The Foolishness of Complaining

Now the people complained about their hardships in the hearing of the LORD, and when he heard them his anger was aroused. Then fire from the LORD burned among them and consumed some of the outskirts of the camp. When the people cried out to Moses, he prayed to the LORD and the fire died down. So that place was called Taberah, because fire from the LORD had burned among them. The rabble with them began to crave other food, and again the Israelites started wailing and said, “If only we had meat to eat! We remember the fish we ate in Egypt at no cost—also the cucumbers, melons, leeks, onions and garlic. But now we have lost our appetite; we never see anything but this manna!” (Num. 11:1-6)

When I was young I had a strong dislike of vegetable soup. Well, let me rephrase that. Actually I hated vegetable soup. I mean I really HATED vegetable soup. And at this point in my life I really don’t know why. I’ve now grown to love it. In fact on a cold, blustery day I can hardly think of anything better than to sit down to a nice hot bowl of homemade vegetable soup. It takes the chill right out of the bones. But when I was a kid it was an entirely different story. No one on earth could get me to eat it. Every time my mom made it, it became a battle of wills to see who would hold out the longest. She would say, “If you don’t finish that bowl of soup you don’t get up from that table!” I would think to myself, “Fine with me! I’ll just sit here until I’m 85 years old, but I’m not a-gonna to eat that soup!” I’d sit there for hours. The fat in the broth would harden forming an orange ring of grease around the edge of the bowl. The vegetables would dry out and get all wrinklely, but I wouldn’t give in. One night I fell asleep at the table and woke up in my bed. I thought to myself, “Wow, I won!” The next morning I had vegetable soup for breakfast.

Now as a child I was very obstinate, but I wasn’t stupid. I learned early on that I compounded my troubles if I complained during this whole deal. My mother would tolerate my little hunger strikes with a bit of patience but I had to be quiet during the process. If I started bellyaching about why I didn’t like what was being served – well, let’s just say that complaining never resulted in anything good happening. If I complained verbally, even once, I knew I would get the “starving-kids-speech.” Now I know you don’t know my mother, but I’d bet you know the speech. (It seems as if every mom comes equipped with the “starving-kids-speech” as standard equipment.) She would lecture me about kids who were hungry in far away places around the world and that they would give their right arm for the bowl of soup I was refusing to eat. She would tell me about starving kids in India who never had anything to eat. And that I should be grateful that I wasn’t one of them and had the opportunity to have this soup supplied for me. It normally would contain something about not wasting food when it was provided and that I’d better grow up and begin to understand that money doesn’t just grow on trees. The intensity and the volume of the speech would increase as she gave it. By the time she got to the end of it you could probably count on a couple of pots and pans being banged around on the counters and her face becoming a rather interesting shade of crimson. (Which I honestly found mildly entertaining.) I remember on one such occasion I smugly suggested that she might want to consider sending her homemade soup over to some of those poor unfortunate children in India instead of forcing me to eat it. - - Say something like that only once to a mother and you’ll soon realize that it produces results you never want to face again. I learned at a very young age that complaining was a very foolish thing to do.

In the above passage the children of Israel are very unhappy with the way things were going for them. In spite of the fact that Almighty God was with them as a pillar of fire during the night and a pillar of cloud during the day, they still complained. In spite of the fact that Almighty God was providing free food every day through the miraculous appearance of manna, they complained. In spite of the fact that just three days prior to this Almighty God had met with them and given them instructions at Mt Sinai promising he would constantly watch over them and keep his promises, they complained. They were chronic complainers, a joyless group of people to be around. That’s what a complaining spirit does to a person – it robs people of their joy. Haven’t we all seen people who choose to complain no matter what positive things are going on in their life? If the streets of heaven are paved with gold, I half-expect that some of the people I know will still complain over how yellow everything looks.

Chronic complaining never brings about anything good. It blinds people to the blessings in life. It prevents people from growing into maturity. It enslaves people to a bitter spirit. It isolates people from ever developing close relationships. And it is extremely contagious. It’s more infectious than the swine flu. When you’re around a chronic complainer, their negative outlook can contaminate your attitude without you even knowing it. And the funny thing is complainers love when that happens. When others join the complaining chorus in a great cacophony of petulant grumbling it makes them feel justified in their actions. It gives the complainer a sense of validation that they were right all along to hang on to their irritable ways.

