JUDGE OURSELVES TO AVOID BEING
JUDGED
Judge ourselves to avoid being
judged.
What we usually do is that we
judge others to avoid being judged. We
are not willing to admit our shortcomings.
When we see our sins being committed by others, we tend to throw stones
at them. Modern psychologists say that there are different methods of
self-deception to avoid dealing honestly our evil thoughts and feelings. We can broadly put them as three.
1. Rationalization. “Everybody is doing it. So I am also doing
it,” is a common statement – cheating, bribery, mal-practices, immoral activities
etc. In the book of I Sam ch. 15, we see a good example for rationalization.
(the confrontation of the prophet with King Saul and Saul putting all kinds of
excuses to rationalize what he did)
2. Projection. Inferring that others have the shortcomings
of you. There is a Malayalam saying: “manja pithamullavar kaanunnathellam manja”
which means ‘a person who has jaundice sees everything as yellow in color’. I am not coming to the Church because
everyone that comes there are crooks, thieves, snobs etc. But studies will show that the person who
blames others is the real culprit. I
remember a person who told me that he has stopped coming to the Church because
the trustees manipulate the funds etc.
But later I found that while he was the trustee, he was caught for
mismanagement of funds.
3. Displacement. For this
also there is a Malayalam saying: “Angaadiyil thottathinu ammayodu” which means
‘taking revenge on the mother for the failure in the market’. Pouring out the frustrations on the helpless
victims - a husband coming from office
and quarreling with the wife and children, parents pouring out their
frustrations on children, children coming
from Schools and Colleges and becoming wild at home, a person who cannot pour
out the frustrations at office or home coming to Church and shouting at the
pastor in the General Body etc. are examples of displacement.
In all
these, we are trying to hide our weakness and put the blame on others for our
condition. We try to escape thus. The right way is to admit our faults in the
light of the Word of God and correct ourselves seeking God’s forgiveness. It is
more fruitful to blame ourselves for the faults.
Jesus
states this unmistakably in the Sermon on the Mount: (Matt. 7:1-5) “Judge not, that you be not judged. For with the judgment you pronounce you will be
judged, and with the measure
you use it will be measured to you. Why do you see 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,’ when there is the log 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.”
When you
are looking for faults, use a mirror, not a telescope.
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