Conforming to the Image of Christ

So, if the point of being a Christian is NOT living the best life now what is the point?

The Bible tells us, “For those whom he foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son” (Romans 8:29).

The purpose of the Christian life is not for our wealth, health, and prosperity. It is simply to make us more and more conformed to the image of his Son. The point is to make us more like Jesus.

This is the only way to make sense of Jesus saying, “Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted” (Matthew 5:4). Normally “mourning” is the very opposite of blessed. How could mourning possibly be good? People mourn when bad stuff happens – like a loved one dying. So, what in the world was Jesus talking about?

We are sinners. Christ died for us and redeems Christians, but until Jesus returns we will continue to struggle with sin until the day we die. When we become Christians, we don’t celebrate sin. We mourn sin. We mourn the fact that we continue to struggle with those things that hinder us from being more like Jesus. The reason why those who mourn are blessed is because they are fighting against sin because they want to be more like Jesus.

If we measure God’s goodness and presence in our lives by how easy and comfortable our lives are – i.e. healthy, wealthy, prosperous – then we will be terribly disappointed with the Christian life. However, when we recognize that the goal of the Christian life is to make us more like Jesus, that changes everything! We celebrate the work of the Holy Spirit when he convicts us of sin. We are grateful to God when we are confronted with God’s holiness and that God never ceases to give us opportunities to become more like his Son.

Everything in this world until Jesus returns to make the kingdom of God a reality here on earth as it is in heaven is to make Christians more like Jesus.

So, do you find yourself struggling with sin? Great! Keep on struggling. Never settle. Never accept. Never celebrate anything that the Bible calls sin. If you’re struggling with sin, you’re on the right track.

Blessed are you who mourn. God predestined us to be conformed to the image of his Son.