If you take your Bibles and turn to John chapter 13. Our scripture reading this morning will be John chapter 13 verses 1 through 15. John chapter 13 beginning in verse 1. Now before the feast of the Passover, when Jesus knew that his hour had come, that he should depart from this world to the Father, having loved his own who were in the world, he loved them to the end. And supper being ended, the devil having already put it into the heart of Judas Iscariot, Simon's son, to betray him, Jesus, knowing that the Father had given all things into his hand and that he had come from God and was going to God, rose from supper and laid aside his garments took a towel and girded himself. After that, he poured water into a basin and began to wash the disciples' feet and to wipe them with the towel with which he was girded. Then he came to Simon Peter, and Peter said to him, Lord, are you washing my feet? Jesus answered and said to him, what I am doing you do not understand now, but you will know after this. Peter said to him, you shall never wash my feet. Jesus answered him, If I do not wash you, you have no part with me. Simon Peter said to him, Lord, not my feet only, but also my hands and my head. Jesus said to him, He who is bathed needs only to wash his feet, but is completely clean. And you are clean, but not all of you. For he knew who would betray him. Therefore, he said, You are not all clean. So when he had washed their feet, taken his garments, and sat down again, he said to them, Do you know what I have done to you? You call me teacher and Lord, and you say, Well, for so I am. If I then your Lord and teacher have washed your feet, you also ought to wash one another's feet. For I have given you an example that you should do as I have done to you. May the Lord bless this passage to our hearts. The great Presbyterian theologian Benjamin Warfield writes, after Christ our Redeemer, no person can more deeply stir the Christian heart than these. Think about that. Christ our example. After Christ, our Redeemer, no words can more deeply stir the Christian heart than these. To his words resonate. With us. Is that your honest response when you read in the bulletin Christ, our example, was it ho hum or was it something that stirred you? John Owen writes. Now, the great design of all believers is to be like Jesus Christ in all grace and all the exercises of it. He is, in all things, their pattern and example. Every true believer has in his heart and habitual inclination and desire to be like unto Christ, and it would be easy to demonstrate that where this is not, There is neither love nor faith. Is it so for you? Have you gazed at Christ in the scriptures? And has your soul been stirred by what you see? And does your heart go out to him as your great example? And is it today the longing of your heart? to be holy and completely conformed to his blessed image. You're not just dilly dallying with holiness. You are in earnest about being like the Lord Jesus Christ. I want to read to you a fairly lengthy section from Dr. Warfield. When they teach you to preach, they teach you that you shouldn't do things like this. You shouldn't read long quotes like this, but be that as it may, that's what I'm going to do. I trust it'll stir your heart as it did mine. Speaking about the Lord Jesus, he said this. He came to save every age, says Irenaeus, and therefore he came as an infant, a child, a boy, a youth, a man. And there is no age that cannot find its example in him. We see him, the properest child that ever was given to a mother's arms. Through all the years of childhood in Nazareth, subjecting himself to his parents. We see him a youth laboring day by day contentedly at his father's bench in this lowest sphere. Two with no other thought than to be about his father's business, we see him in his holy manhood going as his custom was was Sabbath by Sabbath to the synagogue. God, as he was not too good to worship with his weaker brethren. And then the horizon broadens. We see him at the banks of the Jordan, because it became him to fulfill every righteousness, meekly receiving the baptism of repentance for us. We see him in the wilderness, calmly rejecting the subtlest trials of the evil one. refusing to supply his needs by a misuse of divine power, repelling the confusion of tempting God with trusting God, declining to seek his Father's ends by any other than the Father's means. We see him among the thousands of Galilee, anointed of God with the Holy Spirit and power, going about doing good with no pride of birth. Though he was a king with no pride of intellect, though he was omniscient, with no pride of power, though all power in heaven and earth was in his hands, or of station, though the fullness of the Godhead dwelt in him bodily, or of superior goodness or holiness, but in lowliness of mind, esteeming everyone better than himself, healing the sick, casting out demons, feeding the hungry, everywhere breaking to men the bread of life. We see him everywhere offering to men his life for salvation for their souls. And when at last the forces of evil gathered, thick around him, walking alike without display and without dismay, the path of suffering appointed for him and giving his life a calvary that through his death the world might live. Which of you convinces me of sin? Is too low a question? Who can find in his life a single lack, a single failure to set us a perfect example? In