Mirror, Mirror

After my paternal grandmother died in 1981, my mother inherited a beautiful mirrored tray, containing a flat-backed hair brush, a comb and a hand mirror.  A couple of years ago, she gave it to me.  It now sits on my dresser, where I should be able to enjoy it.  

I like to wear jewelry, not the hugely expensive kind, but the type you buy at home jewelry parties. My friends, Kathy and Jennifer, are reps for a wonderful, Christian company that sells it, and over the years I've built quite a collection.  In conjunction with this, I've developed a bad habit.

Although I have a perfectly excellent storage box for my jewelry, it is in the bathroom.  When I return from a foray out into the wild world, I walk into the bedroom, throw off my shoes and take off all my jewelry.  Where do you think it lands?  That's right!  In the mirrored tray.  Pretty soon, the tray overflows with beautiful things, and when I want to find something with which to accessorize my look, I just "shop" from the tray.  smh...

So, yesterday, I decided that this had gone on long enough.  I began to divest my tray of its baubles, taking them to the tall chest in my bathroom.  As I got down toward the bottom, I realized ... there's a mirror down there.  It sort of shocked me, though if you'd asked me, I would have told you it was there.  All those pretty necklaces, earrings, bracelets and rings were obscuring it.

It struck me forcibly that this was a metaphor for our relationship with the Word (Greek: Logos). What do I mean by that?  Logos is used as both a name of God's Son, Jesus, and also for His revealed, written word, the Bible.  Look at these verses:

"In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.  The same was in the beginning with God.  All things were made by Him, and without Him was not anything made, that was made."

John 1:1-3

Lots of repetition in that verse, for emphasis, it seems.  John wants us to know as we compare these verses with Genesis 1 that the "God" who spoke the universe and all created things into existence was Jesus, the Logos.

Later in John, the only gospel that records Jesus' high priestly prayer, Jesus prayed in John 17:17 - - "Sanctify them by thy truth, thy word is truth."

In Acts 12:24, 13:49 and 19:20, we see phrases pertaining to how the gospel message (God's word) was spread:
"the word of God increased and multiplied", "the word of God was spreading", "the word of God continued to increase".... In each of these cases, "word of God" is the Greek word, "logos".

God's physical revelation, God-With-Skin-On, our Savior and God's written word to us, the Bible. Same word used for both.  Wow.  Sort of elevates the Bible, doesn't it?

The Word of God is also described as a mirror, which brings me back to my little anecdote.  (You suspected I had hopeless wandered off the trail, didn't you?!)  Look at 2 Corinthians 3:16-18 ---

16but whenever a person turns to the Lord, the veil is taken away. 17Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty. 18But we all, with unveiled face, beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory, just as from the Lord, the Spirit.

and James 1:23-24 ---

23For if anyone is a hearer of the word and not a doer, he is like a man who looks at his natural face in a mirror; 24for once he has looked at himself and gone away, he has immediately forgotten what kind of person he was. 25But one who looks intently at the perfect law, the law of liberty, and abides by it, not having become a forgetful hearer but an effectual doer, this man will be blessed in what he does.

It is in this last passage by Jesus' half-brother, James, we see the strongest correlation between the Word of God and a mirror.

You see (pun intended), when my mirror was obscured by all those admittedly beautiful things, I could not even see the mirror.  I was so distracted by them that I even forgot the mirror was there! This can easily happen in our Christian walk as well.  We can allow our attentions to be drawn away by wonderful things that, in the final analysis, are not the best things.  Wonderful things (even people) can cause our priorities to get skewed; they can cloud our vision, even.

Daily, at the very least, we need to push aside wonderful, beautiful distractions, worthwhile distractions, to clearly look into God's Word.  Here's why:

1.  The Word of God is a light that illuminates our path.  Psalm 119:105
2.  The Word of God is like a sharp, double-edged sword that pierces our spirit so that God's truth can seep in.  Hebrews 4:12
3.  In the James passage, The Word of God is a mirror, that reveals what God next wants to do in our lives, transforming us from "forgetful hearers" into "effective doers".  James 1:23-24
4.  The Word of God washes us clean, purifies and consecrates us, as John 17:17 says.
5.  The Word of God is life and health to your body, "nourishment to your bones"! Prov. 3:8 and 4:22  (That one is for you, Dr. Moss!)
6.  Finally, in the 2 Cor. 3 passage, the Word allows us to realize and behold the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ.  And, if that weren't enough, the Word through His Holy Spirit transforms us "from glory to glory"!  By feasting on the Word of God, we become more like Him.

