We spend our whole lives walking around looking at ourselves in a mirror, we are so fixated on what we do, who we are, what we look like and how other’s see us that we often don’t see others around us, we don’t see their needs, their struggles and sometimes we choose not to see them at all because they are different and don’t look the way we want them to look.
Imagine
we choose to see others the way God sees them?
I want to challenge you to drop
your mirror and to open up your world to God and those around you.
STOP
Stop, put down your mirror.
Luke
10:25-37
25 Just then a religious scholar stood before Jesus in order to test his doctrines. He posed this question: “Teacher, what requirement must I fulfill if I want to live forever in heaven?” 26 Jesus replied, “What does Moses teach us? What do you read in the Law?” 27 The religious scholar answered, “It states, ‘You must love the Lord God with all your heart, all your passion, all your energy, and your every thought. And you must love your neighbor as well as you love yourself.’” 28 Jesus said, “That is correct. Now go and do exactly that and you will live.” 29 Wanting to justify himself, he questioned Jesus further, saying, “What do you mean by ‘my neighbor’?” 30 Jesus replied, “Listen and I will tell you. There was once aJewish[k] man traveling from Jerusalem to Jericho when bandits robbed him along the way. They beat him severely, stripped him naked, and left him half dead.
31 “Soon, a Jewish priest walking down the same road came upon the wounded man. Seeing him from a distance, the priest crossed to the other side of the road and walked right past him, not turning to help him one bit. 32 “Later, a religious man, a Levite,[l] came walking down the same road and likewise crossed to the other side to pass by the wounded man without stopping to help him. 33 “Finally, another man, a Samaritan,[m] came upon the bleeding man and was moved with tender compassion for him. 34 He stooped down and gave him first aid, pouring olive oil on his wounds, disinfecting them with wine, and bandaging them to stop the bleeding. Lifting him up, he placed him on his own donkey and brought him to an inn. Then he took him from his donkey and carried him to a room for the night. 35 The next morning he took his own money from his wallet and gave it to the innkeeper with these words: ‘Take care of him until I come back from my journey. If it costs more than this, I will repay you when I return.’[n]36 So, now, tell me, which one of the three men who saw the wounded man proved to be the true neighbor?” 37 The religious scholar responded, “The one who demonstrated kindness and mercy.” Jesus said, “You must go and do the same as he.”
In this parable, Jesus explains what it
means to love your neighbour as you love yourself. The Samaritans were rejected
by society due to them being different to the Jews. It was the Samaritan,
however, that dropped his mirror of self-pity and chose to stop and help the
man. The others were indulging in their mirror of self-righteous and didn’t stop
to help. You see our actions make us neighbours not our friendship groups, our
wealth, our popularity. I believe we need to be a youth ministry that stops to
help.
My sister got really bullied in high
school, people spread untrue, nasty rumours about her and her friends even
rejected her to the point where she decided to move schools, she would often
come home crying wondering why it was all happening to her. Everyone around her
had their mirrors up and no one put it down to help. Sometimes the worst form
of bulling is to do nothing about it when you see it happen. Maybe you see
things happening to those around you and haven’t done anything to help yet, you
have an opportunity to change that. Put down your mirror so you can see where
the need is.
When we chose to follow Jesus, we chose to
be involved. Once our mirrors are down we start to see reflections of our true
selves in the world around us, glimpses in shop windows, water puddles even our
shadow. When we stop to help others, we start to see who we truly are and who
Christ has called us to be.
LOOK
Read
Acts 3: 1-8
One afternoon Peter and John went to the temple for the three o’clock prayer.[a] 2 As they came to the entrance called the Beautiful Gate,[b] they were captured by the sight of a man crippled from birth being carried and placed at the entrance to the temple. He was often brought there to beg for money from those going in to worship. 3 When he noticed Peter and John going into the temple, he begged them for money.
4 Peter and John, looking straight into the eyes of the crippled man, said, “Look at us!” 5 Expecting a gift, he readily gave them his attention. 6 Then Peter said, “I don’t have money, but I’ll give you this—by the power of the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, stand up and walk!”
7–8 Peter held out his right hand to the crippled man. As he pulled the man to his feet, suddenly power surged into his crippled feet and ankles. The man jumped up, stood there for a moment stunned, and then began to walk around! As he went into the temple courts with Peter and John, he leapt for joy and shouted praises to God.
What happens when we feel like this beggar?
When we have some serious issues but feel alone, depressed and isolated,
thinking that no one cares for us? Sometimes isolation is a mirror in itself
and just like this beggar, we look to ourselves to solve all of our problems.
BUT Peter said to the beggar “look at us” I sometimes feel God says the same
thing, “LOOK AT ME”? We want to change, and we want things in our life to
change but we keep staring into our mirror of pride, if we put down our mirror
and look to God for help, he will show us that he is the way, he will bring
people into our lives to help us, we just need to free up our hands and let go
of our mirror that we so desperately grasp.
LISTEN:
The world tells us if we want to change we
need to pick up a mirror and take a look at ourselves. I say drop your mirrors
and take a look at others around you, listen to what they have to say and offer
a hand to those in need even if it makes you feel uncomfortable.
People ask me why I serve so much, and I
know a lot of you serve here too and have probably been asked the same question
by your friends or family. I serve because Christ came down to earth, with his
eyes fixed on us, knowing that we needed to look at anything else other than
ourselves to experience more life. We represent the reflection of Christ to
those who don’t know him yet. Serving in church isn’t the only way to reflect
Christ, tonight I want to challenge you not to look at people because of what
they can do for you but simply because of who they are.
Acts
2:42-47
42 Every believer was faithfully devoted to following the teachings[bk] of the apostles. Their hearts were mutually linked to one another,[bl]sharing communion[bm] and coming together regularly for prayer.[bn]43 A deep sense of holy awe[bo] swept over everyone, and the apostles performed many miraculous signs and wonders.[bp] 44 All the believers were in fellowship as one body,[bq] and they shared with one another whatever they had. 45 Out of generosity they even sold their assets to distribute the proceeds to those who were in need among them. 46 Daily they met together in the temple courts and in one another’s homes to celebrate communion. They shared meals together with joyful hearts and tender humility. 47 They were continually filled with praises to God, enjoying the favor of all the people. And the Lord kept adding to their number daily those who were coming to life.[br]
The mirrors of these believers were down,
they saw God’s miracles, because their mirrors were down, they were inclusive
irrespective of their differences, because their mirrors were down, they helped
those in need because their mirrors were down, they encouraged others and built
them, because they put their mirrors were down. And God added to their numbers
daily.
Who wants to grow the Church? The people we
care for hold up mirrors towards us every day and show us who we truly are, the
true reflection of ourselves. If we want to grow the church, we actually have
to care for those around us.
When we live for ourselves, are we really
living at all? We have to turn our eyes off ourselves and on to others to
experience the full measure of life.
