South Attleboro Assembly of God

This week I ran into another local pastor at the YMCA. He had grown a full beard since the last time I saw him, so I teased him: ‘you are looking more like Jesus every day.’ Most men when I say that stroke their beard and comment on their beard. He thought about it for a second and replied, ‘yes, but the outside is a lot easier than the inside.’ So true.Even though we have sayings like, ‘a chip off the old block,’ or ‘the apple doesn’t far from the tree’, and ‘like father, like son,’ those are not talking about outward appearance.

Look at these passages:

· ‘From the very beginning God decided that those who came to Him – and all along He knew who would – should become like His Son (Ro 8:29 TLB).’
· ‘God wants us to grow up…like Christ in everything (Ep 4:15 MSG).’

Today is the fourth week of a six-week sermon series that follows Rick Warren’s book, The Purpose Driven Life: What on Earth Am I Here For?

· First, we began with The Reason for Everything. It answered the questions, ‘why did God create,’ and ‘why did God create me.’
· Then we looked at worship – You Were Planned for God’s Pleasure - Worship. Loving God back is worship. ‘You [God] created all things, and it is for your pleasure that they exist and were created (Rev 4:11 NLT).’
· The last time I spoke we looked at fellowship – You Were Formed for God’s Family. ‘[God’s] unchanging plan has always been to adopt us into his own family by bringing us to himself through Jesus Christ (Ep 1:5 NLT).’

Today we examine the third reason why we were created: You Were Created to Become Like Christ - Discipleship

The Purpose Driven Life
You Were Created to Become Like Christ - Discipleship

God so graciously brings us into his family, we call that salvation. Then, he asks us to become like his son, we call that discipleship. Discipleship, to become a Christ follower. God doesn’t just want you to know about Jesus Christ, he wants you to become like Jesus Christ. ‘You were … created to be like God, truly righteous and holy (He 4:24 GWT).’ This has been God’s plan for you since the beginning of time. When I think back to those teachers that motivated me to excellence in their class, one of the key factors was that I liked the teachers and wanted to please them.

· I liked Mr. Rodgers, my drafting teacher and I wanted to please him. I studied and worked hard at in that class not because I had to, but because I wanted to.
· I liked Mrs. ________, my English teacher and I thoroughly enjoyed our one-on-one discussions on Russian literature, and the great Christian authors.
· I liked Dr. Meyer, my Old Testament professor at Bible school. I knew I needed to learn his discipline and approach to Scripture.

Even though I learned a lot from my other teachers they did not impact me as deeply as those whom I enjoyed. In the same way, our motivation to be like Jesus should not be because we have to, like homework; our motivation to be like Jesus should be because we want to please him.

· David understood this when he wrote, ‘May the word of my mouth and the thoughts of my heart be pleasing to you (Ps 19:14 NLT).’
· However, there is no way we can reproduce the character of Christ in our own strength, only the Holy Spirit has the power to make changes in our lives. No New Year’s resolution, willpower or best intention is sufficient.

There are three Tools God Uses to Help Us Grow

1. Trouble, Ro 8:28.

God uses trouble to teach us to trust him. ‘God’s ultimate goal for your life on earth is not comfort but, character development.’[1] ‘Many Christians misinterpret Jesus’ promise of the “abundant life” to mean perfect health, a comfortable lifestyle, constant happiness, full realization of your dreams, and instant relief from all problems through faith and prayer … (but) life is not about you! You exist for God’s purposes, not vice versa.’[2]

A Bible verse everyone should memorize is: ‘In all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose (Ro 8:28 NIV).’ Though God is not the source of evil, he is an expert at turning the effects of evil in our life into something good for all eternity.Trials are situations designed by God to draw us closer to him. They stretch our faith and grow our character. Paul wrote, ‘Problems and trials… are good for us—they help us learn to be patient. And patience develops strength of character in us and helps us trust God more each time we use it until finally our hope and faith are strong and steady (Ro 5:3-4 TLB).’ In other words, every problem has a purpose.

‘You will never know that God is all you need, until God is all you’ve got.’[3] Rick Warren.

Four years ago at General Council I got to hear Joni Erickson-Tada speak at a banquet. For those of you who don’t know she is a paraplegic with limited movement in her arms from a diving accident. During her wonderful talk about God’s love she had to stop. Her husband had to come up on stage. He grabbed her from behind just below her rib cage and slowly squeezed causing her to exhale. He then straightened her up in her wheelchair. She apologized and said that if she is sitting the wrong way occasionally he has to do that so that she can continue to breathe and talk at the same time. Not a hint of bitterness in her heart for her situation. She said, ‘When life is rosy, we may slide by without knowing about Jesus, with imitating him and quoting him and speaking of him. But only in suffering will we know Jesus.’ Joni Erickson-Tada.

