We read in the gospels about the life of Jesus. We study how he dealt with the many problems that he faced and always did the right thing. We think to ourselves, I want to do as Jesus did, so we copy the ways of Jesus in our lives to be like him. What we miss in this is that no matter how much we try we will never be successful in becoming like Christ by copying what he did because it was our decision and our thinking and effort that was done to copy what Jesus did. The proper and only way to be like Jesus is to pray to the FATHER that HE would transform us to be in HIS sons image. We cannot transform ourselves. GOD is the one who begins HIS work in us and we tend to forget this by trying to copy what we see rather than realizing that only GOD is the one who transforms us, makes us a copy of HIS son. GOD alone is the one who began this transformation and is the one who will complete it. If we desire to be like Jesus this is the only way.
Imagine your hero is John Wayne and by closely studying his character you try to imitate him. Isn’t all your effort in this your own, it’s your works. What you see, hear and perceive is by your own human mind. GOD knows HIS son better than we do and whatever or whoever Jesus was in his earthly existence was created by his GOD. If we desire to walk like Jesus did then GOD must recreate us to do this. We can’t recreate ourselves. If by comparison we see we are sinners when we look at the life of Jesus then the answer to this problem is the same as our desire to be like Jesus, GOD Will begin the process and bring it to completion, we don’t, we can’t .
There is absolutely nothing we can do to assist GOD in our transformation to become like Christ except to willingly submit to the working of HIS spirit in us. The desire of our heart / mind / human spirit is to be like Christ and GOD knows this about us. We take this desire to HIM in our prayers rather than try to copy Jesus by our own self effort. GOD created Jesus therefore HE alone is the best one to create Jesus in us. We have faith to believe this. The Ten Commandments were given only as a shadow of GODS righteousness and many people think that they need to keep them , copy them, in order to not sin but in the attempt to do so makes them sinners. Rather than trying to copy the shadow GOD introduced substance. Just as we can’t copy shadow we can’t copy substance. The shadow is discarded and replaced with substance and just as the shadow was from GOD the substance is from GOD. Nothing was from us. So then, neither the law or grace is achievable by us alone. It is ALL GODS spirit brethren.
Salvation is GODS work in us, we don’t work, GOD works. The same was true for Jesus, Jesus could of himself do nothing. Jesus submitted his will to his GOD who then did all the works in Christ. GOD worked in Jesus both to will and to do HIS good pleasure. Jesus could not on his own decide to copy GOD, it was GOD who created a copy of HIMSELF in Jesus. Jesus is our example to submit to the will of GOD over and above our own will and to give GOD the glory for all the work HE has done In Christ and in us. We do not quench or grieve HIS Holy Spirit to hinder this process by thinking there must be something that we must do because we are just like Jesus, we can of ourselves do nothing.
It is a good thing to study the life of Jesus in the gospels but we must not think we can become like him because of this. We become like Jesus because of the FATHER. Becoming like Jesus is a reality when this desire shifts from mere effort on our part to a transformative journey powered by GODS HOLY SPIRIT. To truly be in the image of Jesus and to walk as he walked requires a drastic change in our nature from being a slave to sin and death due to our defiled human spirit , to being renewed, changed in spirit to partake of GODS nature, a process that humans are powerless to perform.
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