I'm posting this at the request of a friend. I had intended to put it up eventually but it ended up in the list of things "I may post sometime." I had shared it with a few friends in person, however, and one person asked me to write it up, so here it is.

Beholding-Becoming

A basic assumption about spiritual growth that I learned at IHOP is that the way that you grow in holiness is to meditate on the knowledge of God. This comes out most clearly in 2 Corinthians 3:18:

But we all, with unveiled face, beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory, just as by the Spirit of the Lord.

There are several other verses that talk about "looking unto Jesus" (Hebrews 12:2), "considering" Him (Hebrews 3:1), and lots of verses in the Old Testament that talk about meditating on the Lord, such as: "to behold the beauty of the Lord" (Psalm 27:4), "behold His sorrow" (Lamentations 1:12), "contemplate His ways" (Psalm 119:15), etc. The verse in 2 Corinthians is especially noteworthy, however, because it explains a process that takes place as we engage in contemplation – through the power of the Spirit at work in us, we will become like Him as we behold His glory. Mike Bickle calls this the "Beholding-Becoming Principle."

Taking this to the next step, then, a significant part of the way that we grow in Christ is to meditate on the attributes of Christ. Do you want to grow in compassion? Consider Him who wept for His friend, even though He knew He would raise him from the dead (John 11:35); who wept for His enemies even as they were rejecting Him (Luke 19:41-44); and who was moved with compassion as He saw the crowds that were harassed and helpless. (Mark 6:34)

Or do you want to grow in humility? This is a profound subject, and one that all of us who call ourselves Christians should deeply ponder. Let us consider Him who was "gentle and lowly in heart" (Matthew 11:29); who "did not consider it robbery to be equal to God, but made Himself of no reputation… and became obedient to the point of death" (Philippians 2:6-8); who "when He was reviled, did not revile in return… but committed Himself to Him who judges righteously." (1 Peter 2:23)

We can go on and on like this. And in fact we should. According to Paul, "all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge" are hidden in Christ (Colossians 2:1-3). Meditating on the attributes of God is a life-time calling – an eternal calling – for those who belong to Him.

The Grateful God

This post is about one small glimpse of the beauty of the Lord Jesus that I received a few months ago. It struck me as I was doing a Bible study on Colossians 3:12-17:

12 Therefore, as the elect of God, holy and beloved, put on tender mercies, kindness, humility, meekness, longsuffering; 13 bearing with one another, and forgiving one another, if anyone has a complaint against another; even as Christ forgave you, so you also must do. 14 But above all these things put on love, which is the bond of perfection. 15 And let the peace of God rule in your hearts, to which also you were called in one body; and be thankful. 16 Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom, teaching and admonishing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord. 17 And whatever you do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through Him.

To grow in tender mercies, kindness, humility, meekness, longsuffering, forgiving… In all of those things I can meditate on the Lord Jesus and consider how He lived. But what about thanksgiving? Can I meditate on the beauty of Jesus to grow in thankfulness?

The answer is yes. And this is startling if you pause to consider it. I once heard someone say that Christianity, alone among the religions of the world, has added courage to the attributes of the Creator. Certainly this is true – how can the God who made everything experience fear and have to endure it? He can do so only if He has become part of His creation and has allowed Himself to experience its brokenness. The Incarnation allows the Omnipotent One to experience real fear, real pain, and to demonstrate real courage.

On this line of thought then, I would add that Christianity, alone among the religions of the world, has added gratitude to the attributes of the Creator.

Jesus is recorded as giving thanks to His Father on the night of the Last Supper:

Matthew 26:27 (also Mark 14:23, Luke 22:17)
Then He took the cup, and gave
thanks, and gave it to them…

Luke 22:19
(also

1 Corinthians 11:24)
And He took bread, gave
thanks and broke it, and gave it to them, saying, "This is My body which is given for you; do this in remembrance of Me."

On two other occasions, Jesus gave thanks to His Father for bread before He multiplied it to feed a multitude – one time it was seven loves and 4,000 men ate (besides women and children), and another time it was five loaves and 5,000 men.

Matthew 15:36 (also Mark 8:6)
And He took the seven loaves and the fish and gave
thanks, broke them and gave them to His disciples; and the disciples gave to the multitude.

John 6:11
And Jesus took the loaves, and when He had given
thanks He distributed them to the disciples, and the disciples to those sitting down; and likewise of the fish, as much as they wanted.

And there are several times when Jesus explicitly thanks His Father for His ways and His actions:

Luke 10:21
(also
Matthew 11:25)
In that hour Jesus rejoiced in the Spirit and said, "I thank You, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that You have hidden these things from the wise and prudent and revealed them to babes. Even so, Father, for so it seemed good in Your sight.

John 11:41-42
… And Jesus lifted up His eyes and said, "Father, I thank You that You have heard Me. And I know that You always hear Me, but because of the people who are standing by I said this, that they may believe that You sent Me."

Wonder of wonders! God in the flesh giving thanks to God. And I think this mystery was not missed by the Apostles. Consider the way that John retells the events after the feeding of the five thousand:

John 6:22-24
22 On the following day, when the people who were standing on the other side of the sea saw that there was no other boat there, except that one which His disciples had entered, and that Jesus had not entered the boat with His disciples, but His disciples had gone away alone— 23 however, other boats came from Tiberias, near the place where they ate bread after the Lord had given thanks— 24 when the people therefore saw that Jesus was not there, nor His disciples, they also got into boats and came to Capernaum, seeking Jesus.

We might have said, perhaps, if we were talking with the Apostle John, "John, don't you think you could have referred to that incident a little differently? After all, a lot more happened at that place than the fact that Jesus gave thanks for bread. Don't you think the fact that 5,000 people were able to have enough to eat from five barley loaves is significant?"

If we said that to John, his response might be this: "Of course it's significant, but don't you remember what I wrote in the beginning of my book? This Man was the Word who was in the beginning with God and who was God! All things were made through Him, and without Him was nothing made that was made. Of course He could feed 5,000 people with five barley loaves, just like He spoke all of creation into existence from nothingness. What is wonderful is that He – the Word made flesh – gave thanks to His Father for the bread that He had given Him!"

Do you want to grow in gratitude? Then behold the beauty of the Lord in His thanksgiving!