"when
we appear before Him, we really will be like Him"
From
the day a couple first discusses having children or discovers that a baby is on
the way, they start bonding with the baby, and developing their desire and hope
for the baby. They begin to plan and map out his life, because they believe he
is their responsibility. They are right. From the beginning of time, a child
has been the parents’ responsibility. They celebrate the genetic heritage that
passes forward in the family DNA and try to anticipate the way some of their
own physical features will be expressed in the baby. They want the baby to be
healthy and intelligent. I doubt that there has ever been a parent who wanted
anything less for a child.
Similarly,
God our Father has plans for His children; plans that are attainable if we team
up with Him. He made it very clear that His plans are for our well-being (See
Jeremiah 29:11). Unlike human parents, God doesn’t only have plans, but He also
knows how to make them happen. Human parents have no guarantees that their
hopes for their children will materialize, but God does.
All
that God wants for His children is summed up in one plan—that we will be
conformed to the likeness of His Son, Jesus (See Romans 8:29). That plan really
is for us to be holy, because He is holy (See 1Peter 1:15-16). God is not just
wishing and hoping for the best for us. Neither is He waiting to see how things
unfold. Instead, He takes an active role in the process to bring about our
sanctification, by fully equipping us to that end. Peter reassures us that we
are not left on our own to figure out life, but that, “His divine power has
given us everything we need for life and godliness through our knowledge of him
who called us by his own glory and goodness” (2 Peter 1:3 NIV84). We need an
increasing knowledge of God’s will, which will allow us to live lives that
please Him. That was Paul’s prayer for the Church at Colosse (See Colossians
1:9-10).
Paul
the apostle, admonished the young preacher Timothy, regarding what he should
teach the flock under his care—godly living—by saying, “Everyone who confesses
the name of the Lord must turn away from wickedness” (2 Timothy 2:19 NIV84). We
should not continue to live in sin after we have the knowledge of the will of
God. If we know the will of God, but choose to do otherwise, James says it’s
like forgetting how we look immediately after we turn away from a mirror (See
James 1:22-24). As we obey the will of God, we are being sanctified; we
gradually become more and more like Jesus, just the way God has intended for
us.
So
how do we attain this increasing knowledge of His will? Through studying the
Bible, the Word, which is God’s manual for daily living. Everything we need to
know in this endeavor is written down for us in the Word. The Bible is
complete. It addresses every aspect of our lives. It has the answers to all the
questions we’ll ever have about godly living in this life. In addition, God has
placed us in His family, the Church, where we can care for and support one
another. Sharing our experiences helps each of us grow. God has given us gifts
with which we serve each other and attain His desire for us. What is His desire
for us? To become like Jesus Christ!
The
climax of God’s desire for us will be amazing, because when we appear before
Him, we really will be like Him. As the apostle Paul wrote, “So shall we bear
the likeness of the man from heaven” (1 Corinthians 15:49NIV84). Amen!
