A Word from Matthew 23

If you follow the news, you might have heard reports yesterday about some scary moments in Manhattan. A high-rise was being renovated, so that its offices could be converted into apartments. And quite unexpectedly, some of the steel support columns began to buckle, creating the possibility that the building would collapse.

Thankfully, it didn’t. And other buildings nearby were evacuated to make sure that no one got hurt. But still, it shows the danger of making things look good on the outside when what’s underneath isn’t being cared for properly.

I’m reminded of that danger when I read today’s word from Matthew 23. Jesus was warning the religious leaders about some of the ways in which they were failing to honor God. And he said to them, “Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You are like whitewashed tombs, which look beautiful on the outside but on the inside are full of the bones of the dead and everything unclean. In the same way, on the outside you appear to people as righteous, but on the inside you are full of hypocrisy and wickedness.” (23:27-28)

Now hopefully, we’re not quite as hypocritical as the religious leaders in the time of Jesus were. And yet, we all face the temptation, don’t we, to focus on “image”—how we look on the outside—while minimizing or ignoring what’s happening on the inside. And when we do that, not only do we put ourselves at risk. But just like that building in New York, we often endanger others, too.

So today, let’s ask the Lord to search and heal our inside, so that our outside will honor Him and bless others. Amen.