Blindness Disqualifies the Guide.

Blindness is a disqualification for being a guide no matter how great the spin sounds

“Can a blind man lead a blind man? Won’t they both fall into a ditch?” asked Jesus.

What’s amazing about this question is the number of words that have been written to explain it. Do a Google search on “blind guides” and you’ll be served a cache of over 33 million results. Guess that means it is a popular and catchy phrase.

Next take a closer look at these results and something interesting stands out: the vast majority seem to be derivatives of this phrase from Jesus. If you didn’t know it, Home Depot sells blinds so there’s an ad on every page, there’s a few results about guide dogs and the rest are derivatives of what Jesus said (or perhaps what folks wish he’d said.)  With 33 million results it would take special dedication to thoroughly analyze and categorize the findings – if that makes a person buzz they may need to reconsider what’s important in life. You can have too much of some things!

So, in the absence of thorough research, let’s revert to impressions and guesswork. What is striking as you skim through some of the results is the number of sites ostensibly by Christian authors which are dedicated to exposing other Christian authors and ministries. Seems that just about everyone thinks something is wrong with everyone else and wants to warn the world. It’s a noble gesture that smacks of elitism.

Image by wallyg via Flickr

It’s also a classic example of our ability to use a verse of Scripture  as a screen for incredibly bad behavior. The process is simple enough: take a phrase (especially one that conjures strong visual images as this one does) and apply it with advantage to your pet crusade.You’ll find that people link to the image and forget all about what it meant in its original context. This allows us to claim scriptural backing for any lunatic idea we wish to present. [When we see this it is a sure sign that either the critics don’t have much insight,  have been poorly taught and not thought very hard about what they are saying; or they are manipulating facts to screen a different agenda. Either way, you have a clear warning to steer well clear of whatever they say.]

Context is simply linking the words and ideas that are before and after a phrase with the phrase itself. It’s not hard to do and it prevents us reaching fantastic conclusions far exceeding what the original author said. Let’s try it in this instance from Luke 6.

The section starts by saying, “Don’t judge and you won’t be judged. Don’t condemn and you won’t be condemned.” It ends talking about hypocrites who want to remove specks of sawdust from other people’s eyes but can’t see what they are doing because they have “huge planks” stuck in their own eyes.”  Now the rocket science part: Jesus intended to warn his followers about the stupidity of judging and criticizing others, especially when we fail to scrutinize our own lives using the same standards. His intention is to motivate us into getting our own act together; he wants us to critically examine our own lives so we can see clearly where we are going. [Implication: mind your own business and get on with the work of the kingdom.]

Compare that with the morass of critical and judgmental authors taking aim at all their enemies and competitors and you have a fair warning to ignore all of them! Their inability to understand the thrust of the verse they quote  justifying their warnings tells us that their opinions will be highly suspect. It may be a true case of the blind offering to lead all who can’t see for themselves (and who don’t know to avoid blind guides.)

What is it that motivates some people to appoint themselves as “keepers of the truth,” becoming judge and jury on everyone else? Some of these people are devoting serious time and energy (and no doubt expense) into vetting and condemning everyone who doesn’t share their own narrow views. If only we could convince them to devote that same energy and effort into doing something productive for the Kingdom of God instead of opposing everything they didn’t think of first.

The Bible tells us that false teachers do show up. We can spend our time reacting in fear and abject terror, afraid to trust anyone, clutching for reassurance by others. That’s a bit like knowing there is counterfeit money in circulation and spending our time trying to find it all. Good luck with that. The banks go the other way, teaching their tellers to spot the counterfeit because they have closely studied the real item. We could do well to drop the paranoia approach along with the pride-filled status of “master critic,” and just get on with the task at hand of discovering and applying the teachings of Jesus to our lives. This is the “mind your own business” approach to the Christian life.  Jesus said, “If you hold to my teaching you are my disciples. Then you will know the truth and the truth will set you free.” He seems to have been of the mindset that it’s more important for us to get on with the work he has given us to do being confident that he will guide us into the right understanding and the freedom that comes with it. What he’ll do for us he does for others.

Now has anybody seen where I put my plank?