"Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For ye make clean the outside of the cup and of the platter, but within they are full of extortion and excess. Thou blind Pharisee, cleanse first that which is within the cup and platter, that the outside of them may be clean also. Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For ye are like unto whited sepulchres, which indeed appear beautiful outward, but are within full of dead men's bones, and of all uncleanness. Even so ye also outwardly appear righteous unto men, but within ye are full of hypocrisy and iniquity." Matthew 23:25-28.
Our outward appearance is very important, because that is what the world sees. And as Christians, we are to reflect Christ and bring glory to His Name in all we say and do, but if we are attempting to do this with impure motives, and with an unclean heart, it will come to nothing. Jesus says: "I am the vine, ye are the branches: He that abideth in Me, and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit: for without Me ye can do nothing." John 15:5.
We can put on an outward show that will fool others, at least for a time, we can even fool ourselves, but if we are truly wanting to please God, and for our lives to be an effective witness and testimony for our Lord Jesus Christ, we must maintain an intimate, holy, and honest relationship with God in the innermost parts of our hearts. Then, stemming from a heart in communion with Him, our outward actions will be blessed, and bring forth fruit as He speaks of in the above verse.
"Nothing in all creation is hidden from God's sight. Everything is uncovered and laid bare before the eyes of Him to whom we must give account." Hebrews 4:13 NLT.
"Behold, thou desirest truth in the inward parts: and in the hidden part Thou shalt make me to know wisdom." Psalm 51:6.
"Keep thy heart with all diligence; for out of it are the issues of life." Proverbs 4:23.
"A good person produces good things from the treasury of a good heart, and an evil person produces evil things from the treasury of an evil heart. What you say flows from what is in your heart." Luke 6:45 NLT.
Has the above subject we have been discussing put a conviction in your heart that you have been going through life putting on an outward appearance that everything is fine, when, in all honesty, there is an emptiness in your heart that you do not know how to fill? Receiving the Lord Jesus Christ as your personal Lord and Savior is the only thing that will fill this emptiness. You can have satisfaction, peace, and joy far beyond anything this world can offer, as well as the assurance of everlasting life with God in Heaven!
To have this new life in Christ, you must acknowledge to God that you are a sinner, and that you are willing to repent, that is, turn from the way you have been living, and believe that Jesus shed His blood and died to pay the penalty for your sin. This is the gift of grace that is available to everyone! You, like the butterfly, can be born again and made a new creature!
"Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new." 2 Corinthians 5:17.
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