Daily devotion: A lack of grace!
The Plank, the Speck, and the Heart of Grace
Jesus paints a deliberately comical picture—a man with a plank, even a railway sleeper, lodged in his eye, attempting delicate eye surgery on another who has only a tiny speck. It is absurd, and that is exactly the point. Through this simple analogy, our Lord exposes a profound truth about the human heart.
The words Jesus used imply that both the speck and the plank come from the same piece of timber. The difference is not in kind, but in size. That is why we so easily detect certain sins in others—we recognise them. We are familiar with them… because they are our own.
When Jesus said, “Judge not,” He was not forbidding all discernment. The Greek word krino speaks of judging to condemnation. What He forbids is a harsh, censorious spirit.
Censoriousness is a compound sin. It is critical, negative, and destructive. It delights in finding fault, assumes the worst motives, and is ungenerous toward the failures of others. Worse still, it places us in the seat of God, presuming authority to pass final judgment on another soul.
But Scripture is clear—we are not called to condemnation, but to identification and restoration.
“Now I beseech you, brethren, mark them which cause divisions… and avoid them.” (Romans 16:17)
“If any preach any other gospel… let him be accursed.” (Galatians 1:8–9)
There is a place for spiritual discernment. We must identify error, guard doctrine, and recognise sin. But always with the aim of restoration, never destruction.
“Brethren, if a man be overtaken in a fault, ye which are spiritual, restore such an one in the spirit of meekness; considering thyself, lest thou also be tempted.” (Galatians 6:1)
To truly love someone is not to ignore their sin, but to care enough to gently confront it:
“You shall surely rebuke your neighbor, and not bear sin because of him.” (Leviticus 19:17)
The question then becomes searching and personal:
How do I know if I am condemning rather than restoring?
A simple test:
If I am unwilling to be part of the restoration, I am likely practicing condemnation.
It is easy to point out dirty feet. It is far harder to kneel and wash them.
In John 13, when Jesus entered the room, He saw the disciples’ unclean feet. He did not lecture them. He did not shame them. He rose, wrapped Himself with a towel, and began to wash.
He saw the problem—and He served.
And in doing so, He set the pattern:
We do not have the right to point out another’s dirt unless we are willing to help cleanse it.
How often our sins appear small in our own eyes, yet glaring in others. We excuse in ourselves what we condemn in them. But Jesus reminds us—the greater issue is not the speck we see, but the plank we ignore.
Grace changes everything.
It humbles us.
It softens us.
It moves us from critics to servants.
So before we speak, we examine.
Before we correct, we kneel.
Before we judge, we love.
There is an alarming lack of grace even happening amongst those who name the name of Christ. One slip up and its curtains. Imagine being in a marriage and burning the toast means ending the marriage. Sounds ridiculous but our society has become cutthroat. If ever grace should be found it should be found in the Body of Christ. But sadly the world and its lack of mercy has permeated the Church and there seems to be more planks than splinters.
Pastor Chuck Smith used to tell us as Pastors, “If you are going to err, always err on the side of grace!”
And when we do speak, may it always be with the heart of Christ—
not to condemn, but to restore.