@ LibertyGal

All of us, when considering “what is good?” end up using the wrong measuring stick. We measure ourselves by the people around us rather than by God’s standard written in the Bible or by Jesus’s example given when He lived a perfect, sinless life as a man. We fail to judge correctly. We like to say like the Pharisees:

The Pharisee stood and was praying this to himself: ‘God, I thank You that I am not like other people: swindlers, unjust, adulterers, or even like this tax collector. (Luke 18:11)

What Measuring Reference?

More than anything we all like to think of ourselves as “good” people and as “better” than others, but we forget what the Bible says about us and righteousness:

As it is written,“There is none righteous, not even one;
There is none who understands,
There is none who seeks for God;
All have turned aside, together they have become useless;
There is none who does good,There is not even one.” (Romans 3:10-12)

Even if we are better than some others (at least in certain areas), that doesn’t make us good. “There is none who does good, There is not even one.”

I think part of thinking we are “good” people is the way we compare ourselves to others (rather than to God, as we should). We compare ourselves to the worst, to make us look better. We pick the areas that are our strengths and compare it to those who are weak in those areas, but then we avoid comparing our weak areas to their strengths. When we have an area where we are weak, we usually either make excuses or put on blinders so we can’t see our own weaknesses.

For we are not bold to class or compare ourselves with some of those who commend themselves; but when they measure themselves by themselves and compare themselves with themselves, they are without understanding. But we will not boast beyond our measure, but within the measure of the sphere which God apportioned to us as a measure, to reach even as far as you. (2 Corinthians 10:12-13)

The Bible specifically condemns us using our own measure instead of His measure and says, “when they measure themselves by themselves and compare themselves with themselves, they are without understanding.”

Confession

Confessing each particular sin is one area where I am weak. I fully understand that we all (including me) sin continually and displease God with our thoughts, words, and actions. I fully understand that I fall miserably short of God’s ideal. I can honestly say, “Forgive me because I have sinned.” The thing I am very poor at is asking forgiveness for specific sins. I am terrible at seeing each individual sin, each individual offense against God. I don’t have an excuse. I guess I have put on blinders because I don’t want to see my sins. I don’t want to see how poorly I do. I don’t want to see how I regularly offend God. Are you the same way? Do you regularly confess each specific sin?

Who can say, “I have cleansed my heart, I am pure from my sin”? (Proverbs 20:9)

We are told to Confess our sins to God.

If we confess our sins, He is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. (1 John 1:9)

We are told that failing to confess our sins will lead to our harm.

He who conceals his transgressions will not prosper, But he who confesses and forsakes them will find compassion. (Proverbs 28:9,13)

We are encouraged to confess our sins to God first and foremost, but we are also encouraged to confess to others. Obviously, we should confess our sins (apologize) to someone that we wronged or hurt in some way, but we can also be helped by confessing to another because it keeps us honest about our sins and helps keep us accountable.

Therefore, confess your sins to one another, and pray for one another so that you may be healed. The effective prayer of a righteous man can accomplish much. (James 5:16)

This could be a confession to a close friend or family member. It could be a confession to a mentor or spiritual leader. When we confess our sins to another person, we aren’t asking for them to absolve us from our sins. Only Jesus can do that. Having someone to whom we regularly confess our sins, worries, and weaknesses helps us to stay accountable. Being right with God is what matters, but having a physical person look us in the eyes and ask how we are doing in areas where we are weak can help us stay the course set for us by God.

Wrong View of Sin

We generally all treat most of our sins as not that big of a deal. We excuse that “little white lie.” We discount that moment of pride or jealousy. We rationalize putting other things before God.

All sin comes down to disobeying God and making ourselves to be our own god over the one true God. All sin is idolatry. All sin, no matter how minor we think it is, is an affront to God.

Every single sin is deserving of death. If we could see our sins as God sees them, we would be filled with terror.

For we have been consumed by Your anger
And by Your wrath we have been dismayed.
You have placed our iniquities before You,
Our secret sins in the light of Your presence.
For all our days have declined in Your fury;
We have finished our years like a sigh.
As for the days of our life, they contain seventy years,
Or if due to strength, eighty years,
Yet their pride is but labor and sorrow;
For soon it is gone and we fly away.
Who understands the power of Your anger
And Your fury, according to the fear that is due You?
So teach us to number our days,
That we may present to You a heart of wisdom. (Psalm 90:7-12)

We need to fall down on our faces and beg forgiveness for our blatant offences against our creator God. We need to see our sins in the same way God sees them, as abhorrent actions that separate us from God.

