Luke 6:41

Verse of the Day Devotion Luke 6:41 

“And why do you look at the speck that is in your brother’s eye, but do not notice the log that is in your own eye?” – Luke 6:41

This section of Luke is all about judging others.  “And do not judge and you will not be judged; and do not condemn, and you will not be condemned; pardon, and you will be pardoned.” Luke 6:37. In this particular verse, what is here understood by judging, is the considering of the faults of our neighbor with a look only sharpened by mistrust, and not tempered by love and self-knowledge. It is not “judging of a righteous judgment,” In other words, it is judging someone without any understanding as to why something was done. 

Now, according to the ministry Enduring Word, there are several judgements we need to be careful.  We break this command when we think the worst of others. We break this command when we only speak to others of their faults. We break this command when we judge an entire life only by its worst moments. We break this command when we judge the hidden motives of others. We break this command when we judge others without considering ourselves in their same circumstances. We break this command when we judge others without being mindful that we ourselves will be judged. 

Now in our focus verse, Jesus brings up hypocrisy.  “And why do you look at the speck that is in your brother’s eye, but do not notice the log that is in your own eye?” Luke 6:41. The figures of a speck and a plank are real examples used to bring about an important idea. Jesus shows that we are generally far more tolerant of our own sin than we are to the sin of others.  And we see a biblical example of this in John’s gospel.  “And the scribes and the Pharisees *brought a woman caught in adultery, and having set her in the midst, they *said to Him, “Teacher, this woman has been caught in adultery, in the very act. Now in the Law Moses commanded us to stone such women; what then do You say? And they were saying this, testing Him, in order that they might have grounds for accusing Him. But Jesus stooped down, and with His finger wrote on the ground. But when they persisted in asking Him, He straightened up, and said to them, “He who is without sin among you, let him be the first to throw a stone at her. And again He stooped down and wrote on the ground. And when they heard it, they began to go out one by one, beginning with the older ones, and He was left alone, and the woman, where she was, in the midst.” John 8:3-9.  What Jesus is saying here in John is that if anyone is perfect in all their ways,  then they have the right to stone her.  But no-one was perfect, so they left one by one from Jesus and the lady, because they knew of sins they had committed.  And this is the same idea in our focus verse.  Jesus is telling them they have no right to judge others if they themselves sin. 

This is a very important for us to follow.  We also read the following prior to our focus verse.  “And He also spoke a parable to them: “A blind man cannot guide a blind man, can he? Will they not both fall into a pit?” Luke 6:40. Our focus verse is loosely linked with what has preceded in that if a blind man leads a blind man he is like a person having a beam in his eye while trying to correct another’s faults. If we are at fault as well, we do not have the right to judge another.  But I believe we can work together for the purpose of helping another while they help us.  One who is unable to see his or her own imperfections while seeing so vividly the imperfections of others is clearly a hypocrite. “You hypocrite, first take the log out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to take out the speck that is in your brother’s eye.” Luke 6:42.  In other words, fix yourself before you attempt to fix another.

William Funkhouser MDiv, ThD, Founder and President of True Devotion Ministries.

Matthew 7:3

Verse of the Day Devotion Matthew 7:3  

“And why do you look at the speck that is in your brother’s eye, but do not notice the log that is in your own eye?” – Matthew 7:3

Over the next week or two, we will be looking at the various parables Jesus told His disciples.  Today we will look at the Parable of The Speck and the Log found in Matthew 7. Here is the parable.

“And why do you look at the speck that is in your brother’s eye, but do not notice the log that is in your own eye?  Or how can you say to your brother, ‘Let me take the speck out of your eye,’ and behold, the log is in your own eye?  You hypocrite, first take the log out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to take the speck out of your brother’s eye.” Matthew 7:3-5.  

Before telling them this parable, Jesus was speaking to His disciples and told them “Do not judge lest you be judged.” Matthew 7:1.  The phrase ‘ do not judge’ refers to the passing of harsh, adverse verdicts on the conduct of our others; it does not forbid the use of our best critical thinking, which may be done in a spirit of tolerance and helpfulness and which Jesus elsewhere commands as a help to others. “And if your brother sins, go and reprove him in private; if he listens to you, you have won your brother.” Matthew 18:15.  And it also does not mean “don’t think”. The verb is used not only generally of passing a verdict, but specifically of passing an adverse verdict, condemning, and it is this that Jesus is forbidding.  And he adds the following telling them why they should not judge improperly. “For in the way you judge, you will be judged; and by your standard of measure, it will be measured to you.” Matthew 7:2.

Jesus now illustrates the foolishness of most judgmentalism with the hyperbole of the speck and the log. He is clearly not concerned about literal pieces of foreign matter in people’s eyes but about his followers’ moral failures. “And why do you look at the speck that is in your brother’s eye, but do not notice the log that is in your own eye?” Matthew 7:3. The meaning is not that in every case the person passing judgment is a worse sinner than the one he criticizes. It is rather that what he finds wrong in his brother is a very small matter compared with the sin God sees in him.  It is easy to see the sins in another or to hear of the sin in another and look down upon the person referred but not admit the sin we have. It only takes one sin to become a sinner. In effect, He is addressing the issue of hypocrisy, looking, and judging the sins of others while ignoring our own. Also, such behavior is another example of hypocrisy  especially when we treat fellow believers badly whose sins God has already forgiven.

Now, verse five makes clear that the above verses do not absolve us of responsibility to our brothers and sisters in Christ. On the contrary, once we have dealt with our own sins, we are then in a position to gently and lovingly restore others who have erred and sinned.  “You hypocrite, first take the log out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to take the speck out of your brother’s eye.” Matthew 7:5.  We are to help our brothers and sisters grow in the Lord, and in doing the work He has called us to.  But we must not ignore the weaknesses we have and the logs in our eyes.  We must always address our sins, asking forgiveness for them so that we can be ready to help our fellow Christians with their sins when needed.   

William Funkhouser MDiv, ThD, Founder and President of True Devotion Ministries.