So then, my beloved, just as you have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence, work out your salvation with fear and trembling; for it is God who is at work in you, both to will and to work for His good pleasure. Philippians 2:12,13
“Reverse Engineering Christlikeness”
Dear Friends:
A person doesn’t wake up some morning with a desire to be a Medical Doctor and then just declare, “I am a doctor,” expecting it to become reality. Becoming a doctor (or lawyer, nurse, teacher, pastor, professional athlete, etc., etc.) requires a long process of working hard and smart and doing specific things to attain that goal.
Most people understand that this applies to virtually every arena of life. However, when it comes to Christianity, we can think that it’s all about having our sins forgiven and going to heaven when we die. We can see “eternal life” as merely quantitative (it goes on forever!) and not as qualitative – a quality of life that begins now and certainly goes on forever.
Only when we understand that a Christian is someone who has been “born from above” (John 3:3) and is a new creation, indwelt by God’s Holy Spirit, can we appreciate the importance of allowing His Spirit to transform us into His image (Romans 8:29). To become like Jesus, we must “Reverse Engineer” from His perfection to the yearly, monthly, weekly, daily and moment-by-moment practices that will actually cultivate true Christlikeness. The disciplines of Prayer, Scripture immersion and continuous practice of what He teaches us must be an integral part of “working out our salvation.” Relying on God, who is at work in us, to perform His sanctifying work of transforming us from the inside out, will guarantee the necessary progress.
Can you honestly say that you are sufficiently serious and intentional about God’s calling to become like Jesus? Is that truly your heart’s desire? What are you doing regularly, consistently, diligently to achieve that end result?
Please consider this, pray about this, pursue this, and with God at work in you, experience this!
In Christ’s love,
And for God’s glory,
Pastor Tim Sir