In His Image
2 Corinthians 3:18
But we all, with
unveiled face, beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are being
transformed into the same image from glory to glory, just as by the Spirit of
the Lord.
Since 1998,
Herbert Chavez who lives in the Philippines has endured seventeen plastic
surgery procedures. Was he involved in
some horrific accident? No. Born disfigured? No. He
is transforming himself to look like his boyhood hero, Superman. Chavez has a house filled with Superman
memorabilia and wanted to look more like Superman, so he is having his body
changed to achieve his goal. One big
problem is that he is only five foot six inches tall, and Superman was written
as a six foot three inch hero. But Chavez
is looking into procedures to increase his height.
If you’re like
me, you read this thinking something like, “why would anyone do this to
themselves?” The answer is that Herbert
Chavez really sincerely wanted to look like his hero. I have a confession to make – so do I. Not Superman, although that would be great to
look like him, but I want to look more like my hero, Jesus. Since I allowed Jesus into my life, He has
been changing me a little at a time.
If you know
Jesus as your Savior, there is a change going on in your life. Herbert Chavez is changing himself to look
more and more like what he thinks Superman should look like. God is changing us to be more and more like
Jesus. We are not doing the changing,
God is at work in our lives through the Holy Spirit, and we “are being
transformed.”
I am far from
being perfect, but God has been at work in my life changing all the things that
do not conform to the image of His Son.
My mouth got me into trouble many times, but God is working at changing
my speech and it is getting more like Jesus’ speech. My fondness for arguing used to get me in
many arguments, but God is changing my way of thinking. I have more love for others and would rather
help people than argue endlessly with them.
Worldly lusts are being removed piece by piece. Sometimes this renovation project that God has
going on in my life is easy, and sometimes it is bitter medicine to
swallow. In fact, it can be downright
painful. Looking in the Word of God I
can see a portrait of Jesus. There is
still a long, long way to go before this former sinner is transformed into
someone who looks like Jesus, but God has begun the work in me and will bring
this work to completion.
How can God ever change the stony heart in
me? I really do not know how, but I am
confident that God will never give up on what He has begun in my heart and
life. He will bring it to completion. God is not going to give up on what He has
begun in your life either. He will see
it through to completion. We have the
promise of God that someday in some way we will somehow be like Jesus.
We are told
this in 1 John 3:2 (Complete Jewish
Bible)
Dear friends, we are God’s children now;
and it has not yet been made clear what we will become. We do know that when He
appears, we will be like Him; because we will see Him as he really is.
Hold onto this promise of God and look
forward to this work being complete in you!
One day, “we shall be like Him.”
Stephen Cram August
24, 2013
Beware lest
any man spoil you through philosophy and vain deceit, following the tradition
of men according to the rudiments of the world, and not in accordance with
Christ. Colossians 2:8
Visit my pastor’s blog at http://pastorjonrhinehart.blogspot.com/.
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