Imitators of Christ: Taking heed to the call
We as Christians are called to be imitators of Christ. Imitators in all aspects of our lives – not to just talk the talk, but to actually also walk the walk.
Being an imitator can be defined as a person who copies the behaviour or actions of another. And in the case of believers – we are called to imitate Jesus Christ!
Immediately, a few things might be going through your head…and hopefully we’ll touch on some of them in the following explanation.
Let’s begin!
Why are we called to imitate Christ?
I would like to highlight and discuss three of the many reasons as to why:
- We are instructed by God to do so
- The Great Commission
- Experiencing joy to the full
Firstly, understand that the Scripture is the Living Word of God and we need to accept it as such, along with taking the Word of God as our highest authority of instruction and guidance. And with the help of the Holy Spirit, with time spent in prayer and study of the Bible, through application of what we read and learn in our daily lives – more and more of the Word will be revealed unto you! (Jeremiah 29:13 & 33:3)
“All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work.” – 2 Timothy 3:16-17
Recognising this, and knowing that the Word is God (John 1:1) – let’s consult His Words and let the Scripture explain itself.
“Knowing this first, that no prophecy of Scripture is of any private interpretation.” – 2 Peter 1:2
1. We are instructed in Scripture, by God, to imitate Christ:
“He who says he abides in Him ought himself also to walk just as He walked.” – 1 John 2:6
If we have chosen Jesus as our Lord and Saviour through faith, we ought to live a life that reflects the choice that we’ve made. Being an imitator entails the denial of oneself in order to copy or follow another. Naturally, our imitation of Christ will be hindered if we continue to cling onto the things which God opposes, to sin and/or continue in the way of the “me, myself and I” mindset.
“Whoever therefore want to be a friend of the world makes himself an enemy of God.” – James 4:4
“Abstain from every form of evil.” – 1 Thessalonians 5:22
“Then Jesus said to His disciples, ‘If anyone desires to come after Me, let Him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow Me.'” – Matthew 16:24
We should live a life that resembles Jesus and follow His example, because God commands us to it. We live in a world that entices you to either entirely draw away from and deny Jesus Christ as Lord and Saviour above ALL or wants you to feel comfortable in sin. But as believers, even though we live in this world, we are not FROM it! (1 John 5:19) In Christ, through faith, through repentance, through baptism and by living a life pleasing unto God, we can know with confidence that our citizenship is in heaven! Our life here on earth is but a fraction of the eternity that awaits us.
“For our citizenship is in heaven, from which we also eagerly wait for the Saviour, the Lord Jesus Christ.” – Philippians 3:20
How comforting is not also to know, that we’re not alone in this. Jesus also experienced temptation, in fact, He experienced temptation in every way just as we do, and yet – He was without sin. (Hebrews 4:15) God therefore promises that with every temptation He will always provide a means of escape and through the strength of Jesus, by the help of the Holy Spirit we can say with full confidence that no temptation will overtake us. (1 Corinthians 10:13 & 2 Peter 2:9) Thereby, resist, stand firm in faith and righteousness in the name of Jesus, submit to God and the devil shall flee from you! (James 4:7)
Additionally, you might ask what it means to abide in Christ? Because, abiding in Christ goes hand in hand with our walk as imitators of Christ. We abide in Jesus not only through faith in Him, but also through obedience to His commandments as it says in 1 John 3:24 that he/she who keeps His commandments abides in Him, and He in him.
