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So God created mankind in his own image,

    in the image of God he created them;

    male and female he created them. (Genesis 1:27)

One of the missing links of what it means to be a “Christian” is the command to be like Jesus. It is a tall, maybe impossible, order as we know that while we live with this flesh in a fallen world, perfection will be unattainable in and of ourselves. That makes it a good thing we are “saved by grace alone, by faith alone, in Christ alone”. Whatever good works and goodness within us, it will never be enough to perfect us.

“Image” seems to be the end-all in our modern narcissistic culture. When we are newborns, we start out curious and attracted to all the new faces and activities we are confronted with daily. Put a bunch of babies of all different races, both sexes, sizes, and personalities in the same room and you will see an amazing display of mutual exploration, acceptance, and loving behavior. Something happens very soon though that makes that open curiosity and acceptance turn into competition for attention, treats, and dominance. Where does that come from or why does that happen?  Is it from looking in the mirror for the first time and seeing how “different” we are from our new friends? Does it come from seeing and hearing all the “coos” of affirmation for others and feeling jealous they are not directed to us? When is it that we start coveting the toys of our friends? When and how do we perceive theirs being better than ours? Does it stem from our parents saying “why can’t you be as good as your sibling”?  Does it come from the taunts of our playmates who laugh at us when we can’t keep up with them physically or mentally? There is always someone better than us…and something in our nature hates that sense of inferiority or inability.  

The longer I have lived, the more convinced I have become that most of the masses live lives of quiet desperation trying to feel equal or superior to others. It doesn’t take long in this life to learn that we AREN’T equal to others. Very few of us are the best at anything…the best looking, the most athletic, the most intelligent, the greatest artist…yet the world around us is always comparing one to another and rewarding the best over the inferior. Identity somehow morphs into where we lie on the scale of proficiency or looks. By the time we reach puberty, most of us are struggling to know where we fit into our world or have clear cut goals or ideas on what we want to do or where to go as humans. We start idolizing those who inspire us in the attributes we aspire to and in many cases we quit before we begin trying to reach our goals and visions in life. For many, if we cannot be the best, we don’t want the rest. Thus begins that cycle of “quiet desperation”.

The Bible offers a plethora of passages and advice on how we are to see ourselves, others, and God as our maker. It starts with the premise of seeing ourselves as GOD sees us, not the other humans around us. Here are just a few of those passages to consider:

God has chosen us to know and be HIS. 

“Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in the heavenly realms with every spiritual blessing in Christ. For he chose us in him before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in his sight. In love he predestined us for adoption to sonship through Jesus Christ, in accordance with his pleasure and will—to the praise of his glorious grace, which he has freely given us in the One he loves.” (Ephesians 1:3-7)

“God does not make junk” has been a common saying from somewhere. As we mature in our spiritual walk, we start realizing the POTENTIAL in ourselves and others in place of the limitations or inabilities. We are to love ourselves and others “just as we are”.  Christ died for our sins “while we were yet sinners”.  He didn’t wait for some impossible moment where we would clean ourselves up or overcome all our weaknesses. He knows us, he forgives us, then he waits for us to let HIM change us through HIS power…not our own.

When it comes to purpose in life, God wants us to live and “abide” in His love throughout our short earthly lives. This is what conforming to His nature is all about.

“Abide in my love. If you keep my commandments, you will abide in my love, just as I have kept my Father’s commandments and abide in his love. These things I have spoken to you, that my joy may be in you, and that your joy may be full”. (John 15:9-12) 

If you want joy, which is different from “happiness”, abide in Jesus…his ways and his example. Happiness is a temporary condition when good things happen. Joy is what fills your soul no matter what is happening around you and comes directly from the Holy Spirit.

We are to understand how he sees us and what HIS plan for us has been from the beginning of time. We are to seek to be like HIM, not someone else. All else is considered idolatry in God’s book. That is a huge challenge for our culture.

“For those whom he foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, in order that he might be the firstborn among many brothers”. (Romans 8:29)

It is God and his Holy Spirit that is transforming and conforming in our lives. It is not an instantaneous thing, but a lifelong process of being refined and changed. Step by step, bit by bit, God’s spirit is helping us overcome ourselves, our failures, our disappointments with this life so that we can be His light, love, and bring hope to this present world of darkness.

Finally, the most important commandment of God that overshadows all other rules and regulations:

“You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind, and your neighbor as yourself.” (Luke 10:27)

What a beautiful freeing concept where everything in life CAN be about loving God as He has revealed Himself to us, and loving others as we have enough love for ourselves. It is the LOVE of God, not judgment or ridicule from Him, that fills us and teaches us how to abide and live in HIS love. When we have HIS love, we are in the process of being conformed to His calling and destiny for us. It is not about OUR perfection, but HIS. It is not about OUR abilities, but HIS.  It is not about OUR choices, but HIS choosing us from the beginning of time.

I know these are mysteries to most people, even many believers. Yet I am learning to see the PROCESS of conformity to Christ in my own life and the lives of those I love around me. I don’t have to reject people because of their thoughts or ways that may differ from mine. They will reject me first because of mine. Light and darkness have nothing in common except that light always overcomes darkness in the long run. 

The core work of conforming to the image of Christ is to…”let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven” (Matthew 5:16).  When we are doing this through His Spirit, not everyone will applaud or pat us on the back, but some MAY and will see your good works and thereby give glory to the Father for His revelation through your life.

Be encouraged in this today.