For the record, I don’t plan on making a habit of writing blog posts that respond to issues or ideas raised by others. There is enough back and forth already out there on the internet, and I don’t plan to add to the noise any more than necessary.
However, a recent post by Dan Wallace really got my mind working. Dr. Wallace is a Christian scholar and leader for whom I have the utmost respect. It feels a bit strange to critique a post so personally honest, and I agree with more of what is written than not.
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| If you went to seminary, you've heard of him... |
Still, the more I thought about it, the more something seemed off about his main assertion: the goal of the Christ life is NOT to become Christ-like.
But this main point, rather than being explicitly stated, is mostly wrapped in the narrative of his own Christian growth, and in many ways I feel I am on a journey similar to the one Dr. Wallace describes. Like him, I have often been frustrated by my lack of progress in holiness.
I have far too often considered myself to more spiritually mature than I really am. And worst of all, these attitudes have led me, at times, to hide or justify my sin rather than repent.
Like Dr. Wallace, I completely agree that the answer is not found within ourselves, but in the person of Jesus Christ. When I am confronted by my own shortcomings, I must be reminded again of the grace that is found in our Lord and Savior.
But do we abandon the notion that the Christian is called to be Christ-like?
Is that terminology or command absent from Scripture? Such a notion seems to be implied by Dr. Wallace's article, though I doubt he intends to dismiss the idea altogether.
A brief survey of Scripture clearly shows a believer is called to develop the character of Christ as they continue in their Christian walk. Some examples:
The command to put others first, which Wallace mentions, is inextricably tied up in the encouragement to have the “attitude [which] was also in Christ Jesus” in Philippians 2. The
1 John 2:5-6 make the character of Christ in the believer essential for Christian living: “By this we know that we are in Him: the one who says he abides in Him ought himself to walk in the same manner as He walked.”
I could go-on, because the call to develop the character of Christ seems so obvious that I don’t know how to sum it up briefly.
The author acknowledges that he is responding more to the “knee-jerk” responses which “parrot” this phrase as some sort of motto for how they live their life.
But he does not mean to dismiss it as a goal altogether, and the following statement probably stands as the best summary of his position:
The mature person recognizes his own sins and readily admits them to others whom he has offended. [But] The one who focuses on his own Christ-likeness is focusing on a tertiary goal and can end up being blinded by his own ambition.
Trying to summarize the underlying thought of Dr. Wallace's statement:
Christ-likeness is A goal (or fruit) of the Christian life, but believers should not see it as THE goal.
If we start to think of character development apart from Christ, we have strayed into error. We must not place the perceptions of our own character above a humble and repentant faith in our glorious Savior Jesus Christ.
However, I do want to be careful when making such a distinction, because Christ-likeness is the expected fruit of a vibrant faith.
The authors of Scripture seem to have no problem calling believers to emulate the character of Christ and mature believers who look like Him (Philippians 3; 1 Corinthians 11). We shouldn’t develop an allergy to that which Scripture commands and commends.
I doubt that Wallace intends to neglect biblical calls to exhibit the character of Christ. Instead, he hopes to emphasize the Savior from whom this change flows. I think this is a helpful clarification to make when reading his original post.
We need to understand the root before we pursue the fruit.
We must not lose focus on Christ, and this is why Wallace’s article is so valuable.
While I would tone down or balance out some of his devaluation of Christ-likeness, we must remember that Christ, not character, is at the center of our faith.
And Christ, when is He is at the center, will produce in us an increasingly others-centered Christ-likeness as we follow Him.
Join me in praying that this will be true of all of us who follow Jesus.
-BJ
