People Look At The Wrong Things

"The Lord does not look

at the things people look at.

People look at the outward appearance,

but the Lord looks at the heart."

1 Samuel 16:7b (NIV)

Many times Christians who do not raise their voices and talk exuberantly when they preach, or who do not pray garrulous, well-versed, public prayers, or who do not jump up and down and dance when they praise the Lord, are judged to be lacking in spiritual maturity. It is disturbing that church people today still look at the outward appearance.

If Jesus were to visit and attend a modern charismatic church, He would be reprimanded and ostracized for His simplicity, His quiet and gentle nature, His high moral standards, His unskillfulness in manipulation, and His infrequent, short, social prayers. He would be viewed as spiritually inadequate and immature, self-righteous and legalistic, too forthright, and therefore ineffective for church ministry and growth.

Christians need to be careful not to look at the wrong things and judge other Christians by what they see outwardly in them. Instead, we need to look with our spiritual eyes and see the true hearts of people.