2. We Shall Be Like Him: What It Really Means to Become Like Christ
Updated: Sep 15
What does it actually mean to become like Christ?
First John gives Christians an astonishing promise:
“Beloved, we are God’s children now, and what we will be has not yet appeared; but we know that when he appears we shall be like him, because we shall see him as he is.”—1 John 3:2
Romans says something similar:
“For those whom he foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, in order that he might be the firstborn among many brothers and sisters.”—Romans 8:29
These are extraordinary promises.
Christians are not merely supposed to admire Jesus forever from an unreachable distance.
God intends to make His children genuinely like him.
But what does that mean?
Does becoming like Christ mean becoming morally infallible—incapable of ever making a wrong choice?
Does it mean reaching a point where no further growth, learning, development, or deepening of love is possible?
I do not think Scripture requires either conclusion.
Jesus himself genuinely grew. He increased in wisdom. He learned obedience. He was perfected through suffering. Yet even Jesus consistently pointed beyond himself to God.
Jesus is not the ultimate destination.
Jesus is the Way.
And Christians become like Christ so that we can increasingly walk the Way he pioneered toward the God whom he reveals.
Jesus Is the Way, Not the Final Destination
Jesus says:
“I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.”—John 14:6
The destination of the Way is not Jesus himself.
The destination is the Father.
As I argued in the conclusion of my “Who Is Jesus?” section, Jesus is the human Messiah, mediator, pioneer, firstborn, Lord, Savior, and Way through whom God brings humanity to Himself.
That distinction also helps us understand what it means to become like Christ.
Christians are not being transformed into Christ so that Christ becomes the highest conceivable limit of human development.
We become like Christ because Christ shows us how a human being lives toward God.
He trusts God.
He obeys God.
He loves God.
He depends upon God.
He reflects God’s character.
He loves other people.
He forgives.
He serves.
He suffers faithfully.
He chooses righteousness.
He gives himself for others.
And he continually directs humanity toward the Father.
To become like Christ, then, is to become the kind of human being who increasingly lives the same way.
“We Shall Be Like Him” Really Means Something
Sometimes Christians speak about Christlikeness in ways that make it sound mostly metaphorical.
We will never really be like Jesus, we may assume.
We will always remain fundamentally corrupt.
Jesus will always belong to a completely different category of existence.
But that is not what 1 John says.
John does not say:
We will vaguely resemble him.
He says:
“We shall be like him.”
And the immediate context is moral.
John continues:
“Everyone who has this hope set on him purifies himself, even as he is pure.”—1 John 3:3
He then repeatedly contrasts practicing sin with practicing righteousness.
“He who practices righteousness is righteous, even as he is righteous.”—1 John 3:7
Whatever else becoming like Christ ultimately involves, it clearly includes real transformation of character.
God is not merely changing our legal status while leaving us forever morally corrupted.
He intends to make His children genuinely righteous.
Christlikeness Does Not Necessarily Mean Impeccability
But we should also be careful not to make “like Christ” mean more than Scripture says.
If Jesus became righteous and was made perfect, does that mean he became metaphysically incapable of ever making another wrong choice?
Scripture does not actually say that.
The language of righteousness, holiness, maturity, and perfection does not automatically mean impeccability.
A person can be genuinely righteous because that person is deeply oriented toward God, committed to goodness, established in love, free from the domination of sin, responsive to truth, and habitually choosing what is right.
That does not necessarily mean the person has ceased to possess genuine freedom.
It does not necessarily mean no new situation could require wisdom, discernment, learning, or growth.
And it certainly does not mean the person has exhausted every possible dimension of maturity.
That matters for Christians too.
When Scripture says we will become like Christ, we do not need to imagine a future in which human beings become static beings incapable of growth.
We become genuinely righteous.
We become holy.
We become mature.
We become established in love.
We become free from the corruption and domination of sin.
But growth can continue.
Learning can continue.
Relationships can deepen.
Wisdom can deepen.
Love can deepen.
Because Christlikeness is not the ultimate ceiling.
God is.
Jesus Himself Grew
The New Testament presents Jesus as genuinely developing.
Luke says:
“Jesus increased in wisdom and stature, and in favor with God and men.”—Luke 2:52
Jesus increased in wisdom.
Hebrews says:
“Though he was a Son, yet learned obedience by the things which he suffered. Having been made perfect, he became to all of those who obey him the author of eternal salvation.”—Hebrews 5:8–9
Jesus learned.
Jesus suffered.
Jesus obeyed.
Jesus was made perfect.
Hebrews 2:10 similarly says that God made the pioneer of salvation “perfect through sufferings.”
These words describe genuine movement.
Growth.
Learning.
Formation.
Completion.
Jesus therefore shows us that perfection and development are not opposites.
A human being can truly be righteous and perfected for a purpose while still remaining genuinely human.
Perfection does not have to mean stagnation.
And this gives us a better framework for understanding our own future.
Perfected — While Still Being Sanctified
Hebrews contains another fascinating statement:
“For by one offering he has perfected forever those who are being sanctified.”—Hebrews 10:14
Notice the combination.
The same people can be described as perfected and still being sanctified.
