Day 22 of Purpose Driven Life “What on Earth am I here for. Created to Become Like Christ: You were created to become like Christ. From the very beginning, God’s plan has been to make you like his Son, Jesus. Like God, we are spiritual being – our spirits are immortal and will outlast our earthly bodies; we are intellectual – we can think, reason and solve problems; like God, we are relational – we can give and receive real love; and we have a moral consciousness – we can discern right from wrong, which makes us accountable to God. What does the full “image and likeness” of God look like? It looks lie Jesus Christ! The bible says Jesus is “the exact likeness of God,” “the visible image of the invisible God,” and “the exact representation of his being.” Let me be absolutely clear: You will never become God, or even a god. That prideful lie is Satan’s oldest temptation. Satan promised Adam and Eve that if they followed his advice, “ye shall be as gods.” Many religions and New Age philosophies still promote this old lie that we are divine or can become gods. God doesn’t want you to become a god; he wants you to become godly – taking on his values, attitudes, and character. God wants you to develop the kind of character described in the beatitudes of Jesus, the fruit of the Spirit, Paul’s great chapter of Love, and Peter’s list of the characteristics of an effective and productive life. God’s ultimate goal for your life on earth is not comfort, but character development. Never forget that life is not about you! You exist for God’s purpose, not vice versa. God gives us out time on earth to build and strengthen our character for heaven. We must cooperate with the Holy Spirit’s work. Through-out the Bible we see an important truth illustrated over and over: The Holy Spirit releases his power the moment you take a step of faith. God waits for you to act first. Don’t wait to feel powerful or confident. Move ahead in your weakness, doing the right thing in spite of you fears and feeling. This is how you cooperate with the Holy Spirit, and it is how your character develops. Paul explains in Ephesians: 4:22-24 our three responsibilities in becoming like Christ. First, we must choose to let go of old ways of acting. Second, we must change the way we think. Third, we must “put on” the character of Christ by developing new, godly habits. God use his Word, people, and circumstances to mold us. God’s Word provides the truth we need to grow, God’s people provide the support we need to grow, and circumstances provide the environment we need to practice Christlikeness.
Posted on: Fri, 17 Jan 2014 14:26:41 +0000
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