BEOMING LIKE JESUS

Bible study theme: UNDERSTANDING THE CONCEPT AND CONDITIONS FOR DISCIPLESHIP

Sub theme: GOD'S GREAT OFFER

Introduction

When God created man, He gave him an estate, a glorious inheritance. God, the Creator and Possessor
of heaven and earth decided to make man in His own image and after His own likeness, and delegated
His authority to man. God was to reign in heaven while man was to reign (on His behalf) on earth.

"The heaven, even the heavens, are the Lord's, but the earth He has given to the children of men" (Ps.
115:16)

The man was authorized to rule over all God's creation on earth.

But he was not to rule independently. There was a fellowship, a communion between God and man
daily. God would visit him in the cool of the day to share fellowship with him. Even that was a privilege,
an inheritance that cannot be bought with money.

We cannot adequately explain the glory of that inheritance at this point. The implication of the estate in
which man was to stand for God is beyond any one's imagination. God continued to hold out this
inheritance from one generation to another. Unto Abraham, God offered Himself.

"Fear not Abram, for I Am thy shield and thy exceeding great reward." "You will possess and inherit Me
as your own reward."

This is still the great offer God holds out into us even today. Unto the Levites also God offered Himself.

Though sin pushed the man out of this estate and made him naked and helpless, God is still committed
to finding a man- the seed of the woman who would bruise the head of the Serpent and enter into this
glorious inheritance. Thanks be unto Our LORD and Savior Jesus Christ, who offered Himself and laid
down His life for us to deal with sin and then became qualified to open the seal and get back the
inheritance for us Yet to share in this glorious inheritance, God desires not only that Jesus be the only
Begotten Son, but that He should bring many sons unto glory;

that He might be the first among many brethren. - Brethren that

have become conformed unto His own image (Rom.8-.29)

We shall in this study, attempt to peep into the great offer that God holds out to us, and look at the way
into our glorious inheritance. May the Lord grant you understanding and a hunger to arise and possess
your possession.
1 Discover from the following scriptures that we have an inheritance with God. Eph.1: 14, 18; Col. 1:12,
IPet. 1:3-4, Matt. 25:23,34, Rom. 5:17, 8:17.

Every child of God is a partaker of this inheritance. It is a glorious inheritance spoken of widely in
scriptures. It is reserved not only in heaven for us but also here on earth. Every partaker of it shall reign
in life by Christ Jesus. Are you among?

2 What is our inheritance in Christ Jesus?

(a) God delivers us, forgives us our sins and cleanses us from all unrighteousness. Rom.4-.7-8, Heb.8:12
1Jn.1:9,Matt: 1:21. It is a blessing to be forgiven by God. It brings peace, joy and assurance to the heart.
It makes us to stand righteous before God. Whereas sin brings disgrace and reproach and make a man
fearful, righteousness exalts and makes a man bold as a lion. It is a blessing, a glorious inheritance in
Chris Jesus. Not only are we forgiven but we are actually delivered from sin and its consequences. Christ
did it all for us. Gal. 3:13, 1 Cor.15:56-57, Matt.11-28.

(b) Adoption as God's children. 2Cor.6:18,Jn.1:12, 1Jn.3-.l-3.

Ours is the adoption. It is our inheritance in Christ Jesus God becomes our Father and we become his
children. Not any of His angels has He ever said "Thou art My son, today have I begotten you." (Heb.
1:5). Great and mighty and powerful as angels are, they are not given that privilege. It is not part of their
inheritance. But to us God has given this glorious inheritance and privilege to be His sons and daughters.
Are you one? Let us look at the implications of the adoption.

(1) We have the Spirit of adoption. Rom. 8:14-17, Gal.4-.6-7, Ezek. 36:26-27.

Being children of the same father is not just by words of mouth. It is by birth. God made our inheritance
authentic by giving us the Spirit of adoption, the Spirit of His Son Jesus Christ. He removes the spirit of
disobedience and timidity: that spirit that worked in

Adam when he sinned, making him no longer to be bold. It made him to start hiding from God. That
spirit is removed and the Spirit of adoption comes into us, whereby we have boldness to go into the
presence of our Father crying Abba, Father. It opens to us all that belongs to God and makes it ours. God
Himself becomes our inheritance. That is glorious. It is part of God's great offer to us.

(ii) Discipline is part of our inheritance as children of God. Heb.12: 5-8, Ps. 23:4, Job 5:17-18 Job
recognized this and esteems

it as a treasure not be despised; David severally passed through it and calls it a comfort. Those who
dodge the discipline of the Father only prove that they are bastards. As you consider stretching forth
your hands to receive God's great offer, it is necessary for you to understand that discipline is an
important
part of it. It is part of our glorious inheritance in Christ Jesus.

