The Power of Veneer

Who is it that said, “Power corrupts; and absolute power corrupts, absolutely?”

Beauty, or ugly, is only skin deep. Pull the skin away and what are we really? Do you resemble a predator, a prowler, a primrose, or a pachyderm? Can others see a lamb’s meekness, a lion’s prowess, or a fox’s cunning? Are we a composite of different traits? Do we possess the harmlessness of a dove, and the wisdom of a serpent? It’s not what we look like, it’s what we do!

There are scores of people in the Bible who have had positions of power. From pharaohs and Kings, to prophets and slaves, power has fallen into some laps, and seized by violence, by others. One powerful ruler was Nebuchadnezzar, the greatest of the Babylonian Kings. He thought of himself as a god (big G), and built a statue of himself that everyone was expected to worship. He had long forgotten the powerful demonstrations that the God of Israel had shown him. His pride leads to a bout of mental illness. One moment he was the most powerful king on earth, and the next moment, he suffered a mental breakdown. For seven years he suffered like a stroke victim. At one point he was eating grass in the field, like cattle (Daniel 4). After seven years God restored his mental faculties and placed him back on the throne of Babylon. King Nebuchadnezzar learned a life-lesson: appearances are skin deep, and uncontrolled pride is self destructive. He also learned God is in complete control of the animal kingdom as well as mans.

Let’s take this animal verses man business a little bit further. When God came to earth, he came as a man, not an animal. John 1:14 is specific, “And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us.” Christ came into the world to save sinful man, not animals. Man did not evolve from animals; he was made in God’s image. God desires for man to walk with him in close fellowship. Nowhere in the Bible does it speak of animals enjoying fellowship with its creator. Man and animals were both made from dust on the sixth day, but, the relevance stops there. All human beings possess the qualities that distinguish them from animals: morality, reason, creativity, and self-worth. We also read, write, and have higher decision making processes. Paul says in 1 Corinthian 15:39, “All flesh is not the same flesh; but, there is one kind of flesh of man, another for beasts, fishes and birds.” Man was commissioned by God to name all animals and be above all animals.

When you look into a mirror, what veneer do you see?