what difficulty of life, in what trial, in what danger, when we turn our eyes to Him, do we fail to find the example that we need? And if perchance we are by the grace of God unable to walk with Him, but a step in the way, how our hearts burn within us with longing to be always with Him, to be strengthened by the almighty power of God in the inner man, to make every footprint which He has left in the world a stepping stone to climb upward over His divine path. Do we not rightly say that next to our longing to be in Christ, is our corresponding longing to be like Christ, that only second in our hearts to His great act of obedience unto death, by which He became our Savior, stands His holy life in our world of sin, by which He became our example. And so the words, Christ our Redeemer, stir our souls with thanksgiving. And the words, Christ our example, stir our souls with longing to be like him. The Lord Jesus is the glorious God-man. We've seen that in our little series. He is prophet, priest, and king to his people. But He is also set before us in the Scriptures as the example of His people, those who are the followers of the Lord Jesus Christ. He is our example, the one after whom we pattern ourselves in order that in that way we might bring glory to His name. Well, we want to look at four things this morning as we think about Christ, our example. First of all, He is our example. Secondly, he is our example, but not in isolation. Thirdly, he is our example in almost everything. And then lastly, he is our example and we're encouraged. Alright, first of all then, He is our example. I want to show you from the scriptures that the Lord Jesus is set before us, not only as our Redeemer, but also as our example. Just turn to the passage that we read together earlier, John chapter 13. John 13, and I draw your attention to the 15th verse. John 13 and verse 15, we're going to look at a variety of passages today. This will be the first. John 13, verse 15, for I have given you an example that you should do as I have done. Now, there are four words in the New Testament that are translated example, and altogether they're used 24 times. On two occasions, they are used in reference to the Lord Jesus Christ, and this is one of them. He says, I have done this in order that I might be an example to you. I have given you an example that you ought to follow. You know the context, and you know the Lord Jesus girding Himself and washing the feet of His disciples, and He points to that and He says, I have given you an example that you ought to follow. Now, that word example is an interesting word. It is a word that means to show under. The idea is something like this. Perhaps you have a picture, you have a photograph or something, some kind of beautiful drawing, and you want to make a copy of it. In the old days, what you would do is you'd put some paper on top of it, and hopefully it would show through, and then you would trace it. And you try to be as careful as possible so that you can reproduce the original. And so when you look at the what you've done, you see all that looks just like that. Well, that's the idea of this word. Nowadays, you copy and paste. It's a lot more simple. But in the old days, you would trace. And that's what this word is talking about. It's saying, look at the Lord Jesus Christ, copy and paste him so that your life looks just like him. Look at the Lord Jesus Christ, look at me, He says, and trace me, and then live like that. He is our example. Now, is our Lord saying, go and do exactly what I've done? That is, you have to wash one another's feet? No, He's not saying that. He is saying in verse 15, I've given you an example that you should do as I have done to you. Not identically, the words don't suggest that, that you do identically what I do, but that the attitude and the perspective is what is necessary. One writer says Jesus is not talking about a ritual, to be repeated from time to time. He's talking about an attitude of humility and action involving service. The right attitudes and actions are what our Lord Jesus is calling for. And we're to display it generation after generation as His people mimic Him and imitate Him and follow Him so that when people look at them, they're seeing something of Christ. Now, let's turn to a second passage, first Peter, chapter two. And this is the second time the Lord Jesus is referred to as the example of his people. First Peter, chapter two and beginning at verse twenty one. First Peter two, verse twenty one. For to this, you were called because Christ also suffered for us, leaving us an example. that you should follow in his steps, who committed no sin, nor was deceit found in his mouth, who, when he was reviled, did not revile in return. When he suffered, he did not threaten, but committed himself to him who judges righteously, who himself bore our sins in his own body on the tree, that we, having died to sin, might live for righteousness, by whose stripes you were healed. For you were like sheep going astray, but have now returned to the shepherd and overseer of your souls. Well, the Lord Jesus is again set before us here as an example, and he is an example to us of how to manage injustice and cruelty and persecution and mockery in light of persecution and in the face of opposition. that he faced and every believer from generation after generation will face. What example does the Lord Jesus set for us