Mirrored Image

My seven-year-old granddaughter drew this picture of a butterfly. Isn’t it beautiful? As a grandparent, I thought it was beautiful just because she drew it. But then, she explained how she drew this picture.

 

butterflyShe took a crayon in each hand and as she drew the right side of the body, she mirrored the motion with her left hand. As she drew the upper portion of the right wing, she drew the upper portion of the left wing. Simultaneously, she created both sides of the butterfly to match the other.

 

You see, this butterfly is brilliantly beautiful!

 

Of course, we see this same idea in Scripture. That we are to be mirror images of Jesus. When we mirror Jesus, we must mirror His qualities and character. Matthew 5:48 and 1 Peter 1:16 tell us that we are to be perfect and holy because Jesus is perfect and holy. And 1 John 2:6 tells us that if we claim to live in him, we must walk as Jesus did.

 

But let’s face it, those are pretty big shoes to fill.

 

Paul’s advice to the Corinthian Church was to follow his example as he followed the example of Christ (1 Corinthians 11:1). The Gospels are filled with examples of Jesus encountering people. When we know how Jesus lived His life and interacted with others, we can follow His example and live our lives in the same manner.

 

But there are other Scriptures that point us to how to live like Jesus did. Paul spoke to the believers in Ephesus to be imitators of God and to live a life of love (Ephesians 5:1-2).

 

To the believers in Philippi, Paul said, “Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit, but in humility consider others better than yourselves. Each of you should look not only to your own interests, but also to the interests of others. Your attitude should be the same as that of Christ Jesus.” (Philippians 2:3-5 – NIV)

 

Again, these are big shoes to fill. But Jesus knew that we would need help in reflecting His image in our lives. He didn’t leave us on our own, but gave us a Helper. Take a look at 2 Corinthians 3:18 (NIV) to see how God’s Spirit helps us. “And we, who with unveiled faces all reflect the Lord’s glory, are being transformed into his likeness with ever-increasing glory, which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit.”

 

Through transformation by the Spirit, we are able to reflect, mirror Jesus’ glory more and more. Transformation. 2 Corinthians 5:17 calls it becoming a “new creation.”

 

Transformation is a matter of the heart and when our hearts are in line with God’s Word, we reflect or mirror Jesus (Proverbs 27:19).

 

1 Corinthians 13:12 mentions that we don’t see this mirrored reflection as clearly as we could, but that one day, when we see Jesus face to face, the image will be true perfection.

 

If you look closely at the image of this butterfly, you’ll see little differences and if you were to look solely at the left side, you would see the flaws. But as a whole, the left side is a good replica of the right side.

 

It’s the same with our spiritual lives. When we separate ourselves from Jesus, our flaws are evident. When we examine our hearts more closely, we see that we are not following as close to Jesus as we should. It’s only by being close to Jesus that we are viewed to be mirroring Him.

 

Today, I believe we must look at our lives and ask ourselves how closely we are mirroring Jesus. We must examine our hearts to see if they are in line with Jesus’ teaching. We must determine if we have given ourselves over to transformation.

 

How’s your reflection?

 

Grace and peace be yours in abundance,

 

Donna

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