10/10/18 - Titus 1

Oct 10, 2018

To the pure, all things are pure, but to those who are corrupted and do not believe, nothing is pure. Titus 1:15

Humans tend to see others the way they see themselves---looking for failure or corruption in others comes from knowing our own corruption.

Jesus made a statement in several places of his ministry that our words reveal our hearts.  If you’re like me, the power of that observation continues to grow stronger the longer I live.  For example:

-          A man was constantly talking to me about the financial practices of others.  It seemed like every conversation led to some discussion about money.  Can you guess what his focus was on?

-          Similarly, I had a female friend in college that was constantly critical of the appearance of others, especially other females.  I didn’t put it together at the time, but my guess was that she was very self-conscious about her own appearance (which would have explained the high volume of makeup she wore).

That’s two revealing examples, but there are hundreds of simpler ones:  people who love a sport tend to talk about it all the time, those living with a sin tend to notice the sins of others, many who suffered traumatic pain become advocates for those dealing with pain. 

What gets to me is how often I critique what another person is doing, and later find it in myself.   For instance, I noticed a person who dripped with sarcasm in their comments, and as I thought about it, God revealed to me my own recent sarcastic behavior.  Even in bringing up someone who struggled with finances or another person only interested in their looks makes me recognize my own struggles with those two issues. 

Paul tells Titus not to get distracted by the comments of others.  Often it just reveals where their heart is.  Many times it will say more about where they are than where you are.  But also be aware of what you are thinking about others!  It may be revealing something going on in your own heart.

So before we start making observations about the poor behavior of others, we may want to look in the mirror and see it in ourselves first.  And when someone makes a judgment about our behavior, realize it might just be coming from experience in their own lives.