Stop Trying to be Like Jesus

// September 5th, 2010 // bible, theology

I struggle to stop trying to be like Jesus. Here are some thoughts…

“If I am to be like Him, then God in His grace must do it, and the sooner I come to recognize it the sooner I will be delivered from another form of bondage. Throw down every endeavor and say, I cannot do it, the more I try the farther I get from His likeness. What shall I do? Ah, the Holy Spirit says, You cannot do it; just withdraw; come out of it. You have been in the arena, you have been endeavoring, you are a failure, come out and sit down, and as you sit there behold Him, look at Him. Don’t try to be like Him, just look at Him. Just be occupied with Him. Forget about trying to be like Him. Instead of letting that fill your mind and heart, let Him fill it. Just behold Him, look upon Him through the Word. Come to the Word for one purpose and that is to meet the Lord. Not to get your mind crammed full of things about the sacred Word, but come to it to meet the Lord. Make it to be a medium, not of Biblical scholarship, but of fellowship with Christ. Behold the Lord.” ~Normon Douty
“Jesus doesnt want to be our helper, He wants to be our Life. He doesn’t want us to work for Him, he wants us to let Him do His work through using us as we use a pencil to write with – better still, using us as one of the fingers on His hand.”~Dr. Charles G. Trumbull.
Gal 2:20-21 “I have been crucified with Christ; and it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself up for me. I do not nullify the grace of God, for if righteousness comes through the Law, then Christ died needlessly.”

WE MUST STOP TRYING TO EARN OUR WAY INTO A CLOSE WALK WITH CHRIST (ie Sanctification). By living this way we are acting as if Christ death DID NOT MATTER.

Gal 2:21 “I do not nullify the grace of God, for if righteousness comes through the Law, then Christ died needlessly.”

So lets ask ourselves some questions:

  • If you make a resolution & or vow with God, what are you trusting in?
  • If you commit to a spiritual discipline, and vow to hold to it, what are you trusting in?

Some Principles

  • There is nothing we can do or devote to Christ to help us grow spiritually.
  • There is nothing we can do or devote to Christ to be filled with the Holy Spirit.

What is essential to a Spirit-Filled devotional walk? Not I, but Christ, simply resting and abiding in His work and grace.

2 Responses to “Stop Trying to be Like Jesus”

  1. Leah J says:

    Good thoughts Jon, I find it’s my pride that gets in the way of letting the Lord work through me a lot of times, because I want to be part of the “workings”.
    It’s always a relief when I simply allow Him to work through me, and abide with Him.
    Hey my sister and I were looking at your pictures, they look great! and we were wondering what program you use for editing? we both enjoy photography, but just kind of learn as we go type of thing:)

  2. Jon says:

    Hey Leah,

    good to hear from you!

    I use a mixture of Bibble5 Pro and GIMP for editing. Bibble5 is comparable to Adobe Lightroom, but more powerful and cheaper. GIMP is comparable to Photoshop, but much less powerful and free.

    :)

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