Things Are Not How They Appear

Read Luke 13.


You've seen the message. You probably have it on your car. It's the message on the rear view mirror that warns you: "Objects in mirror are closer than they appear." In other words, "Don't trust what you see. This mirror is lying to you. Things are not the way they appear to be."

That's the message I hear Jesus repeating all through this chapter. The things you think you see and the things you think you know—those things are not real. Things are not how they appear to be.

You think those people who were killed by Pilate and those who died when the tower fell were sinners, that they were being punished by God? Jesus says unequivocally, "No!" Things are not how they appear. A woman being healed on the Sabbath is an obvious breaking of God's law—but this is God-on-Foot who healed her. Things are not how they appear. The kingdom is like a tiny little mustard seed and you have to take a narrow door to get to it. What? This is not like the kingdoms we see every day! This kingdom is not what we've come to expect! (It's not even what we thought we wanted!)

And then there's Jerusalem. To all appearances, Jerusalem was a thriving city, a healthy provincial capital. The religious leaders were (rightly) proud of it, even of the beautiful, gleaming buildings that Herod had built for them. It was a gleaming jewel in the desert and the center of their world. And yet, when Jesus looks at Jerusalem (not just this day, but on other days as well), it makes him sad. To him, Jerusalem is a place that kills the prophets and stones those God sends to it. They reject everything God is doing in their midst. Things are not how they appear.

And what about our world? There are people who seem to have it all together, who are rich and successful. There are nations that boast of their strength and power. There are churches that pride themselves on being the biggest, best, brightest. Jesus steps into those situations and says, "Things are not how they appear."

What do you see?

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