A Different Set of Eyesಮಾದರಿ

DAY FIVE: See Things Like Jesus

“So God created man in His own image, in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them” Genesis 1:27

Since I’ve been talking about our need to start seeing things as Jesus does by looking with the eyes of our heart, it stands to reason that our heart needs to be like His.  It also stands to reason that what I mean by Christ’s heart is to have His Spirit leading us, and this causes us to take up His values.  With that said, I want to share with you a real-life story to make a point.

When I was growing up in Mississippi, one of my horrors as a child was being forced to kiss my old Great Aunt Vennie.   She was a kind, tenderhearted old maid who lived with my grandparents in a rural area.  However, she had a particularly repulsive habit of enjoying her snuff with her false teeth out of her mouth.  This caused the tobacco juice to collect in the down turned corners of her mouth when she spat it out.  You might guess the part I hated when we visited with her.  Every time I entered her room, she would call out to me, “Come over and give old Aunt Vennie some sugar!”  To not offend my old great aunt, my parents commanded me to respond to her and I will neither forget nor forgive my parents for that ordeal.  Men, don’t ever do that to your kids!  Believe me, they will not like you if you do.

It was this experience as a child that caused me to process the term “spittin' image” incorrectly.  Have you ever heard this phrase used?  In context it would be used when someone reminded you of another person.  As an example, it would be when someone would say that a man’s son is his “spittin' image.”  In the South, it would be used often to describe a child.  So, when I first heard this phrase as a child and having had my difficult experience with Aunt Vennie and her snuff, I saw in my mind something different from what was intended.  Consequently, I never used the term for I didn’t think it was the image I wanted to see when describing a child.  But then I learned more about the phrase and it shed some light on my misconception.  Maybe it is a right description?  See if you agree?

The southern phrase “spittin' image” is derived from “Spirit Image.”  It obviously was shortened due to the dialect and the slurred words rushed together.  So the fact is, it is not about some kid looking like someone who is spitting tobacco juice or an outward appearance of someone, which was my early impression.  No, it is much deeper.  It is about having the characteristics of someone else in our life.  It is something in us that reminds someone of another person.  This little trivia makes me understand the passage referenced above, for I also had a hard time understanding how we can be created in God’s own image.  Is He male or female?  Is He black, white, or hues in between?  Is He Middle Eastern or Mid Western or American Southern?  Of course, we innately understand that this passage is not speaking of our physical looks as God’s creation.  No, it is more than that.  Rather it is speaking of our spirit image of God.  In other words, we were originally created to see our world, other people and our self like God does until sin came into the world and short-circuited that perspective.  However, Jesus turned it around.  He gave God’s Spirit image back to us.  How so?  Well it starts with Jesus, for He is the Spittin' Image of the Father, and He teaches us how to see things like God.

“He (Jesus) is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation.”  Colossians 1: 15 NIV

We see in this passage that Jesus is the spirit image of God the Father.  Here are some things we can learn from the life of Jesus, and about His image of the Father.  Jesus shows us by His life lived out before mankind that:  

• God is good, He is compassionate, He is merciful and that His love for us is sacrificial.   
• He shows us that He is never too busy for us, that He is never too far away from us and that He is our Good Shepherd who lays His life down for us.   
• He shows us that God is our Teacher, our Encourager, and our Constant Companion.   
• He shows us that He is accessible, approachable and always attentive to our needs.   
• He shows us that He is wise, that he is consistent, that he is courageous and that He is tenacious.  
• He shows us that He never gives up on us, is never out done with us, He is never out done by us, and we will never be outcast by Him.  
• He is the King, the Creator, the Guardian of our souls, our Lover, our Treasure of the Kingdom and our Friend. 

This is the Spirit of Father God that we see in His Son Jesus, for you see, Jesus is the “Spittin' Image” of God, and His Spirit resides in His family, which is you and me.

Now here’s the big question to all of us.  Can other people see the spirit image of Jesus in us?  If we want them to see Jesus in us, then it has to begin by how we see people as Jesus sees them.  We have to become the spittin' image of Jesus starting with the eyes of our heart being opened.

How do we become the spirit image of Christ?  It requires that we give Him all that we have.  It’s called “Abiding.”  When we abide in Him, He abides in us and guess what?  Through this dynamic, the Fruit of His Spirit starts to show in our life because those are the characteristics of Christ.  His Spirit takes over.  This is a good thing.

Speaking of a good thing, maybe one day you might overhear someone who is talking about you say, “See that man?  He is the spittin' image of Jesus.”  If they do say this about you, don’t be upset for it’s a Southern compliment.  Believe me when I tell you this.  However, if you can’t believe me, believe Aunt Vennie cause she knows what spittin’s all about.