Specks and Logs and the Annoyance of Chewing

The silence in the car was welcomed, except that it magnified the other sounds that were not as desirable but annoying and unpleasant. My first instinct was to strongly suggest that the noise be kept down, but the kinder voice gently reminded me in my head that the noise maker was not intentionally annoying. He was probably unaware of his loud mastication, which was also gnawing at my nerves. I kept silent as I endured my husband finally swallowing his lunch and smiled proudly at myself for bearing up under the annoyance. Boy, could he chew loud.

After our errand, my husband and I returned to the car, and I had forgotten about the earlier infraction on my ears. Getting back inside the car, I plopped candy in my mouth and chewed it between my teeth, savoring its flavor. As I turned my head toward my husband, who was on the phone then, I saw the familiar glare of annoyance directed toward me. I knew that glare. He did not have to say a word. His non-verbal behavior was loud and clear for me to hear and understand. My chewing was getting on his nerves, and he wanted me to stop.

The kinder voice in my head was silenced by the louder voice coming out of my mouth, which pointed to what I had endured earlier. His chewing was just as annoying as mine, if not more, because he ate an entire lunch, and I only chewed a piece of candy. I would have continued expressing myself, but I was reminded of a profound spiritual truth.

We are more aware of the offenses of others than our own.

Why is it that we are more sensitive to the sins of others but blind to ours? Not only do we eagerly point out how offended we are by the behavior of others, but we indignantly rise up when someone points out our own. Matthew 7:3-5 says, “Why do you look at the speck that is in your brother’s eye, but do not notice the log that is in your own eye? Or how can you say to your brother, ‘Let me take the speck out of your eye,’ and behold, the log is in your own eye? You hypocrite, first take the log out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to take the speck out of your brother’s eye.”

Specks and logs, there is a difference. We think “specks” when considering ourselves, but we think “logs” when considering others. In this passage, Jesus shows us “how we are generally far more tolerant to our sin than we are to the sins of others” (David Guzik). Don’t we see this played out in our personal lives? We are blind to our faults yet often attempt to correct the same fault in someone else. The problem is that logs are more noticeable than specks. Others see our faults even if we don’t. And it is difficult to see others when logs blind us.

My husband’s glare at my chewing pointed to his blindness about his noisy nibbling. I am not saying loud chewing is a sin or a fault. The more profound heart condition is the annoyance we both experienced. And there is nothing wrong with pointing out someone’s sin or fault, but Jesus tells us that we must deal with our sins first. This truth bears repeating. It is not wrong to help someone remove the speck in his eye. It is loving to point out someone’s sin or fault if done appropriately. According to Jesus, one appropriate way is first to take care of the log in your eye. The log tends to get in the way of our ability to help others. The log blinds us to clearly see the speck of others.

Loud chewing is not a sin though some may agree it is annoying. I am not sure I will always be gracious to those loud nibblers in my life, but I know that my sight can be clearer as I deal with the logs in my own eye. And with clearer sight, I can continue to help my husband with all those specks!