John 2:13-25

We live in a visual society. Through magazines, computer images, television, and cell phone cameras, we build an impression of the people around us. I've never met Tom Cruise or Nicole Kidman, but I felt I knew a little about their life together because I saw photos of their wedding, their smiles, their glamorous clothes.

But then they got divorced, and suddenly these photos I'd seen didn't match up with the reality of who they were as a couple.

In 2:23-25, we hear about the people who were willing to follow Jesus when they saw His miracles, yet Jesus himself was unwilling to trust in them "because He himself knew what was in their hearts."

There is nothing we can hide from God. He is not distracted by our new shoes and the raise we got at work. He sees past our religious posturing and our false attempts to impress Him.

God sees the reality of our hearts - the generosity and the selfishness, the purity and the impurity. God requires us to be authentic. This can be frightening because it requires an honesty that most of us are not willing to try. But on the other hand, it means we can let go of religion's ideals and society's glamour. We are simply asked to love God "with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength." (Mark 12:30)