For I say, through the grace given unto me, to every man that is among you, not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think; but to think soberly, according as God hath dealt to every man the measure of faith. Romans 12:3
Are you guilty of using the wrong mirror when you get yourself ready for the day? Oh, you say, I have just the one mirror, on my bathroom wall, and I need to use that to make sure I am presentable. What other mirror do you think I am using? Oh, I know which mirror you are using. And I don’t take issue with your using it to make sure your hair is properly combed and the breakfast crumbs are gone from your chin. The trouble we have with looking into that mirror is the person we see looking back at us. We are conditioned by the selfish world we live in to look into that mirror and see Number One. What we need to do instead is to look into the mirror of the Word of God. That mirror won’t show us as Number One; it will show us as Number Three.
When Paul appeals to us in today’s text to not to think too highly of ourselves, he does so after first mentioning the grace given to him. We know what grace means: unmerited favour. Paul is remembering that, if not for the grace of God, he would still be persecuting the Christians and still be abiding under the wrath of God. Paul would be nothing but Saul of Tarsus, the chief of sinners, if he had not met Jesus Christ on Damascus Road. Who among us is any better than Paul. And if his first thought when considering our opinion of ourselves is the grace of God, surely we must do the same. We cannot know what we would be today if God had not come in and saved us, but we do know that it would not be good. Our bathroom mirror would show only a hell-bound wretch. As sinners who are saved, we have a better mirror that will show ourselves according to God’s perspective.
A wise man once said that if we were half the men we think we are, we would be twice the men we are. It is human nature to see ourselves as greater than we actually are. But we have been given a divine nature that can see further than our bathroom mirror. The Holy Spirit Who led us to a saving faith in Jesus Christ also brought us to the acknowledging of Him as Lord. That means He has become Number One. His program trumps ours; His priorities replace ours, His desires become ours. And when we read the Word of God, the Holy Spirit teaches us how to submit to our Lord and to allow His lordship to take precedence. Instead of thinking highly of ourselves, we will think highly of Him and long for Him to be exalted in our lives. And the same Spirit will instruct us that the lordship of Christ bumps us not only down from Number One but also bumps us down from Number Two. Not thinking too highly of ourselves enables us to think more highly of others. The Lord Jesus spent His entire life serving others. And so should we. Instead of building ourselves up, we need to build up the Lord’s people. Instead of worrying about own own welfare, we need to be concerned about the needs of the lost souls around us. Instead of patting ourselves on the back, we need to recognize the sterling qualities of those around us.
Try looking into God’s mirror as you start your day. You may be surprised at who you will find facing you there. -Jim MacIntosh