In Chapter 22 of The Purpose Driven Life, Pastor Rick Warren states that God’s ultimate goal for our lives is character development, not comfort. God wants us to become more godly than god-like. Anytime we forget that character is one of God’s purposes for our life, our circumstances will frustrate us. Adversity has the tendency to heighten those frustrations. Christlike character is produced by inhabitation as, through the power of the Holy Spirit, Christ is enabled to live through us. Rick goes on to discuss 3 ways we can become more Christlike (author’s words are in bold type):
1. We must cooperate with the Holy Spirit’s work. God’s power is unlocked by obedience. Pastor Warren encourages us to move ahead in our weakness despite our fears and feelings. Essentially, our character is defined by how we habitually act. As St. Paul states in Ephesians 4:24- “Put on the new self, created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness.”
2. God uses his Word, people, and circumstances to mold us. The author states that all three are indispensable for character development. God’s Word provides the truth, God’s people provide support, and our circumstances provide the environment we need to practice Christlikeness.
3. Becoming like Christ is a long, slow process of growth. Rick asserts that God is far more interested in building our character than anything else. What’s most important is that everything we do be done in a Christlike manner.
Tomorrow’s blog for Easter Sunday- “Transformed by Trouble”.