GOD LOOKS WITHIN

Jesus looks at the heart

After my last two articles, I realized that there was another article I was supposed to share last month, but for some reason, I did not. So today, let us talk about what the Lord intended for us to share. Let us talk about how the Lord sees us. But first, let us look at how we see each other before we look at how God sees us.

Our judgment or perception of other people is almost always influenced by how the other person looks. For example, when we see a guy wearing a suit stepping out of a beautiful car, we instantly perceive that person to be successful. When we see someone dressed in expensive clothes, we perceive that they might be financially stable, that they do not struggle to find money, or that they have many means of getting it. Similarly, when we are going for an interview, we are told to dress well to make a good presentation. We want to give the impression that we are smart, responsible, and pay attention to ourselves. We want to project an image that we are good, innocent, capable of performing the task, and able to handle an organization's resources. It is not always the case that dressing like that works; eventually, when two or more people are called for an interview, it can turn into a fashion contest. But one thing that is certain is that most of the time, dressing well surely helps to create a good impression about ourselves.

The good impression that we give out almost helps us to mask our bad character and behavior, shielding us from getting really exposed for who we truly are. A good perception helps us to get away with things and out of bad situations. It helps to create a false narrative in people's minds, protecting us from exposing our true selves. As Proverbs 16:2 reminds us, "All a person’s ways seem pure to them, but motives are weighed by the Lord.

Can we do the same with God? Does God look at us the same way people do? Is it possible to get away with things from His presence? Can the false narrative that we create help us escape God's punishment? Or can a good impression give us an advantage before God? Before we can answer these questions, let us look at a story in the Bible. Let us look at how God selected David to be the king of Israel.

When Samuel was told to go to the house of Jesse to anoint one of his sons as king, he told Jesse to call all his sons to his presence. Jesse brought his children one by one, and each time one of Jesse's sons came into Samuel's presence, Samuel was very impressed. Samuel was looking at the appearances of the sons of Jesse and saw them as being qualified to be the kings of Israel. But every time Samuel said, "This must be the one," God said no, until David came. Of course, David was handsome, but his presentation was quite different as he was coming straight from the field being a shepherd. Yet, God saw him as the one to lead Israel and to fight for God's people. Then God told Samuel the truth: man looks at the outside appearance, but God looks on the inside. As 1 Samuel 16:7 says, "But the Lord said to Samuel, 'Do not consider his appearance or his height, for I have rejected him. The Lord does not look at the things people look at. People look at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart.'" While Samuel was busy looking at the size and the physical buildup as a qualification for the king, God was looking at the heart. And God was so impressed with David's heart that He called David a man after His own heart (Acts 13:22). That is how God was impressed with David.

At this stage, I think some of the questions above have been answered. I believe that if some of our decisions concerning our lives were made from God's perspective about people, or if we consulted Him first before making any decisions, I think we could have saved ourselves a lot of trouble, drama, time, and resources. Surely, we would be in a better position than we are in today. Divorces wouldn't be as rampant, marriages would not have lost their Christian value, people would not be scared to get married today, and hey, the experience of true and godly peace would have become a common experience for all of us today.

Another part of creating a good impression is talking well about yourself. In interviews or in other informal dialogues, you will constantly hear people talking well about themselves. Not many people expose their weaknesses to other people openly. However, Jesus gave us a completely different example of how God perceives or looks at us by giving us the parable of the two people who were praying to God (Luke 18:10-14). One talked to God about how good he has been. He even brought a scale to compare himself with the other person, boasting of his righteous deeds. On the other hand, the second person just acknowledged his weaknesses and asked God to forgive him. And God heard the one who confessed his sins and humbled himself. As Luke 18:14 concludes, "I tell you that this man, rather than the other, went home justified before God. For all those who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted."

God is looking for a humble, honest heart that doesn't want to be far away from Him. He knows our weaknesses; He knows all about our desperate desires and our ability to work ourselves out to earn or seek approval from both people and God. He knows we would do anything to impress, say the right words, or do everything in our power to be accepted. But if God accepted that human standard, David would never have become king. Of course, David sinned so many times, but God was very impressed by how quickly David would repent whenever he fell short. He was willing to take the punishment for his sins as long as it kept him and God in a good relationship. In addition, if human standards were the rule, then Jesus would never have come to die for us on that cross to take away our sins. Jesus's heart posture and condition were not the same as ours; otherwise, we would not have killed Him, and we wouldn't keep crucifying Him everyday by continuously denying His redemptive power and still continuing to live in our sinful nature (Hebrews 6:6).

To those of us who are willing to make that drastic change and come closer to God, let us all examine our hearts first. The Bible says that the Spirit of God lives inside us (1 Corinthians 3:16), and God knows us better than we know ourselves. We desperately need a heart surgery and Jesus is our perfect surgeon. We need the heart of Christ to turn things around in our lives because, through Him, it is when we come face to face with God and become fully accepted if we repent and surrender our lives to Him. Let us ask God for what He promised in Ezekiel 36:26, "I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit in you; I will remove from you your heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh."

May the Spirit of God continue to talk with you about this message inside your heart, in Christ Jesus.