FAITH CAPSULE: What you are seeing is not what God is seeing.
1 Samuel 16
The same God yesterday, today and tomorrow will not overlook the wickedness of today. The bottom line of it all is what Jesus talked about in Matthew 13:30: “Let both grow together until the harvest and at the time of harvest I will say to the reapers, “First gather together the tares and bind them in bundles to burn them, but gather the wheat into my barn.’”
All are growing together; all will not stop to grow together until the appointed time for separating ones that need to be separated. What do you represent in the life of growth? Are you wheat or tare? Both wheat and tare are benefiting from God’s supplies (rain, sunshine) which are the source for growth. However, the growth of those who represent wheat and tares is not the evidence of their righteousness before God. Oftentimes, there is no clear distinction identifying tares from wheat. Also, it cannot and it should never be a surprise to see tares growing better than wheat. In life, growth is possible in every area but not all growth can be measured as God’s blessing.
As an acclaimed believer, which one do you represent wheat or tares? It does not matter how man sees you but it matters how God sees you. Brethren can be deceived; your pastor can be made to embrace lies; but God cannot be fooled.
God sent Samuel to go and anoint David as king. While Samuel was about to make a choice among the sons of Jesse, in the absence of David, God warned Samuel against making a choice from what he saw, “But the Lord said to Samuel, “Do not look at his appearance or at his physical stature, because I have refused him. For the Lord does not see as man sees; for man looks at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart.” (1 Samuel 16:7) What you are seeing is not what God is seeing. If Samuel a prophet of God narrowly escapes making wrong choice by seeing wrongly, it is worthy to ask God to open our eyes of understanding.
Going by what is seen is what makes man to become vulnerable of becoming a victim of deception. Both inside and outside of the church, man must not go by what they see but by what God is showing. By virtue of what you see, do not commit yourself unto man. Jesus, our Lord and savior could not commit Himself to any man because He knew all men, and had no need that anyone should testify of man, for He knew what was in man. (John 2:24) There is no distinction identifying tares from wheat and it makes it important we do not go by what we see.
Prayer for today: Ask God for the grace of understanding and to know to see right in the journey of life.