This must be why old sayings, no matter how cliche, actually stand the test of time and still ring true today – because, as Solomon said, “there is nothing new under the sun.” So my grandma’s wise words and favorite sayings are relevant for every generation. Being a lover of books, (remember books, all you digital agers?) one of my favorite wisdom sayings is – “you can’t judge a book by its cover.” The meaning of these words may appear self-evident, nevertheless given our human natures, I and perhaps you, too, dear readers, continue to make judgements based on a book’s cover, without ever taking the time to open up the book and actually read what’s inside.

However, this old maxim actually refers to people, not books. Probably because we make the same mistake with people that we do with books, every day. We see people’s “covers”, their outward appearance, and we make judgements about them based on how they look, without ever taking the time to get to know them, which would allow us to learn what the person is like on the inside. Everyone has a story, but I can’t learn that story unless I look beyond the cover and “read” what’s inside. With people, listening is how I “read” what lies beneath the cover of their unique book – their life story.

Some say that in this age of social media, such as Facebook, all we see of other people is their “cover” – a cover that they carefully craft and present to the world via what they choose to put online. There is no way for us to open up the cover online and see what lies beneath. But this is not a new problem brought on by a digital age. How far back does this tendency to “judge a book by its cover” go? Well, consider what happened with Samuel, a prophet of God, who lived more than three-thousand years ago. God called Samuel out for this very thing – the exclusively human habit of “judging a book by its cover.” Here’s what happened –

“The Lord said to Samuel, ” . . . I am sending you to Jesse of Bethlehem. I have chosen one of his sons to be king. . . . You are to anoint for Me the one I indicate.’ Samuel did what the Lord said. . . . Then he consecrated Jesse and his sons and invited them to the sacrifice. When they arrived, Samuel saw Eliab and thought, ‘Surely the Lord’s anointed stands here before the Lord.’ But the Lord said to Samuel, ‘Do not consider his appearance or his height, for I have rejected him. The Lord does not look at the things man looks at. Man looks at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart.’ ” (1 Samuel 16:1-7)

Aren’t you glad that our Creator, our Heavenly Father, doesn’t judge us by our outward appearance, but by our hearts? God doesn’t judge me by how expensive or how fashionable my clothes are, by my hairstyle, hair color, skin color, height, weight etc. Why? Because my heart is more important to God than how I look on the outside. Jesus confirms this truth when He says these words –

“Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You are like whitewashed tombs, which look beautiful on the outside but on the inside are full of dead men’s bones and everything unclean. In the same way, on the outside you appear to people as righteous but on the inside you are full of hypocrisy and wickedness.” (Matthew 23:27-28)

Calling someone a “whitewashed tomb”! That is a pretty big insult, to be sure. Jesus was saying the religious leaders of His day looked good on the outside, because they wore the appropriate robes befitting their position in the culture BUT – Jesus knew their hearts and He called them out in front of everyone, revealing that on the inside they were hypocritical and wicked, conditions of the heart that Jesus equated with the decay of death found inside a tomb. (remember Lazarus had only been dead four days and he already smelled really bad when Jesus called to him to come out of his tomb)

Jesus didn’t have to “judge any books by their covers” because His special x-ray vision sees all of us clearly, completely and accurately, not just our exteriors or covers. This is made clear in Hebrews where I read –

“Nothing in all creation is hidden from God’s sight. Everything is uncovered and laid bare before the eyes of Him to whom we must give account.” (Hebrews 4:13)

I find this revelation both disconcerting and comforting. I can’t hide anything from my Heavenly Father, He sees all of me – the good, the bad and the ugly. (and still He loves me, died for me and extends to me His mercies “new every morning.”) I can’t hide from Him, (Adam and Eve tried to do that unsuccessfully) and all that I am and all I have done is “uncovered” before my Heavenly Father’s eyes. No matter how diligently I attempt to “whitewash” my outward appearance, it will never be enough to deceive my Heavenly Father one bit as to what’s going on inside of me.

So here’s my situation. I can’t hide from God and I find myself without cover before God. BUT – in an ironic twist God is both my hiding place and my cover. King David said this about God –

“You are my hiding place; You will protect me from trouble and surround me with songs of deliverance.” (Psalm 32:7)

And remember when God said to Moses –

“Look, stand near Me on this rock. As My glorious presence passes by, I will hide you in the crevice of the rock and cover you with my hand until I have passed by. Then I will remove My hand and let you see me from behind. But My face will not be seen.” (Exodus 33:21-23)

This account reveals God as both hiding place and covering for Moses, and today, this same God is exactly that for me and for you, too, dear readers. He wants to be our hiding place and our covering amid the dangers and the storms of this life. The psalmist said of God –

“I will say of the Lord, ‘He is my refuge and my fortress, my God, in whom I trust.’ . . . He will cover you with His feathers, and under His wings you will find refuge; His faithfulness will be your shield and rampart.” (Psalm 91:2-4)

It is Jesus’s blood that covers my sins. So even though God is the One before whom everything about me is “uncovered and laid bare” as it says in Hebrews, God is also the One who provides my covering. Kind of like in the garden with Adam and Eve, their sin was not hidden from God. They were exposed and naked, BUT – it was God, Himself who made their new clothes (coverings) before He sent them out of the garden because of the choice they had made.

Wow, have I digressed! But perhaps not so far as it would appear. Being an avid reader, I don’t want to be one to go around judging books by their covers. I have been wrong too many times. I want to look beyond the cover. I want to discover whatever uniquely inspiring story is written on those pages inside the cover. Likewise, I don’t want to make this same mistake with people either. I want to look beyond outward appearances to what is on the inside, the heart of a person. Unfortunately, I don’t possess my Heavenly Father’s perfect x-ray vision. So I have to take the time to listen, not only with my ears, but with my heart, in order to learn the stories of others, allowing me to see beyond their outward appearance. The words that hang next to my front door are a constant reminder of this daily challenge – they are a sacred charge to me, saying –

“It is only with the heart that one can see rightly; what is essential is invisible to the eye.” (Antoine de Saint Exupery)

What is essential to know about a person is not going to be known from the cover, from their outward appearance. Like God said to Samuel, I would do better to look at the heart like God does. Grandma was right all along when she advised me not to judge a book by its cover. Even though I don’t have my Heavenly Father’s supernatural vision, I can take the time to look beyond the cover, beyond outward appearance, and give everyone a chance to be seen, heard and known for who they are, not what they look like. And just maybe there will be those who will do the same for me.

“Do not judge, or you too will be judged. For in the same way you judge others, you will be judged, and with the measure you use, it will be measured to you.” (Matthew 7:1-2)

sincerely, Grace Day