautiful mind (the mind of Christ). Confess your sins and demonstrate the pattern and you will find in short order they will confess theirs also and you will both be released and healed. His love never sees with natural eyes, it sees all the possibilities of a heart where He is enthroned. It sees branches properly joined to The Vine. This kind and quality of love keeps no records. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. His love flowing through us never fails. … (this is an excerpt from a developing manuscript of a new book I am writing, I am hoping to release it in 2019)