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James 1:23-24
23 For [hoti] if any [ei tis] be [esti] a hearer [akroates] of the word [logos], and [kai] not [ou] a doer [poietes], he [houtos] is like [eiko] unto a man [aner] beholding [katanoeo] his [autos] natural [genesis] face [prosopon] in [en] a glass [esoptron]:
24 For [gar] he beholdeth [katanoeo] himself [heautou], and [kai] goeth his way [aperchomai], and [kai] straightway [eutheos] forgetteth [epilanthanomai] what manner of man [hopoios] he was [en]. KJV-Interlinear
23 For if anyone is a hearer of the word and not a doer, he is like a man who looks at his natural face in a mirror; 24 for once he has looked at himself and gone away, he has immediately forgotten what kind of person he was. NASB
If you are a hearer of the Word of God, then you are no better than the reflection of your own face in a mirror. While you are standing in front of the mirror, your image is reflected. However, it has no real depth, no content, no fragrance, no texture. A reflection is nothing more than a lighted appearance.
And, when you leave the mirror, your reflection leaves along with you, and is no more.
So, there are two lessons from this verse.
First, the lesson of the mirror reflecting your eternal self. The mirror does not reflect the content of your soul, but only the visual portions of your body, which by the way, is made of dust. If God had made you of something else, then that substance would be reflected.
So, your reflection is not of the real you, but only of the physical exterior of you. Your personality, your thoughts, your attitude, all are not revealed in the mirror. So even you cannot see the real you in a mirror.
But unlike the mirror, the Bible is a reflection of the real you. When you peer into the scriptures, the Bible reveals the real you.
Now, you can stay with the Bible and see the real you, or you can likewise, turn away form the Bible because you do not like what you see, for whatever reason.
Either you are disinterested, or you simply do not agree with what the Bible has to say about you.
In the mirror, you can see only what you wish to see. You can apply makeup, or grooming, or whatever to yourself in order to make the image into what you want to be seen as. But the mirror will never reveal your true reflection. So the mirror like the world, reflects only what is desired, while the Bible reflects the truth whether you like it or not.
The hearer does not pursue the realities or facts or truth. The hearer merely captures a glance and then forgets or ignores the truth, retaining only that which is compatible with his desires.
