THE PERSON IN THE MIRROR

“Don’t copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. Then you will learn to know God’s will for you, which is good and pleasing and perfect.” – Romans 12:2.

Have you ever experienced a house of mirrors? A house of mirrors is a traditional attraction at fun fairs, carnivals, and amusement parks. It is a maze-like puzzle made out of a myriad of mirrors that are often distorted because of different curves, convex or concave in the glass to give the participants unusual and confusing reflections. In one mirror, you’re short and stubby, and in the next, long and lanky. In most cases, you are looking at a distorted view of yourself. The question is, are we looking into the mirror today and getting a distorted look at who God created us to be?

You look into the mirror and see the average person in school, the person who never seemed good enough on the job. You look into the mirror of life and see failure rather than success. Our image in the mirror will never be perfect. Perfection is never the goal when following Jesus. The more we strive for perfection, the more we fall short. But rather than sticking our heads in the sand, we should seek to become more and more like Jesus Christ.

The person in the mirror has flaws. This can be expected. What should not be expected is when we use the reality of our shortcomings and imperfections as an excuse for why we could never be more like Jesus. Jesus desires us to change and be more like Him every day. He wants that effort. Not so we can get into Heaven and act self-righteous but because we are His living example. We are the Jesus they see. Romans 12:2 exhorts and instructs us, “Don’t copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. Then you will learn to know God’s will for you, which is good and pleasing and perfect.”

It’s no mystery we are flawed, but we have the Holy Spirit to help us become more like Jesus. This is what 2 Corinthians 3:18 instructs us to do, saying, “And we all, with unveiled face, continually seeing as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are progressively being transformed into His image from [one degree of] glory to [even more] glory, which comes from the Lord, [who is] the Spirit” (AMP).

Paul said that when we look into the mirror as a believer, we aren’t supposed to see ourselves any longer but see the glory of the Lord. That means we are to see who and what Jesus Christ has made us to be in Him when we accept Him as Savior and Lord.

 Only by seeing Jesus in the scriptures can we have any real and permanent change. Next time you read the word, do your best to see Jesus’s glory instead of your shortcomings. The more of Him we see the more like Him we will become.

Discussion Questions:

1. Is it possible to see Jesus when you look in the mirror?
2. What practical steps can you take to be more like Jesus this week?