What Does It Mean To Be Christlike?
Feb. 2, 2003
PHP 2:5 Your attitude should be the same as that of Christ Jesus:
22 You were taught, with regard to your former way of life, to put off your old self, which
is being corrupted by its deceitful desires; 23 to be made new in the attitude of your minds;
24 and to put on the new self, created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness.
Eph. 4:22-24
Listen to this passage in The Message: “But you were taught to be made new in your
hearts, to become a new person. That new person is made to be like God -- made to be
truly good and holy.” Eph. 4:23-24
Max Lucado in his book, “Just Like Jesus” makes this statement at the beginning of his
book, and I thought it was powerful. Listen.
“God loves you just the way you are, but he refuses to leave you that way.
He wants you to be just like Jesus.”
This morning the Gospel Message is clear, it tells us that when we put our faith in Christ,
when we turn away from our sins and follow Jesus and become his disciple, there is
something Supernatural that happens within us, in our hearts that transforms our lives.
When we are saved we move from a state of Spiritual Death, to a glorious state of being
Alive in Christ through His Spirit. The Bible teaches us that the Very Spirit of Christ
takes residence in our lives and begins to teach us, begins to shape us, and helps us as we
walk in obedience to his leading.
This morning I want you to catch hold of the reality that Jesus Christ lives in you through
His Spirit if you are saved.
Have you ever thought about What if, for one day, Jesus were to become you?
What if for 24 hours, Jesus wakes up in your bed, walks in your shoes, lives in
your house, assumes your schedule? Your boss becomes his boss, your mother becomes
his mother, your pains becomes his pains? With one exception, nothing about your life
changes. Your health doesn’t change, Your circumstances don’t change, your schedule
isn’t altered. Your problems aren’t solved. Only one change occurs.
What if, for one day and one night, Jesus lives your life with His Heart?
Your heart gets the day off, and your life is led by the heart of Christ. His priorities
govern your actions. His passions drive your decisions. His love directs your behavior.
Can you imagine? What would you be like? Do you think people would notice a
change? Your family -- would they see something new? Your co-workers -- would they
think someone else had been hired? What about your friends? Would they detect more
Joy? What about your enemies? Would they receive more mercy from Christ’s heart than
from yours?
What about YOU? How would you feel with God’s heart in you? Would your
stress level go down? What about your temper?
Would you sleep better? Would you still dread what your dreading? Better than that,
would you still do what your doing?
Think about your schedule, what you have planned, With Jesus taking over your heart,
would anything change?
Can you see what your life might look like with Jesus leading your life? That picture that
you see, with Jesus leading your life is what God wants....... The Word says we are to
“think and act like Christ Jesus.” Another passage says, “to be like God in true
righteousness and holiness”.
Friends, God’s plan for you is nothing short of a new heart. If you were a car, God would
want control of your engine. If you were a computer, God would claim the software and
the hard drive. If you were an airplane, he’d take his seat in the cockpit. But you are a
person, so God wants to change your heart.
Listen to the Word, “But you were taught to be made new in your hearts, to
become a new person. That new person is made to be like God -- made to be truly
good and holy.” Eph. 4:23-24
God loves you just the way you are, but he refuses to leave you that way. He
wants you to be just like Jesus.
God’s love never ceases. Never. Though we spurn him. Ignore him. Reject him.
Despise him. Disobey him. He will not change. Our evil cannot diminish his love. Our
goodness cannot increase it. Our faith does not earn it anymore than our stupidity
jeopardizes it. God doesn’t love us less if we fail or more if we succeed. God’s love
never ceases
A famous author tells this story to describe God’s love for us.
When my daughter was just a toddler, I used to take her to a park not far from our
apartment. One day as she was playing in a sandbox, and ice-creme salesman approached
su. I purchased her a treat, and when I turned to give it to her, I saw she had her mouth
full of sand. Where I intended to put a treat, she had put dirt.
He asks the question, Did I love her with dirt in her mouth? Absolutely. Was I
going to allow her to keep the dirt in her mouth? Of coarse not. I loved her right where
she was, but I refused to leave her there. I carried her over to the water fountain and
washed out her mouth. Why? Because I love her.
Friends, God does the same thing for us. He holds us over the Fountain. “Spit out the
dirt, Son/daughter” our Father urges. “I’ve got something better for you.” And so he
cleanses us of filth: immorality, dishonesty, prejudice, bitterness, greed. We don’t enjoy
the cleansing; sometimes we even opt for the dirt over the ice creme.
“I can eat dirt if I want too! We pout and proclaim. Which is true .... we can. But
if we do, the loss is ours. God has a better offer. He wants us to be just like Jesus.
I want you to know that this is really Good News. God’s Word is always Good
News for us. You aren’t stuck with today’s personality. You aren’t condemned to be a
grump for the rest of your life, you are tweakable.... God can change you. Amen?
Even if you have worried everyday of your life, you don’t need to worry the rest of your
life. So what if you were born a bigot? You don’t have to die one.
Who gave you the idea that we can’t change anyway? From where did the famous
statement like “It’s just my nature to worry” come from anyway? “Or “I’ll always be
pessimistic”, or “I have a bad temper, I can’t help the way I react?” Who says?
We don’t make similar statements about other parts of our bodies. We don’t go
around when we break our finger, Oh, it’s just my nature to have a broken finger. No, we
go and get it fixed, we seek help. Shouldn’t we do the same for our hearts? Shouldn’t we
do the same for our sour attitudes? Can’t we request treatment for our selfish tirades? Of
coarse we can. Jesus can change our hearts. He wants us to have a heart like his.
I don’t know about you, but I can’t imagine a better offer.
What about the Heart of Christ? Let me share some things we know about Christ and
His heart that can be in us.
