Man in The Mirror 2 Cor. 3:18
After being away on business, a man thought it would be nice to bring his wife a little gift. “How about some perfume?” he asked the cosmetics clerk.
She showed him a bottle costing $50.00. “That’s a bit much,” he said, so she returned with a smaller bottle for $30.00. “That’s still quite a bit,” he complained. Growing annoyed, the clerk brought out a tiny $15.00 bottle. “You know,” he said, “What I mean is that I’d like to see something really cheap.” The clerk handed him a mirror.
Today I want us to really see who we are in reality. Take a long hard look in the mirror of Gods word and realize “who we are”. Not who we act like, not who others perceive us to be, not what we have been in the past, but “who we are” according to Gods word.
2 Corinthians 3:18
But we all, with open face beholding as in a glass the glory of the Lord, are changed into the same image from glory to glory, [even] as by the Spirit of the Lord.
According to a news report, a certain private school in Victoria recently was faced with a unique problem. A number of 12-year-old girls were beginning to use lipstick and would put it on in the bathroom. That was fine, but after they put an their lipstick they would press their lips to the mirror, leaving dozens of little lip prints.
Every night, the maintenance man would remove them and the next day, the girls would put them back. Finally the principal decided that something
had to be done.
She called all the girls to the bathroom and met them there with the maintenance man. She explained that all these lip prints were causing a major problem for the custodian who had to clean the mirrors every night.
To demonstrate how difficult it had been to clean the mirrors, she asked the maintenance man to show the girls how much effort was required.
He took out a long-handled squeegee, dipped it in the toilet, and cleaned the mirror with it. Since then, there have been no lip prints on the mirror.
There are teachers, and then there are educators...
Today I want to educate you. I want you to really get it. I want you to really understand what Gods word says about you and for you to agree with me today that you have been looking at yourself thinking and believing wrong teaching about “who you are”. You have heard it said that we are just sinners saved by grace / while the fact is that I am a sinner saved by grace / I have BEEN saved and no longer am a sinner in my core, my nature, my spirit. Do I have the capacity to sin – yes in my brain or my soulish realm and in my body I have the capacity to sin and more often than I would like to admit my flesh wins. But I do live a more holy life now than ever before and I am renewing my mind to walk in the Spirit and not by the flesh and it is verses like this one that will continue to change me from now till Christ comes or I die.
Lets get to educating:
V 13 Paul is now referring to the veil that Moses over his face as described in Exodus 34:29-35. The veil kept the Israelites from gazing upon the glory of God reflected upon Moses’ face just as the Old Testament law kept them from beholding the fullness of God’s glorious. In contrast to what Moses did, Jesus gave us a full look at the glory of God through showing us perfect love (1 Jn. 4:8).
14: "Blindness" is used metaphorically in the scriptures to portray spiritual insensitivity. The Greek word "poroo" used here is translated "hardened," i.e. a hardened heart-3 times (Mk. 6:52; 8:17; Jn. 12:40) and "blinded," i.e. spiritual blindness-2 times (Rom. 11:7; 2 Cor. 3:14). "Poroo" carries the idea not only of losing the power to perceive and understand, but also the idea of hardening as by a callus. Trying to relate to the Lord on the basis of law blinds us or hardens our hearts to the true revelation of God’s grace.
Just as a physical veil was upon Moses’ face, Paul is saying that a spiritual veil is over Israel’s minds and hearts until this day (Isa. 53:1-3; Rom. 3:1-3; 11:7, 25). This veil blinded Israel to the true meaning of many Old Testament scriptures that spoke of the grace and mercy of the new covenant.
Jesus said to His unbelieving disciples, "These are the words which...must be fulfilled, which were written in the law of Moses, and in the prophets, and in the psalms, concerning me. Then opened he their understanding, that they might understand the scriptures" (Lk. 24:44-45). Jesus removed the veil from their understanding.
Those who are trying to obtain righteousness through their actions (law) have a veil over their understanding. A legalistically minded person does not understand the grace of God. However, when that person turns to the grace that is in Christ Jesus, the spiritual veil of unbelief is removed. A revelation of righteousness by grace opens up the scriptures as no other revelation does.
