What Are You Looking At?

Galatians 2:6 says "As for those who seemed to be important - whatever they were makes no difference to me; God does not judge by external appearance - those men added nothing to my message." Some people place a lot of importance on a person's job title. Some people will think less of those who hold lower positions. There are people who think they can only be associated with people who earn a certain amount of money. They look at what kind of car someone drives, the house they live in, and the clothes they wear and make a decision about that person's economic status. Does a person's job, their house, their car, or their clothes make them better than someone else? What about the color of a person's skin? There are people who believe white people are superior, or at the very least smarter, than black people. What about a person's nationality or their religion? There are people who afraid of anyone who comes from the Mideast because they think they are all terrorists. There are people who refuse to associate with anyone who doesn't believe the way they do. God doesn't look at our external appearance and judge us as ugly, dumb, poor, lazy, etc. He looks at our heart. He loves each and every person regardless of their economic or social status. We are all equal because we all need Jesus! What do you look at? Are you guilty of judging people based on their outward appearance? If so, ask God to help you see people the way He sees them. Don't be afraid to reach out to people who are different from you. You may be the one God uses to bring that person to Him.

Luke 15:2 says "But the Pharisees and the teachers of the law muttered, 'This man welcomes sinners and eats with them.'" The Pharisees and the teachers of the law thought they were better and more important than others because they followed all the laws. They too were guilty of looking at the outward appearance of people. Jesus knew that everyone needed Him. He knew that the Pharisees and the teachers of the law would judge Him because He reached out to "sinners", but He didn't care. He could see each person's heart and knew that everyone was a sinner. The Pharisees and the teachers of the law didn't think they were sinners. They didn't associate with people they felt were beneath them. They missed hearing the good news that Jesus had to share because they thought they were better than everyone else. They didn't want anyone telling them that they were wrong, imperfect, or a sinner! Let's not act like the Pharisees or the teachers of the law. We need to always remember that we are all sinners. Just because we have been forgiven does not make us better than those who are not saved. They need to know Jesus too. How will they hear about Him if we don't tell them?