BEING CONFORMED TO THE IMAGE OF CHRIST

Before we get started with our lesson today, take a moment to think about how you resemble your parents or other people in your family. Are the resemblances strictly a result of genetic influence or primarily learned behavior? Perhaps they are a combination of both. Do you remember deliberately trying to emulate one of your parents or a big brother or sister?

Meditation
The Bible tells us that Christ is the author and finisher of our faith. This and other scriptures like it call to our minds the idea of an on-going process that God is doing within us. Take a few minutes to read and meditate on Romans 8:29 which states, "For those God foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the likeness of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brothers."

Write down in your notebook the thoughts or questions that come to your mind as you read and meditate on this scripture.

Alan and I don"t have children, but when I see children who resemble their parents I wonder what it must me like to behold your own little image bearer. Not only does a child take on some or many of the physical characteristics of his or her parents, but he or she often takes on the many other characteristics as well. Children may display the same mannerisms or gestures as their parents as well as have the same likes and dislikes. Additionally, children often have a propensity for the abilities and aptitudes of their parents. I can only imagine that there must be great joy and personal pride that swells up in a parent's heart when they see their most positive attributes portrayed in their children.

I want to be like my Big Brother
I believe that the same holds true for our heavenly Father. When God looks at His children and He sees them growing up to into the image of Christ, that too is a tremendous source of joy for Him.

Each of God's children is without excuse as to what God's will is for their life. God wants each of His children to grow up to be just like their firstborn Brother. It is our job to cooperate with that plan. God gave us a big brother, Jesus Christ, after whom we could deliberately pattern our lives. God is building a family, a Kingdom of believers and Jesus is the first born among many brothers who bear His image. Even our desire and our willingness to cooperate with Him, in this work of sanctification, is a source of joy for our heavenly Father.

What will we be like as we grow up in Christ?
As we grow up in Christ our hearts begin to beat more in sync with His heart, our thoughts become more in tune with His thoughts, and our desires become more and more like His desires.

Check it out
If you have a Strong's or other concordance, look up the word "conformed" in Romans 8:29.

The Greek word for conformed is summorphoo (4832). It is a combination of the words sun (4862), meaning a very close union by resemblance or association, and the word morphe (3444), to form particularly by the adjustment of parts.

God's conforming activity takes place in our hearts and minds as we become conformed to the image of Christ. Psalm 51:6 states, Surely you desire truth in the inner parts, you teach me wisdom in the inmost place. To be conformed to the image of Christ means that God moves around and adjusts our inward parts - our heart and our mind - to look like His. The work of sanctification, i.e. conforming us to Christ's image, is an inner transformation and one that takes place over time.

As we are being conformed we acquire a greater desire to spend time with our Lord, to understand His word, to pray, to share the gospel, and to share the love of Christ through expressions of mercy. Furthermore, our eyes become blinded to the superficial differences between ourselves and other people and we become only concerned with whether they know the love of Christ.

The daily devotionals for this week are designed to help you grow in your desire and understanding of what it means to be conformed to the image of Christ. May God richly bless you and gently conform you with His loving hands as you seek His will for your life this week.

GOD'S WORKMANSHIP

The first week this month we studied about God's work of redemption and what it means to have a personal relationship with God. Last week we studied about God's work of sanctification in our lives. This week we will be studying works as a fruit of our sanctification. Ephesians 2:10 says, "For we are God's workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do". Part of the purpose of God in conforming us into His image is to make us more effective at accomplishing the work He has planned for us to do. There are two important points that we need to look at concerning this passage.

Recognizing the Work of God
The first point concerns our ability to recognize the work God has for us. We read that God has prepared work for us in advance of our salvation. In fact, it's likely He prepared this work for us before the creation of the world, just as He chose us in Him before the creation of the world (Eph. 1:4.) If God has work planned for me, then the foremost question that should be on my mind is, "What is this work and how do I recognize it?" We will study this subject more in this week's daily devotionals.

The Attributes of Servant Hood
The second point that I want to touch on is that God initiates the work. It is His project, not mine. He is the grand architect, and His building is His providence. He knows what He wants to accomplish through me and does not delegate that authority to me. I work for God. I am His servant. What are the attributes of a good servant? The servant keeps the house in order, and conducts the daily routine, while at the same time he is waiting to receive more specific orders. The servant waits vigilantly, but not unproductively to hear from his master. And when the order comes, the servant does not have excuses as to why he can't do his job right now, and he does not give suggestions as to how it could be done better, he bows in humble obedience and engages in the task assigned him.

Personal Application
Get out your notebook and take a look at John 4:34, "My food," said Jesus, "is to do the will of him who sent me and to finish his work."

• What do you think Jesus meant by that statement?
  
• How important is food to you?
  
• What priority does food have in your life?
  

Jesus in a sense is saying, "Doing God's will is what sustains me. It is the precedence of my life, it tops all my priorities." If Jesus had any need at all, it was to do the will of the Father.

A Pattern for Doing God's Work
Now again taking your notebook in hand, read John 5:17-19 and write down the pattern that Jesus gives us in verses 17 and 19 concerning the work that Jesus does by answering these questions:

• Who is always at work?
  
• What can Jesus do by Himself?
  
• What can Jesus do?
  
• What does Jesus do?

