May 23,
2003
YOUR
BROTHER'S EYE, Part III
"Why
do you look at the speck in your brother's eye, but do not
consider the plank in your own eye?" (Matthew 7:3, NKJV).
"When
a crisis comes in the life of any soul, and you attempt to
give counsel or admonition, your words will have only the
weight of influence for good that your own example and spirit
have gained for you. You must be good before you can do good.
You cannot exert an influence that will transform others until
your own heart has been humbled and refined and made tender
by the grace of Christ. When this change has been wrought
in you, it will be as natural for you to live to bless others
as it is for the rosebush to yield its fragrant bloom or the
vine its purple clusters.
"If
Christ is in you 'the hope of glory,' you will have no disposition
to watch others, to expose their errors. Instead of seeking
to accuse and condemn, it will be your object to help, to
bless, and to save. In dealing with those who are in error,
you will heed the injunction, Consider 'yourself lest you
also be tempted' (Galatians 6:1). You will call to mind the
many times you have erred and how hard it was to find the
right way when you had once left it. You will not push your
brother into greater darkness, but with a heart full of pity
will tell him of his danger.
"He
who looks often upon the cross of Calvary, remembering that
his sins placed the Saviour there, will never try to estimate
the degree of his guilt in comparison with that of others.
He will not climb upon the judgment seat to bring accusation
against another. There can be no spirit of criticism or self-exaltation
on the part of those who walk in the shadow of Calvary's cross.
"Not
until you feel that you could sacrifice your own self-dignity,
and even lay down your life in order to save an erring brother,
have you cast the beam [plank] out of your own eye so that
you are prepared to help your brother. Then you can approach
him and touch his heart. No one has ever been reclaimed from
a wrong position by censure and reproach; but many have thus
been driven from Christ and led to seal their hearts against
conviction. A tender spirit, as gentle, winning deportment,
may save the erring and hide a multitude of sins. The revelation
of Christ in your own character will have a transforming power
upon all with whom you come in contact. Let Christ be daily
made manifest in you, and He will reveal through you the creative
energy of His word--a gentle, persuasive, yet mighty influence
to re-create other souls in the beauty of the Lord our God."--Thoughts
From The Mount Of Blessing. pp, 127-129.
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