God Like, Christ Like, made in the image of God

By: Rev. Robert Vergeson D.D.

God Like, Christ Like, made in the Image of God.

We are God like, because we are made in the image of God. Therefore, if we are made in the image of God, then we are like God. And if we are like God, then our life should be God like in everything we do. Genesis 1:26-28 tells us what God said regarding the moment He decided to make man.
Genesis 1:26-28
[26] Then God said, "Let us make people in our image, to be like ourselves. They will be masters over all life—the fish in the sea, the birds in the sky, and all the livestock, wild animals, and small animals." [27] So God created people in his own image; God patterned them after himself; male and female he created them. [28] God blessed them and told them, "Multiply and fill the earth and subdue it. Be masters over the fish and birds and all the animals."
Being made in God’s image refers to the characteristics of God and that which He wants us to become like in all things concerning the characteristics of Himself. God wants us to have the same reason, creativity, speech and self-determination. Another positive characteristic is our self-worth, that which we think and feel about ourselves. If we where to think in the negative, criticizing or downgrading ourselves, then we are essentially criticizing what God has made and the abilities He has given us. Because God made us in His image, we are God like.
When we accept Christ as our savior, we are to become Christ like, hence the word Christian. Since Christ is the son of God, we are kin to God through Christ, again we are God like, the very image of God. Christ is also made in his image and if when we accepted Christ, we are also Christ like, Christians. Thus we have a closer kinship to God. When we accept Christ as our savior, we are asked to put off the old us and put on the new us, so that the Holy spirit may live in us. Again, we find ourselves allowing God to inhabit our lives and our physical body, for the Holy Spirit is God living in us. We are God like and like God, while we are also Christ like, and like Christ. For Christ died for our sins, asking us to die also, putting aside the old us, and become reborn again in Christ. Like Christ, we also die, and like Christ He arose to be with his Father in Heaven. So shall we also rise to be with our Father in Heaven. For only the children of God shall enter the gates of Heaven and have an eternal life with our heavenly Father.
So why do many have cold blood running in their veins, when it should be the sizzling hot blood of the Holy Spirit that gives us life in Christ preparing us for our eternal life with Go? The following scriptures will speak to us about what happens when we become Christ like.
John 1:11-13
Even in his own land and among his own people, he was not accepted. [12] But to all who believed him and accepted him, he gave the right to become children of God. [13] They are reborn! This is not a physical birth resulting from human passion or plan—this rebirth comes from God.
John 4:11-15
"But sir, you don't have a rope or a bucket," she said, "and this is a very deep well. Where would you get this living water? [12] And besides, are you greater than our ancestor Jacob who gave us this well? How can you offer better water than he and his sons and his cattle enjoyed?" [13] Jesus replied, "People soon become thirsty again after drinking this water. [14] But the water I give them takes away thirst altogether. It becomes a perpetual spring within them, giving them eternal life." [15] "Please, sir," the woman said, "give me some of that water! Then I'll never be thirsty again, and I won't have to come here to haul water."
Romans 6:4-8
For we died and were buried with Christ by baptism. And just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glorious power of the Father, now we also may live new lives. [5] Since we have been united with him in his death, we will also be raised as he was. [6] Our old sinful selves were crucified with Christ so that sin might lose its power in our lives. We are no longer slaves to sin. [7] For when we died with Christ we were set free from the power of sin. [8] And since we died with Christ, we know we will also share his new life.
God like and Christ like. What more can we ask for to assure that we receive eternal life.
Physically our mortal body relies on the heart to sustain its life. Our heart pumps blood throughout our body sustaining our muscles, vital organs, and providing blood rich oxygen to our brain. Our mortal body lives because physically this blood is hot, not cold. Spiritually, we also have a another heart that pumps blood into our life, sustaining the our eternal life, that which comes after our mortal body dies. Both the mortal heart and the spiritual heart resides in our body together. That is when we have accepted Christ in our lives, and we have offered the Holy Spirit a place to live in our lives. To sustain the mortal body we consume nutrition, breath in oxygen, and exercise our body so that the function of the heart continues to beat strong. To sustain our Spiritual Body we consume the word of God to enlighten our mind and soul regarding what God asks of us. Which is to feed our Spiritual Body, by sustaining the full potential of the Holy Spirit as it works in our body. The Holy Spirit keeps alive our Spiritual heart, but it can not function if our mortal body is contaminated with Sin. The vessel to which our body becomes after we accept Christ in our lives, needs to be pure and clean for the Holy Spirit to reside in. Like our mortal heart, when we stuff ourselves with bad foods, alcohol, drugs, and Sin, our mortal heart will suffer and eventually die and the mind and body follows the same death. This too can happen to our eternal body when we refuse to allow the Holy Spirit to work its gifts in our lives. Like the hot blood our mortal heart pumps, our eternal heart also needs to pump hot blood into our eternal life. Without this hot blood, our spiritual life will cease to function normally much like our mortal heart fails to function when we feed our mortal body with junk food. Let us read in Psalms 139:14-16 and other scriptures to discover for ourselves the workmanship of God.
Psalm 139:14-16
Thank you for making me so wonderfully complex! Your workmanship is marvelous—and how well I know it. [15] You watched me as I was being formed in utter seclusion, as I was woven together in the dark of the womb. [16] You saw me before I was born. Every day of my life was recorded in your book. Every moment was laid out before a single day had passed.
Romans 8:14-17
For all who are led by the Spirit of God are children of God. [15] So you should not be like cowering, fearful slaves. You should behave instead like God's very own children, adopted into his family—calling him "Father, dear Father." [16] For his Holy Spirit speaks to us deep in our hearts and tells us that we are God's children. [17] And since we are his children, we will share his treasures—for everything God gives to his Son, Christ, is ours, too. But if we are to share his glory, we must also share his suffering.

