When People Look at Your Life, Does It Accurately Reflect Jesus?

We all know Jesus loved sacrificially because he gave his life for us. However, Jesus also loved faithfully and completely. One of my favorite verses in John is this one.

Jesus did not just love for the moment. He loved them until the end. This means he never stopped reaching, caring, and even restoring. One example of Jesus loving to the end was restoring Peter after he had denied him.

This causes me to ask myself and you, are you loving to the end? Do you give up on those who may have hurt you? Are you quick to want to pass judgment and forget the one who may have turned their back? That is not how Jesus loves. He died for us when we were sinners. He forgives us when we repent. He restores us after falling.

If we are going to love people in a way that reflects Christ, then we must go all in. We must walk with people through their struggles and not leave them all alone. When we care for the whole person, to the end, then our love is reflecting Christ’s love towards other people.

If you consider the lives of many who profess to be followers of Christ recently, here is how the portrait has looked. Christians have been seen as cynical, angry, divisive, hypocritical, self-centered, and judgmental. It should not surprise you that none of these are qualities that reflect Christ, yet this is what the world is seeing.

How do we change that? We focus on the one element that represents Jesus more than any other: His love. The Bible reminds us that your love is more important than your gift, your talents, your faith, your knowledge, and your sacrifice.

If you really want to be someone who reflects Christ, then you must look at yourself and be honest about what you see. When you do this, ask God to reveal all the areas of your life that don’t remind anyone of Jesus. If you pray this sincerely, God will do that. Best of all, what he reveals, he does so because he wants to heal it and transform it. 

I don’t know about you, but I want to reflect Christ in all aspects of my life. I pray you would join me and this would be a challenge you readily accept. But be prepared, because God is going to work on some things in your life. However, since he is the artist, when he is done the portrait of your life will reflect Christ.

Photo credit: Unsplash/Ilber Franco

Clarence L. Haynes Jr. is a speaker, Bible teacher, and co-founder of The Bible Study Club.  He is the author of The Pursuit of Purpose which will help you understand how God leads you into his will. His most recent book is The Pursuit of Victory: How To Conquer Your Greatest Challenges and Win In Your Christian Life. This book will teach you how to put the pieces together so you can live a victorious Christian life and finally become the man or woman of God that you truly desire to be. Clarence is also committed to helping 10,000 people learn how to study the Bible and has just released his first Bible study course called Bible Study Basics. To learn more about his ministry please visit clarencehaynes.com.