In this life, the road to Christlikeness is always under construction. We cannot be discouraged or annoyed by this fact. Instead, we must ever 'keep at it'. In this regard, did you know that trees, unlike all other plants, never stop growing as long as they live. No wonder Psalm 1 declares that a believer who stays close to the Lord "shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water."
Spiritual growth happens when, like unveiled Moses reflecting the glory of God on Mt. Sinai, the Spirit of God replicates Jesus in us. In the following passage, the image in the mirror is Jesus. It represents all that He is - the way, the truth and the life - as seen everywhere in Holy Scripture, both in the Old and New Testaments. Seeing and pondering Him therein, we become like Him. This happens because in the believer's ongoing sanctifying process, Jesus' glory increasingly emanates from us. The more we look upon Him the more we then also 'mirror' Him. Read and ponder this verse:
"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 from the Lord, the Spirit" (2 Corinthians 3:18).
In this verse the "being transformed" comes from the Greek μεταμορφόω which transliterated into the English is "metamorphosis." This word pertains to 'radical change' like that of an earthbound chrysalis into a heaven-ward butterfly. Such is truly amazing and is to be. God doesn't save sinners just to keep them out of hell. He saves us and wants us to know that He chose us in eternity past and predetermined that we should be like Jesus. This is His major goal for every believer. How do we know this? Romans 8:29 clearly tells us: "For those whom He foreknew, He also predestined to become conformed to the image of His Son."
It's suppose to be! It's His eternal plan for believers.
- dick christen
