The Man in the Mirror

The Torah reveals our sin to us in the same way looking into a mirror shows us our outer imperfections. When you get up in the morning, and go look in the mirror, you quickly realize that your hair needs to be brushed and your face washed. When a woman sees herself in a mirror, she decides to put on her makeup.  If you were to look into a mirror and notice food stuck in your teeth, you would immediately start trying to clean it out. Mirrors are wonderful tools, because they help us see ourselves. They help us see what we look like to other people.

"Sin was indeed present in the world before Torah was given, but sin is not counted as such when there is no Torah." (Romans 5:13)
"Indeed I would not have known what sin was except through the Torah." (Romans 7:7)

"For whoever hears the Word but doesn't do what it says is like someone who looks at his face in a mirror, who looks at himself, goes away and immediately forgets what he looks like. But if a person looks closely into the perfect Torah, which gives freedom, and continues, becoming not a forgetful hearer but a doer of the work it requires, then he will be blessed in what he does." (James 1:23-25)

That is exactly what the Torah does for us. It reveals our spiritual flaws and weaknesses. It shows us our need for change. It shows us how sinful we are, and helps us to see what needs to be done in our lives so that we will be more Holy. It shows us what we look like to God. When we read the righteous requirements of the Torah, we see how truly ugly our sinful lives are.

"For those who identify with their old nature set their minds on the things of the old nature, but those who identify with the Spirit set their minds on the things of the Spirit. Having one's mind controlled by the old nature is death, but having one's mind controlled by the Spirit is life and shalom. For the mind controlled by the old nature is hostile to God, because it does not submit itself to God's Torah - indeed, it cannot. Thus, those who identify with their old nature cannot please God." (Romans 8:5-8)

We are to live our lives according to the Holy Spirit, and set our minds on what the Spirit desires. The Spirit of God does not contradict the Torah of God. In fact, the Torah was given through the Spirit. "For we know that the Torah is of the Spirit; but as for me, I am bound to the old nature, sold to sin as a slave" (Romans 7:14) That is why we need the leading of the Holy Spirit in our lives, so that we can be spiritual, not carnal.

Look into the mirror of God, see yourself the way God sees you, then become the person God wants you to be through obedience to the Holy Spirit.