Appearance is everything.

Say what?

OK, it isn't everything, but it certainly is important. I can't believe that someone who has been told all her life, “It is not what you see on the outside that matters, (i.e. It doesn't matter if you are not pretty) it is what is within that matters”. In other words, it is OK if you are ugly, just make sure you have a good heart and character. We can debate all day about personal appearance, but what about the appearance of circumstances and situations. Appearance is important.

In Thess. 5:22, we read in Paul's closing comments on Christian conduct, that we are to abstain or stay away from every appearance of evil. Do you recall the quip that Christians may be the only Bible some people in the world ever read? Have you heard that a picture (what people see) is worth a thousand words? As parents we are often encouraged not to have the attitude of “do as I say and not as I do” with our children. What does it do to our witness when we say one thing and do something else? Appearance is important.

Our Christian lives are lived out in public. Our lives as Christians are lived out before the world, which has a different outlook on things than we do (John 15:19). We may think we are not actually doing anything questionable, but if it even appears that we are doing something questionable, we need to realize it and stop the appearance of wrong. This does not mean we are to run around scared about our behavior and how it looks to others, but we do have to pay attention to the fact that people are always watching a person who proclaims to be a Christian. They may be watching to try to “catch” us in something, and therefore discredit our claim. The Bible does speak of us as ambassadors of Christ. We are His representatives in this world, and as such, we do need to pay attention to how we conduct ourselves. We are here for Him- not for us.

Let's look for a moment at Paul and Timothy's situation. Timothy was raised in a Hebrew/Greek home. He became a follower of Jesus. He was a Christian Jew, but his father was a Greek. There was a problem in appearance. He was not circumcised. Did Timothy need to be circumcised to make him a legitimate Christian? No. Circumcision does not make you a believer. Yet, we read in Acts 16:1-3, that Paul took Timothy and circumcised him- “because of the Jews... for they all knew that his father was a Greek.” This was clearly an appearance issue. Paul did not do this, however, because he believed there was anything wrong with Timothy. He did it to cut off any problem or reason to discredit before it could come up. Timothy was a disciple of Christ- well spoken of by the Christians in Lystra and Iconium (v.1-2). There was no question of his commitment to Christ. Paul wanted to take Timothy with him in ministry. Like it or not, correct or not, people in leadership and ministry are held to a higher standard (James 3:1). Paul knew that the Jews in the area knew that Timothy's dad was a Greek, and for that reason, took Timothy and circumcised him- an outward evidence of an inner commitment. Appearance mattered.

Similarly, in Acts 18:18, Paul had his hair cut, since he was keeping a vow. Again, Paul goes to Jerusalem and tells the elders of the church there everything that God was doing among the Gentiles through his ministry. If we look at Acts 21:20-21, we see that devout Jews in the area were concerned about hearing that Paul was teaching the Jews among the Gentiles to abandon the laws of Moses. Was it true? At this point the truth of the matter was irrelevant. They had heard- it appeared to be a certain way. It appeared that Paul was trashing the law, and that created a problem with the believers in Jerusalem. They could have had an “I did not”, “yes you did” stand off about the whole thing, but notice that the solution was not to argue, defend, or dismiss those concerned as just not being spiritual enough to understand all the intricacies of the faith. Paul simply showed by his behavior that he was not in favor of throwing out the law, which gave him a platform to speak about grace.

The point of it all is that people are watching. People are judging followers of Christ and the Christian faith based on what they see in the people who profess to serve Him- how things appear. Now, it is true that the Lord looks at the heart of matters and people, but the world that we live in looks at the outward appearance of a matter. I recently had a friend say to me, “If it looks like a duck, waddles like a duck, quacks like a duck... it is probably a duck!” That is why we have to avoid every appearance of evil. If it appears to be evil, it will be judged as such, and we are to be above reproach.

Now that we have touched on the appearance of evil, what about the other side of the appearance coin? (My husband always reminds me that there are two sides to every coin.) What about the appearance of good? Jesus addressed this when He confronted the Pharisees. Read Matthew 23, especially v.2-3,23-25, 27-28. They appeared to be wonderful, devout lovers of God, but Jesus said they were like whitewashed tombs. They looked good on the outside, but inside they were not what they appeared to be. Remember, the wolf had to put on sheep's clothing to be accepted (sheep may be dumb, but even they are not totally stupid). So what is the solution to the appearance dilemma? We must be genuine. We have to know within, who we really are, and live out who we are in Christ. We must also realize that the Lord is the only one who sees and knows our inner man and heart. People see how we act and what we do. Keeping this in mind, we do have to follow Paul's urging to...

“admonish the unruly, encourage the fainthearted, help the weak, be patient with all men. See that no one repays another with evil for evil, but always seek after that which is good for one another and for all men. Rejoice always; pray without ceasing; in everything give thanks, for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus. Do not quench the Spirit; do not despise prophetic utterances. But examine everything carefully; hold fast to that which is good: abstain from all appearance of evil.”