The Kingdom Movement

A Literary & Pastoral Study Guide to the Gospel of Matthew

The Inspiration of Matthew,

by Caravaggio

On the King's Errand

Devotional Reflections on Matthew's Gospel

From Judging to Healing, Part Three – Neither Avoiding Nor Judging:  Mt.7:1 – 6

^7:1 Do not judge so that you will not be judged. ² For in the way you judge, you will be judged; and by your standard of measure, it will be measured to you. ³ 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? ⁴ 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? ⁵ 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. ⁶ Do not give what is holy to dogs, and do not throw your pearls before swine, or they will trample them under their feet, and turn and tear you to pieces.

          When Jesus says, ‘your brother’ here in v.3, 4, and 5, he does seem to be speaking about a fellow Christian:  a brother or sister in Christ.  Many people call themselves Christians but sin in some obvious ways.  What do you do about it?  Often, we pretend to not notice.  In reality, we notice.  And we become spectators, looking down at the person without giving her/him a chance to know the concerns we have.  Sometimes we become gossips as well, talking to other Christians about that person.  Sometimes we become functional relativists, as if Jesus did not have an opinion about certain attitudes and choices. 

          Jesus’ answer is a very careful one.  On the one hand, we are not to simply ‘let things slide.’  There is an actual ‘speck’ that is in our brother’s (or sister’s) eye.  Anyone who has worked with wood, like Jesus himself, knows that when you get a speck of sawdust in your eye, it hurts!  Your eye gets watery.  You stop, blink, blink, and blink.  Jesus’ perspective on the person is compassion.  He or she has an issue that is hurting him/her in a vulnerable place, in addition to affecting other people.

          So if you are a person who ‘doesn’t like to get involved,’ or if you are conflict avoidant, or if you just want to be left alone yourself, then this is going to be a bit of a challenge.  Jesus does in fact want us to be involved with other people – gently and carefully, and not in a way where our identity depends on their behavior, but nevertheless really.  Because if you had a friend walking around with something bothering his or her eye, how loving is it on your part to just ignore that and pretend that nothing is going on?

          From what I can tell, for this purpose, our sins can be grouped into two categories.  The first kind involves ‘crossing a line’ of some sort, like lying, getting drunk, cheating, stealing, slandering another person, or watching pornography.  Those kinds of issues are relatively ‘black and white.’  The proper response for that person is to confess it as a sin, ask God for cleansing and forgiveness, and ask anyone else affected for forgiveness.  I find that ‘taking the log out of my own eye’ involves empathizing with the person, and wanting a better friendship and ministry partnership with the person.  For example, when I’ve talked to a Christian having sex with a boyfriend or girlfriend, I have said, ‘I also care about the other person, and I’d like your help in this area, because currently, you’re not helping.’

The second kind of sin is not so cut and dry.  These include greed, self-centeredness, anxiousness, being controlling, and being impatient.  It is not totally clear to me when I am being greedy, for instance, especially as a person living in the materialistic culture of the U.S.  These are character issues where the only proper response is a commitment to spiritual growth.  In this case, ‘taking the log out of my own eye’ involves recognizing that I have the same struggle.  But I still say, ‘I’d like to be better friends, and I wanting to grow in this direction because I think Jesus calls us that way.  I struggle with this issue, so I’m just asking if you want to also take a next step in this direction with me.’

Being a brother or sister in Christ who is encouraging and healing can have a big impact.  In 2002, just before he retired from the Senate, Jesse Helms, who professed to be a Christian, agreed to meet with the rock star Bono, one of the world’s leading advocates for fighting the AIDS epidemic in Africa.  Before meeting with Bono, Senator Helms had spent years slashing foreign aid budgets.  He had supported the Apartheid regime in South Africa.  And on AIDS in particular, he had told The New York Times in 1995 that the government should spend less money on people with AIDS because HIV was punishment for homosexuality; those people got sick as a result of ‘deliberate, disgusting, revolting conduct.’  But after talking to Bono, Helms apologized and said he was ashamed. ‘I have been too lax too long in doing something really significant about AIDS,’ Helms said.

What did Bono tell him?  One point of discussion was factual:  in Africa, AIDS is spread by heterosexuals and leaves many innocent orphans in its wake.  But another point of discussion was what Jesus actually said, according to the Gospel of Matthew.  ‘Christ only speaks about judgment once and it’s not about sex but about how we deal with the poor, and I quoted Matthew, ‘I was naked and you clothed me, I was hungry and you fed me.’  Jesse got very emotional, and the next day he brought in the reporters and publicly repented about AIDS.  I explained to him that AIDS was like the leprosy of the New Testament.’[1]  In the last year of his life he became a huge advocate of aid, especially for health initiatives.