Have you ever stood and stared at yourself in the mirror? (Let's be honest--we all have done it!)
What are we looking at? Why do we look in the mirror and notice every imperfection, spot and blemish? We may notice that we are aging, that we have new spots, or that a mole is getting darker. We may notice how our noses are not exactly straight, stretch marks from having babies, scars, weight gain (or loss), or a number of other things about ourselves. We are good at noticing imperfections in ourselves.
However, when it comes to spiritually looking in the mirror, many have an opposite perception. We see ourselves as better than others, doing better, knowing more, and thinking we have it all together. We go to church every week, we pray every day, we don't do drugs, we don't lie, steal, commit adultery or listen to that ungodly music. We don't have struggles with pride, or fear, or spiritual apathy. We look at the faults in our fellow human beings, but seem to miss the spiritual faults in ourselves.
Even worse...we begin to feel entitled to make judgments about another person's relationship with God, that person's salvation or God's desire to bless that person! We think we know it all.
The Pharisees looked at Jesus this way. Jesus, the only begotten Son of God, holy and perfect, matchless and blameless in every way. PEOPLE thought they had to right to judge his motives, his thoughts, his actions and his ministry...simply because they couldn't accept that God would send His Son (the Messiah) in a person such as him. The Pharisees' self-righteousness grew to bitterness, resentment, anger and hatred. The evil in their hearts led them to do the unthinkable...to kill Jesus, the one who came to save them.
The people that God chooses to use in His kingdom can be interesting characters. God does not choose the smartest or the most naturally gifted and successful people. Throughout scripture, He used those that had great weaknesses. He chose the ones that He could use to shine His glory into all the earth. He chose the despised and misunderstood--the misfits--of the world to do great things in His name.
Why would God use those who are weak to show His strength? The one who is weak looks in the spiritual mirror and sees every spot, every blemish, every stronghold and instead of persecuting others in self-righteousness, this person relies on God's strength.
Going to church does not make you a good person. Praying does not make you a good person. Constantly performing good works does not make a person better than anyone else. It does not give people the right to judge the salvation of another--or reject a person from God's house, or God's service.
We all need to stare into a spiritual mirror. We need to seek our nakedness, our brokenness and the areas of our lives that are not refined or perfected. We have the righteousness of Christ and our salvation is secure, but we need to know that we are all the same in God's eyes--we all have fallen short of the glory of God. We are all saved only by the grace of God.
In this world, I am drawn to those that the world has thrown away, forgotten, rejected and despised. I love hanging out with drug addicts (both former and current), prostitutes and those who definitely do not have their lives together. I feel more comfortable around these people than those who act like they have their world in order. I don't have my world in order. I never have. My world is organized chaos, and God is the conductor of my orchestra. He is making it all come together--somehow, but inside, I'm the same mess that I was in the day I cried out to Him, pleading with him to save a wretched sinner like me.
In that day (June 10, 2007), I said to the Lord, "Lord, I have messed up my life beyond repair. I don't know how you're going to fix it, but I TRUST that you will. Please forgive me. I believe that Jesus died for MY sin and was the Son of God, and he was raised from the dead. Please come into my life and help me."
If you, or someone you know, is wanting to accept the complete grace of God (salvation) through the finished work of Jesus dying on the cross and being raised from the dead, you can pray this same prayer (or pray with someone else). There are no specific words that accomplish salvation, but what matters most is that you look in the spiritual mirror, see how flawed and broken you truly are, and then ask God to save you. Confess that Jesus Christ is Lord with your mouth and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, and you WILL BE SAVED!
Once you are saved, don't look into that spiritual mirror and think you're now better than everyone else. You're still that wretched sinner, but you've been saved by the grace of God. The righteousness of Jesus has become yours--but in yourself, you could never be righteous...just remember that. Be humble and reach out to those who are lost, broken, forgotten and hurting. Don't judge a person by tattoos, or drug habits, homelessness, lifestyle choices or poverty. Just reach out with the grace of God and let God do His perfect work in them. Love really is the answer.
We can rightfully judge the fruit that a tree is bearing (as good or bad), but we don't judge the person bearing the fruit. You have no idea who that person is to God, how much God loves him/her, or the future plans that God has for this person.
Take a good look in the mirror...He rescued you from a broken state. He'll do the same for others.
Romans 10:8-11 (NASB)
But what does it say? "THE WORD IS NEAR YOU, IN YOUR MOUTH AND IN YOUR HEART "-- that is, the word of faith which we are preaching, that if you confess with your mouth Jesus as Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved; or with the heart a person believes, resulting in righteousness, and with the mouth he confesses, resulting in salvation. For the Scripture says, "WHOEVER BELIEVES IN HIM WILL NOT BE DISAPPOINTED."
Philippians 2:3-4 (NASB)
Do nothing from selfishness or empty conceit, but with humility of mind regard one another as more important than yourselves; do not merely look out for your own personal interests, but also for the interests of others.
