The Ways of the World

"Then the king ordered Ashpenaz, chief of his court officials, to bring in some of the Israelites from the royal family and the nobility--young men without any physical defect, handsome, showing aptitude for every kind of learning, well informed, quick to understand, and qualified to serve in the king's palace."
Daniel 1:3&4

Daniel and many other Israelites were carried off into exile by Nebuchadnezzar, the Babylonian king. They were forced from their home land and forced to learn the ways of the Babylonians, a people who were idolaters and ungodly in every way. Babylon is an Old Testament type of the world today. Their values have in many ways become the values of the world in which we live.
    Notice the characteristics that the Babylonians were looking for in the men who were chosen to serve in the king's palace. First, they were to be young. Then they were to be without defect. They were to be handsome, intelligent and well-informed about the things of the world around them. These were the things that made them "qualified" in the eyes of the king. Surely it is apparent that these are the same things that our world is looking for in people today. It isn't just men, but women as well. All are given a standard of appearance that they are required to live up to.We are inundated each day with health and beauty ads that depict the most beautiful of women and the most muscular and good looking of men. Our world, like the Babylonians, looks at the outside of people first. Judgments are formed about individuals based on what is seen. If people are intelligent and aware of current events, they are seen to be those who will excel in life.
    How vain we have become in judging people. Young girls are damaged emotionally by trying to live up to an image created for them that is impossible to attain. Young men must dress correctly, and look a certain way to be accepted by their peers. Older people are forgotten by this world mentality. They are past their prime and therefore less valuable in the current culture. It is a sad and dangerous place in which we have become imprisoned by the values of the world.
    Thanks be to God that he does not judge people based on these things. The Bible tells us that God looks on the hearts of people, not the exterior. He judges us by our spirits within, not the external appearance. The wisdom of the world is foolishness to him. He does not honor those who are phenoms by the world's standards. We must never fall into the trap that has been set by the depravity of the world. Our image of God is skewed when we measure ourselves by these standards. Today, more than ever before in the history of mankind, it is imperative for us to live by the words that Jesus spoke. We must take his words deep into our spirits and meditate on them. He does not love us because of how we look. He loves us because we are his. We belong to him and we are valuable in his sight. So the next time the world attempts to entangle you in the web of its expectations, remember this: "You will know the truth, and the truth will set you free." (John 8:32). These words were spoken by the One who is still; The Way, the Truth, and the Life. Be free from the false expectations. You are created in God's image!