What makes this even more difficult to deal with is that complainers usually write it all off as a minor character flaw. “Hey, so I complain a little. What’s the big deal? It’s just the way I am.” But notice what this passage says; “Now the people complained about their hardships in the hearing of the LORD, and when he heard them his anger was aroused.” Now let me give you little hint; when you’re reading something in the Bible and it says something like, “and this aroused the anger of the Lord,” you might want pay very close attention to it. That’s not something you want to write off too quickly in your life. We think, “surely complaining is nothing like stealing, or lying, or adultery.” Really? What does God think? In our text, complaining brought down fire from God. We need to view complaining as a serious problem that often obscures our view of God and the blessings that He gives to us. A complaining spirit reveals an attitude of ingratitude. It’s the exact opposite of the kind of character that God is seeking to grow in the hearts of his children. It never brings about anything good in your life. That’s why we are reminded in Philippians 2:14 “Do everything without complaining or arguing.”

So what’s the cure to a complaining spirit? Simple – be grateful. If you’ve a bowl of hot soup to enjoy today in your home, you’re doing far better than a lot of people who will go hungry tonight. “In fact, I know of kids in India . . . .” Count your blessings and thank God for His abiding presence and His faithful provision and stop complaining.

Live the Victorious Life,
PT

It’s a Question of Identity

Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come! (2 Cor. 5:17)

When our children were younger we would on occasion take them to the circus. When you go to the circus one of the most anticipated highlights is seeing the elephants. Sometimes you would see them outside and the handler would be selling tickets to take a ride on the elephant’s back. Kids would line up and pay 5 bucks a pop to sit on the back of this gigantic animal as it trudged around in a circle over and over again with five or six kids on its back. Other times you would see the elephant performing in the big tent. There would be the big circus parade with the elephants all decked out in colorful dazzling costumes. At least one of the elephants would be carrying a pretty girl on its trunk who would wave at the audience as she passed by the stands. Most times each elephant would be holding the tail of the preceding elephant in their trunk forming a long elephant train. Then came the show, where the elephants would entertain the crowd by standing on their two front legs. They would roll a barrel across the ring and squirt someone in the audience with water from their trunk. The elephant show was always great!

As we walked around the circus we would always notice the elephants that were not being used in the show that day. It always amazed me that these huge beasts were held hostage by a little chain around their ankle which was connected to a little spike in the ground. It’s amazing to think that such a little chain, connected to such a little peg could hold such a huge beast hostage. The elephant could with a minimal amount of effort either break the chain or simply pull the peg out of the ground. But circus elephants don’t do that, because when they were baby elephants, their master, the trainer, taught them that when they felt the chain they were to submit. The baby elephants never had an opportunity to understand their identity. So circus animals are good for entertainment only because in the early days their identity was ripped away from them.

A lot of us are held hostage. We come to church and we hear about all of this power we have, all of this greatness we have, but just a little old chain still holds us down. The chain of an addiction from our past. The shackles of old worldly thought patterns which keep us from reaching our full potential in Christ. The fetters of doubt and skepticism which we accepted early on and still believe because we haven’t the courage or humility to admit that our previous way of thinking was wrong. Our previous master, the devil taught us that we are weak – unable to break the chains that held us hostage to his power and will. He commands us to submit to his wicked purpose in our life. Because we’ve become so accustomed to his shackles, we comply. As Christians we wonder what’s wrong, how can we be such powerful beings and be held hostage by any little thing that shows up.

It’s a question of identity. Like that beast at the circus trudging around and around in the same old circle, so many never really break free because they’ve never truly believed or never understood that their relationship with Jesus Christ gave them a brand new identity and new power to overcome. The Scriptures unashamedly declare, “if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come!” In Christ you are not the same old person you once were. You have not been remodeled – you have been rebuilt. In Christ you have been reborn as a brand new resourced, powerful, wise, free, living son or daughter of the King. The chains to your old way of life have been utterly shattered. There is no reason whatsoever to carry your old lifestyle, your old habits, your old way of thinking, your old attitudes, your old frustrations, your old defeats with you in your new life in Christ. It’s a fascinating thing for me to see people who have been gifted with the “riches of his glorious inheritance in the saints” and “the incomparable great power for us who believe” by the One who lavishes us with “love that surpasses knowledge” and who “is able to do immeasurable more than all we ask or imagine according to His power which is at work within us” - it is absolutely fascinating for me to watch people who have all this and more and watch them insist that they still can not break the chains that once held them. Are the chains that hold you in bondage really stronger than the power of the One who died to set you free? Really?