Mark 1:9-11
One day Jesus came from Nazareth in Galilee, and he was baptized by John in the Jordan River. [10] And when Jesus came up out of the water, he saw the heavens split open and the Holy Spirit descending like a dove on him. [11] And a voice came from heaven saying, "You are my beloved Son, and I am fully pleased with you."
John 3:5-7
Jesus replied, "The truth is, no one can enter the Kingdom of God without being born of water and the Spirit. [6] Humans can reproduce only human life, but the Holy Spirit gives new life from heaven. [7] So don't be surprised at my statement that you must be born again.
John 4:22-25
You Samaritans know so little about the one you worship, while we Jews know all about him, for salvation comes through the Jews. [23] But the time is coming and is already here when true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and in truth. The Father is looking for anyone who will worship him that way. [24] For God is Spirit, so those who worship him must worship in spirit and in truth." [25] The woman said, "I know the Messiah will come—the one who is called Christ. When he comes, he will explain everything to us."
John 14:6-7
Jesus told him, "I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one can come to the Father except through me. [7] If you had known who I am, then you would have known who my Father is. From now on you know him and have seen him!"

John 16:14-15
He will bring me glory by revealing to you whatever he receives from me. [15] All that the Father has is mine; this is what I mean when I say that the Spirit will reveal to you whatever he receives from me.
Philip. 4:5-9
Let everyone see that you are considerate in all you do. Remember, the Lord is coming soon. [6] Don't worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done. [7] If you do this, you will experience God's peace, which is far more wonderful than the human mind can understand. His peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Christ Jesus. [8] And now, dear brothers and sisters, let me say one more thing as I close this letter. Fix your thoughts on what is true and honorable and right. Think about things that are pure and lovely and admirable. Think about things that are excellent and worthy of praise. [9] Keep putting into practice all you learned from me and heard from me and saw me doing, and the God of peace will be with you.
When our blood runs cold, much like our mortal blood does when we are exposed to extreme cold, our body wants to shut down. This is known as hypothermia, a condition when our heart can no longer pump warm blood throughout our system because the blood is to cold, becoming very thick and unable to flow properly through our body. We become confused and want to lie down and sleep. Of course to do so, is to die. When our Spiritual blood gets cold, we also have the same like confusion and eventually, we will also die, that is our Spiritual life will suffer greatly.. When a Christian is confused it is often like those who sit on a fence, not knowing from one day to another which direction they should leap from the fence. Should they leap backwards, back toward the worldly side of the fence which is death, or should then leap forward, toward the light which is life in Christ? To sit on the fence is to be hesitant, and when we hesitate to get medical help for our hypothermia, those who can voluntarily seek help, we begin to lose our focus. Our mind and soul becomes unable to function to its potential as the Holy Spirit intends it to function in our life. Like hypothermia, we also suffer a spiritual hypo condition where we just can’t take any steps toward becoming the Christian God intended for us.
Another type of hesitation is when we come to the living waters of Christ, and instead of joyfully jumping head first in the waters, we approach the shore and stop just inches away from those living waters. Instead of jumping head first, we stick out our toes first, and daintily dip our toes into the water to test the temperature. If it is to cold we back off and just admire the pristine waters from afar. Now you may notice that others at the beach, come running and jumping head first into the waters, fully immersing themselves from head to toes without hesitation or fear of the water being to cold. Which kind of Christian are you. The kind that has no fences to sit on, or not afraid to jump into the living waters of Christ. Lets read more scripture and learn more about how we are to be God like and Christ like.
James 1:4-6
So let it grow, for when your endurance is fully developed, you will be strong in character and ready for anything. [5] If you need wisdom—if you want to know what God wants you to do—ask him, and he will gladly tell you. He will not resent your asking. [6] But when you ask him, be sure that you really expect him to answer, for a doubtful mind is as unsettled as a wave of the sea that is driven and tossed by the wind.
John 20:26-29
Eight days later the disciples were together again, and this time Thomas was with them. The doors were locked; but suddenly, as before, Jesus was standing among them. He said, "Peace be with you." [27] Then he said to Thomas, "Put your finger here and see my hands. Put your hand into the wound in my side. Don't be faithless any longer. Believe!" [28] "My Lord and my God!" Thomas exclaimed. [29] Then Jesus told him, "You believe because you have seen me. Blessed are those who haven't seen me and believe anyway."
