Welcome to Day 2115 of Wisdom-Trek, and thank you for joining me. This is Guthrie Chamberlain, Your Guide to Wisdom Becoming A Radical Disciple 2 – Christlikeness – Daily Wisdom Putnam Church Message – 08/08/2021 Becoming A Radical Disciple – Christlikeness As mentioned last week, my purpose in this series is to consider eight character traits of Christian discipleship that are often neglected and deserve to be taken seriously. In addition, last week, we considered four major secular trends threatening to engulf the Christian community. In the face of these, we are all called, not to feeble-minded conformity, but to radical nonconformity. As we face the challenge of pluralism, we are to be a community of truth, standing up for the uniqueness of Jesus Christ. As we face the challenge of materialism, we are to be a community of simplicity and pilgrimage. As we face the challenge of relativism, we must be a community of obedience to God’s precepts. Finally, as we face the challenge of narcissism, we must be a community of love. Today we will consider Christlikeness. Throughout our lives, we ask ourselves, what is our purpose during our pilgrimage while we remain here on earth? It is this: God created us to be his imagers, and as such, God wants his people to become like Christ, who is the perfect imager. For Christlikeness is the will of God for the people of God. Therefore, as citizens of God’s kingdom and imagers of God, we should imitate the only perfect imager, which is Christ. In today’s message, we will consider three steps in our process to Christlikeness. First, to lay down the biblical foundation for the call to Christlikeness; second, to give some New Testament examples; and third, to draw some practical conclusions. The Biblical Foundation of the Call to Christlikeness This foundation is not a single text, for the foundation is more substantial than can be summed up in one text. Instead, the foundation consists of three texts connecting us from the past to the present and giving us a glimpse of the future: Romans 8:29, 2 Corinthians 3:18, and 1 John 3:2. The first text is Romans 8:29: For God knew his people in advance, and he chose them to become like his Son, so that his Son would be the firstborn among many brothers and sisters. The second text is 2 Corinthians 3:18: So all of us who have had that veil removed can see and reflect the glory of the Lord. And the Lord—who is the Spirit—makes us more and more like him as we are changed into his glorious image. Before I read the third text, we need to understand that the perspective has changed from the past to the present, from God’s eternal foreknowledge to his present transformation of us by the Holy Spirit. From God’s eternal purpose to make us like Christ, to his historical work by his Spirit to transform us into an imager like Christ. The third text is 1 John 3:2: Dear friends, we are already God’s children, but he has not yet shown us what we will be like when Christ appears. But we do know that we will be like him, for we will see him as he really is. Since God is working to this end, it is no wonder he calls us to cooperate with him. ‘Follow me,’ he says. ‘Imitate me.’ So, returning now to 1 John 3:2, we don’t know in any detail what we shall be, but we know that we will be like Christ. Therefore, there’s no...
