Suggested Reading: 2 Chronicles 22:10-23:15
I don't know how many times I have seen the scene repeated in different sci-fi television shows. Somehow, one of the main characters ends up with an evil duplicate. Sometimes it starts with a transporter accident. Sometimes the bad guy creates a clone. Sometimes there is some alien intelligence trying to communicate. But every time one of the main characters ends up with a duplicate, they end up in a fight, both trying to convince a confused third party that they are the "real one."
"He's the fake, shoot him!"
"No, he's the fake! Shoot him!"
Somehow, the fake one always sounds more convincing but gets shot anyway. Those duplicates just never learn that it doesn't pay to accuse someone of doing exactly what you yourself are doing.
In 2 Chronicles, a woman named Athaliah had committed treason by killing all of the heirs to the throne (except one who was hidden from her) so that she could take control of the nation. When the surviving child was old enough, those loyal to the royal family set him in his rightful place as king. 2 Chronicles 23:13 tells us, "When Athaliah saw all this, she tore her clothes in despair and shouted, “Treason! Treason!" (NLT). Apparently, it did not occur to her that she was falsely accusing these people of the very crime she had been committing for years.
"He's the fake, shoot him!"
"No, he's the fake! Shoot him!"
Somehow, the fake one always sounds more convincing but gets shot anyway. Those duplicates just never learn that it doesn't pay to accuse someone of doing exactly what you yourself are doing.
In 2 Chronicles, a woman named Athaliah had committed treason by killing all of the heirs to the throne (except one who was hidden from her) so that she could take control of the nation. When the surviving child was old enough, those loyal to the royal family set him in his rightful place as king. 2 Chronicles 23:13 tells us, "When Athaliah saw all this, she tore her clothes in despair and shouted, “Treason! Treason!" (NLT). Apparently, it did not occur to her that she was falsely accusing these people of the very crime she had been committing for years.
Unfortunately, human nature lends itself to falsely accusing other people of the very things that we ourselves are guilty of. By accusing other people we don't have to face our own shortcomings. We can accuse family members of abandoning us when we are the ones who did the leaving. We can complain about a lack of communication when we are the one failing to share information. As human beings we find it very easy to accuse others when we should be looking in the mirror.
What have you been complaining about in someone else that you are guilty of yourself? Whom do you owe an apology because you should have been looking at yourself?
Thank you for a time to consider the motives of my heart and actions. Praying, “Lord let the words of my mouth and the meditations of my heart be acceptable in YOUR sight.”
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