The heart of Jesus was pure. The Savior was adored by thousands, yet he was
content to live a simple life. He was surrounded by women, and cared for by women, yet
never accused of lustful thoughts; He was betrayed by his own creation, but willing to
forgive them before they even requested his mercy. Peter who traveled with Jesus for 3
1/2 years, described him as a “lamb, unblemished and spotless.” After spending the same
amount of time with Jesus, John concluded, “And in him is no sin.”
The heart of Jesus was peaceful. The disciples fretted over the need to feed the
thousands, but not Jesus. He thanked God for the problem. The disciples shouted for fear
in the storm, but not Jesus. He slept through it. Peter drew his sword to fight the
soldiers, but not Jesus. He lifted his hand to heal. His heart was at peace. When his
disciples abandoned him, did he pout and go home?
When Peter denied him, did Jesus lose his temper? When the soldiers spit in his
face, did he breathe fire into theirs? Far from it. He was at peace. He forgave them. He
refused to be guided by vengeance.
His Heart was purposeful. Most lives aim at nothing in particular and achieve it.
Jesus aimed at one goal -- to save humanity from it’s sin. He could summarize his life
with one sentence, we find it in Luke 19:10 “The Son of man came to seek and to save
the lost.”
The crowing attribute of Christ was this: His Heart was Spiritual.
His thoughts reflected his intimate relationship with the Father. “I am in the Father and
the Father is in me.” His first recorded sermon begins with the words, “The Spirit of the
Lord is upon Me.’ Jesus took his instructions from God. It was his habit to go to
worship. It was his practice to memorize scripture. Luke says Jesus “often slipped away
to be alone so he could pray.” His times of prayer guided him. The heart of Jesus was
spiritual.
This morning we have looked at the Heart of Christ, and I think we would agree, it
looks good. Amen?
What about our hearts?
Our hearts seem so far from his. He is pure; we are greedy. He is peaceful; we are in
constant turmoil. He is purposeful; we are distracted. He is pleasant; we are cranky. He
is spiritual; we are earthbound....... The Question is, how could we ever hope to have the
heart of Jesus?
Let me tell you a little secret. If your a Christian this morning, you already have
the heart of Christ........ Why are you looking at me like that?
One of the supreme yet unrealized promises of God is simply this: If you have
given your life to Jesus, Jesus has given himself to you. Hes has made your heart his
home. It would be hard to say it any more plain that Paul does, “Christ lives in me.’ Gal.
2:20
Let me repeat myself, If you have given your life to Jesus, Jesus has given himself
to you. he has moved in and unpacked his bags and is ready to change you, as 2 Cor.
says, “into his likeness from one degree of glory to another.” Paul explains it with these
words, “Strange as it seems, we Christians actually do have within us a portion of the very
thoughts and mind of Christ.” 1 Cor. 2:16
You might be thinking, Strange is right, If I have the mind of Christ, why do I still
think so much like Me?
If I have the heart of Christ, why do I still have the same old hang-ups? If Jesus
dwells within me, why do I still hate traffic jams?
Part of the answer is illustrated in a story about a lady who had a small house on
the seashore of Ireland at the turn of the century. She was quite wealthy but also quite
frugal. The people were surprised, then, when she decided to be among the first to have
electricity in her home.
Several weeks after the installation, a meter reader appeared at her door. He
asked if her electricity was working well, and she assured him it was. “I’m wondering if
you can explain something to me, “ he said. “Your meter shows scarcely any usage. Are
you using your power?
“Certainly,” she answered. “Each evening when the sun sets, I turn on my lights
just long enough to light my candles; then I turn them off.”
She’s tapped into the power but doesn’t use it. Her house is connected but not
altered. Don’t we make the same mistake?
We too, with our souls saved but our hearts unchanged, we are connected but not altered.
Trusting Christ for salvation but resisting transformation. We occasionally flip the switch,
but most of the time we settle for the shadows.
What would happen in your life if you turned your heart and life over to Jesus? What if
you lived in the light, can you imagine all that God has for you?
If you were willing to dwell in the Radiance of Christ, You would know this
transformation that Paul talks about, that Christ promises us.
God is willing to transform you into the likeness of Christ, the very Spirit of Christ living
in you..... empowering you to be all that he has created you to be........ Don’t settle for
anything less than the Heart of Jesus in You.
What does it mean to Be Christlike? The first step is being saved by God’s Grace through
Faith, and then we must be willing to walk in obedience to God and allow the very Spirit
of Christ take ahold of our hearts and perform His work in us.
Are you a Christian this morning..... you can know Jesus personally today, It’s a simple
prayer, but it is a life changing prayer.
Christians..... Are you living in obedience to the will of God for you life today? Are there
some areas that God is dealing with you, and your refusing to listen?
Is there something God has asked you to do? In your marriage, at your job, for
your church, a bad habit, what is it that God has spoken to you about? Are you being
obedient?
Let me share with you from my own experience....... I’ve never been more
miserable in my life, to my wife, to my kids, to anyone that I’ve come into contact with,
than those times where I was resisting what God had told me to do. What God wants to
do with you is so much better than what you have right now anyway..... Trust Him... Trust
Him.
This morning we are going to stand and sing a chorus, and I’m going to invite you to step
out from where you are and come and pray up front here, it’s an invitation that can change
your life, don’t be afraid of what anyone else might think..... All of us use the alter for
prayer.... We want to make it easy for you, we want to share in your victory, encourage
you, but we won’t embarrass you in anyway, bring a friend down to pray with you.... but
don’t allow this moment to slip away, the Holy Spirit has been faithful today and I know
He has spoken to hearts today..... The question is will you listen, will you respond?
close.
