Which is the Real You? 11/5/2013

"Do not eat the bread of a selfish man,or desire his delicacies; for as he thinks within himself, so he is. He says to you, 'Eat and drink!' but his heart is not with you.  You will vomit up the morsel you have eaten, and waste your compliments." Proverbs 23:6-8

We are all familiar with people who say one thing yet mean quite another.  Perhaps we are those people ourselves from time to time.  The thought process of today's Scripture is that in an effort to be well thought of, a person may display hospitality and generously invite someone to their home and offer them their finest.  All the while, however, he or she is focusing more on the inconvenience and the disappearing of their goods.  With every bite, the cost is added up and held against the guest.  Therefore, the true measure of a person is not as much what they say or do but what is in their heart.  Further, what is in the heart will eventually be revealed.

Beloved, no one enjoys a two-faced person.  They are inconsistent and insincere in all of their ways.  They cannot be counted on to be truthful and they operate from questionable motives.  The point here is not to root out and expose people with these characteristics.  They will eventually do that themselves.  Our goal should be to constantly self-examine, ensuring that we are not guilty ourselves.  We are members of the body of Christ and should conduct ourselves as he did without guile on our lips or malice in our heart.  We are called upon to be tender, loving, sincere and caring for others more than for ourselves.

Let us consider the words of the prophet Isaiah as we interact with one another: 
"He who walks righteously and speaks with sincerity,
He who rejects unjust gain
And shakes his hands so that they hold no bribe;
He who stops his ears from hearing about bloodshed
And shuts his eyes from looking upon evil;
He will dwell on the heights,
His refuge will be the impregnable rock;
His bread will be given him,
His water will be sure."
Isaiah 33:15-16

Committed,

Lee