Appearances

At first glance, Jesus appeared to be a failure, at least by human standards. He didn’t own anything except the clothes on his back. He said, “Foxes have holes and birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay His head” (Matthew 8:20). Although he was God in the flesh (John 1:1,14), his creation nailed him to the cross after mercilessly torturing him. Only three women and John the Apostle were with him as he died on the cross. A rich man from Arimathea named Joseph, who was also a disciple of Jesus, laid him in a tomb he had purchased. Jesus later rose from the dead. Does it seem remarkable to you that the God of the universe could raise the dead?

Who was this man, and how should we respond to him? Was he just a good teacher who taught how to live a good moral life, or was he God, as Jesus stated many times in the book of John? (John 1:1,14;5:18;8:1;59;10:30-33;11:8;14:7) This is why the corrupt religious leaders sought to kill him, because they claimed he blasphemed, claiming to be God. How will you respond to Jesus?

To the world, Jesus may appear to be a failure, but his death and resurrection were the most significant events in all of history. That is why the dating of the world is based on his birth. If you were to look at these events by appearances, it would appear as if Jesus was a tragic figure who misrepresented the truth and died because he was bad at politics. Who would expect God to take the form of a man and still run the whole universe? If God is God, why could this not be? Who would expect God to humble himself to this extent and to satisfy the just requirements of justice for those who receive him as Savior and Lord? He was the substitute for sin for all those who receive him as Savior and Lord. The corrupt Jewish leaders, even though the Jewish people were God’s special people, missed out on what God was doing. Hopefully, you will not miss out on God today. You will waste your life and miss the best.

Paul the apostle inspired by the Holy Spirit writes, “Let this mind be in you which was also in Christ Jesus, who, being in the form of God, did not consider it robbery to be equal with God, but made Himself of no reputation, taking the form of a bondservant, and coming in the likeness of men. And being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself and became obedient to the point of death, even the death of the cross. Therefore, God also has highly exalted Him and given Him the name which is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of those in heaven, and of those on earth, and of those under the earth, and that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father” (Philippians 2:5-11).

The Apostles who were Jesus' Disciples may have seemed to be failures as well. All of them were martyred except for John the Apostle, who lived to an old age. Did they waste their lives? Not according to Jesus. Paul also says, “Examine yourselves, to see whether you are in the faith. Test yourselves. Or do you not realize this about yourselves, that Jesus Christ is in you?—unless indeed you fail to meet the test! I hope you will find out that we have not failed the test. But we pray to God that you may not do wrong—not that we may appear to have met the test, but that you may do what is right, though we may seem to have failed. For we cannot do anything against the truth, but only for the truth. For we are glad when we are weak and you are strong. Your restoration is what we pray for” (2 Corinthians 13:5-10).

Jesus said, “Do not judge by appearances, but judge with right judgment” (John 7:24). How many people have been led astray by appearances? The wisdom book of Proverbs says, “Like a gold ring in a pig's snout is a beautiful woman without discretion” (Proverbs 11:2). Jesus was not overly handsome as Isaiah prophesied, “For He shall grow up before Him as a tender plant, and as a root out of dry ground.
He has no form or comeliness; and when we see Him,
There is no beauty that we should desire Him” (Isaiah 53:2). However, there were beautiful people in the Bible who were also Godly, for instance, King David, Esther, and Abraham’s wife Sarah etc. Beauty can be a great source of pride, but it can also be misused as a weapon to punish, manipulate, and control. It is corrupted when it is all about power. Beauty, strength, and love oriented to God is most beautiful. (Proverbs 31)

How then should we judge? If we look from only the natural view, we will miss God, but when we look from God’s view, the spiritual, we will find God. Man does not naturally think of spiritual things since he is corrupted by sin without Christ. It takes deliberate effort to think of these things and resist the forces of evil in doing so. What are you seeking in life? That you will find. “Whatever we are seeking is what pulls our life together in whatever shape it is and makes it what it is.” (Dallas Willard)

Bertram Russell was asked what he would ask Jesus on the judgement day and he said, “Why didn’t you give me more evidence?” God would say, “Because I wanted you to do what you want.” What do you want? What you want will determine what you seek. God says in his word through the prophet Jeremiah, and Jesus said something very similar, “And you will seek Me and find Me, when you search Me with all your heart” (Jeremiah 29:13; Matthew 7:7-8). It is going to take some effort on your part, maybe a lot of effort, for there will be resistance from the flesh, the world, and Satan. (1 John 2:16)

What do you want? What do you want above all else? What are you seeking in life? God has given you free will and will not overwhelm it. Do you want God’s Kingdom with King Jesus or the World with the Prince of the air, the devil? You make the choice. It is advisable to choose with substance and discernment rather than appearances; it will have eternal significance and consequences.