The Speck and The Log. It’s one of many stories recored back to back to back in Matthew's Gospel. A parable of Jesus.
Large crowds attended Jesus' sermons — many came from Syria, Galilee, Judea, Jerusalem, and even beyond the Jordan River.
They came to witness (or experience) Jesus’ miracles and hear Him teach about their role in the world - how He had come to fulfill the law, not abolish it; how we are to love our enemies (5:43-48), pray (6:5-15), and overcome anxiety and worry in our lives (6:25-24).
It’s possible that Jesus may have delivered the Sermon on the Mount in segments over several days, as opposed to one long sermon. Jesus was a master storyteller. I’m sure he knew how to read a crowd, which may have been a good reason to preach these messages over a few days … Give them something to thing about and leave them wanting more tomorrow.
In this story, He challenged the legalism and hypocrisy of the religious leaders of His day, and communicated spiritual truth to all who had 'ears to hear.'
In fact, Jesus warned against the hypocritical, self-righteous judgment of others by comparing it to one who calls out the speck of sawdust in his brother’s eye while ignoring the plank (or log) in his own eye.
The parable is fairly brief, and begins by warning his followers of the dangers of judging others, stating that they too would be judged by the same standard.
To judge something as good or bad is to enter into the world of dualities, and this creates psychological, or spiritual, tension. Okay so maybe this is kinda of a deep thought — but let it sit for a minute . . . we know Jesus used parables to teach us to look closely at something. Even ourselves. He wanted us to think hard, and listen intently to what he was saying.
When we find ourselves in judgment mode,
and we all land there from time to time,
we have to stop to ask, why?
Maybe our own faults are the ones we least tolerate in another person; Is it possible that from time to time our personal haughtiness, snobbery, pretension can make us believe that we are morally superior. What about Arrogance?
Father, help me to identify the particular fault in my own life —
before I eagerly point out another's shortcoming;
I pray for forgiveness, Amen
#pkes #MinM
