Reflecting on two profound thoughts of faith tonight:

Reflecting on two profound thoughts of faith tonight:

From A.W. Tozer, "A pharisee is hard on others and easy on himself, but a spiritual man is easy on others and hard on himself."

And from the Orthodox St. Mark the Ascetic (5th century), "When reading the Holy Scriptures, he who is humble and engaged in spiritual work will apply everything to himself and not to someone else."

My take away thoughts upon pondering these two quotes:

So if I am read the Holy Scriptures to judge, then let me judge myself. If I am going to read the Holy Scripture in order to apply it to someone's life, then let me apply it to my own.

As I also ponder chapter 6 of the Gospel of Luke, I am reminded; let me seek peace, and let me be merciful. Let me not to condemn, for as I condemn, so shall I be condemned. To give to the needy, and turn the other cheek when wronged. Let me love, both my God and my neighbor, but also my enemy. Let me cultivate good fruit, brought forth by the Holy Spirit, and let me seek to abide.

And I am reminded, that I must put these beliefs of love, mercy, grace to practice in my own life daily, so that I will have the strong foundation of God's holy word as my bedrock.