Our church building was about two miles from the campus trailer court where Betty and I lived. It was our first year of marriage and my second year of college. One Sunday morning we were sitting in church which was just across the street from the college. A man dressed in shabby clothes, who lived in our trailer court, led the closing prayer. His prayer was simple: “Lord, forgive us for we are but worms. Amen”
After his “Amen”, two stylish looking older women sitting directly ahead of us turned to each other with up-turned noses and said something very uncomplimentary. In today’s vernacular it would be like saying, “Trailer trash”.
We weren’t certain whether his prayer or apparel caught their attention ~ probably both. After hearing the comments, I knew his prayer was right-on. So, I figure it was his shabby looks.
God is quite adamant on this subject. The prophet Samuel would have anointed Eliab instead of David as King because he mistakenly judged him on his looks. “But the Lord said to Samuel, ‘Do not consider his appearance or his height, for I have rejected him (Eliab). The Lord does not look at the things man looks at. Man looks at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart” (I Samuel 16:7). God looks through our Armani’s or J.C. Penney’s finery directly into our hearts.
God continues looking at hearts in the New Testament, “I also want women to dress modestly, with decency and propriety, not with braided hair or gold or pearls or expensive clothes, but with deeds, appropriate for women who profess to worship God” (I Timothy 2:9-10). It seems as though a damper is put on fancy apparel and modesty alone is required.
The Holy Spirit puts an exclamation mark on the heart when He inspires the following: “Suppose a man comes into your meeting wearing a gold ring and fine clothes, and a poor man in shabby clothes also comes in. If you show special attention to the man wearing fine clothes and say, ‘Here’s a good seat for you,’ but say to the poor man, ‘You stand there’ or ‘Sit on the floor by my feet,’ have you not discriminated among yourselves and become judges with evil thoughts?” (James 2:2-4)
Trailers or shabby clothes don’t make trash out of people. Besides wanting people to dress modestly, with decency, and appropriateness, God’s interest is in our hearts. The only show He wants to see is the demonstration of a good heart. “Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God.” (Matthew 5:8)
Jesus is both the gate through whom we enter the fold of God and the good shepherd that leads and protects us once we are safely within. This is a beautiful picture of God’s grace working. Jesus opens the way and leads us through the mountains and valleys. We can have a full life as we listen to His gentle voice ~ and He calls us by name, so there should be no misunderstanding.
The answer circles back to grace. The apostle Paul continues in Titus 2:11-14, “…and to live self-controlled, upright and godly lives in this present age, while we wait for the blessed hope — the glorious appearing of our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ, who gave himself for us to redeem us from all wickedness and to purify for himself a people that are his very own, eager to do what is good.” For the grace of God that brings salvation…teaches us to say ‘No’. God’s grace teaches us to change the channel or turn the TV off when our house is being trashed with ungrace! We must not allow the world to be like a leech draining the goodness out of lives.