Am I Reflecting
Christ’s Image?
And
we all, who with unveiled faces contemplate the Lord’s glory, are being
transformed into his image with ever-increasing glory, which comes from the
Lord, who is the Spirit. 2 Corinthians 3:18 (NIV)
Happiness has been described by some as
being able to look in the mirror and like what you see. Most of the time, we
get up in the morning, look in the mirror, and, after letting out a sigh, we
begin to work on the image looking back at us. But whether we spend ten minutes
or sixty minutes in front of a mirror, we all spend time each and every day working
on our appearances, because how we present ourselves is a reflection of who we
are. When others look at us, what do they see? What type of image are we projecting
to our friends, family, coworkers, and neighbors?
The Apostle Paul thought how a Christian
was perceived was important. And although he would have agreed we should take
care of ourselves physically, the most important aspect of how we appear to
others is less about our hair being picture-perfect or our shoes matching our
pants, and more about whether we are reflecting the image of Jesus Christ to
the world around us. To help illustrate this, Paul brought in an incident from
Israel’s past by giving an example from the life of Moses.
During the time when the children of Israel
were wandering in the desert, Moses had the exclusive privilege of talking to
God face-to-face (Exodus 33:11). This personal and powerful conversation with
the living God had such an effect on Moses that, after leaving the presence of
God, his face would shine with an afterglow. The people were both amazed and
afraid, so Moses put a veil over his face to hide the glory that resulted from
his nearness to God. Moses came to realize, however, that the longer he was
away from the presence of God, the more the glow faded.
The result of this blessed close proximity
to God should be a reflection of the living God and a permanent afterglow.
Speaking of reflecting Jesus, what do others see when they look at us?
We become what we behold; this means if we are spending time looking to Jesus, then we should also be looking like Jesus. In order to look more like Jesus, we need to spend less time looking at ourselves and more time looking at Him. As we fix our eyes on the author and finisher of our faith, we will be a better reflection of our glorious God. The closer we are in proximity to God, the more we will reflect His image. But if we pull away from God, His image in us will begin to fade.
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