“There is one who makes himself rich, yet has nothing; and one who makes himself poor, yet has great riches” (Proverbs 13:7).
I know a man who works for a construction company, and every day he reports for work, he arrives in his old, beat-up clunker. His late model luxury car is left parked in the garage. His rationale is interesting. He hopes that his boss will see the sad state of transportation he has and will feel sorry enough for him to give him a pay raise. (I have not yet heard if his plan has worked yet.)
Things are not always as they appear. Some people strive to make themselves look better off that they actually are. Others seek to make themselves appear worse off than they really are. Because of this, it is always wise to “not judge according to appearance, but judge with righteous judgment” (John 7:24).
In Jesus’ day, there were religious hypocrites. They prayed in public to be seen by men (Mat. 6:5). They wore a sad countenance and disfigured their faces so that everyone would know they were fasting (Mat. 6:16). Jesus likened them to whitewashed tombs, because their appearance of righteousness did not correspond with the reality of their inward uncleanness (Mat. 23:27-28).
The appearance of righteousness may fool man, but it does not fool God. Focus on being righteous, not the appearance of it.
