God Sees You!

Now in the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent from God to a city in Galilee called Nazareth, to a virgin engaged to a man whose name was Joseph, of the descendants of David; and the virgin's name was Mary. 

 Luke 1:26-27

Late last year, I had the privilege of going to the Holy Land. It was my second trip, and it was so meaningful. One afternoon, we made the trip to Nazareth, a very busy, Islamic city today … but a very, very, very small Jewish community at the time of Christ, perhaps as low as 35 families. 

In fact, Nazareth was so small, forgotten, and disrespected that Nathanael even said, “Can any good thing come out of Nazareth?” (John 1:46). (I believe we know the answer to that one.)

What We See in Each Other

1 Samuel 16:1–13
“The LORD does not look at the things people look at. People look at the outward appearance, but the LORD looks at the heart.”

1 Samuel 16:7
Samuel was sent to the house of Jesse to find a new king. When he got there, Samuel saw Eliab, one of Jesse’s sons. “Surely, he is the one God has chosen to be the next king,” Samuel thought. Evidently, like the previous king, Saul, Eliab was tall and striking. But Eliab was not the one God had in mind.

God warned Samuel not to assess people by their physical appearance. God reminded the old prophet that he doesn’t look at the outside; he looks at the inside. So each of Jesse’s sons passed before Samuel, but God did not indicate that any of them was the man God had sent him to find. Finally, David, the youngest son, came in from the fields. Then the Lord spoke to Samuel, telling him this was the right one.