The phrase "open face" is a play on the symbolism of Moses’ veil that Paul has been speaking of since verse 13. The word "open" was translated from the Greek word that means "to unveil." Therefore, this is speaking of an unveiled face. Moses’ veil concealed the glory of God on his face just as the law blocks our view of the glory of God. When we get rid of our "law mentality" we will be able to see the grace of God clearly.
We behold this glory "as in a glass." There was one compound Greek word "katoptrizomai" that was translated by the complete phrase "beholding as in a glass." This word means "to mirror oneself, i.e. to see reflected." Therefore, this glass is speaking of a mirror (as is James 1:23-24 For if any be a hearer of the word, and not a doer, he is like unto a man beholding his natural face in a glass:24 For he beholdeth himself, and goeth his way, and straightway forgetteth what manner of man he was.KJV), and the idea is of looking at the glory of the Lord that is in us.
As we see the glory of the Lord that is within us through our union with Christ, our outer man will begin to reflect that glory for all to see (Phil 1:6 Being confident of this very thing, that he which hath begun a good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ: KJV). Many Christians envision God’s glory as being far off in heaven and therefore they don’t experience the transformation that comes by beholding the glory that is in us (Col 1:27 To whom God would make known what is the riches of the glory of this mystery among the Gentiles; which is Christ in you, the hope of glory: KJV). Paul gave us a prayer to pray that would open up our spiritual eyes to the riches of the glory of His inheritance which is in the saints (Eph 1:18 The eyes of your understanding being enlightened; that ye may know what is the hope of his calling, and what the riches of the glory of his inheritance in the saints KJV).
The Greek word that was translated "changed" is "metamorphoo." This is the same word that was translated "transformed" in Romans 12:2, and it is the word we get our English word "metamorphosis" from. It is speaking of a complete transformation, like that of a caterpillar to a butterfly. As we turn our hearts from the condemnation of the law to behold the righteousness within us through the grace of Christ, our outer man will be transformed little by little to reflect that inner glory.
This verse establishes a principle that we become what we behold. If we look on the sins of the outer man, we will be enslaved to those sins. But if we behold the glory of the Lord within us, we will reflect that glory in our actions. "For as he thinketh in his heart, so is he" (Prov. 23:7). Constantly focusing our attention on failure will actually cause failure. But focusing on Christ in us will produce a lifestyle like that of Christ. Us not realizing what is in the mirror does not change the fact of what is in the mirror - I was taking a shower when my 2-year-old son came into the bathroom and wrapped himself in toilet paper.
Although he made a mess, he looked adorable, so I ran for my camera and took a few shots.
They came out so well that I had copies made and included one with each of our Christmas cards.
Days later, a relative called about the picture, laughing hysterically and suggesting I take a closer look.
Puzzled, I stared at the photo and was shocked to discover that in addition to my son, I had captured my reflection in the mirror ---wearing nothing but a camera!
This phrase "glory to glory" is referring to the fact that this transformation is an ongoing process rather than a one time transaction.
The last thing to take note of is the fact that the work of our being transformed is done by the Holy Spirit. Praise God for his mercy and provision. He has done and will continue to do in my life what I never could do.
There are times when we do not act like the person we have been born again into:
A Fellow was sitting at a stop light. The lady in front of him was going through papers on the seat of her car, and when the light changed to green she did not obey its command - a green light is a commandment - NOT a suggestion. When the light turned to red, and she had still not moved, He began (with his windows up) screaming and beating on his steering wheel. His expressions of distress were interrupted by a policeman, gun drawn, tapping on his window. Against his protestations of, "You can’t arrest me for hollering in my car," the officer ordered him into the back seat of his patrol car. After about two hours in a holding cell, the arresting officer advised him he was free to go. He said, "I knew you couldn’t arrest me for what I was yelling in my own car. You haven’t heard the last of this." The officer replied, "I didn’t arrest you for shouting in your car. I was directly behind you at the light. I saw you screaming and beating your steering wheel, and I said to myself, "What a jerk. But there is nothing I can do to him for throwing a fit in his own car. Then I noticed the ’Cross’ hanging from your rear view mirror, the Jesus is Coming Soon’ bumper sticker, and the Fish symbol, and I thought you must have stolen the car."
You know we are the only bible some folks are ever going to read. It is vitally important for you as Christians to get this today and start to implement these truths in your lives. The world is depending on you!!
check out the audio at www.northkeithivlle.org on the sermons page
