Follower part 3
As strange as it may sound, being a "follower" of Christ has nothing to do with trying to follow in Jesus' foot steps. Trying to act like Jesus is doomed to fail. Because only Jesus can be Jesus. The best it will EVER be is an act. So instead of trying to be someone you're not, what you ought to do is learn who you really are. That way you can BE who you really are naturally. Yesterday we looked at "denying yourself, taking up your cross, and following Jesus." And what we saw, most importantly, is that "your" cross is really HIS cross. Denying "yourself" is denying the old man who died on that cross. Galatians 2:20 in the NLT says it like this, "My old self has been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me. So I live in this earthly body by trusting in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me." Did you catch that? My old self died on the cross. It's no longer me who lives, but Christ lives IN me. I don't have to try to be like Him because as He is, so am I in this world. Jesus gave Himself for me. And He gave Himself TO me. I don't follow Him by trying to be like Him. I follow Him by walking in love. By letting Him be Himself. In, and through, and as me. Because that's my new self. My TRUE self. And you don't ever have to TRY to be your true self. As a man thinks in his heart, so is he. At the end of the day, what you believe about yourself manifests. That's why the gospel is so important. Not telling people what to do, but telling people who they are. When you know who you are, you can believe who you are. And when you believe it... it flows. Naturally. What you believe is inside always comes out. That's why trying is doomed to failure. Because if you're trying to be someone you're not then you don't believe that you are. That was the lie that Adam and Eve swallowed in the garden of Eden. The lie that says you're not good enough, but if you jump through hoops someday you might BECOME good enough. Again: That's the lie. Here's the truth: We ARE complete in Him. How much more perfect could you possibly get than to have the perfect One living inside you? Where we get mixed up is trying to fill His shoes. Trying to figure out what Jesus would do, and then trying to do that thing. That's too much trying. Guys... it's not my might, or by power. It's by the Spirit of God. God is a Spirit, and God is love. So the Spirit of God is the Spirit of love. Everything--including faith--works by love. Works and labor don't work. But love does work. Love FINISHED the work. Jesus said we'd do all the works He did and greater works. You can't do greater works if you're trying to recreate what came before. That's our foundation, absolutely. That's lets us, to some degree, know what we're capable of. But love is limitless. And that's not just what we do, that's who we are! WE are limitless because we ARE love! As a follower of Christ we let Him walk in our feet. We walk in love.