Standing Firm in Imitation – More Like Jesus

As I was writing the content of the next inSPIRE® resource, I was moved beyond words by God’s concept of becoming his child. We do nothing to earn our spiritual birthright. When we place our faith in God, who is our heavenly Father, we are embraced as children of God – beloved heirs and image-bearers of the Almighty. What a wholly unmerited gift, and what a tremendous responsibility.

The Example of Christ

Thankfully, we are not left wondering what living as children of God should look like. Ephesians 5:2 directs our gaze to the incarnated Jesus, as our living, breathing example.

Imitate God, therefore, in everything you do, because you are his dear children. Live a life filled with love, following the example of Christ. He loved us and offered himself as a sacrifice for us, a pleasing aroma to God. Ephesians 5:1-2 (NLT)

Christ himself beckons the disciples to follow his example, and to do as he has done (John 13:15). The apostle Paul reminds us that God’s purpose for us is to be conformed to the image of his Son (Romans 8:29).

Sacrifice

The invitation is a call to love and humble sacrifice. When Jesus invited the disciples to follow his example, he was washing their feet. The message wasn’t a tweet or a post made from a distant corner office – it was an act of service with a touch of grace – even as the rug of status and self-importance was being pulled out from underneath the disciples’ freshly cleaned, dripping, wet feet. Their response to following Christ meant relinquishing former customs and values in exchange for eternal ones.

Reaching Up

This message of becoming more like Christ is symbolized by the image of the SPIRE. We imagine reaching upwards for this very purpose of becoming more like Christ. We reach out to the God who reaches down and will wear a towel to clean our soiled and aching feet, when necessary.

Reaching Out

Becoming more like the Saviour who serves is not only about us. Evangelist and theologian John Stott reminds us that our Christ-like lives are the message of salvation to an unbelieving world. Alternately, if we don’t embody love and humble sacrifice and do not look anything like the Christ we are proclaiming, we won’t draw others to God. In his final public address, John Stott shared that after a lifetime of studying and teaching the Bible, he concluded that God’s ultimate purpose for his people was Christlikeness. He recalled the comments of a former Muslim who said that if all Christians were like Christ, there would be no more Islam today.

All in the Family

I am more than challenged by the commission to love and sacrifice like Jesus. At times I feel almost ready to give up on such a weighty responsibility. Until I go back to Ephesians 5:1. Scripture tells me that I can imitate God because I am his daughter. Though my sin nature balks at becoming more like Christ, my new nature draws me to him.

I can choose to live free of self-centeredness, to serve like Jesus, empowered by God’s Spirit, alive in me. I can choose to live generously, sacrificially, and humbly, because I have a holy example to guide me. As I desire to be more and more conformed to Christ, my light shines brighter in the darkness.

Is there someone in your life who showed you the way of humility and sacrifice?

Can you and I pray to be the one who loves and serves someone today, in the Jesus way? Perhaps the words of the song More Like Jesus can guide our prayer.

As we pray, sacrifice, and serve, I think the angels might elbow one another and say with a smile, “It runs in the family.”