Judge Others? Judge Yourself

by Carol McClain @carol_mcclainOne finger at another, three at yourself

You, therefore, have no excuse, you who pass judgment on someone else, for at whatever point you judge another, you are condemning yourself, because you who pass judgment do the same things” Rom. 2:1.

Ever heard the expression, “Don’t point your finger at others. You have one directed at them, and three back at yourself.”?

How true.

Years ago, an obnoxious fellow attended the same church as I. Let’s call him Oscar.

Oscar knew EVERYTHING. And Oscar never wavered in sharing his truths.

I taught Bible study at the time. In the middle of my lesson, he corrected me. In small groups, (Yep, we were stuck in the same after-church gathering), he dominated the conversation.

At every turn, Oscar drove me stark, raving mad.

Now I’m a devoted devotee of Christ. I know it is not Christian behavior to be judgmental. I couldn’t get rid of my disdain. One day, I called my pastor and asked for prayer. I didn’t go into details. I needed Christ’s help to love the unloveable.

This was one of the times God answered instantaneously. With no effort on my part, all animosity toward Oscar vanished. Poof. Gone. We got along beautifully from that time on.

 

Also, during this time, before communion, the pastor would have us go to someone we’d had issues with and ask for forgiveness. Smugly sitting in my sit, I knew I had no problems with anyone. Then Oscar approached. He held the communion bread in his hand and offered it to me. “Carol,” he said, “you used to be obnoxious. A know-it-all. But you’ve changed. Forgive me for holding a grudge.”

Me? Wait a minute! Me? Obnoxious? A know it all?

Yep. Me. Oscar drove me mad because he illustrated a trait in me I never recognized and would never tolerate if I had.

Me. As I judged him, I proved the truth of Romans 2:1.

2 Comments

  1. vera says:

    so ture = if I find someone annoying I look at myself, and sure enough there it is. Thanks Carol

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