Matthew 23:25-28
New International Version (NIV)
25 “Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You clean the outside of the cup and dish, but inside they are full of greed and self-indulgence. 26 Blind Pharisee! First clean the inside of the cup and dish, and then the outside also will be clean.
27 “Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You are like whitewashed tombs, which look beautiful on the outside but on the inside are full of the bones of the dead and everything unclean. 28 In the same way, on the outside you appear to people as righteous but on the inside you are full of hypocrisy and wickedness.
Years ago I noticed that everything about me looked good on the outside, but the inside was a mess. My house for instance, the yard was always mowed, weeded and very clean. The inside of my house was a mess. My car was the same way, always washed and shining, but the inside was full of kids toys, garbage and french fries stuffed into the seats. I was the same way.
We come up against the enemy when we look at outer beauty today. We have to be skinny, dressed in fashion, make up on just right, busy doing things that are expected of us with an "I really care" smile pasted on our faces. What would people think if we missed our child's soccer game? If my pants are to short, I will be laughed at. Broken people concentrate on the outside so nobody looks inside.
We can meet somebody who is always put together well and after spending time with them realize that this person is an emotional wreck. The same can happen with a church. Everything looks good on the outside, the people are nice, the seats are comfortable, and the building is warm. After spending some time their you might find that it's not what you expected. Shoot, they may not even believe the way you believe.
In the bible, God doesn't spend a lot of time on outer beauty. He talks a lot about the heart. The ten commandments are all about behavior and behavior comes from within, what is in our heart. Judging comes from within, even when we judge ourselves.
Years ago, at a church I attended, one of the ushers caught my attention. This man was full of tattoos, dressed like a gangster, and never really smiled. I was new to the whole church thing and I wasn't sure what to think of this man. Then I heard his testimony. I heard what was on the inside. he was an incredible speaker. He talked about his life as a gang member and how he had even taken an other's life. When he spoke about the Lord, tears streamed down his face and the smile I had been looking for beamed across his face. He had accomplished so much growth and change on the inside that now, I saw that beauty on the outside. I had been judgmental. I had measured the man by what I saw on the outside. I noticed after he gave his testimony, the smile never went away. It was almost like once he let go and told his story, he couldn't keep it in any longer. It transformed him. But if he would have changed his appearance to please those like me who were judging, he would have been serving man instead of God.
The enemy keeps us busy looking at the outside of everything and everyone including ourselves. We keep the outside looking good because of the reaction we get from people. We are looking for approval. Paul says in Galatians 1:10 "Am I now trying to win the approval of human beings, or of God? Or am I trying to please people? If I were still trying to please people, I would not be a servant of Christ." He is speaking about the gospel, but I think this applies to any area of our lives. To focus on the outside appearance of anything more than we focus on the inside is an effort to hide something. It is a fear of man. If they don't approve of me, then who am I? This is really sad. But is it because it is easier to dress up the outside than to truly examine and heal the inside hurts? It is the inside hurt that causes the outside behavior.
Luke 16:15
15 He said to them, “You are the ones who justify yourselves in the eyes of others, but God knows your hearts. What people value highly is detestable in God’s sight.
Rick Joyner says, after quoting this verse, "Now I believe the reverse is also true. The things that are highly esteemed with God are detestable in men's sight. Somebody is going to detest what we are doing. We've got to make a choice. Who is it going to be? God or men? Who are we going to serve? Who are we going to obey?"
To be so caught up in appearance, either physical or behavioral that we do not follow God's will with all of our hearts is sin. If we are more worried about what others are saying about us or what they think of our appearance we are putting our faith in man, not God. We can't serve two God's.
We are supposed to take care of ourselves and that includes the outside, but when we are looking for approval from others we can cause others to sin. A woman who puts too much value on appearance can cause others to begin to question theirs if they are not mature enough in Christ to see what is happening. A man who needs women to approve of his appearance can cause a woman to lust after him if she is not stable in her relationship.
We are to be healed. God wants us healed. Before I told my story, one of the things the Holy Spirit told me was that if we are consumed with protecting our wounds and not healing them, then we don't have much time or all the tools needed to assist others in healing their wounds or any other work the Lord has planned for us. If we are consumed with appearance and what man thinks of us, do we really want to fulfill our calling for Christ or is it the Glory and recognition of man that we are needing? We all have a calling. he has a plan for each of us. But even in that calling, who are we serving? Who are we looking for approval from? God? Or man?
James 4
New International Version (NIV)
Submit Yourselves to God
4 What causes fights and quarrels among you? Don’t they come from your desires that battle within you? 2 You desire but do not have, so you kill. You covet but you cannot get what you want, so you quarrel and fight. You do not have because you do not ask God. 3 When you ask, you do not receive, because you ask with wrong motives, that you may spend what you get on your pleasures.
4 You adulterous people,[a] don’t you know that friendship with the world means enmity against God? Therefore, anyone who chooses to be a friend of the world becomes an enemy of God. 5 Or do you think Scripture says without reason that he jealously longs for the spirit he has caused to dwell in us[b]? 6 But he gives us more grace. That is why Scripture says:
7 Submit yourselves, then, to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. 8 Come near to God and he will come near to you. Wash your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded. 9 Grieve, mourn and wail. Change your laughter to mourning and your joy to gloom. 10 Humble yourselves before the Lord, and he will lift you up.
11 Brothers and sisters, do not slander one another. Anyone who speaks against a brother or sister[d] or judges them speaks against the law and judges it. When you judge the law, you are not keeping it, but sitting in judgment on it. 12 There is only one Lawgiver and Judge, the one who is able to save and destroy. But you—who are you to judge your neighbor?
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