NIV Once-A-Day BibleSample

Matthew 15:1 – 9 Most of us learned at an early age to hide behind masks so we could fool people and keep them from knowing our real selves. We say whatever needs to be said in order to make ourselves look good. We lie or exaggerate or deceive. We try to convince others that we are really different than we are. But God sees through our games. He knows who we really are, what we really did, what we really meant. We cannot fool an omniscient God. The Pharisees claimed righteousness by obeying their traditions. Yet Jesus revealed their pretense: They were hypocrites pretending to be something they weren’t. The good news is that we don’t have to hide our true selves, no matter what is inside. We have nothing to conceal. God can take us as we are and make us into who we are meant to be.