as to how we ought to respond? Well, you read that passage. How did the Lord Jesus respond? He didn't commit any sin. Nor did he attack those who attacked him. On the contrary, he committed himself to God in faith and in trust. And he did all of this without complaining. and without murmuring. And so we read a passage like that, and we watch the Lord Jesus in the gospel, and we ask these kinds of questions. What happens when we are confronted with similar situations as Christians? We must suffer injustices and ridicule from others. How do we bear it? Do we exhibit patient resolve? Do we manifest self-control even of the tongue? Do we complain? Do we trust God to be the avenger? Do we selflessly love? Remember, Christ, that's the example that he sets before us. That's the kind of thing that we ought to follow. The Lord Jesus is the one who is the trailblazer, as it were, and we follow after him. Notice again, verse 21, for to this you were called because Christ also suffered for us, leaving us an example that you should follow his steps. He goes before us. And He blazes the trail, and we follow after Him. We try to put our feet, as it were, in His footsteps. And even when we can't attain that, even when we miss the footsteps, as it were, we go in that direction. The Lord Jesus' pathway is a pathway of perfection, of holiness, of righteousness. of absolute conformity to the standards of God, and that's what we aim at. Be perfect as your heavenly Father is perfect. Walk as He has walked. Follow in His footsteps. The Lord Jesus is the example of His people. Mark chapter 8 and verse 34. Whoever desires to come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. And so, again, we follow the Lord Jesus Christ. The essence of discipleship is to imitate him, to take him as our example and follow where he has gone. Matthew chapter 11, verse 29, the Lord Jesus says, Take my yoke upon you and learn from me. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me. Well, that's the way it was in those days. If you were a disciple, you know, you ran across a teacher, some rabbi, or in some cases, some philosopher, and you were just enamored of this particular individual, and you became a disciple of so-and-so, what would you do? become a disciple in the sense that you'd pretty much live with them, you'd see them in all kinds of circumstances, you'd listen to their teaching, but you'd also watch. And you see them in situations. You see their reaction. You see how they deal with things. You see them outside of the classroom. You see them when they let their hair down. You see them at supper and you sit and chat and you talk about all kinds of things. Well, that's what our Lord is talking about. He says, listen to what I'm saying and also learn from me. Watch me and then follow after me. And that's what a Christian does. And we're not privileged to do what they did, which is to literally follow the Lord Jesus Christ all over Palestine and see Him and what He did and observe all of His actions and hear all of His words. But we are immensely privileged, even more than they, to have the full revelation of Jesus Christ, to be able to read the New Testament, have it in our possession, and see God's full revelation of His Son. Read that and learn from Jesus Christ. Read that and see the beautiful picture of the Lord Jesus that is presented before us in the scriptures, and then follow him. The Lord Jesus is the example of his people. And that's why Paul says, imitate me as I imitate Christ. So Christ, our example. Secondly, Christ is our example, but not in isolation. He is our example, but not in isolation. If you think about the Lord Jesus Christ solely as your example and not as your savior. Then you're a liberal. Not politically, but theologically, that's what the liberals did, those theological liberals, they would focus on, they love the Lord Jesus as an example, what an example he is. Just wonderful words he spoke. Do unto others. I know other religions say that, but Jesus says it too. And oh, what a wonderful thing. The emphasis on love. All of those things are so sweet. And he did things, and he was always doing good. What an inspiring example he is to us. And they loved that. And they focused exclusively on that. You see, the problem is that We can't follow his example. As we saw earlier, as Gord showed us from Romans chapter three, there is none righteous, just man naturally. There's none righteous. There's none who seeks after God. And you read further in that passage, you see that by nature, there's no fear of God in their eyes. People by nature, people outside of Christ, there's no fear of God in their eyes. They don't care what God thinks. And the scripture says, spiritually, we're dead in sin. There's no love for righteousness and there's enmity towards God. And so when it comes to the whole idea of taking Jesus as your example and just following after it and trying to, as they say, live out the Sermon on the Mount or take the golden rule as the rule of your life and so live that Surely God then wouldn't keep you out of heaven. No, that's hopeless. Remember what first Peter says, Jesus is our example. Well, I want to follow his example. Well, the first thing it says is who did no sin. And the Bible says that everybody's sin. So it's not enough to simply have the Lord Jesus as your example. No, you need him first and foremost as your Savior. He came to be an example, but that's not the primary reason for which he came. Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners, Paul says. That's the big thing. Remember what Dr. Warfield said, he said this, he said, Christ, our example, after Christ, our Redeemer, no words can more deeply stir the Christian heart than these. But notice that word after. That makes all the difference in the world. Christ, our example, after. Christ our Redeemer, then Christ our example excites us. And the word after makes all the difference in the world. It makes all the difference, the difference between heaven and hell. Because if you leave out the Redeemer part and you focus exclusively on the example part, you will go to hell. If you walk out of here today and say, well, you know, that was a that was a stirring message about how I need to fix my life up and try and be more like Jesus. And, you know, I think I'm going to do that because, you know, it's Christmas time at all. Well, you will have missed the point. And you will have distorted what the Bible says, the Bible doesn't say that. Your great need today is to be pardoned, and then you take him as your pattern. But the pardon comes first, and then the pattern. Justification comes first, and then sanctification. You believe in the Lord Jesus Christ in order that you might be saved, and then you follow him all the days of your life. Don't put the cart before the horse. Salvation first. And the wonderful thing is the Lord Jesus invites and calls you to come to him today for simply that reason that you might be saved. And he will cleanse you and he will forgive you and he will say of your sins, remember the children's talk from a couple of weeks ago that your sins are gone in a legal sense, gone. covered by the blood, forgiven of everything that you've ever done or ever will do wrong, made a child of God. And then, you see, as a child, then you enter into this great pilgrimage that all of us are involved in as Christians, following after, running in the same direction as the Lord Jesus Christ, putting our footsteps exactly where He walked in order that we might bring glory to Him. But first things first, he is our example, not in isolation, it's in the context of salvation. That's the second thing. Thirdly, Christ is our example in almost everything. In almost everything, we often hear the question, what would Jesus do? What would Jesus do? Well. That's a good question. It's an important question to ask, but we must always qualify. We must always remember that sometimes Jesus does things that we're not allowed to do. The Lord Jesus, for instance, speaks with divine authority, and I know sometimes we think we can speak with divine authority, but we can't. The Lord Jesus receives and accepts worship. Sometimes maybe we long for a little bit of that, at least, but no, that wouldn't be right either. The Lord Jesus demands allegiance. And he sets himself up as the object of faith. Oh, that's appropriate because of who he is. He is Lord and he is God and you're not and neither am I. And so there are things the Lord Jesus does that we're not allowed to do. And so the question needs to always be qualified. But having said that, the Lord Jesus then is our example in almost everything when it comes to morality and ethics and holiness and godliness and character and virtue and all those things. He is our example in all those things. And there we follow him. And I want to take a few moments to look at some of the ways in which the Lord Jesus is our example. He is, for instance, first of all, our example in terms of pleasing the Father. Turn to John 8, 29. The Lord Jesus is our example in terms of pleasing the Father. We're going to look at a number of verses because I want you to want these verses to be burned in into our hearts and our minds. In order that we might follow after him closely. John 8, 29. And he, the father who sent me, is with me. The father has not left me alone, for I always do those things that please him. The Lord Jesus always does the things that please the father. That's how you can characterize his whole life. You can look at his whole life and say, well, now, what better can I put over it? Well, how about this? He always did what pleased his father in everything, in thought, in motive, in word and in deed. Turn to John 17, verse four. Always pleasing the father, verse four. Now, remember, this is at the end of his life, and he's looking back over his life, and he says, I have glorified you on earth. I finished the work which you've given me to do. He's looking back at his 33 years, and he says, how can I describe my life? Well, I glorified you. That's what describes and characterizes my existence in this world. I pleased you. I glorified you. That's the example that he sets for us. That's the pattern we're to follow. That's to be the great prayer of your heart. Our Father, hallowed be your name, Lord, in my life and in my character and in my words and in every aspect of my conduct. May you be glorified. So you listen to your words. And you watch your conduct, and you hear the things you say, and you observe the things that you do, and you say, well, now, did that glorify God? He's our example. He's our example in terms of not only pleasing the Father, but also fulfilling a mission. John 20 and verse 21. He's our example in terms of fulfilling a mission. John 20 and verse 21, the Lord Jesus said to them, this is post