Glimpses of Grace: Treasuring the Gospel in your HomeSample

The Idol of a Picture-Perfect Home

Image is everything. That’s what the world would have us believe. But the gospel leads us into the truth and enables us to dare to uncover what lies beneath the beautifully manicured surface of our lives.

Through Jesus we can face up to who we really are in contrast to the image we would prefer to display for others. The gospel inspires in us a willingness to cede control to God over the image we are trying to portray through our lives in the home. Through Jesus we can be most concerned with imaging God and being conformed to his image.

We need God’s help to do these things! Temptations toward idolatry are all around us. Even as we manage our homes we are prone to carving idols out of the same resources that God intends for us to use to worship him instead. Praise the Lord, there is hope for those who are prone to exalting our own image for others to admire.

God’s Word teaches us that our home is not about us, but about him. At the first sign of temptation to make our home an idol we can focus on God’s delight in gathering together a people for the praise of his name—a dwelling place for God by the Spirit. As we’re making breakfast we can plan the day around serving others for the sake of the gospel, knowing that this is what God has created us to do. As we go about our errands for the home we can initiate friendships with strangers and invite them into our home because we’re no longer strangers in God’s house but citizens—even sons and daughters.

Our homes don’t need to be perfect by the world’s standards, or even by our own personal standards, but consecrated by God’s standards.