You can't tell a book by its cover.
That's a truth which was
underscored when a staff member at New York City's Trump International
Hotel kicked multi-millionaire Duck Dynasty star Jase Robertson out of
the swank facility. It appears when the bearded Robertson asked the
Trump employee for directions to the bathroom, he was cordially and
kindly escorted out of the building.
It appears the Trump
representative took a good look at Robertson, wrongly judged he was a
homeless individual who had wandered in from the street, and
respectfully sent him on his way.
Reviewing the incident,
Robertson said two things:
1. He hoped the employee doesn't get
into trouble, and
2. he would have come to the same conclusions
and done the same thing.
No, you can't tell a book by its cover.
Here's another example: if you take a look at the folks who gather
for worship on a Sunday morning, you are going to see them as a gaggle
of nice people who, for the most part, are well dressed, respectful
pillars of their communities, who possess excellent moral standards and
are guided by lofty principles.
When God looks at that same group
of people, He sees folks who, like the rest of humanity, began living as
condemned sinners. He sees us as people who need and, unlike the rest of
humanity, have come to believe in the Savior.
You see, you can't
tell a book by its cover.
When Jesus was physically on earth and
doing the Father's business of saving us, many people took a serious
look at His actions and His exterior. When they did that, they judged
Him to be a rabbi, a blasphemer, a sinner, a Samaritan, a partygoer, an
anarchist, a disrespecter of the Sabbath.
Very few of them saw
who Jesus really was: God's perfect Son, their Savior.
Even today
there are still those who, looking at the Person of the Christ, try to
demote Him into being a philosopher, a good-deed doer, a teacher, a
healer, a charlatan, and an historical hoax.
The truth is Jesus
is who He always has been. He is the answer to our transgressions and
the One who rescues from hell all those who believe on Him. By the power
of the Holy Spirit, people can see Him for who He really is ... when
they realize you can't judge a book by its cover.
THE PRAYER:
Dear Lord, having seen Your love for us in the Person of the Savior, may
we look upon others differently. May we see all those around us as folks
who need the Good News of salvation, which comes only through Your Son,
Jesus. In His Name. Amen.
Pastor Ken Klaus
Lutheran Hour Ministries All rights reserved;
not to be duplicated without permission.