resurrection. Peace to you, as the father has sent me, I also send you. We've been sent, he was sent, he came into the world to say we've been sent into the world to say not in the same way he was, of course. but to take the message of his salvation to those who are in need of salvation. So he was sent to save and he sends us to save. You see, Second Corinthians, chapter five and verse 20 says we are ambassadors, Paul says, as ambassadors of God in this world, we beseech sinners. We're pleading with sinners. What's our mission statement? Well, we're sent into the world by God to plead with sinners to come to Christ. You're not in the world for your own pleasure, you know. You're not a private citizen, as it were. You're sent by God into the world to be His representatives, to be His workers, to be His ambassadors, pleading with the world to come to Christ. That's our job. That's our calling. And Jesus fulfilled his mission, you notice, from John 17, he said, I've glorified you, I've done the work, I finished the work you gave me to do. You and I have work to do. The Lord's our example, he's our example in terms of obedience. Look at John 6, 38, John chapter six and verse verses 38 and 39. John 638, for I've come down from heaven not to do my own will, but the will of him who sent me. This is the will of the father who sent me, that of all he has given me, I should lose nothing but should raise it up at the last day. But look, I've come to do his will. Let's be clear about that. Chapter 12 and verse 49 of John, John 12 and verse 49. I've not spoken on my own authority, but the father who sent me gave me a command, what I should say and what I should speak. And so out of love for his father and for the glory of his father, he does exactly what his father has told him to do. He's obedient. And Philippians chapter two tells us that he was obedient even to the point of death. And then That death being the death of the cross, not just an ordinary death, but the worst possible death you can conceive of in those days. The Lord Jesus was obedient to the will of God, even when it meant death, and even when it meant the death of the cross. And then Jesus says in Luke 6, 46, Why do you call me Lord, Lord? And you don't do what I tell you. Oh, my, that just pierces, doesn't it? That cuts right to the quick. Why do you call me Lord and you don't do what I command you? What command is it that you're disobeying? Why are we not like Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego and Daniel? You know, you read Daniel chapter three and you read Daniel chapter six and you find that that those four, they would rather die than disobey God. They'd rather die than disobey God. Just bend the knee a little bit and you don't even have to just worship this idol sincerely, but just Bend your knee. No, we'll not sin against God. So they would rather die than disobey. And the Lord Jesus literally dies when that's what obedience requires. And the Lord Jesus then is our example. So again, I ask what command is it that you and I are dragging our feet on. What command is it that's just a little too much trouble for us to obey when the Lord Jesus has blazed a trail of perfect obedience which we ought to follow. So he's an example to us of obedience. He's an example to us also of submissiveness. He's submissive to the will of his father. He's submissive to A difficult will and purpose, because that will and purpose means the cross of Calvary. It means the place of the skull. But we read in Luke 22, 42, not my will, but yours be done, and there are times when that's what you and I have to say. There are times when the will of God for us is very difficult. There are some aspects of the will of God we joyfully obey and do. There are other aspects of the will of God that are difficult. There are times when he calls us to go through times of great deprivation. There are times when the waters of affliction seem to be overwhelming us. But God has called us to go along this pathway, and we are submissive. We're not grudging, and we're not angry, and we're not bitter against God. No, we submit to his will. And we say, along with our Savior, not my will, but yours be done. And then he's an example to us of doing good. The Bible says he went about doing good. You and I have been ordained for good works. You know that from Ephesians chapter two and verse 10. We've been saved by grace and through faith and now is saved people. God has works that he has ordained for us. The rest of your life, if you're a Christian, the rest of your life, God's got all kinds of work for you to do. Work that he's planned in eternity. For the good of those around you and for the glory of his name. Well, that's the road that Jesus took. The Lord Jesus did all kinds of good things. Turn to Luke chapter four and verse 40. What a tremendous example he is here of gracious, loving kindness. Chapter four and verse forty. Now, this is towards the end of the day, when the sun was setting, all those who had any that were sick with various diseases brought them to him and he laid his hands on every one of them and healed them. This is towards the end of the day, the time of the day when I want to kick back and just Relax and enjoy myself, because I'm tired and really deserve a break in the Lord Jesus. All the people are coming and He's kind to them and ministers to them and He heals them. Acts chapter 10 and verse 38. Acts 10 