Be careful not to judge the message, ministry or the effectiveness of a person based on personality, style or other externals.
Luke 7:33-35 says, “For John the Baptist came neither eating bread nor drinking wine; and ye say, He hath a devil. The Son of man is come eating and drinking; and ye say, Behold a gluttonous man, and a winebibber, a friend of publicans and sinners! But wisdom is justified of all her children.
Clearly, the religious leaders condemned any pattern of living and personal style that differed from theirs to disqualify the message they heard. Note there wasn’t anything immoral or sinful in about either man so their observations was merely a means to nullify their message.
James 2:1-4 says, “My brethren, have not the faith of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Lord of glory, with respect of persons. For if there come unto your assembly a man with a gold ring, in goodly apparel, and there come in also a poor man in vile raiment; And ye have respect to him that weareth the gay clothing, and say unto him, Sit thou here in a good place; and say to the poor, Stand thou there, or sit here under my footstool: Are ye not then partial in yourselves, and are become judges of evil thoughts?”
Choosing to honor (or dishonor) one person over another based on their appearance, affluence or authority among the people of God is clearly considered the sin of “Respect of Persons”.
Isaiah 53:2 says, “For he shall grow up before him as a tender plant, and as a root out of a dry ground: he hath no form nor comeliness; and when we shall see him, [there is] no beauty that we should desire him.”
The prophet is letting us know that the purpose and message of Christ would stand apart of any kind personal or social charisma. The flesh is attracted to the things of the flesh and the natural senses, but the person and message of Christ are only understood by the spirit and the things of the spirit. The flesh should never be allowed to define or disregard spiritual things, and the Spirit should never rely on the flesh to comprehend spiritual things.
So the next time you hear or see something asserting or defining the spiritual things remember words from 1 John 4:1,
“Beloved, believe not every spirit, but try the spirits whether they are of God: because many false prophets are gone out into the world.”
and Romans 8:5-8,
“For they that are after the flesh do mind the things of the flesh, but they that are after the Spirit the things of the Spirit. For to be carnally minded is death, but to be spiritually minded is life and peace. Because the carnal mind is enmity against God: for it is not subject to the law of God, neither indeed can be. So then they that are in the flesh cannot please God. ”
Clearly, the believer needs to be able to “discern” whether or not a message is spiritually genuine or not. Instead of focusing on the flesh and unspiritual externals judge this: Is what I’m hearing consistent with the Word of God and the Holy Spirit, and Is what I’m seeing consistent with the character of Christ. Every other method is reckless and will only lead to disappointment and frustration.