You see the issue isn’t that we don’t have the power to pull away from the old life. The issue is either we don’t yet understand our identity – or perhaps the hard truth is we have become so comfortable with the shackles around our ankle that we don’t really want to break away. For some the weight of the chain has become so familiar, that they can’t imagine what it would be like not to have it. Hear this: “if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come!” Don’t stay shackled! Freedom is your gift. Declare the old way of life dead and walk in the newness Christ has provided.

I’ve always wondered what might happen if someone lifted up one of those great ears that belong to the elephant and whispered, “You’re actually strong enough to experience freedom now – just break the chain.” I believe an old elephant can learn new tricks. Perhaps the Holy Spirit is whispering that into your ear this very moment that you are a new creation in Christ and that it’s time for you to break the chains that bind you through the power He grants to all who trust Him. He has ears to hear – let him hear.

Live the Victorious Life,
PT

“Are You Bull-Headed?”

When tempted, no one should say, “God is tempting me.” For God cannot be tempted by evil, nor does he tempt anyone; but each one is tempted when, by his own evil desire, he is dragged away and enticed. Then, after desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and sin, when it is full-grown, gives birth to death. (James 1:13-15)

I grew up on a cattle farm in Southwest Pennsylvania. Along with an assortment of other farm animals we normally had around 150 head of beef cattle. My job as a kid was to go out daily to count and feed the cattle and make sure none of them had wondered off. Consequently I spent a lot of time in the fields looking for strays and runaways. I really didn’t mind the task that much because of the love I have for the outdoors. Looking for lost cows gave me an excuse to go exploring along all the creeks and valleys that made up a good portion of the farm. (Often I’d go looking for runaways even when they weren’t lost!)

Now you might wonder how a cow gets lost. From my experience there were two primary ways. One way involved the hungry careless cow. This cow starts nibbling on a tuft of green grass, and when it finishes, it looks ahead to the next tuft of green grass and starts nibbling on that one, and then it nibbles on a tuft of grass right next to a hole in the fence. It then sees another tuft of green grass on the other side of the fence, so it nibbles on that one and then goes on to the next tuft. The next thing you know, the cow has nibbled itself into being lost. There was no real intentionality to it. Those cows were just thoughtless, focusing only on the desire to satisfy their hunger. The lesson I learned from those animals was, “Pay very close attention to that which you are nibbling upon!”

The other lesson on “lostness” I learned involved a particular bull we had. Every couple of years or so we would purchase a new bull to keep the blood line of the herd fresh. One such purchase was a huge brute of an animal. His size often intimidated me but he was actually a gentle animal, but often very determined to visit potential girlfriends on neighboring farms. There were many times I would have to take a rope and escort him back from one of his visits after getting a phone call from an upset farmer. Now how would he get out? He would simply walk from post to post and just lean into it. If the post held firm he would move on to the next one. He would keep this up until he found a post that had a little give to it. At that point he would press his weight into it, knocking the post over and off he would go. His “getting lost” involved a great deal of intentionality. In this case “nibbling” wasn’t the issue. It was a determination to violate the boundary line that resulted in him being in a place where he didn’t belong.

In the passage above James is teaching about how human beings often end up in a place where they don’t belong. The first thing he teaches is we’ve got to be honest about the issue of temptation in our lives. “When tempted no one should say, ‘God is tempting me.’ For God cannot be tempted by evil nor does he tempt anyone” How are you at accepting responsibility for your actions? When you do something wrong do you admit it, or do you blame someone else? I don’t know how many times I’ve heard someone rationalizing sin by saying something like, “Well I guess this is just the way God made me, so it must be OK.” Where does that line of thinking come from? It comes from living in a no-fault society. If I get a bad grade on my report card, it’s not my fault. It’s the teacher’s fault because she taught poorly or graded improperly. If I lose my temper it’s because you made me lose my temper. If I have a character flaw, it’s not my fault. It’s my parents fault for raising me like they did. Everyone is playing the Blame Game. There is an epidemic in our society of people failing to take responsibility for their actions, and inactions. No matter how many people say, “God made me this way so it must be OK,” it just doesn’t square with the truth of the Bible. It never has. It never will. If you’re going to step across the fence line, please don’t be so bull-headed as to blame it on God or anyone else. At least be honest enough to admit that you are the only one responsible for your wonderings.

