Saturday, August 16, 2008

Day 12: Chip Off The Ol' Block

The Bible calls us to be imitators of God. That's a pretty high order. If I am imitating God in my life right now, then we are all in deep trouble. Of course, no one is perfect; we are all sinners, and thus we are destined to fail in striving to emulate Christ. Still, that fact does not give us an excuse to stop trying.

By reading God's Word, we can discover the ways that Jesus acted and wants us to act. If we then apply those ways to our own lives by walking in them, then we are in God's will. However, Jesus didn't make it easy for us. His life was lived completely selflessly. He cared for those that no one else even wanted to be near. He hung out with the unpopular. Even his closest team of disciples was made up largely of fishermen. To live as Christ lived, we need to go against everything that our usual inclinations tell us to do. That's difficult.

It is worth it, though. While I can't say that I live for Christ 100% of the time, it has definitely been for the better when I have lived for Him. God sends you a sense of peace and joy when you walk with Him. I suppose it's because you're doing what you're supposed to do, and that satisfies a sense of duty and responsibility that the Holy Spirit gives us. I will strive to be like God is, but not through my own efforts. Rather, I will try to be like Him out of my love for Him. When you do something because you love someone, you do it because you want to rather than because you have to. I think that is the key to walking the Christian walk. It certainly lines up with Jesus' two greatest commandments.

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