The Parables of Jesus – The Beam and the Mote
(Bible portion to read: Matthew 7:1-5)
One day I came across a picture which shows a pair of eye glasses with one of it’s lens shattered. The picture had a very good quote written on it – “No, the world is not broken.”
Probably an old man puts on these glasses and finds everything broken around him. Someone must have explained to him that it is his eye glasses that are broken and not the things around him.
The same thing is given to us as a warning in the word of God. We read it in Matthew 7:1 which says, “Judge not, that ye be not judged.” To explain it in a better manner, the Lord Jesus Christ tells us a parable.
Probably, there were two men facing each other. One of them has a mote in his eye and the other has a beam. A beam is obviously bigger when compared to a mote. The one who has beam in his eye is pointing out the other person who has mote in his eye.
If there was a third person standing with them he would have made fun of the person who has a beam in his eye and would have put him to shame.
No one is perfect
By sharing this parable with us, the Lord Jesus Christ wants to remind us that it is not our job to judge. He wants us to realise that no one is perfect in this world. Whatever state you are in today is solely because of His grace. We cannot overcome our infirmities by ourselves without seeking God’s help. Do we not remember that our righteousness is equal to filthy rags in God’s sight?
It is very tough for some of us to control ourselves when we see our brothers or sisters committing mistakes. Sometimes we behave like that old man using the broken eye glasses to view the world. That is the reason we find everyone living around us faulty. When you yourself are broken within how can you see perfection in others?
We need to change the medium through which we are looking at others. Let the Lord Jesus Christ be that medium so that we will stop judging others.
There is another reason why people judge others and that is as follows. Once I heard a girl speak about another girl who was her acquaintance since her childhood saying, “If I were in her place, I would never have done such a thing like her.” This not only projects her as a judgmental person but also as a self-righteous person. Many a times when someone shares their side of story with us, we do not try to understand them completely but we jump to conclusions and try to imagine ourselves in that situation as a better and more righteous person. However, we fail to realise what has made that person or what has forced that person to react in such a manner. When we really try to empathise with people then we can exempt ourselves from judging them.
On the whole, what this parable teaches us is that we should not live in an illusion that we all are perfect. Firstly, without God’s help we can never attain perfection. Secondly, we should ask the Lord Jesus Christ to help us see others through His eyes. Thirdly, we should not blame others just because we do not see ourselves in their situation. Try to empathise. Lastly, when we feel very troubled by someones’s deeds, the most important thing that we need to do is to pray. Ask God to help them and if God permits and inspires you through his Word then go to that person and talk to him/her to restore them, but not to lose them forever. When God sends you to mend then he will surely prepare you by filling you with His love.
