WHO DO YOU LOOK LIKE?
Who do you like? It’s a question often heard when looking at a newborn. The question most often refers to physical resemblance, as in “Who does she look like?” There are usually differing opinions as to whether the child looks more like the mother or father. This question applies to us as well.
As Christians, this question is perhaps one of the most important questions we can ask ourselves. “Who do I look like?” We look in a mirror at least once a day while getting ready to go somewhere. Like James says, we look at ourselves, but then we turn away and go on with our day, forgetting what we saw in the mirror. For our physical appearance, that doesn’t matter too much, but James isn’t talking about how we look physically. He’s talking about something much more important — our Spiritual appearance.
There is More Than One Kind of Mirror
You see, there isn’t just one mirror we look into daily. There is more than one kind of mirror. Christians look into a second mirror — the Bible. We read God’s Word regularly, or at least we should, but James wants us to ask ourselves if it shows in our lives. I spent some time in God’s Word this morning, and within one hour I found myself complaining and grumbling about unexpected interruptions I had to deal with, which were upsetting my plans for the day. My grumbling and complaining sounded an awful lot like selfishness. The verses in James played in my mind, and I knew who I didn’t look like right then — Jesus.
Spending Time Isn’t Enough; You Have to Look Closely
I had spent time in God’s Word, but when I closed the Bible, I immediately forgot about who I’m called to look like. What good is reading the Bible if we don’t let it change us? God’s Word transforms us more and more into the image of Christ, if we will let it. James goes on in James 1:25 to say, “But whoever looks intently into the perfect law that gives freedom, and continues in it — not forgetting what they have heard, but doing it — they will be blessed in what they do.”
Hearing God’s Word, or reading God’s Word, is worthless if it is just something we check off on our To-do list. When we read the Bible, we should read it with the goal of knowing God better, at the same time seeing who we are and who He calls us to be. It’s often uncomfortable to see ourselves in the mirror of God’s Word, and that’s okay. The reflection it shows us will always lead us to becoming more like Christ if we pay attention to it. Will we be just hearers, or will we be doers also? The answer is up to you. Who do you look like?
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Used with permission from Linda Condolora. To read more of Linda’s writing visit https://blog.lindacondolora.com/.