Jesus suffered and surrendered to God’s plan. God wants us to surrender to his plan, too. Jesus said,

· ‘The sorrow in my heart is so great that it almost crushed me (Mk 14:34 TEV).’
· ‘“Father”, he cried out, “everything is possible for you. Please take this cup of suffering away from me. Yet I want your will, not mine (Mk 14:36 NLT)!”’

Bible often compares trials to a refiner’s fire, a metalsmith’s fire or a silversmith’s fire that burns away impurities. A silversmith knows the silver is pure when he can see his face in it like a mirror. In the same way, ‘when you have been refined by trials, people can see Jesus’ reflection in you.’[4] Friends, ‘Our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all (2Co 4:17 NIV).’

The second tool Jesus will use is his temptation.


[1]Rick Warren, Purpose Driven Life (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondveran, 2002), p. 173.
[2]Warren, Purpose Driven Life, p. 173.
[3]Warren, Purpose Driven Life, p. 194.
[4]Warren, Purpose Driven Life, p. 196

2. Temptation, Ja 1:12.

God uses temptation to teach us to obey him. James wrote, ‘Happy is the man who doesn’t give in and do wrong when he is tempted, for afterwards he will get as his reward the crown of life that God has promised to those who love him (Ja 1:12 LB).’ Temptations are situations designed by the devil to draw us away from God. God doesn’t cause temptation. He never tempts us to do evil. But God can use even our temptations to make us more like Jesus if we cooperate with him. Why? Because every temptation involves a choice. We can choose to do evil, or we can choose to obey God. When we choose to obey God, we take another step in our spiritual growth. Our character is shaped by our choices.

It is not a sin to be tempted.

· ‘[Jesus] was tempted in every way that we are. But he did not sin (He 4:15b CEV)!’
· ‘The temptations in your life are no different from what others experience (1Co 10:13a NLT).’
· ‘If you love me, obey my commandments (Jn 14:15 NLT).’
· ‘And God is faithful. He will not allow the temptation to be more than you can stand. When you are tempted, he will show you a way out so that you can endure (1Co 10:13b NLT).’

Ultimately, it all comes down to your choices. Will you choose to obey the temptation or will you choose to obey God? Every time you chose to obey God, you become more like Christ in your character.

Practical tips to overcome temptation:

1. Recognize your pattern of temptation and be prepared for it, Pro 4:26-27. More than likely you fall to the same temptation over and over. Think about when, where, and under what circumstances these temptations come. Then, devise a plan to avoid those situations. ‘Plan carefully what you do … Avoid evil and walk straight ahead. Don’t go one step off the right way (Pro 4:26-27 TEV).’

2. Ask for God’s help, Ps 50:14. The Bible says, ‘Call on me in times of trouble. I will rescue you, and you will honor me (Ps 50:15 GWT).’

3. Refocus your attention on something else, Pro 4:23. The quickest way to neutralize a temptation is to turn your attention on something else.
· ‘Be careful how you think; your life is shaped by your thoughts (Pro 4:23 TEV).’
· ‘Fix your thoughts on Jesus (He 3:1 NIV).’
· ‘Always think about Jesus Christ (2Ti 2:8 GWT).’
· ‘Fill your mind with those things that are good and that deserve praise: things that are true, noble, right, pure, lovely, and honorable (Phil 4:8 TEV).’

4. Get help from a godly friend or support group, Ja 5:16. A lifelong habit is not going to change overnight without an accountability partner and someone who will encourage you, support you, and pray for you - someone to hold you accountable.

The last tool the Holy Spirit uses to make us Christ like, are those wounds we receive.

3. Wounds, Ep 4:32.

God uses personal wounds to teach us to forgive others. We are most like God when we love others enough to forgive them. The old English word for this was trespasses. Trespasses are situations designed by other people to hurt us. Jesus is a great example for us about forgiveness.

· ‘Forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who have trespassed against us (Mt 6:12 KJV).’
· ‘People passing by shook their heads and hurled insults at Jesus…and the elders made fun of him … even the bandits who had been crucified with him insulted him in the same way (Mt 27:39-44 TEV).’
· ‘Jesus said, “Father, forgive these people! They don’t know what they’re doing (Lk 23:34 CEV).”’
· ‘They called him every name in the book and he said nothing back. He suffered in silence, content to let God set things right (1Pe 2:23 MSG).’

If you’re going to become like Christ, you have to learn to forgive.

· Remember that God has forgiven you. ‘Forgive others, just as God forgave you because of Christ (Ep 4:32 CEV).’
· Remember that God is in control. ‘You meant to hurt me, but God turned your evil into good to save the lives of many people, which is being done (Ge 50:20 NCV).’

God uses trouble to teach us to trust. God uses temptation to teach us to obey. And God uses wounds to teach us to forgive. He does all these things to make us like Christ.

‘We go through exactly what Christ goes through. If we go through the hard times with him, then we’re certainly going to go through the good times with him (Ro 8:17b MSG)!’