It was the same routine every morning. My sister, the middle child in our family, would get up at 4:30 and walk into my room. There she would proceed to TURN ON THE LIGHT and begin the long, arduous process of fixing her hair. You see, when she was in high school, the boof (big bangs for those who aren’t familiar with the term) era was in full effect. She would spend a solid hour in my room (because I had the only full length mirror- at least that what she said) fixing her hair. It was a routine that she followed every day without fail. I still enjoy telling that story and of course I embelish how bad it was on me (in all actuality I rarely woke up). Whether we are willing to admit it or not, we look in the mirror every day and we care about what we see. Each day that I get up and put on my clothes, I am very particular about the length of my tie. I adhere to the age old tie etiquette of your tie must reach your belt buckle and I will stand in the mirror and re-tie my tie until I get the proper length. I do this, not out of vanity, but I am very particular about looking professional when I am at school or on Sunday mornings at church. There is, however, more reflection to us than just the physical features that we struggle to perfect each day as we get ready. Have you ever considered how your life and the way you live would look in a mirror? The truth is, every day, we give off a reflection of how we live our lives and that refelction is impressed upon every one that we meet.
Genesis 1:27 lays it out for us; it tells how we were made. “So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them.” We were made in the image of God, a reflection of Him. Likewise, 2 Corithinans 3:18 tells us, “And we all, with unveiled face, beholding the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from one degree of glory to another. For this comes from the Lord who is the Spirit.” Not only were we made in His image, we were made to reflect God in our lives. The unfortunate truth about this reflection is there is no middle ground. The most accurate definition of the word sin that I have ever found was simply this: Sin is the absence of God (this concept will be in a future article). For the unbelievers, this definition is the truest since of the word, their life is sin and therefore can not reflect Christ. However, for believers, even though Christ is in us and is in our lives, we can not commit sin with God truly involved in the decision. Hence, when we, as believers, commit our sins, it is because we left God out of the decision making process. That brings me back to the point. There is no middle ground- we either reflect Christ, or we reflect sin.
Sin is rarely intentional. Very few people wake up and say “I think I’m going to commit a bunch of sins today.” However, the effect of the life we reflect leaves a lasting impression upon the people we encounter each day. It is very hard to win lost souls to Christ, when they hear of a loving God, but as they look at you and your life, they can’t see a loving God. We were made in His image, to reflect His love, and share the Gospel of Jesus with His people. If it sounds like I’m saying we have to stop all of our sins, its because that’s EXACTLY what I’m saying. I realize that we will fall short and sin, but I also realize that if we live a life where God is involved in all the decisions we make, we are more likely to commit fewer sins. When we commit fewer sins, the odds are far greater of people seeing a life that truly reflects our Lord and Savior. We must live like the For King and Country Song states, “Let my life be the proof of Your love.”
In Christ Alone,
Rev. Bro. Coach
RBC 