When The Ordinary Became Extraordinary
December 21, 2024
The Paint Job
April 10, 2018
“Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you clean the outside of the cup and of the dish, but inside they are full of robbery and self-indulgence. You blind Pharisee, first clean the inside of the cup and of the dish, so that the outside of it may become clean also.” – MATTHEW 23:25-26
A heart surgeon opens a patient’s chest and finds there a heart gray with sickness rather than “in the pink.” But rather than probing deep to find the cause of the ailment, the physician takes a brush and paints the heart bright pink! That certainly would not cure the sick heart.
There is a “paint job religion” popular these days. Keep a few rules. Nod at God, toss the church a bone. Placate the preacher. The only question that counts in the operating room and in daily living is this: “What’s going on inside the heart?”
Jesus’ treatment plan for sick hearts is always inside out. A clear glass cup or bowl may have surface dirt. You can wash it all off, but you still have dirt, because the inside gunk has not been removed. Wash the inside, and the whole thing sparkles.
The Lord doesn’t paint over sickened hearts. He heals the inside and the color of health glistens on the outside!
Today’s Focus
Ask the Great Physician to probe deep into the core of your heart and cut out all the disease spread within by sin.
