REFLECTING JESUS

“When they saw the boldness of Peter and John,
they could see that they were ordinary men
with no special training in the Scriptures.
They also recognized them
as men who had been with Jesus.”
Acts 4:13 NLT
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The moon we see in the night sky does not have any light of its own. The light it gives off is the reflection of the sun. The image we see on the water of a mountain lake is not the mountain; it is the reflection of the mountain. The smoother the water, the sharper the reflection.

Jesus was not the reflection of the Father’s glory, but rather the revealer of that glory, because he and the Father are one. He taught with divine authority, not having to depend on quoting the religious leaders of the day. His life and miracles clearly demonstrated that he had all power in heaven and on earth.

The religious leaders thought they had gotten rid of Jesus once and for all when they crucified him. Now here were these ordinary “blue collar” people with no formal religious education demonstrating the same boldness as Jesus did. They “recognized them as men who had been with Jesus.” They were unmistakably reflecting him.

Whether we lack formal education or have a string of PhD’s after our name, as followers of Jesus we all have the privilege of reflecting him. The question is, how unmistakable is it to others that we have “been with Jesus” - how clear and sharp do we reflect him?

“Let the beauty of Jesus be seen in me -
All His wonderful passion and purity!
O Thou Spirit divine,All my nature refine
Till the beauty of Jesus be seen in me.”
- Albert Orsborn