Have you ever held a man while he was dying because half of his body was blown away by a mortar round?? Have you ever been shot at in the inner city? Have you ever been to a country like Liberia and seen the atrocities that have taken place?
I have plenty of experience in this thing we call life.
But even with my experience I look to Scripture to understand peoples hearts:
1 Samuel 16:7 But the Lord said to Samuel, “Do not look on his appearance or on the height of his stature, because I have rejected him. For the Lord sees not as man sees: man looks on the outward appearance, but the Lord looks on the heart.”
Mark 7:21 For from within, out of the heart of man, come evil thoughts, sexual immorality, theft, murder, adultery,
Matthew 23:26 You blind Pharisee! First clean the inside of the cup and the plate, that the outside also may be clean.
You have certainly seen and experienced many things, but we lack the Lord’s eyes.
Neither of us can truly see into another man’s heart, mind, or soul. Only God can do that. That is what Samuel is saying. God sees and knows what we can’t.
It is certainly true that wickedness and evil come out of our hearts, minds, and mouths. However, as humans, only we know what is in OUR hearts.
We are not God. We possess neither His omniscience, nor His Mercy. We try to follow as best as possible His law. We fail. Fortunately, God knows us better than we know ourselves, and can be counted upon as not only a fair, but merciful judge. For His mercy is greater than ours.
May we always contemplate this petition in the Our Father, “Forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us.” I am still working on forgiving others, so this petition makes me a little nervous.
May you find peace and healing for the wounds you have suffered.