James also teaches that temptation is really an internal issue – not an external one. “But each one is tempted when, by his own evil desire, he is dragged away and enticed.” It’s important to James that we understand that giving in to temptation is not a result of our culture or the environment in which we live. Temptation is something that comes from within us. He says that the source of temptation is our own evil desire. He places the responsibility for temptation squarely on the individual. The cattle on our farm couldn’t blame their “lostness” on anyone. They got lost either because they carelessly nibbled themselves into being lost or they stubbornly pushed past the boundary. But they were lost because of their own desires.

James also wants us to understand that temptation always follows a predictable pattern. It starts off with desire: “Each one is tempted when, by his own evil desires” It moves on to deception: “He is dragged away and enticed” It grows into disobedience; “Then after desire has conceived it gives birth to sin.” It results in death; “Sin, when it is full-grown, gives birth to death.” His point is, “Don’t be deceived. The grass is never greener on the other side of the fence and the price tag will always be higher than you expected to pay.” Temptation does not deliver what it promises. Once you step across the line you will find yourself facing another desire and then another one. You’ll get further and further away from the God who created you and the people who love you and one day find yourself longing to find the way back home. Don’t be bull-headed. When you’re standing at the fence line facing temptation, be content with the boundaries God has set and don’t step across that line.

Now if you’re wondering whatever happened to that persistent bull that refused to honor the fence line? Well we finally got tired of chasing him all over God’s green earth. So one fine fall day we invited him home to dinner. And to tell you the truth, I think I enjoyed the dinners we had with him as much as the time I spent looking for him after he broke through all those fence lines. Don’t be so bull-headed that you fail to realize that there is always a penalty attached when you refuse to honor a boundary.

Live the Victorious Life,
PT

Make Sure You’re Riding the Right Horse!

By faith Moses’ parents hid him for three months after he was born, because they saw he was no ordinary child, and they were not afraid of the king's edict. By faith Moses, when he had grown up, refused to be known as the son of Pharaoh's daughter. He chose to be mistreated along with the people of God rather than to enjoy the pleasures of sin for a short time. He regarded disgrace for the sake of Christ as of greater value than the treasures of Egypt, because he was looking ahead to his reward. By faith he left Egypt, not fearing the king's anger; he persevered because he saw him who is invisible. By faith he kept the Passover and the sprinkling of blood, so that the destroyer of the firstborn would not touch the firstborn of Israel. (Hebrews 11:23-28)

Two Kentucky farmers who owned racing stables had developed a keen rivalry. One spring each of them entered a horse in a local steeplechase. Thinking that a professional rider might help him outdo his friend, one of the farmers engaged a crack professional jockey. Finally the day of the race came. The horses all entered the starting cage and everyone heard the bell, signaling the start of the race. “And they’re off!” said the announcer over the loudspeaker. The two horses were neck and neck with a significant lead over the rest of the pack. But suddenly, just as they were rounding the last turn one of the horses slipped and bumped into the other one. Both fell, unseating their riders. When the rest of the pack caught up to them it was complete mayhem on the track with several other horses tripping and falling. Realizing the outcome of the race was still not determined; the professional jockey remounted quickly and rode on to win the race. Returning triumphantly to the paddock, the jockey found the farmer who had hired him fuming with rage. “What's the matter?” the jockey asked. “I won, didn't I?” “Oh, yeah,” roared the farmer. “You won all right, but you crossed the finish line on the wrong horse.” In his hurry to remount after the fall, the jockey had jumped on his competitor's horse. It doesn’t make a difference if you finish first if you’ve been riding the wrong horse in the race!

Too many people end up at the finish line realizing they have been living for the wrong things in life. The Bible provides us with many great examples of how we can avoid making such a terrible mistake. One such example is the life of Moses. In the passage above, Moses is spotlighted as a man who finished his race well. It teaches us there are four key issues that must be addressed in each of our lives:

The issue of identity. “By faith, Moses, when he had grown up refused to be known as the son of Pharaoh’s daughter.” Moses was born a Hebrew slave but he was raised as Pharaoh's grandson in Pharaoh's palace, which was the most opulent place in the world at that time. Talk about a guy with an identity crisis! He had to decide: Who am I? Am I Jewish or am I Egyptian? Am I a slave? Or am I royalty? The answers to those questions would affect the rest of his life. Recognize the nature of his decision - the real issue is not, “Who do I want to be?” but “Who does God want me to be?” I’m convinced the reason many people get stuck in life – stuck in depression, anger, discouragement – is that they are still trying to force the issue “I want to be who I want to be!” and not really asking the question, “Who does God want me to be?” They get depressed or angry or discouraged when life doesn’t pan out the way they way they planned it. If your plans don’t line up with God’s plans – you’re going to get stuck. Moses insisted on being what God made him to be and no amount of peer pressure could convince him otherwise. You’ll avoid a lot of ulcers in this world if you just accept God’s plan for your life.

