Vision Problems

I am near-sighted, which is to say that I can well see things that are right in front of my face, while anything more than about ten feet away becomes distorted and unclear. Without the corrective vision provided by my glasses, I would have a hard time making my way in life.

Clearness of vision is critically important to the servant of Christ. Blind people don’t make very good leaders. There are too many pits and perils one can fall into when one cannot see the way. Of course, it is hard to see clearly with a log stuck in your eye.

Hypocrisy is basically a vision problem. It is amazing how easily we see the faults of others when we are unaware of the faults we bear ourselves. The nature of hypocrisy is that the hypocrite is blind to it.

The hypocrite naturally feels unduly put upon. Lacking the ability to see things in perspective, the hypocrite always feels judged, always feels condemned, always feels unforgiven, never appreciating the judgment and condemnation he or she is doling out to others. Life for the hypocrite is strewn with pitfalls.

The solution is to see the speck that needs to be removed from your own eye. With vision corrected, it is amazing what a person can see. Grace in abundance suddenly becomes available, granted in full measure, like a sack of grain that is sifted, shaken, pressed down, and running over, the only measure heaven knows.

This encouragement is to live far-sightedly, to live with heaven in mind. The key to log removal is to see the log for what it is from God’s perspective. Having been repulsed by our own sin, we become gracious, even as we receive the grace sufficient for our own log-shaped transgression.

Respond in Prayer

Dear Lord, I confess to my lack of perspective in viewing my own life. Show me my sin so that I might repent of it. Make me gracious to others, to match the grace that I have first received from you. I will be ever grateful. Amen.

Kent Anderson

Unless otherwise indicated, all Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version® (NIV®).