Parable: The Speck and the Log

Matthew 7:1-5

Chapter 7
Judging Others
1“Do not judge, or you too will be judged.
2For in the same way you judge others, you will be judged, and with the measure you use, it will be measured to you.
3“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?4 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?5You 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.


Luke 6:37-38
Judging Others
37 i j “Judge not, and you will not be judged; condemn not, and you will not be condemned; j forgive, and you will be forgiven; 38 k give, and it will be given to you. Good measure, pressed down, shaken together, running over, will be put l into your lap. For m with the measure you use it will be measured back to you.”


Luke 6:41-42
41 i Why do you see the speck that is in your brother's eye, but q do not notice the log that is in your own eye? 42 How can you say to your brother, ‘Brother, let me take out the speck that is in your eye,’ when you yourself do not see the log that is in your own eye? You hypocrite, first take the log out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to take out the speck that is in your brother's eye.


Romans 14:13
Do Not Cause Another to Stumble
13 a Therefore let us not pass judgment on one another any longer, but rather decide b never to put a stumbling block or hindrance in the way of a brother.


1 Corinthians 4:5
5 Therefore q do not pronounce judgment before the time, r before the Lord comes, s who will bring to light the things now hidden in darkness and will disclose the purposes of the heart. t Then each one will receive his commendation from God.


James 5:9
9 Do not grumble against one another, brothers, n so that you may not be judged; behold, o the Judge is standing p at the door.



The parable of the speck and the log

Scripture
“Do not judge, or you too will be judged. For in the same way you judge others, you will be judged, and with the measure you use, it will be measured to you. 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."
Matthew 7:1-5 (Also Luke 6:41-42)

Observations
* This parable was told as part of a larger sermon, in which Jesus was teaching His followers how to live their lives.
* The parable starts with a statement about what the parable is about. A lot of Jesus' parables end with the meaning, or sometimes go without Him giving the meaning. Here he gives the command, and embelishes with the parable to explain His point.
* The command "do not judge" is followed by a warning "or you will be judged".
* According to the Strongs interpretation the word for "judge" means to to "...separate, put asunder, to pick out, select, choose..."
* Jesus explains what type of judging he is talking about through the parable "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?" He is talking about the hypocritical type of judging that points out wrong in others lives and ignores the wrongs in own life.
* The parable ends with the person who has removed the "plank" in their own eye able to help their "brother".

Discussion
A lot of people use this passage of scripture to try and argue that it is wrong to make a moral judgement about the way that other people live. This is a wrong view of this parable. Other places in the Bible (and even a few verses later in Matthew 7:15-20) we are taught that we need to be able to evaluate and consider what God approves of. How can people recognise their sin in order to be saved from their sin, if they aren't told that what it is they do that is sinful. Critical and reflective thinking are important in order to help other people. Jesus is talking about a different type of judging in this parable.

This parable speaks against the type of judgemental attitudes that try to make others look like less than we are by pointing out their flaws without acknowledging our own. It tells us not to be hypocrites and to judge ourselves first, lest we deserve the same criticism we have for others. This is a section of God's church which ignores this commandment to not be hypocritical. When we judge ourselves, we recognise we are sinful and our approach to others sin is with love and humility because we identify with them. If we deal the "plank in our eye" (the sin in our lives), we are then able to help others with the "speck in their eyes" (their sin) by pointing them to the solution that is needed by both parties.

It is important to note the "then you will" in verse five. This shows that it is appropriate and permissable to judge with love, but only after we have acknowledged and fixed our own mess.

Application
Basically the parable teaches us not to be a mean prick, or an arrogant bastard in the way we relate to other people about their sin! Lets acknowledge our own imperfections and sin and not be hypocrites. If we acknowledge these things then we will be humbling ourselves before God and able to recieve His love and grace. This will then give us authority to judge but we will do it with humility and love towards that person.

Prayer

God help me to see myself and my condition as you see me. Don't let me take for granted that I have sinned, but help me to see my sin for what it is. It is only by your grace that I am able to stand, without You I am no different to anybody else in the sin department. I relate to sinners because I know what it is like to be one. Now help me to help other people remove the speck from their eye by showing them the way to Jesus with love, passion and humility.

The Parable of the workers in the Vineyard - PART 2

In study last night, we studied this Parable in detail.

Here is a short breakdown of one person's view on what Jesus was saying in this Parable.:

The rewards that we are storing up in heaven are not proportional to the total amount of time we practiced the Christian life. If someone becomes a Christian early in life he may spend decades diligently practicing the Christian life, but in the end receive the same as one who became a Christian later in life and practiced it for a short time before his death.


Here are some online resources to refer to that will help us understand what Jesus was saying when he told this Parable.:

http://www.google.com/search?q=parable+vineyard+workers&sourceid=navclient-ff&ie=UTF-8&rlz=1B2GGGL_enUS209US209

Sorry this was not posted with the original lesson. Hope this helps!

The Parable of the Workers in the Vineyard

Matthew 20:1-16 (New International Version)

Matthew 20
The Parable of the Workers in the Vineyard
1"For the kingdom of heaven is like a landowner who went out early in the morning to hire men to work in his vineyard. 2He agreed to pay them a denarius for the day and sent them into his vineyard.
3"About the third hour he went out and saw others standing in the marketplace doing nothing. 4He told them, 'You also go and work in my vineyard, and I will pay you whatever is right.' 5So they went.

"He went out again about the sixth hour and the ninth hour and did the same thing. 6About the eleventh hour he went out and found still others standing around. He asked them, 'Why have you been standing here all day long doing nothing?'

7" 'Because no one has hired us,' they answered.
"He said to them, 'You also go and work in my vineyard.'

8"When evening came, the owner of the vineyard said to his foreman, 'Call the workers and pay them their wages, beginning with the last ones hired and going on to the first.'

9"The workers who were hired about the eleventh hour came and each received a denarius. 10So when those came who were hired first, they expected to receive more. But each one of them also received a denarius. 11When they received it, they began to grumble against the landowner. 12'These men who were hired last worked only one hour,' they said, 'and you have made them equal to us who have borne the burden of the work and the heat of the day.'

13"But he answered one of them, 'Friend, I am not being unfair to you. Didn't you agree to work for a denarius? 14Take your pay and go. I want to give the man who was hired last the same as I gave you. 15Don't I have the right to do what I want with my own money? Or are you envious because I am generous?'

16"So the last will be first, and the first will be last."