Shiny things attract us, catching our eyes, and drawing our attention. Flashy cars with ultra-high shine added to the finish. Diamonds sprinkling the flashing fire of the sun from their hearts. Gleaming dinnerware, the table set for a fine evening of dining pleasure. The lights of Vegas, alluringly seductive in what they have to offer.
We like shiny things. We mortgage our time and our finances to pursue them, thinking we’ll have a better life once we own them.
We must remember that old saying, that everything that glitters isn’t gold. We can say it in another way: Pretty is as pretty does. Or try this one: The proof is in the pudding.
They all mean the same. Just because something is beautiful doesn’t mean it will improve our lives. We have to judge and test what attracts us to make certain we’re not chasing after hollow dreams.
2 Corinthians 11:14 tells us:
“Even Satan disguises himself as an angel of light.”
Science has come to mean more than the truth of God’s spoken word to many people. We live in an enlightened age, one that’s free of religion, filled with evolution, with man at the pinnacle of the food chain, and an unbounded future that’s anything we want to make of it.
Other people look to feel-good religions that use the Bible selectively to promote a lifestyle without consequences. God is love, and he doesn’t punish anyone, no matter how they live. It’s a reassuring lie, beautiful in its falsity, but built on unsound premises.
Satan knows how distractible we are, how easily we are pulled from what really matters, which is showing the love of Christ to our fellow man. Our Christian walk is compromised when we carry a huge mortgage, finance the most expensive car we can afford, and spend our spare time chasing exotic vacations. We forget to focus on the hungry down the street, the homeless without clean clothes, and the lost who’ve never heard the message of the cross.
If not now, then when are we planning to let our lives shine for Jesus?
Mark 16:15 tells us:
“And [Jesus] said to them, ‘Go into all the world and proclaim the gospel to the whole creation.’ ”
Let’s look for lost souls. Let’s pray that the needy will be the shiny ornament that catches our eyes and draws our attention. Let’s make sure that we’re not just Christians on the outside, but that on the inside, people will find Christ in every part of who we are.
What catches our eye is what tells the world that Jesus lives in our heart.
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Code: FGO.H.29.15.vp.esv