The Mirror

This is comical but so true… A beautiful woman looked into a mirror and thought, “What a mess; I need to lose a few pounds," while an unattractive man with a belly that hung way over his belt looked into a mirror, posed, flexed his muscles. and said out loud for everyone to hear, “I’m lookin’ good!”

Women are more apt to check themselves out in mirrors than men, but sadly they are more likely unsatisfied with the image that stares back at them. Let’s face it gals, the preoccupation that we have with our looks began at an early age. This preoccupation to be beautiful, believe it or not, is actually a God given dream that every little girl has, but over time, it runs “amuck.”

Maybe, just maybe, it’s not really our fault. Why don’t we blame it on Belle, or Snow, or Cinderella? I mean, they did set the bar pretty high. Whether we like it or not, at some point in our young lives, we aspired to be just like one of those heroines from the fairytales. Most little girls by the age of four are enamored with princesses. Besides her living in a castle, her dazzling beauty and her living happily-ever-after with the handsome prince, there is something about her character that is truly admirable. She, at some point, exhibits who she truly is at the core.

“There is a treasure to be found in reading fairy tales." C. S. Lewis promised Lucy… ‘There is always a time as grown-ups when we need to return to fairytales.’ Fairytales reveal aspects of who God truly is… the Redeemer, the Savior, the Rescuer and the Hero of our own story.” (Her Treasures: A Life Brand New, page 121)

There is a verse from 2 Corinthians 3:18 that might have a profound pull on your heart. “And we, who with unveiled faces reflect the Lord’s glory, are being transformed into his likeness with ever-increasing glory, which comes from the Lord who is the Spirit.” If you would bear with me, I would love to pick this verse apart with you in order to find some hidden treasures.

And we, with unveiled faces…

Question: How would our perception of our own image be changed if our faces were veiled when we looked into a mirror?

“When God created Eve and put her in the Garden, she had everything her little heart could desire. She was literally the most beautiful women in the world, and she had the finest “hunk” in the world for her mate. She dined on the choicest of fares. She had no wardrobe issues or “bad hair” days. She actually walked and talked to the Creator of the Universe himself. God loved her unconditionally, and he met all of her needs. He gave her significance, security, and satisfaction.” (Her Treasures: A Life Brand New, page 125)

When Eve was tempted by the serpent to taste the forbidden fruit, Satan tempted her in all three of these areas. He wanted to rob her of her significance, her security, and her satisfaction. These are the same three areas in which he tempted Jesus in the desert. Satan is a liar, a tricky deceiver and a master of disguise. One of his favorite tactics is to distort the word of God, in the hopes that he will appeal to our fleshly desires and our seemingly, unmet needs. His plan is to distort who God is and who we really are in order to corrupt the influence that we may have over others and the image that we have of ourselves. He wants to veil the truth from us by distorting it any way that he can, keeping us in bondage. He doesn’t want us to see our true selves clearly; that would make us way too much of a threat to him.

A truth that we learn from science is that the seed of all living things determines its identity. The mother supplies the egg, and the father supplies the seed at the time of conception. There is no life without the seed. It’s also interesting how in creation God has put into place similarities or pictures of his great purpose in all of life. It says in Romans that he has revealed himself so clearly that no one can give an excuse that he does not exist. He wants us all to know him. His greatest gift that he gave to all believers is his Seed, Jesus. This seed planted in the human spirit changes our identity, and we are reborn.

“When a person is reborn, she is taken out of the family of Adam and placed into the family of Christ. She is born-again, not a physical birth, but a spiritual rebirth. She is regenerated. Jesus, the seed of Abraham, is planted in her human spirit at that time, and she is declared not guilty by God---she is justified. Her spirit has been infused with the life of Christ, and she no longer lives, but Christ lives within her. She becomes a new creation and is given a new identity. She is no longer a slave of sin but is now a slave of righteousness. She has the mind of Christ to guide and comfort her. Her old nature is gone and she has been transformed. She has a new and obedient heart. She is now an heir of Christ, a royal priest, a Daughter of Royalty, a princess in His kingdom and here on Earth."

…the reflection of the Lord’s glory…

We were made to glorify God, to reflect or cast back his more excellent image. The only image that man has ever seen of God is Jesus. The devil does not want us to reflect that image; it’s too dangerous. He wants us to believe all his lies, especially the ones that we believe about ourselves. You see, if we continue to look into the world’s mirror, we will see ourselves as cursed, ugly and unworthy. He does this by getting us to focus on our sins instead of our Savior. This is an example of Law based living and can become a type of obsession that always leads to self-condemnation and eventually doubt and defeat. That’s why God says that we need to guard our hearts and renew our minds. It says in Galatians 3:13 that, “Christ redeemed us from the curse of the Law having become a curse for us.” He has set us up for victory, because we live under the covenant of Grace. We only need to look into God’s mirror to see our true reflection.

So ultimately, when a believer looks into God’s mirror, there is truly more to her than what her naked eye can see. If she could look with an unveiled face at her inner self, she would see the righteousness of Christ. (2 Corinthians 5:21) This does not mean that we should consider ourselves some sort of lesser god. Remember, our views of ourselves are skewed and we have been lied to, and the perceptions of others are just that, perceptions, and not truths. He doesn’t blot out our personalities when we are transformed at salvation. He uses our individual personalities in such a unique way that our own God-given purpose and essence of who we are will reflect his glory, his goodness and his majesty to those in our sphere of influence. We don’t need a magic mirror to tell us who we really are. Ask yourself this question… who do you think has a better perception of who you really are, your Creator or other creations like yourself?” (Her Treasures: A Life Brand New, page 126)

…transformed into his likeness with ever-increasing glory…

So many of us have thought that the secret to us having an abundant life is all up to us. We think that it’s about my being obedient and imitating Christ in all that I do. We all want to be “good girls,” right? But, have you ever thought that desire, the desire to be good, is evidence of a transformed heart, a changed heart? I’ll bet you have said, “God changes me from the inside out.” But do you really believe this or even understand it? Relax girls, it’s not your job to change yourself; it is the job of the Holy Spirit. Let’s see what the Bible says about this. “And I will give you a new heart, and I will put a new spirit within you. And I will remove the heart of stone from your flesh and give you a heart of flesh. And I will put my Spirit within you and cause you to walk in my statutes and you will be careful to observe my ordinances.” (Ezekiel 36:26 & 27) He has given us a heart to know him (Jeremiah 24:7), has poured his love in our hearts (Romans 5:5), and has circumcised our hearts (Romans 2:29). It’s by his grace that we are changed. “For the grace of God has appeared bringing salvation for all people, training us to renounce ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright, and godly lives in this present age…” (Titus 2:11-12).

There is a transforming power in just knowing that Jesus loves you. When you believe this---really believe this, you take back some of those treasures of which Satan has robbed you---significance, security, and satisfaction. God is that perfect father who loves you. So, live like you are loved and rejoice that you can approach him boldly without condemnation or fear of punishment, because you are a child of the King, a princess. You are the bride of Christ. He laid down his life for you when you didn’t deserve it, and he will never break the covenant that he made with you when he sealed you with his precious, Holy Spirit.

Beloved, He removed your veil the day that you became his, and if you look into his mirror, you will see the new you, a true beauty, a reflection of the likeness of his Son.