More Sunday Thoughts About Being Like Jesus

We continue our little summer Sunday mini-series about being like Jesus. How often we've read or been told how important this is. But when we think about it, we may wonder what it could possible mean. 

With this in mind, here are some more thoughts from Rev. George Zimpfer

    “‘Imitation of Christ’ does not mean that we must seek an exact parallel of incidents in our lives and that of Jesus. It means that we must strive to think and act according to His spirit, as we should judge He would speak and act or think in any given circumstances. The hundreds of expressions of our spirituality are our own, just as the events of our Lord’s life were peculiarly His own. His day was not as our day; His circumstances of life were not as ours. Yet he lived, and he asks us to live in like manner. It is an ideal, of course, and we strive to approximate it. We must look beneath the outward circumstances, the mere activities of Christ’s life, and try to discover the deep moral truths and principles which guided them. Most of our Lord’s life was unexceptional, if viewed only in these circumstances. He was not always working miracles, but he lived among men and women graciously. What made Him a Light among men, a Light that shone with ever increasing brilliance until today His figure stands as the greatest in human history, was His inner life, His spirit. He came not only as the Son of God; He came to us also as the Son of Man. He not only died for us, but He lived for us as well, to show us how to live.” (Rev. George Zimpfer)

We see the clear distinction here between the individual life of the God-man Jesus Christ and our own life. To be like Christ does not mean to forsake our individuality in some sense and to literally "become" Jesus Christ. Of course, put that way, it seems obvious, doesn't it?

But recall how some other religions propose a kind of "melding" into some sort of amorphous spirit, completely losing our own individual soul as it is somehow "absorbed" into this mystical mass. 

On the other hand, we know that each of us was created, body and soul, as a unique individual creation of a loving Father. We do not "lose' ourselves, our individuality. We are precious in the sight of God. 

And yet we know that we are called to be like Christ, right? Perhaps St. Paul's comments about putting off the "old man" could help here. He doesn't tell us to forsake who we are as individuals; just throw off that self-focused personality that keeps God at bay; or perhaps that worldly sinful chap who never finds the time to sincerely work to become a saint; or simply that self that jealously guards its ties to the comforts, wealth, pleasures, or even simply the routines of this world that seem to provide some sense of security.

Each of us, being unique, has a set of these self-focused interests, habits, behaviors, etc. that distract us from looking for Our Lord, learning of Him, wanting to know Him better and better, desiring, as we know Him better, to be more like Him rather than settle on our "old" self.

If we keep Sunday as Our Lord's Day - as we should - perhaps we can find some time right now, or at some point today, to think about, to meditate on the idea of being like Jesus. Don't let the simple words "being like Jesus" pass by into the ether never to be grasped and understood. If Rev. Zimpfer's words assist in this, good. If not, we're capable of generously opening our heats and minds to the Light of the Holy Spirit. 

Maybe we can simply recognize that Our Lord condescended to be born amongst as a man, to live a life whose words and actions have been captured and passed on to us.

Whatever it takes. Just take the time.