Have you ever noticed how quick we are to point out the sins of others, while conveniently ignoring our own? Jesus compares that to a huge plank jutting out of our eye while we fixate on the tiny speck in someone else’s. He calls us to deal honestly with our own sin first, inviting Him to expose and remove our blind spots. Only then will we see clearly enough to help another person. After all, when we stumble, we long for grace, not harsh judgment, so Jesus urges us to treat those who have fallen with that same generous measure. Are you wiling to lay down the gavel and show grace instead?
Buried and Raised: The Death of the Old You
What has the power to truly make a person new—not just a resolution to do better or try harder—but a total metamorphosis from the inside out? Romans 6 says the old you, the one enslaved to sin, had to die. And in Christ, that’s exactly what happened. When He was nailed to the cross and buried in the tomb, your old self died with Him. But you were also raised with Him into a new life, free to walk in His resurrection power. Christ now lives in you, equipping you with strength and victory that are not your own. That’s what baptism proclaims: not a cleaned-up version of who you were, but a new creation, born again, alive in Christ!
