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Thoughts of...Lying Eyes
Things are not always as they appear.
For example, it would appear looking at me that I have two eyebrows. The fact of the matter is that I have one! I will occasionally alter reality with my razor for personal vanity reasons.
On Tuesday mornings we minister to some of the residents of Foothills Manor, an assisted-living facility in our community. Some of the residents do not appear to be that old, but their mental capacities are all but non-existent. Others look to be very, very old, but they are “sharp as a tack” mentally. You simply cannot tell by looking at the person whether or not a meaningful conversation is possible.
The film “A Beautiful Mind” made the point quite clearly that things are not always as they appear.
The Word of God, however, reveals things as they really are. The Word reveals the contents and the motives of our heart, where no man can see (, , ).
By all appearances, the Church at Ephesus was healthy and vibrant (). In the midst of the opposition the early church faced at the hands of Imperial Rome, this church patiently endured in doing the work of Jesus Christ (). However, beneath the surface where only the Lord could see, this church had a huge problem…a heart problem ().
They may have been very busy, with a bulletin chock full of programs, but they had stopped loving Jesus. Jesus was not interested in their work ethic; of paramount importance to Him was their love ethic. The Church at Ephesus looked like they where firing on all cylinders, but, in reality, they were in dire trouble.
Christianity is not just a system of beliefs and teachings, it is a lifestyle, a way of living (). A great many people are fluent in the Christian lingo and have erected facades to give others the appearance of holiness. But what goes on inside their homes, in their marriage and/or in the relationships with their children? What does their Christianity look like at “Ground Zero?” What is really in their heart?
I don’t know. All I know is that things are not always as they appear.
But God does know and He reveals the truth ().
Pastor Doug
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