Tag Archives: hypocrisy

There’s A Bug In My Mug

02 Tuesday Jun 2015

Posted by in Animals, Christianity, Devotional, Life, Raising The Mug

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Funny-Camel-39

photo courtesy of funnystack.com

I love my coffee piping hot, but I’ve been known to leave a mug on my desk until it gets too cold to drink. So then I’ll heat it up again in the microwave.

I know ………. it’s not the coffee connoisseur’s way. In my defense, it’s usually the second or third cup that gets ignored and has to be reheated……… never the first cup…….. never.

Apparently certain flying insects like my coffee as well. If I’m not careful and leave a cup unattended for too long, I’ll gulp down a gnat before I know it.

Matthew 23:23-24 NIV

23 “Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You give a tenth of your spices—mint, dill and cumin. But you have neglected the more important matters of the law—justice, mercy and faithfulness. You should have practiced the latter, without neglecting the former. 24 You blind guides! You strain out a gnat but swallow a camel.

These are the words of Jesus chastising the leaders in the church after he had warned his followers not to listen to them. What?! Jesus taught his followers not to listen to the leaders in the church? That’s right. Why?

Because they were hypocrites ………..

Not all, but many of the Pharisees and scribes had no faith in God. They were not true believers. They were using the church and its systems to get rich and gain prestige. They took advantage of the poor and illiterate rather than assisting them. They made themselves look good on the outside, but inside they were rotten to the core. They were good at pointing out small deficiencies in others but were oblivious to their own giant deficiencies.

In these verses, Jesus said you tithe ……… but you neglect. In other words, you support the church financially but you do nothing to further justice, mercy, or faithfulness. You do nothing to alleviate the suffering of those you are supposed to be shepherding.

Which is more important? To give financially to the church or engage in people’s lives?

Hmmmm………… surely there is someone you know who needs justice or perhaps mercy. Maybe they just need a faithful friend.

Well ……….. I guess swallowing a gnat in my coffee is better than swallowing a camel ………..

Mugs up!!

All verse quotes courtesy of biblegateway.com

The Blind Spot

21 Saturday Feb 2015

Posted by in Christianity, Devotional, Life

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searching-blindfolded-man

photo courtesy of superakh.wordpress.com

I have a blind spot in my truck. It’s the area between the front door and the back door on the passenger side of the vehicle. If my truck is perpendicular to the road, it normally isn’t a problem; I can see clearly through the front door window. But if the intersection has any angle at all, oncoming cars from the right frequently get lost in this area. I’ve caught myself pulling out in front of one many times.

Actually, everyone has a blind spot. It’s a little technical to explain, but briefly, there is a section of the eye where things tend to get lost under certain circumstances. Try this little experiment –

a_blind_spot

Close your left eye and hold this web page about 8-9 inches from your right eye.  Look at the cross and slowly move your head forwards and/or backwards until the black circle disappears.  This will happen when light rays from the black circle fall on the place where the Optic Nerve enters the retina – referred to as your “blind spot.” snowbrains.com You can go to this site for a more detailed explanation.

Frequently we have a blind spot in our perception of the truth. Jesus referred to it as a ” log in your eye.” It’s hard to image that someone wouldn’t notice a log in their eye, seems like that would be painful. He used that analogy to make an excellent point about hypocrisy.

Matthew 7:3-5 (NIV)

3 “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? 4 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? 5 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.

I don’t know why it is that other people’s sins seem so evident to us, yet we can’t see our own.

The actual word used for log or plank can be interpreted as “beam.” Think about a house that has a large open beam that supports the entire roof system. That is what Jesus is describing, something so large and obvious that it can’t be ignored. I don’t know if you’ve ever helped with the construction of a house, but a beam of this size is impossible to lift by yourself. It takes a crane or a group of strong people to get it in place.

In other words, the command for you to remove the beam, is a charge to recognize your inability to actually do anything for yourself. You need help. And so does everyone else. We all need help addressing the things about ourselves that need improvement. So before you go pointing out problems with other people, you should examine yourself and recognize that there are serious character flaws in all of us.

My mug is full and raised high. Ready for a new day! Lord, help us see ourselves as we really are. Remove the blind spots from our eyes, giving us clear sight so that we can know and understand how we can best begin to change.

All verse quotes courtesy of biblegateway.com