April 7th, 2025
By: Amanda Allums
Do you ever find yourself judging a situation and feeling that you are 100% on point until you learn a little more about the actual situation which causes you to change your opinion? We often base our opinions or views of something through our own hurts, biases, past experiences, or even the opinions of those we are close to, and that can cause a skewed perception of the reality of something. We must be careful who and what we listen to, especially the day and age we live in with so many opinions floating around on social media. However, the same thing was actually happening with the church in Corinth and Paul had to address them so they did not continue in their divisive behavior.
In 1 Corinthians chapter 1 verse 10, Paul begins to address one of many concerns he has about the Corinthians. He has received a report from someone who knows them, indicating they are divided into factions based on what well-known teacher they are loyal to. Some say they follow Paul, while others say they follow a teacher called Apollos or the apostle Peter. Others even say that they follow Christ, as if it were a separate category altogether. Paul urges them to be unified instead of divided, to find a way to agree with each other and stop defining their faith by the teacher they prefer, including him. “I appeal to you, brothers, by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that all of you agree, and that there be no divisions among you, but that you be united in the same mind and the same judgment.” 1 Corinthians 1:10
What lens are you viewing life through? Is your perception based on the reality of the Word of God? Is it based on the things you are allowing this world to fill your mind with? What are you listening to? Who are you listening to? What are you reading? What are you watching? What goes in will come out. We must have a good Biblical foundation to base our perspective on. We must be looking through the lens of Jesus.
Perception is based on what you already know, assume, or have experienced yourself. Perception may seem like something is real to us, but in all actuality it may not be reality because we are only judging the situation based on what we know. No matter how highly we may think of ourselves, we do not know everything and never will. The Oxford Dictionary describes perception as “the ability to see, hear, or become aware of something through the senses.” Oftentimes, our perception of something will form our perspective of something. If someone is telling a story, more than likely, they are telling it from their perspective because of how they perceived the situation.
For example, if a botanist, a doctor, and a meteorologist are walking in the woods together, they will all see things differently. The botanist will see the plants and mushrooms and know which ones are safe to eat or which are poisonous. They may even know how old a tree is or the type of soil they are walking on. The doctor may look at those same mushrooms and assume they would make them sick. They may see all the ways someone could get hurt in those woods and what they could use to help them. The meteorologist may be listening to the trees rustle in the wind and know if a storm is brewing or which direction they are going based on the coordinates of the sun or the stars. It is highly unlikely that any one person would have all of the knowledge those three people possess and be able to perceive all of that information at once. Whatever you are feeding your spirit and mind with is what you are filtering your perception through.
How would our perception change if we knew more about Jesus and dug into our Bible more? If we know what the fruits of the spirit are and that God expects us to be kind and patient, and anything less if not pleasing to Him, then we have something to base our attitude on. If we know God’s commandments and that we are commanded to love our neighbor as yourself, then we know that we are being disobedient if we do not love other people.
When our foundation is based on what the Word of God says, then our perception will be based on a biblical foundation and we will be able to judge ourselves and even a situation based on what Jesus has told us in His Word. We will be able to make informed decisions based on scripture. We will be filtering everything through the lens of Jesus, and when we are able to do that, then nothing will be able to divide us as Christians. We will all be on the same team with the same knowledge, and when we are tested, we will be able to stand firm in our beliefs. “Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.” Romans 12:2
Do you ever find yourself judging a situation and feeling that you are 100% on point until you learn a little more about the actual situation which causes you to change your opinion? We often base our opinions or views of something through our own hurts, biases, past experiences, or even the opinions of those we are close to, and that can cause a skewed perception of the reality of something. We must be careful who and what we listen to, especially the day and age we live in with so many opinions floating around on social media. However, the same thing was actually happening with the church in Corinth and Paul had to address them so they did not continue in their divisive behavior.
In 1 Corinthians chapter 1 verse 10, Paul begins to address one of many concerns he has about the Corinthians. He has received a report from someone who knows them, indicating they are divided into factions based on what well-known teacher they are loyal to. Some say they follow Paul, while others say they follow a teacher called Apollos or the apostle Peter. Others even say that they follow Christ, as if it were a separate category altogether. Paul urges them to be unified instead of divided, to find a way to agree with each other and stop defining their faith by the teacher they prefer, including him. “I appeal to you, brothers, by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that all of you agree, and that there be no divisions among you, but that you be united in the same mind and the same judgment.” 1 Corinthians 1:10
What lens are you viewing life through? Is your perception based on the reality of the Word of God? Is it based on the things you are allowing this world to fill your mind with? What are you listening to? Who are you listening to? What are you reading? What are you watching? What goes in will come out. We must have a good Biblical foundation to base our perspective on. We must be looking through the lens of Jesus.
Perception is based on what you already know, assume, or have experienced yourself. Perception may seem like something is real to us, but in all actuality it may not be reality because we are only judging the situation based on what we know. No matter how highly we may think of ourselves, we do not know everything and never will. The Oxford Dictionary describes perception as “the ability to see, hear, or become aware of something through the senses.” Oftentimes, our perception of something will form our perspective of something. If someone is telling a story, more than likely, they are telling it from their perspective because of how they perceived the situation.
For example, if a botanist, a doctor, and a meteorologist are walking in the woods together, they will all see things differently. The botanist will see the plants and mushrooms and know which ones are safe to eat or which are poisonous. They may even know how old a tree is or the type of soil they are walking on. The doctor may look at those same mushrooms and assume they would make them sick. They may see all the ways someone could get hurt in those woods and what they could use to help them. The meteorologist may be listening to the trees rustle in the wind and know if a storm is brewing or which direction they are going based on the coordinates of the sun or the stars. It is highly unlikely that any one person would have all of the knowledge those three people possess and be able to perceive all of that information at once. Whatever you are feeding your spirit and mind with is what you are filtering your perception through.
How would our perception change if we knew more about Jesus and dug into our Bible more? If we know what the fruits of the spirit are and that God expects us to be kind and patient, and anything less if not pleasing to Him, then we have something to base our attitude on. If we know God’s commandments and that we are commanded to love our neighbor as yourself, then we know that we are being disobedient if we do not love other people.
When our foundation is based on what the Word of God says, then our perception will be based on a biblical foundation and we will be able to judge ourselves and even a situation based on what Jesus has told us in His Word. We will be able to make informed decisions based on scripture. We will be filtering everything through the lens of Jesus, and when we are able to do that, then nothing will be able to divide us as Christians. We will all be on the same team with the same knowledge, and when we are tested, we will be able to stand firm in our beliefs. “Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.” Romans 12:2
1 Comment
Thank you