Title
The Private Man
Scripture
That He would grant you, according to the riches of His glory, to be strengthened with might through His Spirit in the inner man.
(Ephesians 3:16)
Devotional
No matter what the outward circumstances, there can be peace within. No matter how weak the flesh, the Spirit of God is always willing to strengthen the inner man. We too often attempt the reverse. We put on a façade while inwardly, “We are like whitewashed tombs which indeed appear beautiful outwardly, but inside are full of dead men’s bones and all uncleanness.”(1) How we look is not at all as important as who we are. How foolish of us to attempt to please the outward man and ignore God. We must never forget, “The Lord does not see as man sees; for man looks at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart.”(2) God not only looks at the heart, He is deeply concerned with it. If the heart is right, the whole being is right. If the heart is unclean, the whole is unclean. “Do not let your adornment be merely outward . . . rather let it be the hidden person of the heart.”(3)
(1) Matthew 23:27, (2) 1 Samuel 16:7, (3) 1 Peter 3:3-4