Let's recommit ourselves to pushing those beautiful baubles aside in order to give God His pre-eminent first place in our day!  I mentioned Dr. Moss, my chiropractor in #5 above.  He was telling us in a seminar last night about the importance of starting our day with good, positive affirmations.  I can think of none better than the powerful, living written revelation, the Word of God.

Lord Jesus, that I may KNOW you!  For You are the very incarnation of God the Father!  May I daily see You, revealed in Your holy Word, seeing The Word in the Word, and be daily transported from glory TO glory, walking resplendent here until my very soul and spirit are transported to that eternal glory, where I will walk resplendent with you forever.  Make it so, Lord. In Jesus' name, amen.

Not All Smiles

Good morning,

Not all smiles are created equal.  Last night, I saw a Facebook meme in which a woman is smiling while holding a sign that says, "My abortion was fabulous.  Thanks."

Sorry, I'm not buying it.

Although each of us is born a sinner, we are made in the image of God.  It goes against the image of God for a person to enjoy murder.  For that reason, I believe that people who appear to rejoice in their sin repeatedly are either "faking it" (their joy) or they have had their consciences deeply scarred.

In 1 Timothy 4:2, Paul describes this as follows:

Speaking lies in hypocrisy, having their conscience seared with a hot iron;

When this type of spiritual scarring happens, it results from repeated acts of evil by the person him/herself or because evil has been repeatedly perpetrated upon a person, so that they see no other course of action but to "reproduce" what they have known.  In many such cases, the desperate one is so deceived that he or she is totally out of touch with his or her pain.  That is how deeply it is buried.

So, no, not all smiles are equal.  Sometimes, a smile is an act of defiance, a deliberate attempt to camouflage the deepest agonies of the soul.

But, as long as there is physical life, there is hope.
There is grace greater than all my sin, your sin...anyone's sin, everyone's sin.
The blood of Jesus Christ can cleanse and restore even the vilest of sinners.

I don't know what all the crimes were, ascribed to the thief who hung beside Jesus on the cross. (Luke 23:40-43) The Bible does not elaborate.  But, I do know that Jesus heard his dying plea and rescued his soul right there on the spot.  Such is the grace and mercy of our Savior.

Christian, when you see things like that meme, does your heart break?  Our hearts often hurt when we see a young child fighting cancer, or someone with a physical deformity, or even an animal about to be "put down".  But, when we see someone with a sickness unto spiritual death, our reaction is often animosity or, worse, indifference.

"Oh, WE don't do that?!"

Really?  Take a look:

https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=1004775329542529&set=gm.1046566905388605&type=1&theater

Did you read the comments people had made?  I wonder how many of them would call themselves Christians?

Imitation - - - Paul exhorted the Corinthians in 1 Corinthians 11:1 to imitate him because he imitated Christ.  And, that is God's scriptural command to us today, via the apostle Paul.  The dictionary defines the word "imitate" as: to model oneself on, to copy, to echo.
What do you think Jesus' response would have been to this woman in the picture?  Would He have called her names like, "killbilly" or "it"?  Would He have said she made him "barf"?  Would He have thanked her for killing her baby?

Those Facebook comments don't echo the truth of Jesus, His righteousness and His love, with that woman or others like her.  Those comments reek of self-righteous hatred.

Do we really believe that what we say we believe is really real?  Do we?
Do we have any INKLING of the extent of the love of Jesus?
Do we really believe that Jesus paid it ALL, that He can save "even the least of these"?
That was me - - - "the least of these".  That was you too, if He has saved your soul.
And, He died for this woman in the picture, as well as billions more like her, with all their sin wounds, with all their pain, with all their fake smiles.

Do we really believe that what we say we believe is really real?  Do we?
If we do, what are we going to do about it?
Are we going to imitate Christ, whose name we bear?

Lord God, when you say that your Word is alive, and powerful, and sharper than any double-edged sword, (Hebrews 4:12) I think that this is what you mean.  Imitating my Savior, at all times....I don't do that.  Your Word is so challenging, so convicting to me that it often feels like a scalpel cutting the rot out of my soul.  Help me, Holy Spirit, please help me model my life after His.  In Jesus' name, amen.

Additional Source:
https://www.google.com/webhp?sourceid=chrome-instant&ion=1&espv=2&ie=UTF-8#q=imitate%20definition

And More Weapons . . .

Good Morning!

This morning, we continue to look at the remaining weapons that the apostle Paul lists in this passage (Ephesians 6:12-20), weapons which are essential for enabling us to bring honor to God as we live out our Christian faith.

