The Imitation of Christ

Our Sunday night Bible study this week was thought provoking. Here are a few thoughts that came out that night and since then...

-- If God chose me when I was an amoral, pleasure-seeking 18-year-old fully devoted to doing my own thing, how much more would He choose me now as a much more mature 30-year-old who seeks to serve others, serve Him and be like Him? Yet I often feel like I disappoint God. I need to zero in on the fact that He did choose me and He has never once regretted that choice. Lord help me know that you take pleasure in me!

-- The imitation of Christ can be a tricky thing. How many people live in total bondage trying with all their might to become like Christ? How many bang their head against the wall because their will can only take them so far (and not remotely close to true Christ-likeness)? And how many people ultimately give up when they realize that they constantly fall short of this standard?

A guy in our Bible study pointed out how misguided this idea of becoming like Christ CAN be -- when the emphasis is on doing everything the way Jesus did. Well in our flesh that's impossible. The key thing is to realize that everything that Christ was and did was born out of His relationship with the Father. The Gospel of John records dozens of testimonies from Jesus about this relationship: The Father had sent Him, given Him a message, loved Him and more. And how often did Jesus get away from others in order to pray to the Father?

The point is this: in order to have any hope of imitating Christ's actions, attitudes and deeds toward others, we must likewise focus first and foremost on our relationship with the Father. All our relating to other people depends on this connection. Our goal mustn't be to do what Christ did so much as it is to be who Christ was (and is): His beloved Son. We ARE likewise His beloved children, and if we know that and believe it, we will be people who act like Jesus did. It will simply happen.

-- We have the Holy Spirit to confirm this identity in us -- to testify to our Sonship. And speaking of the Holy Spirit, many people have said how great it would be to live in the time of Christ. While I don't disagree, we live in the age of the Holy Spirit, which was not around at that time. Jesus Himself said, "...it is actually best for you that I go away, because if I don't, the Counselor won't come." (NLT; italics mine) I'd love to have been around Jesus to see His miracles and be in His presence on earth, but the Holy Spirit is pretty cool too. Don't ya think?