By: Roberto Sonio
Christ likeness is the perfect will of God for every minister to all believers of Christ in general. Is it possible for us to attain the perfect will of God? I believe that it is possible, because God�s grace is sufficient for us and for Him nothing shall be impossible. This book tells us how to be matured or become Christ like, provided that you allow God to work and you are willing to renovate your heart.
According to Willard, in order for us to be like Jesus, our six human dimensions must be transformed: (1) our thought, (2) feeling, (3) will (heart or spirit) and character, (4) body, (5) social dimension, and (6) soul. I strongly agree with these facts and I want to apply them in myself.
First, it is true that we have the freedom to think whatever we want to think. If we are going to entertain evil thoughts, that becomes the starting point for evil to control our lives. The Apostle Paul says, �be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind� so that we may know the good things which are the will of our God (Rom. 12:2).
Second, we cannot depend on our feeling, because our feeling enjoys the pleasure of the world, and the lust of our flesh enjoys the sins. Our feelings don�t want hardship. If a person is far from the Lord, it is hard for him to do and follow the Lord�s will. That�s why the Lord Jesus taught us to deny ourselves, to deny our feelings of enjoying the lust of the flesh. If we are going to entertain the word of God and receive Christ as our Savior and Lord, then the Spirit of the Lord must transform our feelings and enable us to experience the fruit of the Spirit, which is love, joy, peace and so forth. The use of the singular (fruit, not fruits) in this verse shows that the fruit is only one and it amounts to Christ likeness.
Third, according to Willard, our will (heart or spirit) and character, are not identical. The �will is not the same thing as character, but character does develop from it, as specific willing becomes habitual� (p.144). When we accept the good news of Jesus Christ, both our mind and our will will be transformed through the power of the Holy Spirit. That�s the time when our will is going to surrender to God�s will and He will be able to control us.
Fourth, our body is His temple. When we invite Jesus to come into our heart, the Holy Spirit will dwell in our heart, so that our body will be permanently His temple. In serving the Lord, the Apostle Paul said that our reasonable service is to present our bodies as living sacrifice which is well pleasing to the Lord (Rom. 12:1).
Fifth, is the social dimension. According to the author there are two basic forms of evil expressed in relation to others, which are the �lovelessness, lack of proper regard and care for others� (p.181). To be transformed on this kind of social dimension is to forget the attitude of defensiveness and try to apply the last six of the Ten Commandments. Romans 12:9-21 is very helpful to know as it defines how to have healthy relationship with others.
Finally, we are to care for our soul. Willard has said that art, sleep, sex, ritual, family, parenting, community, health, and meaningful work all are in fact soul functions. To satisfy these we must work hard for it. Many people want so much to gain the pleasure of the world that they will even go to the extent of allowing their soul to perish. That�s why we need to renovate our soul through the blood of the Lord Jesus Christ.
--rsonio '05