Cast Not Your Pearls before Swine 2

Matthew 7:5-6 (KJV)Thou hypocrite, first cast out the beam out of thine own eye; and then shalt thou see clearly to cast out the mote out of thy brother’s eye. Give not that which is holy unto the dogs, neither cast ye your pearls before swine, lest they trample them under their feet, and turn again and rend you.

Mr. and Mrs. Akowe were Marriage ministers who had a very great track record of success. They had seen the Lord use them to restore many wounded and broken marriages in the church.

But they recently discovered that they were no longer fruitful in their ministry.

As they waited on the Lord to know why they were no longer succeeding in healing marriages through their ministry, they discovered that it was because they were now hypocrites who refused to remove the beam in their own eyes. There was now deep-rooted recentness they had towards each other, but they both covered it up and continued with the ministry. This was the reason they were no longer fruitful.

In today’s verses, the Lord says we should first cast out the beam from our own eyes before we can see clearly to cast out the mote in our brother’s eyes. He then goes on to say that we should not give that which is holy to dogs and our pearls to swine. There are a number of lessons here:

One is that it is impossible for a hypocritical believer to successfully remove the impurities and specs in the life of another believer. It’s a spiritual principle. See 2 Corinthians 10:6.

Before you begin to attempt to help remove the mote in your Christian Brother or sister’s eye, you must be sure that the one in your eye has been removed or you would never succeed in helping.

Another lesson is that the person whose eye you are to remove the spec from should be your [Christian] brother, not an outsider- for outside are the dogs (Rev 22:15).

In removing the mote from your brother’s eyes, you are giving that which is Holy and precious. This kind of painstaking task is only reserved for your [Christian] brother and not for the metaphorical swine and pigs: those who do not care about God.

Prayer: Lord, show me the log in my eyes and help me be fruitful in ministry.
—Abraham Damilola Arigi

Bible In One Year: Matthew 11-13 (In Devotional Audio)

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