I’m currently taking an online course from the ministry of Francis Frangipane on the topic of Christlikeness. Today, I’m meditating on these words from Pastor Frangipane:
The steadfast prayer of the wounded intercessor holds great sway upon the heart of God.
We cannot become Christlike without being wounded. You see, even after we come to Christ, we carry encoded within us preset limits concerning how far we will go for love, and how much we are willing to suffer for redemption. When God allows us to be wounded, He exposes those human boundaries and reveals what we lack of His nature.
I’ve noted lately that the ‘Christian world’ runs from pain, therefore as I see it, we tend to run from true Christlikeness. God’s desire for us as His children is that we are Christlike….no wonder our ‘Light’ is not shining when we run from what causes us to shine. We really are ‘hiding our lamp under a basket’.
Matthew 5:15 (ESV) “Nor do people light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a stand, and it gives light to all in the house.”
I’ve never really applied this verse to myself before, but what people are drawn to in the Christian faith is Christlikeness, not ‘Christian-likeness’. There is a world of difference between those two words.
How can we win a lost world if our lights aren’t brightly shining and attracting others to Jesus? Jesus learned obedience from what He suffered (Hebrews 5:8)…how can we expect it to be any different for us if we are going to be like Him?
James 1:2 (NIV84) “Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds,”
These are questions I’m pondering today. Your thoughts?
Light in the darkness
