The Word of God...our Mirror

James 1:23-25 (NIV)
²³Anyone who listens to the word but does not do what it says is like a man who looks at his face in a mirror ²⁴and, after looking at himself, goes away and immediately forgets what he looks like. ²⁵But 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.

I always notice people walking in the streets taking advantage of every opportunity to check how they look.  They will pass by restaurants, offices, even cars parked, look at their reflection in the glass windows.  Some do it as if they're pros - just one simple, quick glance, almost not noticeable.  Others will take their time, stop for a while, check themselves from the top of their heads to the sole of their feet, not realizing that the people eating in the restaurant, or the driver inside the parked car, are looking straight at them!
Some women have their pocket mirrors to check how they look once in a while.  Even cellphones have a button called "mirror", that you can press and see yourself.  I think it's just the camera that evolved into a mirror, which it actually does - it mirrors how we look.

We all need mirrors to check how we look.  We do it before we leave the house, and throughout the day we need to keep checking if we still look alright.

What is the spiritual mirror of a Christian?  James writes to remind believers that the Word of God is our mirror.  The Word of God shows us how we should live.  The Word of God shows us how we should look, how we are supposed to "dress up" as Christians.  And it reveals it to us for every aspect of our life - from the top of our head to the sole of our feet.  Every area - our thoughts, what we look at, what we say, what we listen to, where our heads turn, our heart, what our hands hold, where our feet take us.  The Word of God should be our mirror, showing us how we should live.

And yet, there are so many Christians who leave their homes without looking at their spiritual mirror. We go through the day without looking at our spiritual mirror.  And even worse, there are some who go through weeks, months even years without looking at their spiritual mirror.  Not surprisingly they live lives that are not pleasing to God, that do not reflect His character, that do not glorify His name.

This is why we read God's Word everyday, meditate upon His teachings every moment, and make sure we go back to our spiritual mirror again and again, to make sure that we see how we are, how we are living.  It is a natural concern for a Chrsitian, just as it is with every human being, to want to make sure he looks ok.

And in this hi-tech day we live in - this mirror is even in our cellphone!  So don't just press the "mirror" button in your phone to check how you physically look.  Press that bible app as often as you can, daily, just to check if you look as good as how God wants you to look.