The issue of responsibility. “He chose to be mistreated along with the people of God rather than to enjoy the pleasures of sin for a short time.” Moses could have enjoyed the pleasures of sin – but notice what it says (for a short time) the pleasure of disobeying the Lord only last for a short time – and then it’s payday. You can choose sin, but God gets to choose the consequences to your choice. The pleasures of sin are short and always have a price tag attached to them. Moses accepted the fact that with leadership comes responsibility. He could have temporary pleasure being the next Pharaoh of Egypt or he could go do what God had called him to do and help the people who were in pain, who needed to be set free. He could have stayed there in pleasure and today no one would even have known Moses' name. He'd be some mummy in some tomb in Egypt. Nobody would even know who he is. But he chose the right thing. He accepted his responsibility and God used him greatly.

The issue of priority. “He regarded disgrace for the sake of Christ as of greater value than the treasures of Egypt, because he was looking ahead to his reward.” Moses made some very wise decisions in determining his priorities. Moses regarded what was important and what was not important. Many people have never done that and that's why they're failures at life. They don't know why they are, they don't know what they want to accomplish in life, and they don't know what's really important. You need to establish values in life, things that you will build your life on, the things that will be important to you. The fact is if you don't decide what is important in your life, others will do it for you. Moses placed the value of know Christ ahead of all the treasures of Egypt. His priorities were clear.

The issue of difficulty. “By faith he left Egypt, not fearing the king's anger he persevered because he saw him who is invisible.” How much are you willing to commit to seeing God’s purpose in your life becoming a reality? What gives a person staying power? You must visualize your goal, focus on it. From the time that God gave Moses the vision, of setting free an entire nation after 400 years of slavery to the time it was fulfilled and they were ready to go into the Promised Land it was 80 years. Could you wait that long and not give up? Most of us get impatient because we have to wait 5 minutes in line at the grocery store. Moses was sustained through every trail because he kept his focus on His great and Mighty King. He ran the race – with all its twists and turns – but he finished well. He persevered because he fixed his eyes on Jesus.

All of us are undoubtedly riding towards the finish line. We are all on different places of the track. Maybe you’re at the starting line and just starting your race. Or perhaps you’re coming around the last bend and you can already see the finish line. But before you go any further, perhaps the wisest thing for you to do is stop and double check – Are You Sure You Are Riding the Right Horse?

Live the Victorious Life,
PT

The Wordless Sermon.

Now one of the Pharisees invited Jesus to have dinner with him, so he went to the Pharisee’s house and reclined at the table. When a woman who had lived a sinful life in that town learned that Jesus was eating at the Pharisee’s house, she brought an alabaster jar of perfume, and as she stood behind him at his feet weeping, she began to wet his feet with her tears. Then she wiped them with her hair, kissed them and poured perfume on them. When the Pharisee who had invited him saw this he said to himself, “if this man were a prophet, he would know who is touching him and what kind of woman she is - that she is a sinner.” Jesus answered him, “Simon, I have something to tell you.” “Tell me, teacher,” he said. “Two men owed money to a certain moneylender. One owed him five hundred denarii, and the other fifty. Neither of them had the money to pay him back, so he canceled the debts of both. Now which of them will love him more?” Simon replied, “I suppose the one who had the bigger debt canceled.” “You have judged correctly,” Jesus said. Then he turned toward the woman and said to Simon, “Do you see this woman? I came into your house. You did not give me any water for my feet, but she wet my feet with her tears and wiped them with her hair. You did not give me a kiss, but this woman, from the time I entered, has not stopped kissing my feet. Therefore, I tell you, her many sins have been forgiven – for she loved much. But he who has been forgiven little loves little.” Then Jesus said to her, “Your sins are forgiven.” The other guests began to say among themselves, “Who is this who even forgives sins?” Jesus said to the woman, “Your faith has saved you; go in peace.” (Luke 7:36-50)

Every once in a while my wife and I will go out on a Saturday morning to go visit the local yard sales. (In New England we call them “yaad” sales.) Everyone who has ever gone “yaad-sale-ing” dreams of finding that one phenomenal deal. You know what I’m talking about; you see an old violin someone found in their attic and you discover they only want 10 bucks for it. You buy it, and later find out it’s a genuine Stradivarius and it’s now worth over a million dollars. Oh, the stuff that dreams are made of!

