Sins Behind our Back

and the redeeming glory of grace and truth

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“Others sins are before our eyes; our own are behind our back.”

- Seneca, De Ira, AD 43

Those words slammed into my heart the first time I read them.

Others sins are before our eyes; our own are behind our back.

I feel the darkness, and deep-rootedness, of this quote in every crevice of my life, but especially in conversations pertaining to the defense of Christianity.

I think it’s easy, in a world so confused as this one, for committed Christians to blurt out truth whenever they find a chance to. Culture is so twisted, politics are so corrupted, and voices are so loud that it’s almost impossible for the average believer to sit still, quiet, and let the chaotic deceit of the world pass over him lightly.

And it’s good. Speaking truth is good.

But if you pause, if you take a moment to really listen, you might find what I have been noticing too: Christians are starting to argue for the sake of personal relief in a confused world while missing the soul-cries of the one they debate.

We focus on the argument and forget the eternal state of the person we’re conversing with. We highlight the sins of the earth and are blind to the selfish motive in our confrontations.

Think about it. The louder the chaos gets, the more frequently Christians begin to say, “It’s absurd. They’re not thinking straight. Something is seriously wrong with this generation. They’re too prideful to see.” Exhausted with the madness, we make comments about people who are walking in the same spiritual darkness we were saved from ourselves.

I do this too.

I look around myself and see a world that is slipping into darkness. It is overwhelming. It is hard to know how to respond to the confusion. So, to avoid getting lost in the shadows, I speak truth as boldly and clearly as I can.

Only, sometimes I forget that I was born of darkness too.

And, in forgetting, I speak truths that come out as daggers instead of soul-bandages. I focus on the argument and blur out the debater - whose heart should be my main concern. Instead of wanting others to see Jesus, I want them to see my point.

The whole earth echoes with the pulse of our hypocrisy.

And we do not hear the sound.

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The world needs more truth now than ever before. But, it also needs more grace.

I know a lot of people who say, “We must not preach so much of Christ’s grace and mercy that we forget to courageously unveil our filth!” While other friends say, “There is so much judgment in this world, Christians must choose to be kind in a world of hate.”

My wise mother responds, “be bold and be gentle.”

Have boldness enough to speak truth…have gentleness enough to give grace.

Christ did this perfectly.

And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth.

- John 1:14

The Light of Heaven came to tread the dusts of this earth.

He brought glory to the lowlands.

And it was glory of grace and truth.

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Grace and truth necessitate each other. Truth without grace is no truth at all, for that ignores God’s heart of compassion towards the sinner. And grace without truth is no grace at all, for it avoids warning the sinner against God’s wrath.

The trouble is, “others sins are before our eyes; our own are behind our back.” We forget the blackness of our hearts and, in our pride, ruthlessly judge a hurting world as though the unsaved should act like the saved.

We do not remember how human we are and how divine God is.

There is a certain forgetfulness in our understanding of glory. A twisted nature that somehow convinces us to believe that our holy standing before Him is somehow stemmed from some glory within ourselves. We are not wholly bad, after all. Right?

Yet, the Lord says, “all fall short of the glory of God” (Rom 3:23). In the safety of our redemption we grow ignorant to our sin and more observant of the world’s sin.

We view opposing beliefs as challenges instead of lost souls to mourn over. We view hurting people as sensitive instead of fearfully and wonderfully made, people who deserve to hear the truth of their standing before the Creator whose image they bear.

Our eyes focus in on sin and we lose sight of the real issue: lack of God.

Yahweh is the wholeness of grace and truth. He is the balance we cannot be.

May we not get so distracted fighting off darkness that we forget to shine forth light.

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For many, of whom I have often told you and now tell you even with tears, walk as enemies of the cross of Christ. Their end is destruction, their god is their belly, and they glory in their shame, with minds set on earthly things. But our citizenship is in heaven, and from it we await a Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ, who will transform our lowly body to be like his glorious body, by the power that enables him even to subject all things to himself.

- Philippians 3:18-21

I guess my main reflection this week is that I need to love Him more.

I need to love Him more so that I can better understand His love for the weeping souls of this world. So I can better understand what causes His heart to break.

I need to love Him more so that my eyes see what His eyes see, my heart feels what His heart feels, my tongue speaks the words His tongue speaks.

Because many walk as enemies of the cross of Christ. This is a truth we can courageously confront. But their end is destruction, their god is their belly, and they glory in their shame. This is a sorrow we can bear with gracious compassion. Because this was who we were once too: enemies of the cross of Christ, glorying in our shame.

Praise God, the glory of the Holy One is not like the glory of the souls of men, but full of grace and truth.

And as His children, as sojourners and pilgrims who tread the trails of His glory on this sin-laden world, we must also make our lives about grace and truth.

I want to see my sins before the world’s sins; to look into the reflection of the well of my soul and to let His redemption of my darkness fuel compassion for those who have not experienced relief in their heartaches.

I must be made aware of my need for Him. No one wants help from a perfect person - that only makes you feel guilty and pathetic. No one wants help from a hopeless person either, that only makes you feel unstable and restless.

Hurting people are often best encouraged by hurting people who have found a way to healing.

That is the irony of God’s glory. He uses “what is foolish in the world to shame the wise; […] chose what is weak in the world to shame the strong […] Let the one who boasts, boast in the Lord.” (1 Corinthians 1:27; 31).

If our sins are behind our back, we will boast in ourselves. If we boast in ourselves, we will do the world more harm than good.

But if we boast in the Lord alone…that will be a boast of glory.

A healing touch of grace and truth.

So, I will look into the reflection of my soul. I will stare into the well of my sins and out of gratitude and relief for His purification of my grime and dusts, I will generously share Him with those who ache.

I will tell of His grace and truth.