It’s possible to look like a Christian, talk like a Christian, attend church like a Christian and still be far from Jesus in your heart.
Jesus didn’t come to give us a better religious appearance. He came to transform us from the inside out.
In this 4-part message series we will discover what it means to move beyond surface-level Christianity into a genuine, surrendered, Spirit-filled relationship with Jesus!
“These people honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me.” — Matthew 15:8
Part 1. LOOKS CAN BE DECEIVING
When Christianity Becomes an Appearance
“25Woe 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. 26You blind Pharisee, first clean the inside of the cup and of the dish, so that the outside of it may also become clean. 27“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. 28So you too, outwardly appear righteous to people, but inwardly you are full of hypocrisy and lawlessness.” Matthew 23:25-28
1. Veneer Christianity focuses on what people can see.
"8‘this people honors me with their lips, but their heart is far away from me. 9‘and in vain do they worship me, …” Matthew 15:8,9a
2. God looks beneath the surface.
“People look at the outward appearance, but the LORD looks at the heart.” 1 Samuel 16:7
“…You desire truth in the innermost being…” Psalm 51:6
3. Jesus doesn’t want to renovate your image; He wants to transform your heart.
“… anyone who belongs to Christ has become a new person. The old life is gone; a new life has begun!” 2 Corinthians 5:17 NLT
“Remain in Me, and I in you … for apart from Me you can do nothing.” John 15:4–5
23Search me, God, and know my heart; Put me to the test and know my anxious thoughts; 24And see if there is any hurtful way in me, And lead me in the everlasting way.” Psalm 139:23,24
Jesus didn’t die to make bad people look better. He died to make dead people alive!
* All scriptures are from the New American Standard Bible (NASB) unless otherwise noted
