When
I think about the things we do to make ourselves look good, I’m reminded of
some of the things we do to make ourselves look good spiritually. Jesus
addressed this issue with the religious leaders in Jerusalem (Matt. 23). They
followed an elaborate set of religious rules that went well beyond the ones God
had given them. They worked hard to look good to their peers, to prove that
they were better than others. But their hard work didn’t impress God. Jesus
said to them, “You cleanse the outside of the cup and dish, but inside [you]
are full of extortion and self-indulgence” (v.25). What the Pharisees did to
make themselves look good to others actually revealed that they were not good
at all.
Every
culture values different religious behaviors and traditions, but God’s values
transcend cultures. And what He values isn’t measured by what others see. God
values a clean heart and pure motives. Spiritual health is expressed from the
inside out.
We
might look good on the outside without really being good on the inside. (RBC)
