Monday, 8/11/2014 - The H-Word Todays Devotion: August 11 The H-Word Therefore you are inexcusable, O man, whoever you are who judge, for in whatever you judge another you condemn yourself; for you who judge practice the same things. Romans 2:1 Recommended Reading Matthew 7:3-5 We are all disappointed when someone we know, or thought we knew, shocks us by being involved in an immoral or illegal activity. Our disappointment is the deepest when the guilty party has previously stood for the very opposite behavior he has been found guilty of. It seems harder to forgive when the H-word “hypocrisy” is involved. Judging another person for some act while practicing the same thing ourselves is plainly hypocritical. Jesus said it bluntly: “Hypocrite! First remove the plank from your own eye . . . .” So what should we do? Should we never stand and speak for righteousness for fear that we might one day commit the very sin we stand and speak against? Should we never call out sin when necessary? No, we should always stand and speak for righteousness—but with a serious measure of grace, knowing that, “There, but for the grace of God, go I” (1 Corinthians 15:10; see 1 Corinthians 10:12). And if we do fail or fall, we must repent with equal grace and humility. When others fail, let us forgive them and pray that God will keep us from the same end. Grace that cannot be seen, like light, and tasted, like salt, is not grace, but hypocrisy. J. C. Ryle Read-thru-the-Bible Jeremiah 25–27 © 2014 Turning Point
Posted on: Mon, 11 Aug 2014 11:08:46 +0000
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