John 3:4-8
"What do you mean?" exclaimed Nicodemus. "How can an old man go back into his mother's womb and be born again?" [5] Jesus replied, "The truth is, no one can enter the Kingdom of God without being born of water and the Spirit. [6] Humans can reproduce only human life, but the Holy Spirit gives new life from heaven. [7] So don't be surprised at my statement that you must be born again. [8] Just as you can hear the wind but can't tell where it comes from or where it is going, so you can't explain how people are born of the Spirit."
John 1:3-7
He created everything there is. Nothing exists that he didn't make. [4] Life itself was in him, and this life gives light to everyone. [5] The light shines through the darkness, and the darkness can never extinguish it. [6] God sent John the Baptist [7] to tell everyone about the light so that everyone might believe because of his testimony.
John 7:36-39
What does he mean when he says, 'You will search for me but not find me,' and 'You won't be able to come where I am'?" [37] On the last day, the climax of the festival, Jesus stood and shouted to the crowds, "If you are thirsty, come to me! [38] If you believe in me, come and drink! For the Scriptures declare that rivers of living water will flow out from within." [39] (When he said "living water," he was speaking of the Spirit, who would be given to everyone believing in him. But the Spirit had not yet been given, because Jesus had not yet entered into his glory.)
The gifts of the Holy Spirit can not work in your life if you are a fence sitter, or a toe dipper. When we hesitate to accept fully the life of Christ in our body, and when we fail to offer the Holy Spirit a clean and pristine vessel to live in, we fail to become totally God like and Christ like. God made us in his image so that we may be capable to hold his Holy Spirit in our physical body, so that while on earth with that physical body, we have the promise that when that physical body eventually dies, our Spiritual body lives on with God. If God had not made us in his image, we would not be able to receive his promise of eternal life. Nor would we have been able to become the perfect vessel for the Holy Spirit to live in us. Therefore, if we are made in the image of God, and have the promise of God, and are Christ like, then the Holy Spirit can work its full joy in our lives. When we are filled with the hot blood of the Holy Spirit pumping through our body giving us all its wonderful gifts that God promised us, we are truly God like.
Now we all know what happens to our physical body when our heart is functioning at its full potential. We have a vitality that gives us strength to do just about anything we can and that is to live long life as our mortal’s years will allow. How much better would it be for us, to go beyond those mortal years, and live an eternal life in Heaven. Now here’s a promise we can live with and we will when we commit totally to Christ and truly become Christ like. Each and every part of our body must be reborn, and as we are the church of God, we each have a part to play in that church. Again lets read the word of God to here His wonderful words regarding his church.
Romans 12:4-8
Just as our bodies have many parts and each part has a special function, [5] so it is with Christ's body. We are all parts of his one body, and each of us has different work to do. And since we are all one body in Christ, we belong to each other, and each of us needs all the others. [6] God has given each of us the ability to do certain things well. So if God has given you the ability to prophesy, speak out when you have faith that God is speaking through you. [7] If your gift is that of serving others, serve them well. If you are a teacher, do a good job of teaching. [8] If your gift is to encourage others, do it! If you have money, share it generously. If God has given you leadership ability, take the responsibility seriously. And if you have a gift for showing kindness to others, do it gladly.
1 Cor. 12:4-10
Now there are different kinds of spiritual gifts, but it is the same Holy Spirit who is the source of them all. [5] There are different kinds of service in the church, but it is the same Lord we are serving. [6] There are different ways God works in our lives, but it is the same God who does the work through all of us. [7] A spiritual gift is given to each of us as a means of helping the entire church. [8] To one person the Spirit gives the ability to give wise advice; to another he gives the gift of special knowledge. [9] The Spirit gives special faith to another, and to someone else he gives the power to heal the sick. [10] He gives one person the power to perform miracles, and to another the ability to prophesy. He gives someone else the ability to know whether it is really the Spirit of God or another spirit that is speaking. Still another person is given the ability to speak in unknown languages, and another is given the ability to interpret what is being said. [11] It is the one and only Holy Spirit who distributes these gifts. He alone decides which gift each person should have.
