Plankeye

On the subject of how to treat others there are three Biblical scriptures that come up quite often, even among people who do not believe or follow Christian teachings. I, who do use the scriptures as a blueprint for life, also bring these three to mind when trying to control my reactions to others. They are "judge not lest you be judged," love your neighbor as yourself," and "Why do you look at the speck of sawdust in your brother's eye and pay no attention to the plank in your own eye? How can you say to your brother, 'Let me take the speck out of your eye,' when all the time there is a plank in your own eye? You hypocrite, first take the plank out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother's eye."

The first and last one of these three scriptures are ones I have used more in anger and defense than not. When I feel someone judging me it is easy to throw these passages up not only as a shield but as a weapon, especially when I know that the person in question holds Christian beliefs. It even gives me the opportunity to smugly slip into pride, feel superior to the other person and call them a hypocrite. How dare they judge me? How dare they do to me what I have done to so many others? They are hypocrites. I just struggle in acting like I know I should and fall short of perfection from time to time, but if this person doesn't show perfection in their beliefs they are hypocrites. What a load.

Using these admonitions as I have does not fulfill my obligations for the other. It is certainly not a way to love my neighbor as myself. So if they are spiritual truths and truth is something that I can and should use as a spiritual tool in my life regardless of the source, then how should I be using them? To remind myself to give others the same breaks, mercy and leeway that I desire. I need to use these passages and anything else that I can remember to keep my own attitude one of love and tolerance.

One thing I can't allow myself to do though is use them as an excuse to separate myself from others and not to help and serve and also not to protect myself. I can not use judge not lest you be judged, or along those lines "don't take someone else's inventory," as an excuse not to be careful about who I trust and allow influence in my life. I can not be so afraid of having the fruit in my life examined that I don't look at the fruit in someone else's life before I let them plant seeds in my mind, heart or soul. I can not let the truth that I am only learning to really love myself be an excuse not to love others. And I can not sit back and do nothing to help others get the plank out of their eye simply because I have not gotten it all out of my own.

Instead I need to take care to bear the fruit in my own life that will stand examination and judge carefully who I let plant seeds in my life while at the same time refuse to be critical and harsh towards those that I need to guard myself against. They are still sick and need compassion not criticism. I need to continue to learn to love myself in the proper way, realizing I have value to God and treating myself as though I do, and then treating others I come in contact with, my neighbor, as though they also are of value. And finally, I need to remember that no one could help me with the plank in my eye nearly as much as those who have experienced that same pain and blindness. While I can not attack someone for displaying character defects that I myself have shown, and still show, I can and should use that similarity of affliction as a reason to reach out and help. I can be honest enough to say I have this same problem and this is how I turned the plank into a sliver. I've been where you are and I know that there is a solution that works because I have seen it work in my life. I am not perfect, I still have plankeye in some areas, but in so much of my life God has whittled the plank down to a speck. He can do the same for you. I know this because I know it works if you work it.