Born to Build Character

Next Part Many Sons

Each person that God calls is presented with the same choice that Adam and Eve faced—yielding to God and His government or yielding to Satan and his nature.

Just as little children grow up to look like their physical parents, so also do God’s children slowly take on the spiritual likeness of their Parent, in holy, righteous character—“divine nature” (II Pet. 1:4). Peter described Christians as “partakers of the divine nature”—the nature of God. There is the physical nature of creation, human nature and god’s nature. God is re-fashioning corrupt, carnal human nature into wonderful, glorious, perfect, holy, spiritual character—His divine nature!

Character is understanding—knowing—right from wrong and doing what is right instead of what is wrong! God reveals what is right, but it is through the power of free moral agency, deciding to do what is right, that righteous character is built.

Character is consciously choosing the right way, against resistance. It is not the easy way. It is swimming against the current, rather than drifting lazily in the direction it is flowing. It is building love, joy, peace, long-suffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, temperance (self-control)—all the fruit of the Holy Spirit—wisdom, knowledge, understanding, humility and more. This takes time, because character is built through experience.

God is now actively working in the minds of only those few who have come to know Him and who have His Holy Spirit within them (Acts 2:38). Humans are not born with God’s character. And God cannot instantly infuse them with it. Character must be developed over a lifetime.

God has perfect character in all respects. He is love (I John 4:8, 16). Love is the fulfilling of the law (Rom. 13:10; I John 5:3), which requires yielding to God. It is outgoing concern for others, putting them first—ahead of self-interests.

Satan’s nature is selfish, incoming and concerned only with what is best for self and how to get more for self. This is the attitude he injected into Adam and Eve when they ate of the forbidden fruit. He wanted them blinded to their awesome potential.

Are you seeing that, while God made man in the form and shape, physically, of Himself, it does not end there?

You were created to become like god—to build perfect, holy, righteous character. Grasp this astonishing truth. God is reproducing Himself in human beings. Just as you are the child of parents, and possibly have children of your own, God is your Parent. In this life, God begins to spiritually re-form and re-shape those He calls—His children. His Purpose is to build within them His nature.

So then, God is reproducing Himself in those who have received His Holy Spirit. He is creating children that will look and BE just like Him! To build the very character of God is the reason you exist! But there is more to understand.

Your Awesome Future

The book of Hebrews reveals God’s awesome purpose with crystal clarity. The context begins in Chapter 1. Watch as the astounding picture of God’s Plan unfolds.

First, understand that God created angels to be “ministering spirits” to assist the “heirs of salvation” (Heb 1:14). This is their role within God’s Plan. Angels are not offered membership in the Family of God. This is why Satan (as a fallen angel) so hates the idea that puny, fleshly man can receive what he has never been offered nor can ever achieve.

Paul quotes from two places in the Psalms: “For unto which of the angels said He at any time, You are My Son, this day have I begotten you? And again, I will be to him a Father, and he shall be to Me a Son?” (Heb. 1:5). (Hebrews 2:5 describes the earth under the “subjection of angels” now, but makes clear that these angels will not rule over “the world to come.”)

God has never said any of this to an angel!

Paul then quotes from another Psalm, explaining what has always been God’s Purpose: “Your throne, O God, is for ever and ever: a sceptre of righteousness is the sceptre of Your kingdom…” (Heb 1:8). A sceptre is a rod or staff used as a symbol of rulership or authority—and in His kingdom it is God who has all power.

Finally, Paul re-frames the same question about angels: “But to which of the angels said He at any time, Sit on My right hand, until I make Your enemies Your footstool? Are they not all ministering spirits, sent forth to minister for them who shall be heirs of salvation?” (Heb 1:13-14). This sets the stage for what we must understand! Let’s really comprehend the truly awesome future that God has prepared for all those who serve Him.]

This amazing series of verses continues in chapter 2—and builds in understanding and impact. Paul quotes Psalm 8:4-6. As we have seen, David asked the all-important question, “What is man, that You are mindful of him?” (Heb. 2:6). Since God is eternal, and sits over the entire universe and has all power under His control, no wonder David asked, and Paul repeated, this question.

The astounding answer is in the next verse: “You made him [man] a little lower than the angels; You crowned him with glory and honour, and did set him over the works of Your Hands.”

Paul further explains that God plans to give immense power and authority to His Sons: “You have put all things in subjection under his feet. For in that He put all in subjection under him, He left nothing that is not put under him. But now we see not yet all things put under him” (Heb 2:8). This has not yet happened—but soon will, at the Return of Christ.

When God says that “all things” will be put under the feet of man, this is what He means. The vast universe, with all of its quadrillions of stars and one trillion galaxies, will be put under the authority of men who have been born into the Family of God. In fact, the Moffatt translation renders the Greek word for “all things” as “the universe.”

This is staggering knowledge!—wonderful beyond description! Take time to truly grasp it. Savour what can be your future. It is the reason you exist—it explains why you were born!

Before continuing, consider a fascinating verse about another related aspect of salvation few understand. We have seen that Christians await a truly incredible salvation. But, the whole creation is also intensely awaiting the appearing of all those new sons to be added to God’s Family.

Carefully read the following, previously referenced but now with different emphasis: “For the creation waits with eager longing for the revealing of the sons of God; for the creation [all things in the known universe] was subjected to futility, not of its own will but by the will of Him who subjected it in hope; because the creation itself will be set free from its bondage to decay and obtain the glorious liberty of the children of God.

We know that the whole creation[everything] has been groaning in travail together until now; and not only the creation, but we ourselves [Christians], who have the first-fruits of the Spirit [the few now called], groan inwardly as we wait for [birth] as sons” (Rom. 8:19-23, RSV).

All future “children of God”—sons—will be liberators of a creation now in bondage. All humanly-devised gods, worshipped today in such ignorance, will be put aside and exposed for what they were—false!