Who Are You?
Everybody is known by somebody... it's a matter of which side of us we choose to be known. Sometimes, there are people who can see a side of us that we think we've managed to conceal. I believe in everyone, there are some areas of our lives we would prefer to stay unknown, unnoticed...for various reasons. Perhaps for fear of how we would be judged and/or be rejected for who we really are. Or perhaps it's that side of us that we would prefer to be revealed only to that special someone, or someone whom we feel is genuinely interested in our life, and accepts us despite of.
On the contrary, there are some people who reveals just too much. It doesn't matter if people really care to know. They just blurt out constantly, telling people what they like/dislike. They seem to have something to say about anything and everything that their listeners would probably think that they feel the world revolves around them. They seem to know themselves so well that they even figured out what their opinions tell about them.
There's nothing wrong with that, actually. It's good to know yourself well. But what if it's a way to hide who you really are?
I believe that my God knows me for who I really am. He is my Creator. I am even convinced that He knows me more than I know myself. Sometimes I'm confused by my own action. Sometimes I'm in denial, avoidance, or whatever crap psychological terms one can come up with. Jesus didn't need all these terms to reveal that it's hypocrisy in action.
I read in people's blog, friendsters, that they say they hate hypocrites. I think it's good to be repulsed by hypocritical behaviours if it compels us not to be one ourselves. But before we go around pointing out a hypocrite and stamp our seal of condemnation, how about we look at ourselves first. Truly, I think sometimes it takes one to know one. I think that there are some bits of hypocrisy in everyone. How obvious it appeared on the outside between 2 persons does not say very much about how greater a hypocrite one is as compared to the other. We try not to be as much as we can control it. But our knowledge is imperfect and we have our blindspots.
I think what's greater in a person, is to know the weaknesses and flaws of others and still be able to reach out to them. Whose standard am I comparing against? My own? My righteousness is like filthy rags compared to God's holiness. If I compare against true righteousness - God's - I'm condemned myself. Yet it is only by God's mercy and grace that I can embrace His righteousness because of what Jesus has done on the cross. God did not leave me to be condemned even if I'm a failure in life, or that I seem to be contributing less to society, the economy or my family, or even the Church, as compared to my peers, siblings. He reached out to the low lives, the sick, the needy, the social rejects. Can we do the same? I think by His grace, we can.
On the contrary, there are some people who reveals just too much. It doesn't matter if people really care to know. They just blurt out constantly, telling people what they like/dislike. They seem to have something to say about anything and everything that their listeners would probably think that they feel the world revolves around them. They seem to know themselves so well that they even figured out what their opinions tell about them.
There's nothing wrong with that, actually. It's good to know yourself well. But what if it's a way to hide who you really are?
I believe that my God knows me for who I really am. He is my Creator. I am even convinced that He knows me more than I know myself. Sometimes I'm confused by my own action. Sometimes I'm in denial, avoidance, or whatever crap psychological terms one can come up with. Jesus didn't need all these terms to reveal that it's hypocrisy in action.
I read in people's blog, friendsters, that they say they hate hypocrites. I think it's good to be repulsed by hypocritical behaviours if it compels us not to be one ourselves. But before we go around pointing out a hypocrite and stamp our seal of condemnation, how about we look at ourselves first. Truly, I think sometimes it takes one to know one. I think that there are some bits of hypocrisy in everyone. How obvious it appeared on the outside between 2 persons does not say very much about how greater a hypocrite one is as compared to the other. We try not to be as much as we can control it. But our knowledge is imperfect and we have our blindspots.
I think what's greater in a person, is to know the weaknesses and flaws of others and still be able to reach out to them. Whose standard am I comparing against? My own? My righteousness is like filthy rags compared to God's holiness. If I compare against true righteousness - God's - I'm condemned myself. Yet it is only by God's mercy and grace that I can embrace His righteousness because of what Jesus has done on the cross. God did not leave me to be condemned even if I'm a failure in life, or that I seem to be contributing less to society, the economy or my family, or even the Church, as compared to my peers, siblings. He reached out to the low lives, the sick, the needy, the social rejects. Can we do the same? I think by His grace, we can.
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