A log in your eye.

You do realize Jesus had a sense of humor? I read a book by Beth Moore called "Jesus, The One and Only" and I was struck by her analysis of Jesus the man. All movies (except "Passion for the Christ"- that was about as accurate I have seen so far) and most pictures portray Jesus as this small and frail man, with blue eyes and long straight hair. Most of the time, you see people just liking Him and being happy, not by how He got them to be happy. I know the Lord has an awesome sense of humor and while He was on earth, He would have used it. Everyone knows, we like to hang around people that make us happy or laugh, and God would be perfect at doing that!

Another thing Beth wrote about was most likely how Jesus would have looked and she based this on scripture. In Luke 2:52, it states, "He grew in wisdom and stature...", which to her meant He grew in physical size. Plus, Jesus was a carpenter, so He would have been very muscular. Wood workers in those days had to make boards from scratch because there weren't local hardware stores with pre-cut planks of wood. So, Jesus was a big, strong man, with brown hair and eyes. That last bit was put in because the University of Jerusalem released a composite photo of what Jesus might have looked like. It was based on numerous skull scans of Jews from that period. He looked slightly Arab, but the biggest thing I noticed was the hair!

In that period, Jews kept their hair short, about high neck length and out of the face. Also, since Jesus was Jewish, His hair would have been curly. Then His eye color would have been brown because all the people in that region (except for the Romans) looked Arabic, with light brown skin, black/brown curly hair, curly beard, and dark eyes. To confirm this, all first to the third century churches displayed images of Jesus with short curly hair and brown eyes. It wasn't until the Romans accepted Jesus did they "Romanize" Him.

Now, I am not trying to demonize the Roman Catholic church, because it was ruled by a different set of men then. But I think many people need to realize, Christ was Middle Eastern so Christianity came from the Middle East, not from the West like many feel or believe. Back to the point here...

Jesus was a slightly above average man in size and He must have been average looking. Why? Because the Father wouldn't want people to be attracted to Him based solely on His looks. You had to know Jesus first before you would follow Him. Which points to my first point, He must have a fantastic sense of humor and personality for people to follow Him so easily. And Jesus was talking to many people when He mentioned Matt 7:1-12. His humor was evident in Matt. 7:3, "And why worry about a speck in your friend's eye when you have a log in your own?"

To me, that was hilarious! The idea of finding a log tucked inside of your eyelid made me laugh. But He made a good point; Why rip on someone else's issues when you have just as many or worse issues of your own? Basically, He is saying stop picking on each other and shut-up. Words are like the blows of a sword on a person's spirit and your tongue is that sword. Or how about this, don't be judgmental unless you want to be judged yourself?

-Dear Lord, it has come to this point, late in the evening, to discuss Your word, Matt 7:3. It makes common sense to not point out other people's faults when we have just as many. I know, because I have been judgmental in the past and have seen the impact of my actions. I pray Lord for your guidance to end this attitude, once and for all! I know I can still be somewhat judgmental and I don't like it. Please forgive me for ever being this way and I seek Your grace and love to help others be accepted and not be judged. In Jesus name I pray, Amen.