What Reflection are We Radiating as a Church and as a Christian?

James 1:23-25
23 Anyone who listens to the word but does not do what it says is like a man who looks at his face in a mirror 24 and, after looking at himself, goes away and immediately forgets what he looks like. 25 But the man who looks intently into the perfect law that gives freedom, and continues to do this, not forgetting what he has heard, but doing it--he will be blessed in what he does.

You have never seen your face. You have seen a reflection of your face, maybe a video of your face, or maybe a photo (picture) of your face. Not unless you can take your eyeballs out with the nerves attached have you been able to see your face with your physical eyes. It can’t be done. What this passage though is referring to is looking into the Word of God is like looking into a spiritual mirror. If we want to see what our physical face looks like, we have to look in a physical mirror. Likewise, we can't see our spiritual self, but we can look in the mirror of God's Word and see who we are in Christ. God's Word is spiritual and reveals our spiritual self (John 6:63). We need to become as sure of our spiritual image as we are of our physical image. After all, we can't directly see either one; we look at something else and take what we see by faith.

A man who doesn't do what he has heard in God's Word (Jas 1:22) is like a man who looks in the mirror but doesn't take any action. He goes on his way and forgets what he has seen. Likewise, we have to keep in front of us the image God's Word paints of our spiritual self and act accordingly. Notice God's Word is called "the perfect law of liberty." This is specifically referring to the New Covenant and all the liberty brought to us through the atonement of Christ. It is only through the grace given to us by the finished work of Christ that we can truly see our new selves and be blessed.

Very often the Church hold’s up a mirror reflecting back the society that surrounds it rather than the Word or the life of Jesus Christ that is our true mirror. If the world despises a sinner the Church should love them. If the world cuts off aid to the poor and suffering than the church should provide healing, food, and shelter. If the world oppresses than the Church should take the hand of the oppressed and lift them up. If the world shames and creates an outcast than the church should proclaim God’s reconciling love and show the way of forgiveness. If the world seeks profit and self-fulfillment the Church seeks sacrifice and service. If the world demands retribution than the Church dispenses grace. If the world has factions that bring dissension, than the Church should join in unity. If the world is destroying its enemy, the Church loves them both.

What mirror or reflection are you bringing the world today, does it reflect the Word and Jesus Christ or does it reflect the world?

The Importance of the Word

We seem to go to the Word of God as a last resort, we’ll have people pray for us, lay hands on us, look for others to put their arms around us to make us feel good. But we won’t study and meditate on the Word to allow it to grow inside of us. The Bible is a package of seeds that needs to be taken out of the package and planted in good soil (our heart). It is that Word that we need to depend on in our lives. It is the Word that can live inside of us to grow us into the likeness of Jesus Christ.

The story in Luke 7:18-28 John the Baptist had already boldly proclaimed on four different occasions that Jesus was the Christ (Luke 3:16-17; John 1:29-36, and 3:26-36). God had also given John a special sign that Jesus was the One who should come (John 1:33). In light of these things, John's question here can only be interpreted as doubt on his part. It's possible that John shared the mistaken idea with most people of his day that the Messiah was going to establish a kingdom on earth and break the dominion of the Romans over the Jews. Whatever the reasons, it is interesting to note that the man who Jesus said was the greatest of all Old Testament people (Mt 11:11) had doubts even after God had borne witness in his heart as to who Jesus was. Also, all of the great things Jesus spoke of John were said after and despite the doubts that John expressed.

We see that Jesus did not answer John's disciples immediately but rather performed many miracles in that same hour, including healing of the blind. Then He told John's disciples to report back to John about the blind seeing, the lame walking, the lepers being cleansed, the deaf hearing, and the dead being raised. Jesus had already healed a leper (Mt 8:2-4) and two lame men (Mt 9:6-7 and John 5:2-15), and He had recently raised the widow's son from the dead at Nain (Lu 7:11-17).

At first glance Jesus' response to John doesn't seem adequate. Jesus later says all kinds of things about John that would seem to be more edifying. Most people would rather have had the most famous person in the nation speak highly of them than to have Him say, "Look at what's happening and you will be blessed if you will believe."

But Jesus was giving John His best. He fulfilled the prophecies of Isa 35, which spoke of the miracles the Messiah would perform. Jesus performed every miracle that Isaiah prophesied He would do and threw in the raising of someone from the dead just to make it clear that this was no fluke. Then He told John to believe.

This was Jesus referring John back to the Word. He was using the very scriptures John had quoted as God's instructions to him. Jesus sent John back to the Word to deal with his discouragement. It was only after John's disciples had left that Jesus began to say the complimentary things that most of us would rather have had.

Those whom God honors the most are the ones who He gives the Word instead of some lesser, emotional response.

Most of us are like John the Baptist, we are looking for accolades, or kudos, and not the Word. Jesus wants to give the best He has to us and that is His Word. Jesus could have sent the messengers back to John the Baptist with accolades towards John, but He sent his Word instead. What we need is God’s Word, it is that preference that God wants to give us. We can look for kudos, or an arm around us, a pat on the back to make us feel good, but what is needed is God’s Word. Depend and act on God’s Word and your life will never be the same. It will lift you out of the rut, overcome obstacles and giants in your life. God’s Word will never fail you.

Polarization and Reciprocal Grace

I am amazed how we as Christians (including myself) get caught up in the day to day happenings that surround us. Be it politics who are ruining us with moral decay, drug use and the drug lords that rule our cities, the Hollywood producer who is polluting our culture, or the wars we are fighting, the abortionists, or the whatever bad circumstances that we all find ourselves in, it's all on how much we have retreated from the gospel of grace.

Though were active in our endeavors in combating evil in the many ways that it surfaces in our sphere of influence we tend to use the wrong weapons of these wars. We may find ourselves in the middle of a cultural war but the weapons of our warfare are not of the flesh. We are involving ourselves in the wrong war using the wrong weapons. Our war is not against flesh and blood. If we find ourselves fighting against anything made of flesh we are combating the wrong war. Jesus said that there was one distinguishable indelible mark that stood out and showed who we are as Christians and that is the love that we have for one another.

Who then becomes our enemy, is it the drug dealer, the politician, the abortionist, other people in other nations, the man across the street, who is it? Are we so still stuck with the law that we have forgotten about grace? Instead we have traded the gospel of grace for political correctness, moral superiority, and judgment of anything outside the law or our own rules. We have been polarized with the lines we have drawn with our so called enemy on the other side when all we have done is not loved that same enemy that Jesus has taught us to love. If polarization has occurred than we must cross those lines with love in our hearts. That very same grace that has been given to us we need to be reciprocal to others. Most likely the reason why we have not been reciprocal with grace is that we do not understand the love that Jesus has for us and the amazing grace that has been bestowed to our lives.
Eph 6:12
12 For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.

The weapons of our warfare are not of the flesh but mighty through God and Jesus Christ our Lord. Thus we fight with love and as 1 Corinthians 13 says that we can do nothing and become anything good without love. No great spiritual awakening, no great miracles, no mighty move of faith, no great spiritual growth, no great benefit of society can happen without love. It will all come to nothing.

When we love is when others will see Jesus love for us, which is true reciprocity.


I Jn 2:9-10
9 He that saith he is in the light, and hateth his brother, is in darkness even until now.
10 He that loveth his brother abideth in the light, and there is none occasion of stumbling in him.