Skip to main content

Removing Planks and Seeing Clearly


Is it ever appropriate to speak out about sin even though we all have sinned?
Worded this way most of us would say, "sure!, of course. Especially if the Bible calls it sin."  And I would agree.
What if I worded the question like this?
"Since we have all sinned, and many of us sin terribly in secret, is it hypocritical to condemn the sin of someone else?"
This one should make us all think a little more before answering. 
I think Jesus spoke to this matter. In his famous Sermon on the Mount, Jesus spoke these words in Matthew 7:1ff
“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.
It would take a lengthy post indeed to explain this section of scripture in-depth, so I'm just going to make a few observations, and hopefully encourage you do dig further on your own.
People love to throw out Matthew 7:1 whenever anyone points out someone else s sin. "Judge not, lest ye be judged"...always in the King James too, it seems.  This has become the most often quoted scripture in public discourse...now quoted more often than John 3:16. I love Paul Washers response to people that misuse this verse.
"Twist not scripture, lest ye be like Satan!"
So how are people "twisting" scripture when that use this verse to silence people who condemn sinful behavior in others? It takes a careful look, because reading the illustration that follows, could further lead one to the wrong conclusion. In one of Jesus's most humorous moments, Jesus crafts a word picture that is fairly simple to understand. The simple meaning, "consider your own sin--which we see clearly, before rashly condemning sin in others--which can not always be so clearly seen."  This advice, along with this entire "sermon", was apparently spoken to his close disciples, even though in the movies. and Sunday-school flannel-graphs Jesus is always preaching to a huge crowd. The key to a balanced understanding of this section, is to focus on the idea of "seeing".  The passage concludes with the statment, "first take the plank out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly..."  We can't see into the mind of another person, and we are never to pretend that we can do what only that person and God can do. That is the offence when we "judge" someone else. There is only one Judge. If we pretend to see the motives of someone else's heart, we attempt to unseat the one true and righteous Judge. 
So back to the question I first posed. "is it ever appropriate to condemn the sin of someone else?"
It depends. If dealing with a brother or sister in Christ, then YES!  Outward public sin, or hidden sin proved by many trustworthy witnesses must and should be "rebuked" (censured, admonished)...always with a goal to encourage repentance and restoration. If it's on a personal level, a humble, loving, exhortation is appropriate.
1 Timothy 5:20  Those who continue in sin, rebuke in the presence of all, so that the rest also will be fearful of sinning.
2 Timothy 4:2  preach the word; be ready in season and out of season; reprove, rebuke, exhort, with great patience and instruction.
1 Corinthians 5:6bDo you not know that a little leaven leavens the whole lump of dough? Clean out the old leaven so that you may be a new lump...
Ephesians 4:15 Rather, speaking the truth in love,
We can't truly know the state of another persons soul, but when dealing with someone that most likely is a non-believer, I would say it's probably not the best idea to confront sin unless you are evangelizing that person, or trying to protect the innocence of children. And even then, done with love. 
Proverbs 9:7 Whoever corrects a mocker invites insults; whoever rebukes the wicked incurs abuse. Do not rebuke mockers or they will hate you; rebuke the wise and they will love you.

* This is a tough subject for a short blog post and it was not meant to be comprehensive. Please feel free to comment and add your own thoughts. 

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

The Resolutions of Jonathan Edwards In Plain English. (#1-10)

Jonathan Edwards is known as one of the greatest and most profound of American theologians. His writings have benefited many Christians throughout the years. I was impressed with these resolutions and so I have attempted to translate them into the language of the day. I understand that I may have missed Edward’s full meaning at some level, but I made every attempt to capture the essence of the original author and summarize in such a way as to benefit the modern reader. There are 70 resolutions in all. I have summarized the first ten here. I hope you enjoy these. ________________________________ 1. Resolved, that I will do whatsoever I think to be most to God's glory, and my own good, profit and pleasure, in the whole of my duration, without any consideration of the time, whether now, or never so many myriad's of ages hence. Resolved to do whatever I think to be my duty and most for the good and advantage of mankind in general. Resolved to do this, whatever difficulties I mee...

My Chiropractic Dilemma

So, I've had this back/neck/shoulder pain for two weeks now. It was getting so bad that I was really at the point of doing anything to get rid of the pain. Everybody kept telling me to go to the Chiropractor. I've actually only spoken to one person who has ever told me anything negative about their experience with Chiropractic treatment. Most people are convinced that it is helpful. A little history. About a year ago, I went to a Chiropractor here in town who was recommended by a friend. She told me that I could get a free exam and x-rays with a referral. Well, I figured if it was free how bad could it be. I was skeptical at that point. I do not like to be deceived, and from the things I was reading, Chiropractic treatment was pseudo-science and mostly "smoke and mirrors." I was in pretty severe lower-back pain at that time and figured I'd go ahead and give 'em a try and see what it was all about. I won't go into the whole story, but to sum it up, I was ...

The Bible on Entertainment - PART 7 The Philippians 4:8 Filter

As we began this look at the subject of entertainment, I said that the key verse for this study would be: 1 Thessalonians 5:21-22 “Test everything. Hold on to the good. Avoid every kind of evil.” The articles that I have written up to this point have been concentrating on the last part of that verse, ( Avoid…evil ). The reason for this is because I believe we are surrounded and bombarded with worldly entertainment that is numbing us to immorality. You may have noticed that there are more and more “reality” type shows that encourage us to become addicted. Video games are designed to be addictive and music, by its very nature is addictive. I’ve already said that I don’t believe that all entertainment is sin, but I do believe that it’s time Christians took a fresh look at the entertainment we consume and put all of it to the test of scripture. This final “filter” that we will look at today is, I believe, the best way to evaluate entertainment. It’s almost as if this was put in the bible ...