Helmet of Salvation
One of Satan's biggest lies is to cause us to doubt that we really belong to Jesus Christ.  Another "biggie" is to cause us to believe that there is little we can do to further God's Kingdom.  This is why it is imperative for us to remember two truths:
1.  Once we have embraced Jesus as our Savior, we are His, forever and ever.  Regardless of our emotional state at the moment, we are His.  Regardless of how we wander, we are His.  Regardless of the mistakes we make, He is waiting for us to turn back to Him in confession and deep repentance.  He is waiting with open arms.
2.  Every Christian is crucial to God's plan to bring Him glory.  There is no such thing as an insignificant Christian.  In fact, if Satan is slamming you up against a wall, very likely God wants to use you in a powerful way, and this is why Satan is opposing you so greatly.  Never believe that you are insignificant.  Some of you reading this may have physical limitations and believe that, because of that, you are finished, done, washed up.  Well, my dear, that is a lie.  As long as you can think, you can pray.  We'll talk more about that later in this post.  Get to praying, as often as you can.  Satan hates that.

So, don't let Satan "get inside your head" about this and discourage you!  Put on that helmet of salvation every day.  You are a child of the King, a resplendent daughter (or son)!  Get out there and GLEAM!

Sword of the Spirit - God's Word
Psalm 119:89-120
I was just reading this passage and I encourage you to go read it also.  The Psalmist is painting a beautiful picture of how much God's written Word means to him.  (Of course, at that time, the only written word he had was the Old Testament law, which is why he constantly refers to "your law".)
In Hebrews 4:12, the writer (whom many believe to be Paul, others Luke or James...it's disputed who the author was) tells us straight up how powerful God's written Word is:
"For the word of God is living and effective and sharper than any double-edged sword, penetrating as far as the separation of soul and spirit, joints and marrow. It is able to judge the ideas and thoughts of the heart."  (Holman Christian Standard Bible)
The Bible is alive.  How is that possible?  What the writer is saying here is that the Bible can cause cataclysmic change in people's lives when they read it, just as if it were a living person.
In the Ephesians passage, Paul says that the Bible is the sword of the Holy Spirit.
So, the living Holy Spirit, the 3rd Person of the Holy Trinity, uses this mighty sword to change lives. How amazing!
Christian, do not neglect the daily reading of this Book.  Read it prayerfully and reverently and allow the Holy Spirit to change your life through the reading.  The Bible is God's personal, special message to us, His Children.  Don't underutilize this powerful weapon!

Prayer
How do you view prayer?  In a previous post, I went into great detail about this topic and I won't rehash it here.  But, please remember that prayer is one of your most powerful weapons, Christian! Paul began this dissertation of spiritual weapons with Truth and ended it with Prayer.  Bookend and bookend.
One thing I want you to notice here is that Paul, as a minister of the gospel, asks the Ephesians to pray for him, specifically that he would be given the necessary boldness to preach the gospel of Jesus Christ as he should. This is what every godly minister of the gospel hopes that his congregants will pray for him.  Do you pray for your godly pastor?  Please do!  It matters.  Boldly proclaiming the truth of the Word of God is a fearsome responsibility.  Our godly men in the pulpit need all the prayer and support they can get.  It always touches my heart when our pastor prays right before his sermon and asks the Holy Spirit to guide his words and not to let him stand in the way of what the Holy Spirit wants to say through him.  I appreciate my pastor and hope that you appreciate yours too.  If you don't, pray harder for him and about what you can do to support him.  He is God's man for your church at this time and needs your prayers.

Love
Well, love is not mentioned in this passage, but I mention it here because love is the super-weapon.  In another letter of Paul's (to the Corinthians - - 1Cor. 13) he devotes a whole chapter to the pre-eminence of love.  Jesus called love "the greatest commandment" in Matthew 22:36-40.  See John 13:34-35.
Read these passages and reflect on how love should be in everything we do. No matter what spiritual weapon we wield, we should cover it in love.  Just as faith without works is dead (James 2:14), wielding these weapons of spiritual warfare is useless, without love.

We'll talk more about love in a later post.

So, there you have them.  "Put them on" every day so that you can walk in spiritual victory!
"But, thank God!  He gives us the victory over sin and death, through our Lord Jesus Christ!" (1 Corinthians 15:57)

Oh Father God, thank you for the precious instruction You give us in Your holy Word.  Thank you for telling us how to please, honor, glorify, magnify You.  Thank you for these weapons, with which we can claim victory over the Evil One, our Adversary.  Thank you that "we can do all things through Christ our Savior, who gives us strength."  Help us to be dedicated to use these weapons daily and throughout the day.  Help us to remember to love You, and to love our neighbors as much as we love ourselves.  We love You, Lord!  In Jesus' name, amen.