Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you are like whitewashed tombs which on the outside appear beautiful, but inside, they are full of dead men’s bones and all uncleanness.

Matthew 23:27

I have been in a rather historic city this summer and have loved seeing all the historic homes that line the streets. Some of them have been renovated and turned into museums, others are private homes. One thing is the same for them all, they are beautiful! From the outside, they appear inviting. You want to walk inside and view the history. You want to peek in the window and see what might be there.

While passing by one particular historic home, the door was opened wide and you could easily glance inside. I couldn’t help myself, I had to look! You can imagine my surprise when I noticed that the floors were old and unfinished, the walls looked dingy and the entryway was anything but inviting! It was as if no one lived there at all. How could this be right? The outside was beautiful. The lawn was well manicured. The hedges were trimmed.

We can be so similar to these historic homes. Beautiful and inviting on the outside, but having nothing to offer on the inside. Like the Pharisees, we can appear to have it all together, yet inside we have no life. Nothing to offer others. If that is true, then we must ask are we truly followers of Jesus Christ? The Pharisees were religious leaders but they denied Jesus. They chose to follow the traditions of man over believing the Words of the Savior. If we put on a good outward show but have no true life inside, we are no different.

I want my faith to be authentic. I want my life to be inviting. I want others to long to peer inside my head and heart and see what makes me tick. And when they look, I want them to see Jesus. I don’t want them to see Jesus only on Sunday. He needs to be what they see every single day.

Commit to living authentically. Know His word. Obey His word. Every. Single. Day.