and verse 38. God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and with power, who went about doing good and healing all who were oppressed by the devil, for God was with him. That was what the Lord Jesus did. He went about doing good all of his life. Not only that, of course, he comes to save. That's the fundamental thing and the glorious thing. And then you read Philippians chapter 2, verses 5 to 11, that great passage that talks about the Lord Jesus. God, the very God, graciously coming into the world to save sinners, and then by the power of God, raised up and ascending into glory and sitting at the right hand of the majesty. And Paul said, let that mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus. So the Lord Jesus did that. He comes and he does good to sinners. C.T. Studd said, if Christ be God and died for me, there's nothing too great that I wouldn't do for him. So if he's done that for me, I will do anything for him. And if he has done good to sinners like that, well, let me get in there and do good to sinners just like he did. He's our example in terms of doing good. He's our example, furthermore, in terms of dependence upon God. Dependence upon God. Go back to Mark, chapter one, and we'll see the Lord Jesus serving again. Mark chapter 1 and verse 32. Mark 1 verse 32. At evening, when the sun had set, they brought to him all who were sick and those who were demon-possessed, and the whole city was gathered together at the door. Then he healed many who were sick with various diseases and cast out many demons, and he did not allow the demons to speak because they knew him. Now in the morning, having risen a long while before daylight, he went out and departed to a solitary place, and there he prayed. Now you see the point. He is involved in all kinds of ministry. He's doing all kinds of good. And he's up late into the night and then he's up early in the morning in order that he might go to a solitary place and pray. Why does he do that? Well, one of the reasons is because he needs grace and strength. He's dependent upon God. You may have recognized that fact in Acts chapter 10 and verse 38, where it says that he was anointed by God. What about doing good? Empowered by the spirit that he might do good. That's Isaiah 61. When God was planning to send his Messiah, he said, I will send the Messiah and the Messiah will be anointed by the spirit and thus equipped to serve and to minister and to do good. So the Lord Jesus was dependent in his ministry and in his service and in his life upon God. He's our example in that, you see. And he goes to pray not only to enjoy and delight in his father, but in order that he might receive grace and strength. So must we. And then he has a heart of compassion. One example, he is to us in that way. Matthew chapter nine, verse thirty six. The Lord Jesus has a heart of compassion. Matthew nine, verse thirty six, when he saw the multitude, he was moved with compassion for them because they were weary and scattered like sheep having no shepherd. Doesn't say they're not sinners, of course they're sinners. That's why they're in the mess they're in. Because they're sinful. Because they're wicked. That's why they're out there like sheep without a shepherd, because they've gone astray from God. These are sinful people. And the Lord Jesus looks at them and he sees them as sheep without a shepherd. He has compassion on them. Do we? One last reference to Tiger Woods, when you read about all this nonsense, do you despise him? Do you dismiss him? Or does your heart break for a sinner? Have you prayed for him? Has your heart gone out to him and the multitudes like him? Sinners gone astray, sheep without a shepherd, in need of grace. The Lord Jesus is our example in this. So he is our example in almost everything. And then lastly, he's our example and we're encouraged. He's our example and we're encouraged. You might think that we look at him as our example and we're not encouraged because, well, he sets a ridiculously high standard. He is, after all, God and he is perfect. And so you might think that we look at his example and we're just. Well, the wind is taken out of our sails, but not so. Well, why are we encouraged? Well, several reasons. First of all, because we are like Christ. We are like Christ. You see, Taking Christ as our example and following after him is not simply a matter of externally imitating him. It's not just that. It involves that, but it's not just that. I have a lengthy passage to read to you from James Stocker, but I'm not going to because, well, it's a little bit too long, but the idea of what he is saying is this. He starts out by saying just what I said, that following after Christ is not simply externally imitating him. It involves something more. It involves nature. It works like this. Watch the children in the church. And when you watch the children in the church, you'll see that there's something of their parents in them. there's a reflection. And sometimes they walk the same way, they talk the same way, they use the same phrases that their parents want to use. They seem to have similar personalities, and though young people might just squirm at the thought, there is much of your parents in you. It's not just a matter of of them observing and watching and listening and then slavishly imitating. There's some of that. But there's also the fact that there's something of their parents in