“For as many of you as have been baptized into Christ have put on Christ.” Galatians 3:27
If you want to put your head around essential Christianity, this is it. It’s the big TEN on the one-to-ten scale. The rest of the stuff—-no matter how awesome—-plays only a supporting role. The main event has always been, and must continue to be, Christ-likeness. So, how do we do it? To be like Jesus means he is your ideal. Jesus is the highest good, the source of wisdom, the standard of perfection, the unrivaled champion of the scriptures.
To be like Jesus means He is the pattern of your life. “And walk in love, as Christ also hath loved us.” Ephesians 5:2. You need not be at a loss as to what to do in any given situation. You have his example, his testimony, his words, his record. What should you do if you are attacked? Criticized? Lied upon? Betrayed? Forgotten? Rejected? Victimized? Just do what Jesus did.
To be like Jesus means to obey His commandments. “Bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ.” 2 Corinthians 10:5. Jesus is not just your facilitator, your aide or consultant. He speaks with absolute authority. Omnipotent and omniscient, he has the perspective of eternity. He is Alpha and Omega, beginning and ending, first and last. He was here before he arrived and left while he was still here. One man said, “He is the miracle between the virgin’s womb and the empty tomb. He came through a door marked ‘No Entrance’ and left through a door marked ‘No Exit.’” Yet, we do not keep his commandments for these reasons alone; we keep his commandments because we love him!
To be like Jesus means to submit to Him. “Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.” James 4:7. Submission means surrendering your rights; accepting a higher authority over you; forfeiture of position, privilege and place. At Gethsemane, Jesus submitted his flesh to the Father. At our new birth, we submit our body, soul and spirit to Christ. “Present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service.” Romans 12:1.
To be like Jesus means to be adopted into Him. “Ye have received the Spirit of adoption, whereby we cry, Abba, Father.” Romans 8:15. In the sense that we are sinful flesh, we are not made in the total likeness of Christ. Adoption covers this gap in identity. Adoption confers legal and moral force of a naturally born child to his or her parents. Adopted children are often called by cruel names by their tormentors to deny their identity and legitimacy. For us, such epithets fall meaninglessly to the ground.
To be like Jesus means to be defined by Him. “Jesus answered, ‘Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God.’” John 3:5-8. The DNA encoding transferred by the parents instructs the body how to grow, what shape and size it will be, and every feature down to the most miniscule molecule. Our new birth defines our values, ideals, goals, ambitions, dreams, visions, gifts, talents and everything about this life and the next. Yes, it limits our reach, but deity defines the limits! So…drop everything to pursue Christ; direct everything to conform to him; define everything to function like him. We have no greater—-no other—-purpose.