Whatever theological distinctions we make about the precise meaning of the verse, the language itself should caution us against assuming that “perfect” must always mean “nothing whatsoever remains to develop.”
Scripture can use perfection language while simultaneously describing an ongoing work of transformation.
That fits the larger biblical picture beautifully.
God can genuinely make a person righteous.
God can genuinely bring something to completion.
And yet that person can continue to grow into deeper wisdom, experience, love, relationship, and fullness.
Completion in one respect does not require exhaustion in every respect.
Jesus Is the Firstborn, Not the Only Son
Romans 8 gives another essential part of the picture.
God intends Christians:
“to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brothers and sisters.”—Romans 8:29
Jesus is the firstborn.
That language matters.
A firstborn is not an only child standing forever in a category no one else can enter.
A firstborn goes first.
Others follow.
Jesus becomes the beginning of a family.
This does not erase his unique role.
He remains the Messiah.
He remains our Lord.
He remains God's uniquely appointed Son and Savior.
He remains the pioneer who went before us.
But God's intention is not to leave Jesus alone in righteousness and glory.
God is creating an entire family conformed to his image.
Jesus Pioneered the Way
Hebrews calls Jesus the pioneer of salvation.
A pioneer enters territory before others.
A pioneer opens a road.
A pioneer goes first so others can follow.
That is exactly what Jesus does.
He does not merely announce:
Become righteous.
He demonstrates a genuinely human life centered on God.
He walks the Way.
And then he calls:
Follow me.
This gives Christlikeness a dynamic meaning.
To become like Christ is increasingly to embody the Way Jesus pioneered.
When we learn to love our enemies, we are walking the Way.
When we forgive, we are walking the Way.
When we choose truth instead of deception, we are walking the Way.
When we serve instead of dominate, we are walking the Way.
When we seek justice for the oppressed, we are walking the Way.
When we receive correction instead of defending ourselves, we are walking the Way.
When suffering makes us more compassionate rather than more bitter, we are walking the Way.
When we become more completely devoted to God and more completely loving toward others, we are becoming like Christ.
The Body of Christ
Scripture takes this even further by calling Christians collectively the body of Christ.
Paul writes:
“Now you are the body of Christ, and members individually.”—1 Corinthians 12:27
This is extraordinary language.
Christ's mission does not end when Jesus leaves the earth.
The Church becomes his body in the world.
That does not mean Christians become Jesus himself.
It means that the life, mission, love, and work seen in Jesus are supposed to continue through his people.
Jesus healed.
Jesus served.
Jesus proclaimed God's kingdom.
Jesus cared for the marginalized.
Jesus reconciled people to God.
Jesus embodied God's love.
And now his body is supposed to continue that work.
The Church therefore cannot define Christlikeness merely by possessing correct beliefs about Jesus.
To be Christ's body means living like Christ lived.
“As the Father Sent Me, I Also Send You”
Jesus makes this continuity explicit after his resurrection:
“As the Father has sent me, even so I send you.”—John 20:21
Consider how remarkable that statement is.
God sent Jesus.
Jesus now sends us.
The mission continues.
Jesus does not simply rescue humanity and then leave Christians waiting passively for heaven.
He sends us into the world to participate in what God is doing.
Paul describes this in 2 Corinthians:
“God was in Christ reconciling the world to himself... and entrusted to us the word of reconciliation.”—2 Corinthians 5:19
First:
God reconciles through Christ.
Then:
God entrusts Christ's followers with the ministry of reconciliation.
Jesus pioneered the Way.
His body continues walking it.
Christians Carry the Ministry of Reconciliation
This should profoundly affect how Christians understand our identity.
A Christian is not merely someone who believes certain propositions about Jesus.
A Christian is someone called to participate in Jesus' mission.
Paul says:
“We are therefore ambassadors on behalf of Christ, as though God were entreating by us.”—2 Corinthians 5:20
Christians represent God's kingdom.
We are supposed to make reconciliation visible.
We should be people through whom enemies become friends.
Through whom the lonely find family.
Through whom the poor are cared for.
Through whom injustice is confronted.
Through whom forgiveness becomes possible.
Through whom truth is spoken with love.
Through whom people encounter something of God's character.
That is Christlikeness.
Not merely saying the name Jesus.
Living the Way Jesus lived.
A Christian Can Fail to Walk the Way
This creates an uncomfortable but necessary distinction.
A person can call herself a Christian and fail badly to walk the Way of Christ.
Jesus himself warns about this.
“Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter into the Kingdom of Heaven, but he who does the will of my Father who is in heaven.”—Matthew 7:21
The name alone is not enough.
Doctrine alone is not enough.
Religious identity alone is not enough.
If someone claims to follow Jesus while consistently rejecting love, mercy, truth, humility, justice, repentance, and obedience to God, something has gone terribly wrong.
Jesus asks:
“Why do you call me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ and don’t do the things which I say?”—Luke 6:46
The question remains devastatingly relevant.
Christianity is supposed to mean following Christ.
Someone Else May Already Be Moving Toward the Way
There is also a humbling implication.
