I was interviewing a leader of a men’s ministry a few weeks ago. I asked him why he is so passionate about men’s ministry. He brought up the following verse:
There is a path before each person that seems right, but it ends in death. -Proverbs 16:25
He said, “We can rationalize and justify anything. We need other Christian brothers to call us out in order to make sure we don’t get off course.”
That thought has been going through my mind over and over again in the past few weeks. We can rationalize and justify ANYTHING. Isn’t that true?
In Matthew 5, Jesus says, “You have heard that it was said to the people long ago, ‘You shall not murder, and anyone who murders will be subject to judgment.’ 22 But I tell you that anyone who is angry with a brother or sister will be subject to judgment. . . You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall not commit adultery.’ 28 But I tell you that anyone who looks at a woman lustfully has already committed adultery with her in his heart.
When people have affairs, murder someone, or any other sin for that matter, you need to realize that it didn’t start with justifying and rationalizing the action. It started with justifying and rationalizing thoughts.
Thoughts like “It’s ok if I stare at her. It’s ok if I flirt with her. It’s ok if I meet her for coffee… etc.” or “It’s ok if I hate this person, I have a reason to. It’s ok to think about ways I could get revenge on them, as long as I don’t act on them, etc.”
Do you see where these thoughts are heading? Nowhere good.
If we don’t have people in our lives that we can be open and honest about the rationalizations and justifications we’re making in our thought life, we will end up doing things we never thought we’d do in a million years.
Don’t let it get there. Set-up systems in your life where people can speak into your life and call you out when you need called out.
Questions: What have you been rationalizing and justifying in your life that you need called out on? Who in your life has permission to call you out. Leave a comment below.
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