Get off that fence of yours and tear it down so that you can never sit on it again. There should no longer be any division between you and the Holy Spirit. Stop toe dipping in the waters of life, for as long as you keep dipping your toe’s in the waters of life, you will never fully be immersed in the Holy Spirit. Jump head first and enjoy the life giving waters of Christ and truly become God like. Allow the hot blood of the Holy Spirit to pump a vitality in you that will carry you through the darkest hours of your life. Allow the hot blood to give you the strength to move mountains and reward you with the desires of your heart. Never allow the idle moments of being a fence sitter to deter you from reaching out and serving Christ to your fullest. Never allow the actions of toe dipping to allow you to hesitant in serving God to the fullest desires He wants for you in this world.
Remember, we are made in the image of God, and saved through the blood of Christ. Therefore, there is no reasons why we can’t be God like in everything we do. Get the blood boiling, and show the world what it really means to be like God, having the same family familiarity we have with Christ, and the blood of the Holy Spirit running through our veins. In all things, through God can we make a difference in not only our lives but in the lives of others. Do not waste an idle moment deciding which direction you are going. There is only one direction to go, and that is upward into the bosom of our God’s embrace, and the love of our brother Jesus Christ.
There are so many area’s in the Church of God that needs someone to fill that post. For God has many job openings for the right people. God gives us the ability and potential to do great things in his name, even the lowly ditch digger serves Gods overhaul plan. You might think digging ditches is menial occupation, but that ditch digger for the Lord is the person who makes sure that the land his church is built on is well drained, so that the foundation doesn’t wash out in the first storm that comes along. You might think that CEO of a mega corporation is to ambitious to serve the Lord, but even a CEO can humbly serve God, with his experience in building a financial future for the Church. Both the ditch digger and the CEO who serves God, are equal in God eyes, then so should they be in yours. If you hesitate because you are not sure what or how to serve the Church of God, then ask God what you have that you can share in his name.
Often it may just simply be your warm smile greeting people as they come in to worship God. Nothing more or less will God expect of you, if you serve him faithfully with your warm smile and firm handshake when you greet a fellow Christian, or visitor to His church. Now, many will have greater roles or lessor roles in participating in God church, greater or lessor, they are equal in God eyes as long as they are serving God with fervor that says the Holy Spirit is alive and well in your soul. Remember also that God does not judge outward appearance, nor should we do the same, but rather God judges what is internal, that only He can see. Therefore for us to judge others by what we may believe is the internal condition of another’s spiritual life is to takes Gods place in judging others by their internal appearance.
1 Samuel 16:5-8
"Yes," Samuel replied. "I have come to sacrifice to the Lord. Purify yourselves and come with me to the sacrifice." Then Samuel performed the purification rite for Jesse and his sons and invited them, too. [6] When they arrived, Samuel took one look at Eliab and thought, "Surely this is the Lord's anointed!" [7] But the Lord said to Samuel, "Don't judge by his appearance or height, for I have rejected him. The Lord doesn't make decisions the way you do! People judge by outward appearance, but the Lord looks at a person's thoughts and intentions."
James 4:11-12
Don't speak evil against each other, my dear brothers and sisters. If you criticize each other and condemn each other, then you are criticizing and condemning God's law. But you are not a judge who can decide whether the law is right or wrong. Your job is to obey it. [12] God alone, who made the law, can rightly judge among us. He alone has the power to save or to destroy. So what right do you have to condemn your neighbor?
God reserves the full right to judge his children, for He knows everything about them, for they can not hide from Him the condition of their heart and soul. God will reward the righteous by the contents of their heart and not their outward appearance. For truly if we are aflame with the Holy Spirit in our lives then there is no cause for others to say we are not walking a Spiritual life. For the light that is the Holy Spirit will shine inward to the outward of our earthly appearance and everyone we meet will know what our heart and soul truly speaks about our life in Christ. Once that flame is lit, no man can judge its strength or its purpose. For it shall burn through all doubt and hesitation in Christ. There will be no fences to sit on, or will you shy away from the waters of life. Rejoice in the Lord with all your heart and soul, and shout out to the world the Lord has come, and that Christ is my bother and God my Father. For I am like God, made in his image and like Christ, reborn again to have eternal life. God like, Christ like, made in the image of God. Let the promise of God make our life here on earth better for all who wait for God’s loving embrace. Amen.

Article Source: http://www.religionarticlelibrary.com

Rev Robert Vergeson is a associate member of the Universal Life Church since 1978 and author of many teaching and spiritual messages. You may respond to him at rdvergeson@yahoo.com with your comments.

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