A person may not yet understand who Jesus is—and may not even know his name—and nevertheless already be responding to truth, mercy, justice, compassion, and the God who is drawing humanity toward Himself.
I do not mean that knowledge of Jesus is unimportant.
Jesus is the Messiah.
God raised him from the dead.
God has appointed him Lord.
Through him humanity is reconciled to God.
The gospel matters profoundly.
But Scripture itself gives examples of people responding genuinely to God before they possess the fuller revelation that later comes to them.
Cornelius is one obvious example. Before Peter brings him the gospel, Acts calls him devout and God-fearing, describes him as praying continually and giving generously to the poor, and says his prayers and gifts had come before God as a memorial.
He still needed to hear about Jesus.
But God was already at work in him.
That should give Christians humility.
A Christian label does not automatically mean someone is walking the Way.
And absence of that label does not necessarily mean God has done nothing in another person's life.
The proper Christian response should therefore be neither arrogance nor indifference.
It should be love.
Listen.
Recognize what is good.
Share what we believe God has revealed through Jesus.
And invite people further along the Way toward God.
Sin Is Not Our Final Identity
This also matters because I do not believe corruption is what humanity fundamentally is.
Human beings were created in God's image.
We make genuine choices.
Those choices can corrupt us profoundly.
Habits can enslave us.
Sin can dominate a life.
But corruption is not God's final intention for humanity.
God is restoring His children.
This is why Scripture speaks so boldly about transformation.
Jesus says:
“Therefore you shall be perfect, just as your Father in heaven is perfect.”—Matthew 5:48
James speaks of believers becoming:
“perfect and complete, lacking in nothing.”—James 1:4
Paul prays:
“May the God of peace himself sanctify you completely.”—1 Thessalonians 5:23
And Paul tells the Philippians:
“He who began a good work in you will complete it until the day of Jesus Christ.”—Philippians 1:6
God does not merely forgive His children while leaving them forever under sin's domination.
He transforms them.
We Are Already Being Transformed
Second Corinthians says:
“We all... are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory.”—2 Corinthians 3:18
Notice the tense.
Christians are being transformed.
This is already happening.
First John looks toward a future fulfillment:
“We shall be like him.”
But Paul describes a process occurring now.
We are being changed.
We are learning.
We are becoming more loving.
More faithful.
More truthful.
More courageous.
More humble.
More merciful.
More just.
More righteous.
The future promise is already beginning to take shape.
But God Is the Ultimate Pattern
There is an important final step.
If Christians become like Christ, and Christ perfectly directs humanity toward God, then Christlikeness itself ultimately points beyond Christ.
Jesus says:
“Therefore you shall be perfect, just as your Father in heaven is perfect.”—Matthew 5:48
Paul says:
“Be therefore imitators of God, as beloved children, and walk in love.”—Ephesians 5:1–2
And John says simply:
“God is love.”—1 John 4:8
That is the ultimate direction of Christian transformation.
Not merely:
Become more like Jesus as though Jesus were the final stopping point.
But:
Become like Jesus because Jesus teaches humanity how to become like God in character.
We do not become God.
We do not become omnipotent, omniscient, or the Creator.
But we can increasingly share God's moral character.
His love.
His mercy.
His holiness.
His generosity.
His faithfulness.
His justice.
His compassion.
God is the inexhaustible standard.
And because God is infinite, growth does not have to end.
Perfect Love Is the Destination
This is why I now think it is better to say that Christ is the Way, while God is the destination.
Jesus is our human pattern.
Jesus is our pioneer.
Jesus is our firstborn brother.
Jesus shows us what righteousness looks like in genuinely human life.
But even Jesus teaches us:
“Be perfect... as your heavenly Father is perfect.”
The ultimate destination is not static perfection.
It is perfect love.
John says:
“Perfect love casts out fear.”—1 John 4:18
God's children are being brought toward a state in which love increasingly governs everything.
Love for God.
Love for neighbor.
Love for enemies.
Love expressed through truth.
Love expressed through justice.
Love expressed through mercy.
Love expressed through sacrifice.
And because God is infinite, perhaps perfect love itself contains endless depth.
We can be genuinely righteous without becoming static.
We can be mature without becoming incapable of learning.
We can become like Christ without exhausting everything a human being can become.
There can always be more of God to know and more love to embody.
We Shall Be Like Him
So what does it mean to become like Christ?
It means becoming genuinely righteous human beings.
People deeply oriented toward God.
People increasingly governed by love.
People free from sin's domination.
People willing to receive correction.
People who choose truth.
People who forgive.
People who serve.
People who reconcile.
People who continue growing.
People through whom the character and purposes of God increasingly become visible in the world.
Jesus pioneered this Way.
We follow him.
Jesus was sent by God.
He sends us.
Jesus reconciled humanity to God.
He gives us the ministry of reconciliation.
Jesus reveals the Father.
His body is called to continue revealing God's character.
And someday Scripture promises something astonishing:
“We shall be like him.”
Not because Jesus is the final destination.
But because becoming like Jesus prepares God's children to live increasingly as Jesus himself lives:
toward God, through God, for God, and in perfect love.
Christ is the Way.
God is the destination.
And God's promise is that He will finish what He has begun in us.
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