MONDAY, MARCH 9, 2026
BIBLE READING: ROMANS 8:26-39; EPHESIANS 4:10-32; PHILIPPIANS 3:7-16
“Till we all come to the Unity of the Faith and of the Knowledge of the Son of God, to a Perfect Man, to the Measure of the Stature of the Fulness of Christ; That we should no longer be children, tossed to and fro and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the trickery of men, in the cunning craftiness of deceitful plotting.” Ephesians 4:13-14 (NKJV)
One major factor that always determines who emerges victorious from every battle of life is Maturity which covers every area of life, whether Spiritual, Intellectual, Physical or Financial. For every Genuine Christian believer, the Absolute Zenith of Maturity is Christlikeness (Phil. 2:13-14). Any moment the Christian believer gets to the stage of Christlikeness marks the end to all of his personal Spiritual Warfare.
Becoming more like the Lord Jesus Christ must be the Heartfelt Yearning of every Authentic Christian believer and it is quite encouraging to know that the Lord God Almighty Himself possesses the Same Desire for us. In fact, the Holy Bible declares that God Himself “predestined [believers] to be conformed to the Likeness of His Son” (Rom. 8:29). Leading us along the Paths of Christlikeness is God’s Own Work which He is committed to seeing through to the Very End (Philem. 1:6).
Nevertheless, the fact that God will transform us into Christlikeness doesn’t mean we should just sit back and allow ourselves to be carried to Heaven “to the sweet by-and-by” with no effort required on our own part. The Process of becoming Christlike demands our Willing Compliance by the Power of the Holy Spirit. Becoming more Christlike requires a combination of Divine Power and the integral part of human responsibility.
There are Three Key Factors that contribute to our becoming more like Christ: Our surrender to God, our freedom from sin and our Spiritual Growth.
(1.) OUR SURRENDER TO GOD: Romans 12:1-2 says that Worship involves a Complete self-dedication to God. We present our bodies as “Living Sacrifices” whilst our minds are renewed and transformed. When the Lord Jesus said, “Follow me,” Matthew the tax collector, also referred to as Levi, left his money tables immediately (Mk. 2:14) so do we also freely surrender all we have for the sake of following Him? As John the Baptist declared, “He must become greater; I must become less”(Jn. 3:30) so we focus more and more on Jesus and His Glory, becoming totally submerged in His Will.
(2.) OUR FREEDOM FROM SIN: Since Jesus lived a sinless Life, the onus lies upon us therefore to consider ourselves “dead to sin” (Rom. 6:11) and live a life of Purity. This way, we become more like Jesus. As we offer up ourselves to God, sin is no longer our master and we are more clearly identified with Christ (Rom. 6:1-14). Jesus invites us all to follow Him even as we have His Example of Obedience, (Jn. 15:10)
Sacrificial Love (Jn. 15:12-13) and Patient Suffering (1 Pet. 2:19-23). We also have the example of the Pioneer Apostles who modelled Christ (1 Cor. 11:1). When it comes to restraining sin in our lives, we have absolute Access to Divine Help. Glory to the Lord God Almighty for the Word of God, (Ps. 119:11) the Intercession of Christ Jesus Himself (Rom. 8:34; Heb. 7:25) and the Power of the Holy Spirit Who indwells us (Rom. 8:4; Gal. 5:16).
(3.) OUR SPIRITUAL GROWTH: When we first became saved, we were initially immature in Wisdom and Knowledge and inexperienced in Grace and Love. But then we grew in each of these Things, with the Empowerment to become Stronger and more Christlike, hence the Holy Scriptures admonish us to “grow in the Grace and Knowledge of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ” (2 Pet. 3:18).
Currently, God works in us to become more like His Son Jesus Christ: “We, who with unveiled faces all reflect the Lord’s Glory, ARE BEING TRANSFORMED INTO HIS LIKENESS WITH EVER-INCREASING GLORY, WHICH COMES FROM THE LORD” (2 Cor. 3:18). One day, however, the Process would be complete so that “When He appears, we shall be like Him, for we shall see Him as He is” (1 Jn. 3:2). All the Glory, Honour and Praise be ascribed unto Him Alone. Selah.
PRAYER:
Heavenly Father, we glorify Your Holy Name today. O Lord, please grant us the Grace to attain Christlikeness that we might become an Exact Replica of You in Jesus’ Mighty Name. Amen.
