It’s important to check yourself on occasion. It’s a way to know what’s going on in your head and in your heart. I say this knowing full well there is a sinister vibe that likes to flow through my own soul. It’s not something I am proud of. And, truth be told, I sometimes seek it. And I feed it. I do that and am conscious of how utterly wrong it is.
That’s the start of the spiral. If I allow it, if I am unwise, it can infect all of my actions, and hinder relationships. It just might have catastrophic impact. Edwards was wise to pause and check himself nightly.
Jonathan Edwards Resolution 37
Edwards’ Resolution #37 (as it was written)
Resolved, to inquire every night, as I am going to bed, wherein I have been negligent, what sin I have committed, and wherein I have denied myself: also at the end of every week, month and year. Dec. 22 and 26, 1722.
Edwards’ Resolution #37 (in my modernized language)
Regularly consider where I’ve let my guard down or fallen short, and question my motives in all things so I am seeking after God rather than my selfish desires.
Check Yourself Before you Wreck yourself
In 1992, Ice Cube hit the charts with his song, Check Yo’ Self. It’s prototypical of the era; a catchy tune with profanity laden lyrics and a vibe of angst and bravado. I loved it then, and I am genuine when I admit I enjoy it to this day.
They song’s lyrics paint a portrait from the eyes of the lyricist. It basically says “watch out for me and make damn sure you don’t get in too deep.”
Turn the vantage around to look from the perspective of the hearer, though, and we view a lifetime of consequences for how we chose to live. We are shown the disastrous outcomes of who we surround ourselves with and the choices we make.
A lot of wisdom that, believe it or not, has biblical application.
The Cultural Significance of Check Yourself
Urban dictionary shows the following as the most commonly accepted definition of what it means to check yourself:
“Take a step back and examine your actions, because you are in a potentially dangerous or sticky situation that could get bad very easily. Often in a harmful manner.”
Again, very biblical application and a reminder of how we can backslide in our lives if we’re not careful. It reminds me of perhaps the most ridiculous song lyric of all time, courtesy of Ice Cube’s collaborator, one Dr. Dre.;
“Never let me slip. Cuz if I slip, then I’m slippin’.” (Nothin’ but a G Thang)
Realize You’re Slippin Before you Slip
Long before Ice Cube or Dr. Dre, though, there was Nationwide Safti-Break Centers. According to unverifiable (by me at least) internet reports, the company began utilizing the slogan, “Check it before you wreck it.” Perhaps this slogan is the origin of the phrase, Check Yourself Before You Wreck Yourself.
Who really knows> But, with that context in mind, consider the function of vehicle brakes. They stop you from going where you should not or do not want to go. They protect you from trains on tracks, from oncoming traffic, from accidentally going the wrong way on a one way road.
In short, brakes prevent disaster. If they fail to function, we are hurt, killed or do harm to others.
Fortunately for us, there are warning signs that our brakes are starting to fail before they actually do. If we ignore those signs, the product gets worse and we expose ourselves to higher risk.
That’s why it’s important to check your brakes. It’s also why it’s important to check ourselves.
Did Your Eye Really Cause you to Sin?
God wants us to routinely check ourselves. There are many verses speaking to this fact. For instance, one oft-cited verse is Matthew 5:29-30 because of the imagery it produces.
So if your eye—even your good eye[a]—causes you to lust, gouge it out and throw it away. It is better for you to lose one part of your body than for your whole body to be thrown into hell. And if your hand—even your stronger hand[b]—causes you to sin, cut it off and throw it away. It is better for you to lose one part of your body than for your whole body to be thrown into hell.
Matthew 5:29-30 NLT
Let’s get right to the likely question; can an eye or hand cause you to sin? And, if so, are you really supposed to gouge it out or cut it off?
In short, no. And, no.
What Causes Sin?
How can I confidently say the hand and eye do not cause sin?
First, note that Jesus said “if” instead of “when” or something to assure that it does or will. Does your eye or hand have a mind of its own? No, you have one brain and it dictates your actions. Not your hand. Not your eye.
That being the case, neither your eye nor your hand will really cause you to sin. To be clear here, sin is always birthed in the mind and heart. So, blinding yourself is not commanded, and it certainly will not keep you from sinning.
Need more proof? Consider Paul’s reprimand to the adulterer and church in Corinth (1 Corinthians 5:1-5, 11; 2 Corinthians 2:6-11). He didn’t tell anyone to pluck out eyes. He told them to expel the man from the church until he has a changed heart.
So why does Jesus use the eye and the hand as examples? I believe it is intentional and representative. Your hand shows physical actions. Your eye represents the unseen. When we sin, it begins in and is driven by our minds and hearts.
Check Yourself and Expel Sin
So you also should consider yourselves to be dead to the power of sin and alive to God through Christ Jesus.
Do not let sin control the way you live;[a] do not give in to sinful desires.
Romans 6:11-12 NLT
Sin is rooted in personal desires. It is greed and lust, pride and jealousy, and a host of other emotions or longings. A humbled heart and mind that seeks after Christlikeness is one that expels such pollutants.
Therefore, genuinely seek a heart like that of God. That is, pursue a divine character. Secondly, be sure that what is seen by others and by God, is genuinely representative of a pure heart. And remember that sinning in secret is still sinning.
Check yourself. Do it, before you wreck yourself.