We are like God when we desire, think, and will the same as God.
We’ve climbed up 4 of Saint Peter’s steps of transformation along with our imaginary friend Lucinda -from virtue to knowledge to self-control to perseverance - and now the next step is godliness. Godliness is not something so much that one does, as something that develops from the previous steps and then is noticed over time.
In our example of church attendance, let’s say that Lucinda has now firmly established the habit of coming to church every Sunday morning unless she’s sick or out of town. It’s just an automatic thing now and she doesn’t have to think about it at all.
One day, in the midst of praising God in the sanctuary (as David would say) she is struck with the thought of how much she LOVES the church service. Everything about it, the music, the worship, the friendships and fellowship, the sermons, the presence of the Holy Spirit. You couldn’t keep her away now with a stick of dynamite. What changed?
Lucinda’s original desire as a child of God to please her Heavenly Father led her to deny what her flesh wanted - to stay in bed - and to align her thoughts with God’s thoughts, and her will with God’s will. That’s what “godliness” means - being like God. We are like God when we desire, think, and will the same as God. That’s another way of saying our hearts are aligned wtih God’s heart.
Godliness has now become a part of Lucinda’s character in this one aspect. As she continues to follow after Jesus she will learn more and more about what He desires and wills, and as her heart aligns with His, her character will become more and more godly.
This is what, I believe, this verse is talking about:
“And we, who with unveiled faces all reflect the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into
His image with intensifying glory, which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit.”
That’s 2 Corinthians 3:18, and what an awesome verse it is!
Notice that we’ve gone through the heart cycle from desire to knowledge to will - and now as we come back to the desire/emotion chamber we see Lucinda experiencing joy rather than a feeling of resentment that she’s expected to show up at church.
The steps to transformation so far have been inward, self oriented. Now, going toward the next step, we will begin to see the focus turn outward toward others. See you in the next post!
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