Matthew 23:25-28 In these verses Jesus is speaking to the teachers of the law and Pharisees, but the same principles apply to all of us. Certainly, the more influence a person wields the greater is his responsibility, all of us exert influence on those who are around us to a greater of lesser extent. The Pharisees always said the right words and were dressed exactly right - sometimes even to excess. All too often their practice and attitudes were far different than what was apparent on the outside. In that day tombs were often white washed to make them attractive and easy to see; but inside there were still dead bodies in various stages of decomposition. Today we put our loved ones in beautiful costly caskets dress them in their best, put plenty of make up on them and bury them in cemeteries with manicured lawns. But inside the casket the person is still dead. Beauty does not make up for dead! One can take a car and restore the outside like brand new, but if the engine is bad the car is not going anywhere. How can you tell if something is alive or dead? Does it have the characteristics required of something or someone who has life? Is it genuine or fake? Does it have all the characteristics of the genuine article? As we examine our own lives; how does the inside compare to what people see on the outside? Do you have a WYSIWYG personality? (What You See Is What You Get) What if you fail the test? Well, first you need to determine if there is really life. Have you ever asked to be forgiven and invited Jesus to be Lord and Savior? If not, that's the first order of business. If you have then it's time for some major house cleaning. You'll need lots of help from God and His Word. We need to repent of everything in our lives that does not look like Jesus - He's our pattern. Let's not be satisfied with out house standards of cleanliness for our dining room tables.

If It's Only Clean Where It Shows, Is It Clean?