Deliver me from all my transgressions;Make me not the reproach of the foolish. (Psalms 39:8)

Luckily for us, God made a way for us to get right with God despite our foolish, sinful thoughts and actions. God did not leave us alone and suffering in the wilderness of His wrath without a way of escape.

even when we were dead in our transgressions, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved), and raised us up with Him, and seated us with Him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, so that in the ages to come He might show the surpassing riches of His grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus. For by grace you have been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God; not as a result of works, so that no one may boast. For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand so that we would walk in them. (Ephesians 2:5-10)

Jesus knew that we would fail. Jesus knew that we would let Him down. Jesus knew that we would be unable to makes things right, so He made a way for us. He lived the perfect life that we never could and died on the cross to take away our sins. Jesus agreed to cover our sins if we only repent and submit to Him.

Do Not Judge so That You Will Not Be Judged

Jesus made it so that those who trust in Him will not be judged as we deserve. Because He has been merciful to us, we also should be merciful to others. We have failed miserably and therefore should not judge others.

“Do not judge, and you will not be judged; and do not condemn, and you will not be condemned; pardon, and you will be pardoned.” (Luke 6:37)

Once again, we have a tendency to judge others who are weak where we are strong or to judge others who are having problems in an areas where we used to fail, but have learned to do better. Most of us are bad at seeing the areas where we fail miserably and if we can see it, we make excuses while not allowing others to make excuses for their sins.

“Do not judge so that you will not be judged. For in the way you judge, you will be judged; and by your standard of measure, it will be measured to you. Why do you look at the speck that is in your brother’s eye, but do not notice the log that is in your own eye? Or how can you say to your brother, ‘Let me take the speck out of your eye,’ and behold, the log is in your own eye? You hypocrite, first take the log out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to take the speck out of your brother’s eye.” (Matthew 7:1-5)

Yes, there absolutely are times in which we need to help a fellow believer deal with their personal sin or we need to help an unbeliever see their sins so they can see their need for a savior, but we need to deal honestly with our own sins beforehand and we need to be honest with others about our own struggle with sin. We need to not lie to them (and ourselves) about our own struggles with sin. In reality, when we admit our own sins and don’t pretend to have it all together, they are actually more likely to listen to what we have to say than when we pretend to be the perfect little Christian saint.

If we are going to point out another’s sins, the Bible gives us particular patterns to follow. Our correction of another is not about judgement or embarrassment, but is about reconciling sinners to their holy God.

“If your brother sins, go and show him his fault in private; if he listens to you, you have won your brother. But if he does not listen to you, take one or two more with you, so that by the mouth of two or three witnesses every fact may be confirmed. If he refuses to listen to them, tell it to the church; and if he refuses to listen even to the church, let him be to you as a Gentile and a tax collector. Truly I say to you, whatever you bind on earth shall have been bound in heaven; and whatever you loose on earth shall have been loosed in heaven.” (Matthew 18:15-18)

All correction should have the goal of reconciling the corrected with Christ and the church. It should be for the good of the person being corrected. Correction should never have the goal embarrassing the person, winning an argument, or beating them into submission.

If we take a line out of “The Lord’s Prayer” or “The Model Prayer,” and pray “And forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors.” (Matthew 6:12) or “And forgive us our sins, For we ourselves also forgive everyone who is indebted to us. And lead us not into temptation.” (Luke 11:4) then we are more likely to do correction in a godly manner.

Do Not Be A Stumbling Block

In addition to not sinning, judging ourselves and others correctly, and correcting only in a merciful and loving manner, we need to make sure our actions are not a stumbling block to others that either leads them to sin or drives them away from God and the Church.

He said to His disciples, “It is inevitable that stumbling blocks come, but woe to him through whom they come! It would be better for him if a millstone were hung around his neck and he were thrown into the sea, than that he would cause one of these little ones to stumble. Be on your guard! If your brother sins, rebuke him; and if he repents, forgive him. And if he sins against you seven times a day, and returns to you seven times, saying, ‘I repent,’ forgive him.” (Luke 17:1-4)

God has given us many freedoms, but we aren’t to use those freedoms in a way that harms others. This harm could come from being too lenient or being too strict and legalistic. We need to act in such a way as to be a blessing to everyone around us. We need to use what God has given to us to bless others and not to just use it selfishly.

When we use the right measuring stick to judge our own lives and we truly see what an awesome, holy, unfathomably good God we serve, this right view of the world will help lead us in the right direction far better than any list of commands and prohibitions.

Trust Jesus.

your sister in Christ,

Christy For more posts check out the Trust Jesus Substack.

Bible verses are NASB (New American Standard Bible) 1995 edition unless otherwise stated