Tenchi
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2 Corinthians 4:6-11 (NASB)
6 For God, who said, "Light shall shine out of darkness," is the One who has shone in our hearts to give the Light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Christ.
7 But we have this treasure in earthen vessels, so that the surpassing greatness of the power will be of God and not from ourselves;
8 we are afflicted in every way, but not crushed; perplexed, but not despairing;
9 persecuted, but not forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed;
10 always carrying about in the body the dying of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus also may be manifested in our body.
11 For we who live are constantly being delivered over to death for Jesus' sake, so that the life of Jesus also may be manifested in our mortal flesh.
6 For God, who said, "Light shall shine out of darkness," is the One who has shone in our hearts to give the Light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Christ.
7 But we have this treasure in earthen vessels, so that the surpassing greatness of the power will be of God and not from ourselves;
8 we are afflicted in every way, but not crushed; perplexed, but not despairing;
9 persecuted, but not forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed;
10 always carrying about in the body the dying of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus also may be manifested in our body.
11 For we who live are constantly being delivered over to death for Jesus' sake, so that the life of Jesus also may be manifested in our mortal flesh.
Have you heard the question, "What would Jesus do?"? (WWJD?) Probably, I'm guessing. You can buy all sorts of merch bearing the WWJD? question: Posters, mugs, t-shirts, bracelets, and on, and on. Christians are often eager consumers. Have you ever wondered whether or not this question is the right question to ask? It seems a properly biblical question since the apostle Paul wrote about "imitating Christ." (1 Corinthians 11:1) In context, Paul was discussing the following:
1 Corinthians 10:31-33 (NASB)
31 Whether, then, you eat or drink or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God.
32 Give no offense either to Jews or to Greeks or to the church of God;
33 just as I also please all men in all things, not seeking my own profit but the profit of the many, so that they may be saved.
When Paul wrote, "Be imitators of me, just as I am also of Christ," he was talking specifically about not purposefully giving offense to a new believer in things about which they were sensitive - in the case of those to whom was Paul was writing: meat offered to idols. So, Paul was saying, "Do as I am doing in emulation of the example of Jesus and don't offend your weaker brethren. Instead, do all things to God's glory. This is my example to you that you ought to follow." Does Paul's injunction here characterize the entire fundamental nature of living as a Christian? Does being a disciple of Jesus just reduce down to WWJD?
Well, Paul also wrote to the Ephesians about being "imitators of God."
Ephesians 4:32 - 5:1-2(NASB)
32 Be kind to one another, tender-hearted, forgiving each other, just as God in Christ also has forgiven you.
1 Therefore be imitators of God, as beloved children;
2 and walk in love, just as Christ also loved you and gave Himself up for us, an offering and a sacrifice to God as a fragrant aroma.
In this instance, Paul was urging the believers in Ephesus to be "tender-hearted and forgiving" because God had, through Christ, been so toward them. But, again, was Paul indicating that the Christian life was, in essence, mere imitation? Does being a Christian amount to just asking "WWJD?" and then doing one's best to produce a copy of the answer in one's living?
I think the answer is a resounding "NO!" Living on the level of imitation is actually a very spiritually-juvenile form of Christian living. Why? Because we are not, as Christians, always to be looking over at Jesus and doing what we think he would do. No, instead, Christians are called to manifest the life of Christ in their mortal bodies, not produce their best copies of the conduct of Christ. What's the difference? It's the difference between a counterfeit and its original, between a digital image of a human being and an actual one, between pretending to be and truly being.
Imagine sitting in an oil-painting class with Rembrandt, copying his painting as best you can. When the class is over, how do you think you're effort would stack up against the real thing? How much like Rembrandt's masterful painting do you think yours would be? I suspect most of us would be humiliated by such a comparison, knowing our painting would be nowhere close to the incredible mastery of Rembrandt's artwork.
What of the copy we attempt to make of Christ's perfect living? His conduct was without flaw in thought, word and deed. What is such living actually like in its full scope? If we're honest, we must admit that none of us have any idea. No one but God truly knows what it is to be perfect. How, then, can we ever properly imitate Jesus except in the most ugly, rudimentary way? We're like halfwit, super-distracted, nearly-blind children trying to produce a Rembrandt painting. It's impossible; anything we manage to manufacture is going to be a catastrophe, reflecting nothing of Rembrandt, only our own shortcomings and limitations. We do not understand perfection even if we admire it and we certainly can't imitate it, in-and-of-ourselves.
This is, at least in part, why God's word never enjoins Christians to see themselves primarily as mere imitators of Jesus. In discrete instances, Scripture says to imitate God, but the fundamental essence of Christian living isn't copying Jesus but manifesting his life. Paul wrote of Christ being the believer's life (Philippians 1:21; Colossians 3:4), the source of all that they are as new creatures in him. Christ said the same thing about himself (John 14:6; John 5:39-40). John, too, wrote of Christ:
John 1:4 (NASB)
4 In Him was life, and the life was the Light of men.
1 John 5:11-12 (NASB)
11 And the testimony is this, that God has given us eternal life, and this life is in His Son.
12 He who has the Son has the life; he who does not have the Son of God does not have the life.
Christ is our Life, both physically and spiritually, not merely our example. He is the Vine, we are the branches, into which the life-giving sap that Christ is constantly flows, enlarging us and enabling us to "bear fruit." (John 15:4-5) This flow of the life of Christ is accomplished through the Holy Spirit, the Spirit of Christ (Romans 8:9), who imparts to every believer new, spiritual life (Titus 3:5-8; 1 John 4:13; John 14:16-17; 1 Corinthians 6:19-20), transforming them such that the character of Christ, the Fruit of the Spirit, is produced. This life is never ours to create through imitation; it is our "spiritual birthright" as redeemed, adopted children of God, located in, and issuing from, the Spirit of Christ who has made us his "temple."
The life of a believer, then, is not one of mere imitation, of asking WWJD?, but, rather, of death and replacement. For it is only as the life of the "old man" is counted crucified with Christ by faith, and in constant submission to the control of the Holy Spirit (Romans 6:13-22; Romans 8:14; Romans 12:1; James 4:7; 1 Peter 5:6) the believer is changed and filled with the life of Christ that they will ever succeed in properly manifesting his life in their daily living.
Galatians 2:20 (NASB)
20 "I have been crucified with Christ; and it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself up for me.
Romans 6:6-8 (NASB)
6 knowing this, that our old self was crucified with Him, in order that our body of sin might be done away with, so that we would no longer be slaves to sin;
7 for he who has died is freed from sin.
8 Now if we have died with Christ, we believe that we shall also live with Him,
Galatians 5:24 (NASB)
24 Now those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires.
Colossians 3:2-3 (NASB)
2 Set your mind on the things above, not on the things that are on earth.
3 For you have died and your life is hidden with Christ in God.
So, forget "WWJD?". Set your sights higher; walk with God at a far deeper level; let Jesus be more than your example; let him be your very Life.
