Articles
What Good Is a Mirror?
* * * * * * * * * * * *
For if anyone is a hearer of the word and not a doer, he is like a man observing his natural face in a mirror; for he observes himself, goes away, and immediately forgets what kind of man he was. But he who looks into the perfect law of liberty and continues in it, and is not a forgetful hearer but a doer of the work, this one will be blessed in what he does. (Jas. 1:23-25)
* * * * * * * * * * * *
In ancient times mirrors were usually made of highly polished bronze or silver. They were not as effective as modern metallic-coated glass mirrors, but they were good enough for their intended purpose: to see oneself.
Humans have long felt the need to see themselves as others see them, for the purpose of making enhancements in their appearance. But outward appearance is not the only thing that we need to improve. Our inner character is also prone to imperfection, and like our physical looks, we are ill-suited to recognize those flaws without some kind of external aid. We need a spiritual mirror to better understand ourselves.
James points to the word of God as the ideal mirror for our souls. Peering into this volume of wisdom provides more than just a rulebook for behavior. It exposes the inner workings of our heart. It highlights the weaknesses that need shoring up, and the gaps that we cannot see. Every time we ask, “why did I do that?!" we are admitting that we need help in seeing ourselves as we really are. The Bible can serve that purpose.
This practical function of the Bible explains why it is such a complex book. The casual reader is confronted with a confusing mix of historical narratives, didactic instructions, prophetic warnings, and witty aphorisms. All this information is helpful in understanding the world around us--God, history, other people--but its primary purpose is to help us understand ourselves. The hidden motives, the bad attitudes, the faulty assumptions, the baggage that messes up our lives and makes us look ugly to those who must deal with us--the Bible has the power to expose it all.
Of course, a mirror is of no value if we do not use it. We have to read the Bible and reflect on its message, all with the intent of answering the question: What is this book telling me about myself?
We must act on what we see. If I look in a mirror and see tousled hair, smudges of dirt, and food stuck in my teeth, yet do nothing to correct the problems, why bother looking at all? In looking at the mirror of God's word, we must act on what we learn.
A mirror is helpful, but it is worse than useless if it is warped or deformed. The image given by a fun-house mirror distorts the reality it reflects. That's good for laughs at a carnival, but in real life the effect can be fatal. Contaminate God's word with human wisdom, and the misshapen image we see will send us down the wrong path.
As you read the Bible, think of that exercise as God holding up a mirror to your soul and saying, "This is who you really are." In all the failures and victories, the pain and promise, the heroes and villains, we are reading about ourselves.
We can learn a lot from studying that reflection.
--David