Coming back to earth - in a true story from Bristol, Connecticut. A couple had a yard sale and decided to sell a mirror they’d received as a wedding gift. It was an expensive mirror but they were selling it cheap because it had a gaudy, aqua-colored frame that didn’t match anything else in their house. A man bought the mirror for $1. He was excited. He said, “This is a great deal - it still has the plastic on the frame!” He then proceeded to peel off the aqua-covered plastic before the stunned buyers and revealed a beautiful gold finished frame! Sometimes beautiful and priceless things can be concealed beneath an unattractive covering
– but you have to have an eye to see it.

In the passage above Jesus is attending a dinner party of a very popular man in town. Simon is a Pharisee. He was a meticulous observer of the religious laws of the Old Testament. He fasted, he tithed and he gave alms to the poor. He knew his Bible backward and forward. He was active in his community. He was a great man - a legend in his own mind! To everyone’s surprise and to the dismay of the host, in walks a notorious woman from the village. Everyone knew who she was just by looking at her. The original language says she was “a sinner in the city.” It’s a phrase that means she was “a woman of the night” or “a street walker.” The language indicates she was a prostitute and I’m sure she looked the part. The moment she walks into the room, it’s as if a spot light is directly on her. All the “respectable” people turn their heads and think to themselves, “What is she doing here?”

Scholars tell us prostitutes of that day often wore a vial of perfume hanging by a cord around their necks. In a culture where bathing was infrequent, a pleasant fragrance would have been their stock in trade. A drop or two would be used to entice prospective customers. But the passage tells us she poured out all her perfume. Do you see the significance of what she did? She broke the vial to anoint Jesus with the perfume. She broke the tools of her trade. It was her way of saying “I won’t need this anymore. I’m making a clean break with my past.” Then she began to kiss Jesus’ feet. This wasn’t all that uncommon in ancient times. It was one of the ways a beaten enemy surrendered to the one who had won a battle. It was not only a sign of affection from this woman. It was her way of saying, “I surrender to you Jesus. You have won your rule over me completely. I give up. Your grace has conquered my stubborn spirit.” Her eyes are now swollen with tears she can no longer hold back, and they begin to fall onto His feet. She takes the crown of her beauty, her flowing hair, and uses it to wipe the lowest part of the Son of God. It’s her way of saying, “No longer will I take pride in my beauty or who I am. I renounce my pride and I gladly bow to worship you.” What a beautiful picture of adoration and worship!

Not one single word is recorded from her. Yet there has never been recorded a greater proclamation of worship in all of history. The fascinating thing of it all is that Simon misses it – even though it’s happening right in front of him. He can’t see this beautiful display of worship because all he is focusing on is what the woman represented to him. Stop for a moment and ask yourself, “What prevented him from being drawn into her act of worship?” It’s his own pride. He can’t see the beauty of the moment, because, in his own mind, he’s so proud of who he is compared to her. He thinks of all the hard work he’s done to get to where he is – all the sacrifice – all the investment. All the time he’s given - all the things he has given up for the sake of his religion. His mind is preoccupied with thoughts of who he is and what he’s done and accomplished. And then he begins to compare himself with her. “What has she done? She hasn’t paid the price that I have. I’ve given so much more than her! I’ve worked so much harder than she has. She doesn’t even belong here! I’m a much better person than she is.” He feels so justified in his attitude towards her. It actually makes him angry. He can’t wait to tell others that Jesus tolerated a sinner like her.

Praise God that the Lord doesn’t see us the way Simon saw his uninvited guest. Jesus looked beneath the surface and knew that beneath the gaudy, ugly surface of her life there was something beautiful waiting to be made new through His grace. Jesus then turns to Simon and points out his error: Simon looked at the woman and all he saw was a sinner – he looked at himself and all he saw was self-righteousness. The problem? He should have been paying attention to Jesus. If he had truly been paying attention to Jesus, his pride would have easily been swept away and he would have joined her in this beautiful expression of worship.
Sometimes beautiful and priceless things can be concealed beneath an unattractive covering – but you have to have an eye to see it.

That’s what Jesus did with that woman and that’s what He does for us. He knows below the gaudy, unsightly surface there is something beautiful waiting to be revealed. His forgiveness and grace liberates us and strips away the plastic coverings. All it takes is an attitude of humility and a moment’s glance at His wondrous beauty. Will you fall at His feet today and allow Him to change you forever?

Live the Victorious Life,
PT