Romans 3:21-23 (NASB)
But now apart from the Law the righteousness of God has been manifested, being witnessed by the Law and the Prophets, even the righteousness of God through faith in Jesus Christ for all those who believe; for there is no distinction; or all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,
What are we looking at? Why do we look in the mirror and notice every imperfection, spot and blemish? We may notice that we are aging, that we have new spots, or that a mole is getting darker. We may notice how our noses are not exactly straight, stretch marks from having babies, scars, weight gain (or loss), or a number of other things about ourselves. We are good at noticing imperfections in ourselves.
However, when it comes to spiritually looking in the mirror, many have an opposite perception. We see ourselves as better than others, doing better, knowing more, and thinking we have it all together. We go to church every week, we pray every day, we don't do drugs, we don't lie, steal, commit adultery or listen to that ungodly music. We don't have struggles with pride, or fear, or spiritual apathy. We look at the faults in our fellow human beings, but seem to miss the spiritual faults in ourselves.
Even worse...we begin to feel entitled to make judgments about another person's relationship with God, that person's salvation or God's desire to bless that person! We think we know it all.
The Pharisees looked at Jesus this way. Jesus, the only begotten Son of God, holy and perfect, matchless and blameless in every way. PEOPLE thought they had to right to judge his motives, his thoughts, his actions and his ministry...simply because they couldn't accept that God would send His Son (the Messiah) in a person such as him. The Pharisees' self-righteousness grew to bitterness, resentment, anger and hatred. The evil in their hearts led them to do the unthinkable...to kill Jesus, the one who came to save them.
The people that God chooses to use in His kingdom can be interesting characters. God does not choose the smartest or the most naturally gifted and successful people. Throughout scripture, He used those that had great weaknesses. He chose the ones that He could use to shine His glory into all the earth. He chose the despised and misunderstood--the misfits--of the world to do great things in His name.
Why would God use those who are weak to show His strength? The one who is weak looks in the spiritual mirror and sees every spot, every blemish, every stronghold and instead of persecuting others in self-righteousness, this person relies on God's strength.
Going to church does not make you a good person. Praying does not make you a good person. Constantly performing good works does not make a person better than anyone else. It does not give people the right to judge the salvation of another--or reject a person from God's house, or God's service.
We all need to stare into a spiritual mirror. We need to seek our nakedness, our brokenness and the areas of our lives that are not refined or perfected. We have the righteousness of Christ and our salvation is secure, but we need to know that we are all the same in God's eyes--we all have fallen short of the glory of God. We are all saved only by the grace of God.
In this world, I am drawn to those that the world has thrown away, forgotten, rejected and despised. I love hanging out with drug addicts (both former and current), prostitutes and those who definitely do not have their lives together. I feel more comfortable around these people than those who act like they have their world in order. I don't have my world in order. I never have. My world is organized chaos, and God is the conductor of my orchestra. He is making it all come together--somehow, but inside, I'm the same mess that I was in the day I cried out to Him, pleading with him to save a wretched sinner like me.
In that day (June 10, 2007), I said to the Lord, "Lord, I have messed up my life beyond repair. I don't know how you're going to fix it, but I TRUST that you will. Please forgive me. I believe that Jesus died for MY sin and was the Son of God, and he was raised from the dead. Please come into my life and help me."
If you, or someone you know, is wanting to accept the complete grace of God (salvation) through the finished work of Jesus dying on the cross and being raised from the dead, you can pray this same prayer (or pray with someone else). There are no specific words that accomplish salvation, but what matters most is that you look in the spiritual mirror, see how flawed and broken you truly are, and then ask God to save you. Confess that Jesus Christ is Lord with your mouth and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, and you WILL BE SAVED!
Once you are saved, don't look into that spiritual mirror and think you're now better than everyone else. You're still that wretched sinner, but you've been saved by the grace of God. The righteousness of Jesus has become yours--but in yourself, you could never be righteous...just remember that. Be humble and reach out to those who are lost, broken, forgotten and hurting. Don't judge a person by tattoos, or drug habits, homelessness, lifestyle choices or poverty. Just reach out with the grace of God and let God do His perfect work in them. Love really is the answer.
We can rightfully judge the fruit that a tree is bearing (as good or bad), but we don't judge the person bearing the fruit. You have no idea who that person is to God, how much God loves him/her, or the future plans that God has for this person.
Take a good look in the mirror...He rescued you from a broken state. He'll do the same for others.
Romans 10:8-11 (NASB)
But what does it say? "THE WORD IS NEAR YOU, IN YOUR MOUTH AND IN YOUR HEART "-- that is, the word of faith which we are preaching, that if you confess with your mouth Jesus as Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved; or with the heart a person believes, resulting in righteousness, and with the mouth he confesses, resulting in salvation. For the Scripture says, "WHOEVER BELIEVES IN HIM WILL NOT BE DISAPPOINTED."
Philippians 2:3-4 (NASB)
Do nothing from selfishness or empty conceit, but with humility of mind regard one another as more important than yourselves; do not merely look out for your own personal interests, but also for the interests of others.
Romans 3:21-23 (NASB)
But now apart from the Law the righteousness of God has been manifested, being witnessed by the Law and the Prophets, even the righteousness of God through faith in Jesus Christ for all those who believe; for there is no distinction; or all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,
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