Disguise of the Heart!

A malicious man disguises himself with his lips,

but in his heart he harbors deceit.

Though his speech is charming, do not believe him,

for seven abominations fill his heart.

His malice may be concealed by deception,

but his wickedness will be exposed in the assembly.

Proverbs 26:24-26

The original Inspector Clouseau in the Pink Panther movies taught a great lesson about the art of disguise. The lesson is that it is very hard to disguise yourself successfully without appearing to be a complete idiot! Clouseau would brag about how good he was at concealing his identity while everyone knew he was indeed Inspector Clouseau!

These Bible verses speak of a malicious man disguising himself with his lips. Then verse 25 says that his speech is charming, but do not believe him, for “seven abominations” fill his heart. When you judge a man by how well he can speak, you are making a serious mistake. A competent actor can play any role he chooses with complete believability. That is an admirable characteristic in the theatre, but when the man becomes an actor during the rest of his life how are we to know his heart?

You may be able to disguise yourself by the words you speak and keep everyone around you from knowing about the abominations in your heart, but God knows them all.

One of the greatest blessings of an earthly father is that he has known you since you were just a baby. He saw you grow to maturity and he can tell when you are, as an adult “acting like a baby.” Before my father died I came to really depend on his evaluation of me and my decisions in life. He could see me like no one else could.

That is what I still have in my Heavenly Father. God has known me from the moment of my conception and before. He saw me grow to maturity and He knows when I am acting like a baby and He knows when I am trying to hide behind my words.

“Lord God, keep me from charming speech and abominations in my heart. Mercifully convict me of my sin and gently draw me again to Your heart. For you Oh Lord, can see me and know me better than I can see and know myself! I cannot disguise myself from You.”