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Imitating Christ, May 30
Wherefore, holy brethren, partakers of the heavenly calling, consider
the Apostle and High Priest of our profession, Christ Jesus; who was
faithful to him that appointed him.
Hebrews 3:1, 2
.
In giving to men an example of what they should be and do, Jesus,
the world’s Redeemer, did not have a smooth path to travel.... Jesus had
been the commander of heaven, yet on earth He was as one that serveth.
Uncomplainingly He endured privations, and lived the life of a poor man.
He did not indulge in the luxuries that many who claim to be His followers
surround themselves with; He studied not at all His pleasure, ease, or
convenience. He was a man of sorrows and acquainted with grief. His
whole life was one of self-denial, expressing the prayer, “Not my will, but
thine, O God, be done.”
Christ is our pattern, and those who follow Christ will not walk in
darkness, for they will not seek their own pleasure. To glorify God will be
the continual aim of their life. Christ represented the character of God to
the world. The Lord Jesus so conducted His life that men were compelled
to acknowledge that He had done all things well. The world’s Redeemer
was the light of the world, for His character was without fault. Though He
was the only begotten Son of God, and the heir of all things in heaven and
earth, He did not leave an example of indolence and self-indulgence....
Christ never flattered any one. He never deceived or defrauded, never
changed His course of straightforward uprightness to obtain favor or ap-
plause. He ever expressed the truth. The law of kindness was in His lips,
and there was no guile in His mouth. Let the human agent compare his life
with the life of Christ, and through the grace which Jesus imparts to those
who make Him their personal Saviour, reach the standard of righteousness.
Let him imitate the example of Him who lived out the law of Jehovah, who
said, “I have kept my Father’s commandments” (
John 15:10
). Those who
follow Christ will be continually looking into the perfect law of liberty,
and through the grace given them by Christ, will fashion the character
according to the divine requirements
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37
The Youth’s Instructor, October 18, 1894.
159