Selective Blindness

“Do not be angry, my lord,” Aaron answered. “You know how prone these people are to evil. They said to me, ‘Make us gods who will go before us. As for this fellow Moses who brought us up out of Egypt, we don’t know what has happened to him.’ So I told them, ‘Whoever has any gold jewelry, take it off.’ Then they gave me the gold, and I threw it into the fire, and out came this calf!” (Ex. 32:32-34)

 I can’t help but laugh when I read this account of Aaron’s role in the golden calf incident. Not only did he resort to the typical blaming of others, he acted as if the calf that he so skillfully formed just popped out of the fire without his input. I’ve seen this sort of reaction time and again in my life. People act shocked and surprised that sin basically took over, and indicate they had no control or say in the matter. I am sure that on more than one occasion, I have done the same thing. The funny thing is that when is comes to other people, it’s a completely different story. It’s so much easier to see their faults. Aaron’s statement, “You know how prone these people are to evil,” shows that he recognized the evil that lurks in the hearts of men, yet when it came to his own, it was completely accidental. I call this selective blindness. We find it easy to judge others, but completely evade our own culpability. The sad thing is that feigned blindness does not prevent very real consequences. In this case, the result was deadly for thousands.

It is our human nature to try to cover up our own iniquity, and to blame others. The problem with that approach is that it doesn’t change the outcome. There are consequences to straying from God’s path, and trying to deny, cover up or blame others simply adds insult to injury. I think about the difference between the first 2 kings of Israel. When Saul sinned, and the prophet confronted him, his reaction was similar to Aaron’s. The result was that God removed his Holy Spirit from him, he was eventually killed in battle, and the kingdom was taken from his family. When David sinned, his actions were much worse, but when the prophet confronted him, he was quick to repent. Even though there were still consequences for his sin, his genuine repentance redeemed the situation. God called David a man after his own heart, and I believe that is because he refused to cover up or choose blindness when he was forced to face what he had done. He pleaded with God not to remove his Holy Spirit from him. David treasured God, and therefore chose to look honestly at his own heart. The heart that chooses blindness is self-centered, and cares far more about self than God. The heart that loves God will deny self, but as a result will find the path to abundant life.

 Lord, please help me to always be willing to look at my own heart honestly. Do not allow me to be so insistent on my way that I fail to seek yours first. Let me always be willing to confess and willing to repent. Help me to see my own sin before I see the sins of others, and help me not to judge. My sweet Savior, help me to love you more than I love myself, and in doing so make your ways a priority over my own. These days my sins are usually heart issues rather than blatant actions, and when I look at other people, I tend to judge their heart attitudes too. Open my blind eyes Lord, and help me to see  my own failures before I start pointing my fingers at others. Amen

Lord, Your People Misrepresent You!

Father I am so grateful for Your amazing love and patience; grateful that You would stoop down and speak to my heart. There are no words to describe how thankful I am, or how in awe of You I am. Thank You! Why would such an amazing and powerful God take the time to fellowship with sinful and self-centered people? It overwhelms me sometimes. Let me live each day in an attitude of thankfulness. Help me to be God-centered rather than my natural self-centered self. Lord, my greatest desire it to share Your amazing love and grace with others. The world is so wounded and lost, and yet, You reached down to redeem. The problem is most of us miss the beauty of Your sweet redemption, because we constantly focus on our own kingdoms rather than Yours. There are some who miss You, because of what people have done in Your name, and that is something You take seriously.

And he said to his disciples, “Temptations to sin are sure to come, but woe to the one through whom they come! It would be better for him if a millstone were hung around his neck and he were cast into the sea than that he should cause one of these little ones to sin. Pay attention to yourselves! If your brother sins, rebuke him, and if he repents, forgive him, and if he sins against you seven times in the day, and turns to you seven times, saying, ‘I repent,’ you must forgive him.” Luke 17:1-4

There are many ways to cause others to stumble, and I think the worst one is representing You poorly. When we act out of pride or religion we misrepresent You and cause unbelievers to stumble—they miss the great opportunity of entering into relationship with You. And according to this passage, we misrepresent You when we fail to deal with sin, either to rebuke or forgive. It is not our job to rebuke unbelievers, but our brothers and sisters– because we love them! However, we get that all wrong. We rebuke in attitudes of self-righteousness rather than love, and we hold on to bitterness. Once again, we are self-centered rather than God-centered and it causes people to stumble. Lord, please make me sensitive to Your Spirit, and help me to see those who have been wounded by Your people. Help me to bind up the wounds and point them to Your healing love. God forgive Your people for representing You so poorly. We have boxed You in and diminished the light that is meant to shine for those stumbling in the darkness. We are supposed to be salt and light, but too often we have failed. Forgive and change us Lord. Help us to see as You see, and help us to love as You love. We need You so desperately. Amen

Little ones, I am waiting with open arms—run to Me. In my presence there is healing and strength that overcomes the world. No weapon formed against you will prosper as you hide in the shadow of My wings. Though this world is dark and cold, my light still shines— the darkness has not overcome it. My love still changes hearts. It is never hopeless, because I am Hope and I am here. This world is passing away, but My kingdom stands forever. It has been planted on this earth in you. Let your light shine before men so that they will see and glorify Me. Live for the eternal kingdom that is in you, and not for a system that will soon fade away. As you glorify me, I will draw people to myself. There is nothing that will stop my purposes. Though you fail, and though people intend to harm, nothing can stand against Me. Just be faithful to obey and do what I have asked of you. It does not depend on you, but Me. Rest in that knowledge, and do not take on burdens that are not yours. I am faithful to complete what I begin. Yes, I do want you to love Me and love people. I want you to shine your light before men, but always remember it comes from me. You cannot manufacture light— you can only direct it. Be still and wait so that I can show where to shine. You are my treasure, not merely a piece of machinery. Shine for me and reflect Me, remembering it is all about Me and not you. That will free you to become everything I desire you to be.