Abiding means to endure in accepting and/or acting in accordance of something. If we say that we love God, that we love Jesus; we need to keep His commandments found throughout His Word. Therefore, we can only in abide in Jesus as we ought to by spending time in prayer and studying the Scriptures, and practice it in our daily lives through the help of the Holy Spirit! (John 14:26)
2. The Great Commission
“And Jesus came and spoke to them, saying, ‘All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth. Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptising them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.’ Amen.” – Matthew 28:18-20
We have a mission! God is perfectly just and perfectly righteous and through His absolute undeserving grace, love and mercy He sent Jesus to take our deserved place to pay the ultimate price for our sins committed. (John 3:16) Truly, no greater love than this exists! Praise God! Therefore, we need no longer continue to live in fear of death OR in bondage to sin! Through faith, turning away from our past and former ways, and ABIDING in Jesus the chains of both death and sin is broken. It’s news too good to keep for ourselves and if we truly know what we’re saved from, the fires of hell, through only Jesus Christ, we would share this with others too, so they too can be saved! Like the disciples before us, like Paul, like David we need to adopt a similar mindset stating that we believe and therefore we speak! (2 Corinthians 4:13 & Psalm 116:10)
Realise and know that God saved you and thereby also called you to a holy calling! (2 Timothy 1:9) You’ve received this precious gift, the ultimate treasure, an inheritance incorruptible and undefiled, that does not fade away as the world and earthly treasures do! We have the sure hope of eternal life in Christ Jesus! ( 1 Peter 1:3-9)
“I charge you therefore before God and the Lord Jesus Christ, who will judge the living and the dead at His appearing and His kingdom: Preach the word! Be ready in season and out of season. Convince, rebuke, exhort, with all longsuffering and teaching.” – 2 Timothy 4:1-2
Take this Word and LIVE it – live it in your family, your household, live it between your friends, at your school, place of study and your workplace, live it in your community! I say live because it’s a calling not to solely go on a mission of evangelising or outreach, but to entirely embrace it as part of our daily lifestyle to spread the aroma of Jesus wherever and as we go!
“Now thanks be to God who always leads us in triumph in Christ, and through us diffuses the fragrance of His knowledge in every place. For we are to God the fragrance of Christ among those who are being saved and among those who are perishing. To the one we are the aroma of death leading to death, and to the other the aroma of life leading to life.” – 2 Corinthians 2:14-16
3. Experiencing joy to the full
“’As the Father loved Me, I also have loved you; abide in My love. If you keep My commandments, you will abide in My love, just as I have kept My Father’s commandments and abide in His love. ‘These things I have spoken to you, that My joy may remain in you, and that your joy may be full.'” – John 15:9-11
Note how Jesus starts by saying that just as God the Father loves Him, so also He loves you! We can love Him because He loved us first and through His example He showed us the way how to do so in return. (1 John 4:19 & John 6:38) Again, I just want to emphasise how good God is – loving us first in our most undesired and unlovable state!
Now, Jesus continues by saying that He has spoken these things so we may experience His joy, remain in His joy! Not happiness, which is temporary and situational, but true unrestricted joy (find more information on the difference between happiness and joy in the written booklet Full Joy at the homepage). That means, whatever the circumstances, whatever the situation, we can experience joy in the very midst of it! WAIT, that’s not all; we can experience His joy and that to the FULL!
The word “full” in John 15:11 can be transliterated from the Greek, according to the Strong’s concordance; “filling to the brim, to cause to abound, to make complete in every particular and to carry through until the end”. I am absolutely overwhelmed! Jesus wants you to remain in His joy, He wants you to experience joy “filled to the brim”, that’s why He is sharing this message – for you to have joy! And He doesn’t leave you to figure it out on your own and discover the way to this amazing joy by yourself, He gives you clear instruction on how you can have it:
By acting in accordance of His Word we can fully receive His love, and thereby also have full joy in Jesus!
Amazing!
To conclude, we must lay aside that which hinders our pursuit of being imitators of Christ and take up the calling to spread the aroma of Jesus to those around us. Realising, we can only leave the aroma of Jesus if we ourselves imitate Him actively and purposefully. Knowing, we can only do so if we decrease and Christ Jesus increase! (John 3:30) Therefore, search first the Kingdom of God and His righteousness, and know that all these things shall be added to you. (Matthew 6:33)
I pray that as we have received Christ Jesus the Lord, we will walk in Him, rooted and built up in Him, established in the faith. I pray that we’ll present ourselves holy and acceptable to God, that we won’t, in any facet of our lives, conform to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of our minds! May we, through the help of the Holy Spirit, prove what is good and acceptable according to the perfect will of God. May we, as the church of Jesus Christ, be vigilant against being lukewarm and awake in righteousness and in diligence to follow and pursue a life of faith in Jesus: to be imitators of Christ!
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