them. There's the nature of their parents in them. And that's why they act that way. Some of these things are not learned. They're just a chip off the old walk. Well, in a very real sense, that's who you are if you're a Christian. Second Peter said that we partake of the divine nature. We are new creatures in Christ. We have a new heart. And we partake then of the divine nature, and so when we're holy, We are living as our Father. We're doing what our Father does. You people, Jesus says, you imitate your father, the devil. Well, Christian people, we imitate our Father, the Lord. And so you're going to do what you do when you follow Christ, because that's who you are. Romans chapter 6 says, be what you are. Live a holy life, he says. And you know what? That's who you are. You're a saint. That's why we're called saints. Not because we're so saintly, but because that's who we are. We're God's set-apart people. Well, think about this then. You're going to follow Christ because that's who you are. You're encouraged by that. What's more, we're empowered by Christ. The same power that empowered Christ empowers us. The Lord Jesus says, I send you, Father sent me, and I'm sending you. Well, in the same way the Spirit empowered him, the Spirit empowers us. Receive the Holy Spirit, he says, in that same context in John. So the Spirit empowers us. The Spirit enables us to put sin to death. The Spirit teaches you about the Lord Jesus Christ. The Spirit gives you grace to imitate. The Spirit works holy desires within you. Philippians 2, 12, and 13. And not only does He work those desires within you, He gives you the strength to put those desires into practice. So you're not left orphans. Follow the Lord Jesus Christ, but not in your own strength. You can't do that. So we're encouraged when we think of imitating Christ. We're encouraged because Well, we have a new nature. We belong to him. We're encouraged because we're empowered by him. We're encouraged because we have the scriptures. Look at Second Corinthians, chapter three and verse 18. Second Corinthians, chapter three. And verse 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. Well, it's a wonderful thing, then, in this whole matter of following Christ and imitating the Lord Jesus Christ. Tremendous thing to have the scriptures, to be able to do what Paul is saying there, to look into the scriptures. Just immerse our minds in the scriptures, just fill our minds up with biblical truth. Read everything that you see in the scriptures about the Lord Jesus Christ. One writer says, look at him at all times and in all places. And as you look at him, it is the law of the new birth that you will become like him. No man can keep all his days looking at Jesus Christ without, in the end, becoming holy like Him. That's encouraging. I can't help it. The more time I spend in the Word, the more I hide the Word of God in my heart. I can't help it. I just become more like Christ. As I hide His Word in my heart, the Spirit blesses it to me. He guarantees I'll grow in the grace and the knowledge of the Savior. And then we're encouraged because Well, we're inspired by the saints. We're inspired by the saints. Paul says, I want you to imitate me as I imitate Christ. How we learn from the scriptures, that's the big thing. But sometimes we look at people and they're putting the virtues of Christ into some kind of concrete form. And we look at them and say, I see now how that biblical principle works out. You see love in concrete forms. You see holiness, gentleness, patience, all these things, concrete in the lives of other people. And you know people in your own life who have been exemplary for you, and God has used them to inspire you as you pursue the Lord Jesus Christ. I know people like that in my own life, and I thank God for them. I'm sure you have them as well. And so we're encouraged by that because there are saints who inspire us. And then lastly, we're encouraged because we know we are destined to be like him. It's going to happen. We will be like the Lord Jesus Christ. Romans chapter 8, 29 and 30, you have been predestined to be conformed to the image of Christ. It's going to happen. One day, you're going to open your eyes, and you're going to see Him in all of His glory, and just like that, you'll like Him. And life in this world can be difficult. Sometimes the road is very tough, and sometimes the progress seems very, very slow. And sometimes you think it's ridiculous. But then we're encouraged because we know, we know that one day we will be perfectly conformed to the image, the face of Jesus. And so we pray with confidence, finish now by new creation, pure and spotless, May we be let us see thy great salvation perfectly restored in the changed from glory into glory till in heaven we take our place till we cast our crowns before the lost in wonder, love and praise. Let's pray. Our great God and Father, how we thank you and praise you that the Lord Jesus Christ is our pattern. And one day, because your will cannot be thwarted, one day we will be like him. Help us in the meantime to follow closely after our Savior, to walk as he has walked. Grant, our Father, also that those who have entered this building, strangers to the grace of the Lord Jesus, might be found in Him before they leave. Save them by Your grace, and then increasingly, through the rest of their lives, conform them to His image. In His name we pray. Amen.