Behold and Become
Read – 1 John 3:1-3; John 5:16-23; Romans 8:28-30
To behold and become is as old as the Bible, beginning with God creating us in His image and all creation being created to produce after its own kind. Seeds produce the trees, plants, fruits, and vegetables of its own kind. It is imitation, re-production, and re-imagination.
Jesus said to the Pharisees who sought to kill Him for healing a man on the Sabbath, that it was His Father working and so He was working. This infuriated the Jews even more because by saying His Father, He made Himself equal to God.
Rather than backing down and explaining Himself in a more acceptable fashion Jesus said this:
“Most assuredly, I say to you, the Son can do nothing of Himself, but what He sees the Father do; for whatever He does, the Son also does in like manner. For the Father loves the Son, and shows Him all things that He Himself does; and He will show Him greater works than these, that you may marvel.” John 5: 19, 20
I saw this when I was young, newly married with our first son Nathan who was just a few months old. Nathan even then, would learn by imitating, stick out your tongue, and he did likewise, touch your nose he copied. I saw the natural, perceiving the supernatural revelation in John 5 and saw and proclaimed this truth. Behold and become.
But I was young, and religion is strong, my will yet yielded back to God, my pride and self-righteousness not yet exhausted, I could not behold and become. I had to hear and do. Do…do…do…do…do. And so did all my friends.
Now I am old, and beholding and becoming is my only option. But to my amazement, it works more powerfully now then it ever did before. Because God’s timetable is sovereign, His victory is complete. The seed of Christ in us beckons to grow up inside of us. All it need is light, water, good soil, and time.
Take these three passages and meditate on the promises. Return them to the Lord in worship letting the sound, emotion, and imagination of these words come alive inside of you. Imitation is fostered in our imagination.
What is the promise being made of His likeness? What does glory have to do with all this? What promise is made of greater works? How about conformity to the Son? Ask yourself, ask the Father, what He is showing you in these passages…Let your imagination come up and see…higher still.
Enjoy,
Steve
