For whom He foreknew, He also predestined to be conformed to the image of His Son, that He might be the firstborn among many brethren. Romans 8:29 NKJ
Thanks to all of you who took time off to contribute and comment on the blog. I believe you are all on the right track. Today I want to take this a step further and try to make some suggestions on how we can be more like Him. Let me give you a disclaimer here, I am convinced that on this side of heaven we will not attain perfection, but as we try to see Him more clearly, walk closely to Him, love Him more dearly on a daily basis, we will attain that perfection when we appear in glory.
Last week I said I believe that the term Christ-like has got to do with one’s attitude towards first, His father’s will and secondly, His attitude towards humanity. A friend made a comment that our attitude towards the father is not a difficult thing to do; it is the attitude towards humanity that she struggles with. I am with you sister. However we cannot treat folks as they have treated us, we treat folks as Christ has treated us with love, grace and mercy.
We start off this Christian journey as babies, and then we grow from grace to grace and from glory to glory. The one thing I would suggest we do is to ask this one question every time we are faced with a situation, “what will Jesus do?” I know it sounds like a cliché, but ladies and gentlemen if we are going to be more like Jesus, then we need to know how he would respond to the issues of life as we face them DAILY. The emphasis here is daily, because you can’t act like Christ today and then act like a pure devil tomorrow. Life is a test. Every day we are taking quizzes and exams. So then the question is, will you pass today’s test? A parent overheard a child’s prayer, “Now I lay me down to rest, I hope to pass tomorrow’s test. If I should die before I wake, that’s one less test I have to take.”
Christ-like is a journey. The issues of life, the vicissitudes, the storms and the trials we go through are all meant to shape us to become more like Him.
A sculptor once fashioned a magnificent lion out of a solid stone. When asked how he had accomplished such a wonderful masterpiece, he replied,“It was easy. All I did was to chip away everything that didn’t look like a lion.” All God does is to chip away everything in our lives that doesn’t look like Christ. So maybe for you he is chipping off anger today, maybe for your neighbor it is pride he is chipping off, maybe for me it is anxiety. Whatever they are, are you allowing him to chip them off? So you can become like the child of the lion of the tribe of Judah that you are? If we are going to become like Christ, we have to understand that, it is a journey we have to travel daily. John E Bode wrote a song and titled it “My Savior and My Friend” the last few lines read:
My hope to follow duly/Is in thy strength alone/o guide me, call me, draw me/Uphold me to the end/At last in heaven receive me, My savior and my friend.
He gives us the strength to follow Him. I believe our prayer should be, “Guide me, call me, draw me close to you and uphold me. If we will genuinely desire to be like Him, we will go through the test but in the lingering moments of those experiences, anxieties, fears, and doubts, He will carry us through till we make it home. May Jesus guide you through the days ahead of you and May Christ and the cross remain sufficient for you; and may you become more like Him daily.
Next week we will try and look at some scriptures and try to imitate Christ.
I will leave you all for now, if we don’t meet again, I will see you at the dinner table in papa’s house.
Rev. Kingsley Ayesu.