When is the last time you took an honest look in the mirror? I am not talking about looking at your facial and bodily features in reflection. I'm referring to looking into your soul. When is the last time you took an honest spiritual assessment of yourself?
I asked a young man recently how he was doing in His walk with the Lord. He responded that he was doing so so. I challenged Him reminding that being lukewarm makes Jesus want to vomit. [Rev 3:15-16] Maybe that sounds harsh and a little offensive. It is truth and sometimes the truth hurts.
How many of us are really on fire? The word hot in that Revelation passage means to be boiling. When we look in the spiritual mirror can we describe our passionate love for Jesus as boiling? There may be more lukewarm believers than we think. Do we even long to be boiling. Fervent. Passionate. Dedicated. Burning in our zeal.
What about holiness? We are called to holy living. [I Pet 1:15-16] We are called to avoid the appearance of evil. [I Thess 5:22] Have we allowed compromises to come in? Have we lowered the standards of living because it is the path of least resistance? Do we take a holy God seriously? Sin abounds and so do temptations. We do not have to give in. [I Cor 10:13] God makes a way of escape. Spirit filled living and walking will not lead to indulge in sinful desires. [Gal 5:16-17] We will reap what we sow. [Gal 6:7-8]
How is your prayer life going? Frankly, mine is up and down. There are good seasons and there are also inconsistent times when prayer is a struggle and I feel like I am just going through the motions. Do your prayer times feel religious, routine and in the same old rut? Are you able to connect with God through prayer in meaningful encounters? God forbid that any of us would be guilty of not praying. [Luke 18:1] [Luke 22:45-46]
We do not like looking in the spiritual mirror of His word because it is uncomfortable. When God shows us our faults, sins, and failures it is heart wrenching. Painful. Humbling. Sorrowful. When is the last time you experienced any of those things in your private devotions or public worship? It is easy to grow chummy with sin.
It is time to take an honest look in the mirror. If we harbor sin in our hearts and lives, God is going to be offended. We will be chastised. [Heb 12:4-11] We will be called to confession [I Jn 1:9] and repentance. [Ps 51:1-12] As long as we ignore sin, a holy God will have to go to measures to bring us to repentance.
REPENT. A word we do not hear much in church circles. Go ahead. Check out of the current top 25 best selling books. I am guessing you will not find the word repent in the title. It might be hard to find it within the pages of those books also. To repent means to have a change of mind. The prevailing mentality is that we are doing as well as everyone else. God does not hold us to the standard of everyone else. We are held to the standard of the scriptures and to His Son Jesus. How we have fallen. Left our first love. [Rev 2:4-5]. It is time to remember from where we have fallen. It is time to repent and return to the Lord. Even now. [Joel 2:12]
Time is growing short. We can ill afford to play spiritual patty cake. Too much is at stake. The only hope for this nation is a repentant return to God. That starts with us looking into the mirror and facing the reality of our spiritual condition. Revival starts with repentance. May our hypocrisy not be an obstacle to others rediscovering holiness. It's time to look in the mirror.
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