If you've ever shopped for a house, you know that the pictures often present a different scenario than what you find when you show up. The wide-angle camera lens and artificial lighting make the rooms seem larger and brighter than they truly are. Or maybe you've had the opposite experience. You've seen pictures of a home filled with trash and overgrown with out-of-control landscaping. But you knew that beneath the gloomy façade was a solid house worth saving. The point is, how things first present does not always tell the whole story. The same is true with the church of Jesus Christ. If we are careless, we might improperly judge the church in ways that will harm us spiritually. Psalm 48 urges God's people to "walk about Zion, go around her, consider well her ramparts, go through her citadels"—in other words, carefully inspect the church. And if we do so well, not based on outward appearances, but based on spiritual truth, we will be impressed by what we learn and be encouraged to tell the next generation about the God who promises to guide us forever (Ps. 48:12–14)