To Have The Image Of God’s Son


God is pleased with His Son. God wants everyone to look like His Son. Are you willing to allow God to conform you to the image of His Son?

Being conformed to the image of God’s Son is part of God’s salvation plan for us. What is the image of God’s Son? that is, what God’s Son looks like?

The image of God’s Son has nothing to do with Christ’s physical appearance, His height, His weight, the color of His hair or the color of His skin.

The “image” of God’s Son is referring to His spiritual image. If we want to be conformed to God’s image, we need to submit totally to God like what Jesus did. He totally submitted Himself to God.

Jesus said in John 4:34: “My food is to do the will of him who sent me and to accomplish his work.”

On the night before He was crucified. He knew the eternal purpose of God. He understood that He must die on the cross. Although He knew how painful it is for Him to die on the cross. He chose to obey the Father and drink the cup of suffering and agony because His only desire is to be obedient to His Father, Christ wanted to fulfill God’s will.

Christ was someone who had never committed a sin though He had been tempted like us in every way. His sinlessness was due to His complete submission to His Father.

By living a perfect life, Jesus became a perfect sacrifice for sin and thus fulfilling God’s salvation plan.

For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but one who in every respect has been tempted as we are, yet without sin. (Heb. 4:15).

Looking at Christ, we see someone who has been glorified by God. To be like Christ, we must also be able to glorify God

in our words and actions.

For those whom he foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, in order that he might be the firstborn among many brothers. And those whom he predestined he also called, and those whom he called he also justified, and those whom he justified he also glorified. (Rom. 8:29-30)

Roman 8:29 does not refer to everybody. It refers only to a special group of people whom God has known about from eternity. They are precisely the ones He has predestined to be conformed to the image of His Son. God permit this chosen group of people to be conformed to the image of His Son.

According to Rom. 8:29, God foreknew a special group of people. He did not select them by name but by attribute. Those whom He foreknew were the ones He predestined to be conformed to the image of His Son.

Why did God predetermine this group to be conformed to the image of His Son? It is because God knows they are like Christ, willing to be completely submissive to God, willing to set aside their own desires and totally subject their will to His. These are the ones He foreordained to be conformed to the image of His Son. These are the ones who possess a willingness to submit themselves to Him, they are the only ones who can be conformed to the image His Son.

In Rom. 8:30, Paul tells us how God brings about this conformance: And those he predestined, he also called

God’s call is an invitation to those who are inclined to be conformed to the image of His Son. In Matthew 11:28-30: “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light

2 Thes. 2:14 tells us that God called us through our gospel, “To this he called you through our gospel, so that you may obtain the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ.” God uses the teaching of Christ to call people to Him so that He can mold them into the image of His Son.

God wants to conform everyone to the image of His Son. God foreknew that some would be willing to be conformed to that image and He predestined and called them to do so. God will justify those who obey Him. He will glorify them on the last day, and He will glorify them in heaven for eternity.

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