the Christian Life is a life lived __________ Jesus
To Follow Him is to BE LIKE Him
Jesus' Teaching
“A disciple is not above his teacher, nor a slave above his master.It is enough for the disciple that he may become like his teacher, and the slave like his master." (Matthew 10:24-25 NASB)
The disciple of Jesus, then, is the person who lives like Jesus.
GOD's Will For YOu From the very beginning, we see that this is the expressed will of God for you. The very first thing God said about human beings was this: "Let us make mankind in Our image, according to Our likeness." (Genesis 1:26 NASB)
God's will from the beginning is that we should be Like Him.
Specifics of being like Him
being indscriminately generous toward people (see Matthew 5:38-48)
forgiving the way He forgives (see matthew 18:21-35)
The Fruit of the Spirit (Galatians 5:22-23) Love Joy Peace Patience Goodness Kindness Gentleness Faithfulness Self-Control
How THat happens
it is a natural human phenomenon that we become like the people we spend time with. We imitate some things consciously. Other things we just pick up. But whether deliberately or subconsciously, we become like the people to whom we are exposed and with whom we spend the most time.
It follows Naturally, then, that if a person will live more and more WITH Jesus, that person will live more and more LIKE Jesus.
And that is His will for His disciples. THat is His will for you.
The chief attribute
We see in Scripture that love is the #1 commandment, the #2 Commandment, the New Commandment, the first fruit of the Spirit listed, the preeminent gift of the Spirit, and the quintessential attribute of God.
Paul defines love in these ways (from 1 Corinthians 13):
- Love is patient. - Love is kind. - Love is not jealous. - Love is not boastful. - Love is not arrogant. - Love is not rude. - Love does not insist on its own way. - Love is not irritable. - Love keeps no record of wrongs. - Love does not delight in evil. - Love rejoices with the truth. - Love bears all things. - Love believes all things. - Love hopes all things. - Love endures all things.
We would do well to insert "Jesus" in each sentence where the word "love" occurs.
Then, in order to understand your calling as His disciple, insert your own name into each sentence where the word "love" occurs.
WWJD
In 1896, Charles Sheldon published the book "IN HIS STEPS." It is a marvelous little novel that follows a handful of earnest people in the fictional town of Raymond who endeavor to live each day asking the question, "What would Jesus do?"
This becomes one of the defining characeristics of a disciple of Jesus. This is one of the keys to becoming "like" Him. We make each decision with this standard in mind: What would He do? And once we know the answer, that's what we do!
The Most Important Word
What is the most important word for day-t0-day Christian living? There are lots of good options. FOr our purposes, though, we suggested the word "As."
This word informs how we are to love -- "love your neighbor as you love yourself." "Love one another as I have loved you."
This word guides our praying -- "Thy will be done on earth As it is in heaven."
This word teaches us how to be married -- Wives, submit to your husbands as to the Lord." "Husbands, love your wives As Christ loved the church."
Indeed, this word reorients how and why we do everything we do -- "Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord and not for men."
This principle, then, leads us to the "L-Shaped Ethic" -- the idea that all of the CHristian life is meant to be lived in response to the Lord. And this truth encompasses both living like Him and living for Him.
In Response to Him
We know what it is to live in response to what another person is like. Perhaps what this person is like makes us defensive. Perhaps what another person is like makes us timid or scared. Perhaps what another person is like makes us feel happy and free.
If we are going to live properly in response to Him, then we need to know what He is like. Two things help with that: (1) Scripture, and (2) living with Him. In the former, He reveals Himself to us. In the latter, we experience Him for ourselves.
As you discover more and more what Jesus is like, be conscious and deliberate about living in response to that!