The Disciples of Christ
4 - Imitators
This series of talks on the subject of Christian discipleship has taught us that a disciple is one who follows the Lord Jesus Christ faithfully and learns about him lovingly.
Now we are going to discover the third meaning of this word ‘disciple’ - the Greek word Mimeomai, which means to imitate. We actually get the English word ‘mimic’ from this word Mimeomai. In seeking to imitate
the Lord Jesus Christ, Christians try to pattern their lives on His life. A true disciple of Jesus then, will be one who imitates his life intensely. This can only come about as a result of following him closely and learning about him regularly. As the master’s disciples, Christians are His representatives here upon earth. So, in your witness for Him you will need, as well as speaking about Him, to show Him in the way you live.
There’s a song by Albert Orsborn which describes this well in these words:-
‘‘Let the beauty of Jesus be seen in me - all His wondrous compassion and purity. Oh, Thou Spirit divine, all my nature refine, Till the beauty of Jesus be seen in me".
In the letter to the Hebrews chapter 1 and verse 3 we are told that the Son (the Lord Jesus Christ) is ‘‘The radiance of God’s glory, and the exact representation of His being". The Amplified Version of the New Testament puts it this way: ‘‘He is the perfect imprint and very image of God’s nature". Philip, one of His disciples, said to Jesus one day, ‘‘Lord, show us the Father", and Jesus replied ‘‘Anyone who has seen me has seen the Father". I believe that, just as our Master portrayed the image of His Father, so we should endeavour to be like HIM. In this way others will see our Saviour as they look at us. We often hear it said that a child is ‘the image of his father or mother’! I wonder do you, do I, reflect the very image of the Lord Jesus Christ as we try to imitate Him?
I once read about a Christian leader, a servant of Christ who was known for his devoutness and gracious manner of life. One day he called at a home on a pastoral visit to the family. His knock on the door of the house was answered by a little girl. On opening the door, and seeing the stranger she looked at him and then immediately ran inside saying ‘‘Oh mother come, Jesus is at the door!" That Christian man was, to quote from Second Corinthians chapter 3 verse 18, ‘‘Reflecting as a mirror the glory of the Lord and was being changed into the same image, from glory to glory". Paul, that great apostle to the Gentiles, wrote to the Corinthian believers in his First Letter chapter 11 verse 1: "Follow my example, as I follow the example of Christ", or, as the Amplified Version of the New Testament has it:-"Pattern after me. Follow my example as I imitate and follow Christ the Messiah".
On one of his great missionary journeys Paul took the gospel to a a place called Thessalonica. As a result of his visit many found the Saviour for themselves. Writing to these believers some time later, Paul said to them: ‘‘You know how we lived among you, for your sake, and you became imitators of us and of the Lord; and so you became examples (or a model) to all the believers in Macedonia and Achaia. The Lord’s message rang out from you and your faith in God has become known everywhere". This passage of Scripture, which is found in the First Letter to the Thessalonians chapter 1 verses 5 to 10, establishes a pattern for our evangelical witness. You will remember that the Lord Jesus said ‘‘You shall be witnesses to me". So let’s discover the pattern given to us in this passage:
First: You welcomed the message given by the Holy Spirit.
Second: You turned to God from idols, to serve the living and true God.
Third: You became, in your lives, imitators of the Lord.
Fourth: You sounded out the Lord’s message to others.
Fifth: Your faith in God has become known everywhere.
Let me summarise this for you in this way:
YOU HEARD OF CHRIST - YOU BELIEVED IN CHRIST -YOU ARE SEEKING TO LIVE
LIKE CHRIST and YOU PREACH CHRIST.
Paul’s words in verse 8 of this chapter are a wonderful testimony to the effectiveness of following this pattern: ‘‘We, the preachers, have no need to say anything about your faith, and your witness, for in every place these things have been seen". May our prayer today be, that others may see OUR faith in the Lord Jesus Christ, and that we may be faithful in our witness to His saving power and grace.