Jesus tells us very specifically that He does not initiate any work. Does this come as a surprise to you? The Father is the only One who initiates work. As I said earlier, God the Father is the Grand Architect, and He developed the blueprint for His providence. Jesus gets His directions from the Father. He is in perfect obedience and submission, though equal in person and power to the Father. Jesus only does what He sees the Father doing.

If Jesus is in this kind of submissive relationship to the Father, how much more so should we be in submission to Jesus. Just as Jesus said that He could do nothing by Himself, we must understand that the same applies to us when it comes to doing God's will. We can do nothing by ourselves, period!

Take it to the Lord
Let's pray right now that God would give us eyes to see what He is doing, so that we can join Him in His work.

Dear heavenly Father, I am unable to do anything of any eternal worth or value apart from You. Forgive me for the times when I take personal pride in my work and arrogantly think that I have done something for You, the One who is not served by human hands as if You needed anything. Forgive me Father for the times when I have taken credit for ministering to another; only Your Holy Spirit accomplishes true ministry. Father in heaven, gracious God above, give me eyes to see Your plan, give me a willing heart to do the work that You have prepared for me before you laid the foundation of the world, and equip me to perform Your work by the power of Your word and Your Spirit. To Your name be the glory. In Jesus name we pray, Amen.

The daily devotionals this week will help you to recognize the work of God in your life. May God be with you as you seek to walk in greater submission to God and to make His work your food.

REVEALING HIMSELF

"No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws him. . ." (John 6:44). One of the great works of God is that He reveals Himself to His people, to people who are dead in their trespasses and sins, to people who are not capable of seeking God for themselves.

God Finds us
Romans 3:11 also tells us that "not one seeks God . . ." But we can shout hallelujah because the One who created us for a relationship with Him, does not wait for us to seek Him. He draws us to Himself and He reveals Himself to us. In fact God holds Himself out not to good people, but to obstinate people, people who have turned their noses up at God.

"I revealed myself to those who did not ask for me; I was found by those who did not seek me. To a nation that did not call on my name, I said, 'Here am I, here am I.' ² All day long I have held out my hands to an obstinate people, who walk in ways not good, pursuing their own imaginations"- Isaiah 66:1-2

And once we have been found by God, and we have received the revelation of God unto salvation, He continues to draw us to Himself by the power of the Holy Spirit. God continues to reveal Himself to us through His Word, other believers, prayer and circumstances to mold us and shape us into the holy vessels He desires us to be.

The Revelation of God in our Lives Refines us
When God reveals Himself to you it is always for a purpose. Every time God reveals Himself, He is demonstrating His nature and His character to you in a very personal way. The master potter takes His hands and through the provision of revealing Himself to us, He molds us into what He wants us to be: His own uniquely crafted image of Christ in man. I imagine that it is something like a master carpenter putting the finishing touches on his masterpiece, sanding all the rough edges and smoothing out all the surfaces so that the finest qualities of the wood are revealed to the uttermost. The refining instruments, the sand paper if you will, that God uses in our lives to reveal Christ are our circumstances (Ro 8:28), the word of God (Heb 4:12), and prayer all fueled by the power of God's Holy Spirit (2 Co 3:17-18).

In the Old Testament, when God revealed Himself to His people, they would put up a marker: a standing stone or an altar to identify the place in their journey where God met with them. They did not want to forget the God that met with them in a very personal way. When God met with Joshua He commanded Joshua to put up a memorial so the Israelites would not forget what God had done for His people when they crossed the Jordan River (Joshua 4:1-7).

Personal Application
Take some time now to read Joshua 3. In your notebook write down all the ways that God revealed Himself to Joshua and the Israelites, and then consider the following question:

• If you had been in the troop of Israelites crossing the Jordan what refining effect do you think might have taken place in your heart and mind as you experienced God through these circumstances?

Building Your Own Memorials to God
God knew it would be important for the Israelites to remember their encounter with Him because there would be trials ahead as well as temptations that would lead the Israelites into sin and away from God. The memorial was set up to help remind them of God's revelation and provisions in their lives. Now, even if we were in a position to be traversing through the River Jordan and into the land of Canaan, it is unlikely that the stones that Joshua's men erected are still there to remind us of God's great work and awesome nature. But, God has given us two things to help us remember: He has given us His word and He has given us our own personal memorials.

Take some time to think back over your life and reflect on the times that God has met with you. Perhaps it was at a crossroads in your life and you did not know which way to go; perhaps it was a time when you were in need and God provided; perhaps there was a time of confusion and God showed you the truth. Whatever it is, anyone who is in Christ has times when they clearly know that God has revealed Himself to them.

Now take a few more moments and record in your notebook these various markers or standing stones in your life -- the places where God revealed Himself to you. Date the entries and record the nature and character of God that He revealed to you and the personal provision that He made for you at that time. Take a few more moments and give thanks to God for these revelations of Himself to you.

Make a concerted effort to remember these and future memorials in your life by designating a separate journal or scrapbook just for that purpose. This was God's directive to Joshua and the children of Israel and it is no less important for us today to erect memorials to the Lord.

Study the Character of God
One of the most powerful things we can do to enhance our relationship with God is to study His attributes. Understanding the character and nature of God is like an anchor for our faith. So this week in our daily devotionals we are going to be setting anchors to help stabilize our faith in the character and nature of God. Each day we will focus on one of God's attributes and meditate on related scriptures.