Mirrors are interesting things. They are totally honest. They show you what you truly look like. Whether or not that is a bad thing is up to
your interpretation of what you see. But
the result is not up to the mirror. Its
job is to reflect back the object that is directly in front of it.
Maybe this is what God was trying to
express to us in the words of Paul:
“And we, who with unveiled faces all
reflect the Lord’s glory, are being transformed into his likeness with
ever-increasing glory, which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit.”
(2 Corinthians 3:18)
In a sense, then, we are to be spiritual
mirrors. We are to reflect the glory of
God to those around us every day.
Therefore, it is important for us to portray an honest picture of
Him. It is mandatory that we show others
what He is truly like. And remember that
it isn’t our job to force an impression of Him on others. We will tell others about Him and why we
follow Him. But it will be up to them to
form their own faith in Him. And they
are very likely to base that upon our reflection.
Thankfully, we don’t have to come up with
the power or energy to bring this about all by ourselves. The strength to
succeed at this spiritual reflecting is provided through the action of God’s
Spirit that dwells inside every Christian. This is God’s doing – on our behalf.
The truth of this should impress on every mind what an important task each of
us commits to when we (1) put Christ on in baptism to have our sins remitted
and (2) receive the gift of the Holy Spirit to guide us in the process of being
less like the world and more like Christ. The longer we strive with God to
follow the lead of His Spirit, the more confidence we have. And with the increase
of confidence in Christ comes the natural result of reflecting His true
character to those around us.
So, what kind of Jesus do other people see
being reflected in you; one that gives Him leftovers or one who gives Him
everything? Does it show a committed
soldier or a timid critic? Does your
gospel have the power to save or is it based on arguments that divide? Do others see you being transformed into His
likeness or trying to live in two different worlds?
Are you showing His glory or trying to gain glory
for yourself?
Your reflection of Jesus will be obvious
to everyone. You cannot hide how you
really believe. Make the changes you
need to soon in order to help your friends and family see the real Jesus - the
one living in you.
Doug
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