(C.) God Himself is our Portion. Rom.8-.17, Gen. 15:1, Ps. 16:5-6, Lam.3-.24.

What a great offer, to inherit God Himself! The Possessor of heaven and earth is our portion, our
inheritance. As an heir of God, whatever belongs to God is ours by inheritance. And that is the truth. His
nature, His grace, power, His possessions belong to us. There is nothing in heaven or on earth that is
worthy enough to exchange with this glorious inheritance. No wonder men of old like Daniel, Joseph,
Paul were willing to lose anything for them to maintain this inheritance. May you not despise this great
offer.

3 The Nature of our inheritance

a) It is invisible yet real. Gen. 39:1-4, Gen.15:1-3,Gen.25-.29-34,1 Pet. 1:4,2Cor. 4:17-18.

By nature, things that are visible are temporal, but things that are invisible are eternal. This inheritance
is invisible to the natural eye; though it is made manifest sometimes physically, yet it has its roots in the
invisible. This is the conflict that Christians often face. Though their physical

condition may not show the greatness and reality of this inheritance, yet it is real. Joseph was a slave in
the house of his Egyptian master. Yet because of his relationship with God, the Lord was with him and so
he was a prosperous! man! A slave who has been stripped of his only dress by his brothers and sold out
to an Egyptian, yet a prosperous man.That looks like a conflict. God was keeping his inheritance intact
for him. Though invisible, he knew the reality of it and he would not exchange it for the pleasure of sin
for a season.

However, because it is invisible, Abraham did not understand it in Gen. 15 when God presented this
offer to him. He was still asking for the visibles, the countables! If not for the mercy of God, he almost
lost it. Esau also could not see the reality of this invisible inheritance in his hungry situation. So he
despised it and exchanged it for a spoon of pottage. By the time he realized the glory of what he had
missed, he sought it with tears but it was too late. Brother, sister, you have an inheritance. Though it is
invisible, it is real.

b) It is enveloped and enclosed in God's promises. Gal. 3:18, 2Pet.l-.3-4; Gen. 12:1-3.

This inheritance is given to us by promise. It is contained in. God's promises, not in visible, countable
material things The great inheritance prepared for Abraham was brought into his life by promise. God
spoke to him and even though the inheritance was yet invisible, he believed God. As God spoke to him,
so he departed in obedience. To inherit God is not a call to possess the visible but the invisible, enclosed
and contained in God's word to us. Are you ready for such an experience?
4. God is committed to our possessing this glorious inheritance. Gen. 17:4-8, Mk. 7:25-29

God is not just giving us an offer; He is committed unto our having it. Though Abraham disappointed
God many times, God was always looking for ways to bring him back on course, into a position where he
could possess his possession. When he went into Hagar contrary to God's plan and backslid for 13 years,
the Lord God still came and re-introduced Himself to Abraham and stated His commitment to him
afresh. If He has promised, He will surely bring it to pass. The Lord keeps covenants.

To ensure that His children unto whom He is reserving the inheritance of divine healing for example,
gets it, God prefers to drive away 'dogs' and guard this children's bread jealously until they come for it.
The Lord is committed unto giving us the inheritance.

Are you committed unto possessing it? What are those things that are secretly making you despise your
birthright? You need to identify them and deal with all such decisively, lest they rob you of your glorious
inheritance in Christ Jesus.

5. What is the way into this inheritance?

a) The New birth. Jn.3-.l-3, Heb.2-.ll (KJV, NIV, LB etc)

The new birth in Christ Jesus is what ushers us into this inheritance. Jesus has received the inheritance
and God is pleased to commit all things into His hands. Anyone who will partake of this inheritance must
therefore be of the same stock, the same nature, the same Father with him. It is an inheritance and it
belongs only to children of the same father with Jesus; it does not belong to bastards. You must be born
into the family of God. You must be born the second time. The first time you were born physically by
your parents, but this time you must be born spiritually of the Holy Spirit.

Someone may say 'how'?

Read Jn. 3:5-6, 1 Cor. 15:50, Isa. 59:1-2, Un.l:9, Rev.

3:20, Rom. 10:9-10, Ezek. 36:25-2 7.

When you were born by your parents, you were born naturally, born in the flesh. And God has
concluded that flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God. Sin is the thing that separates us
from God. It is the quarrel between God and man. But that was why Jesus came, laid down His life, shed
His blood and died for us on the cross. He did that to deliver us from our sins. And if you believe in Him
and confess your sins to Him, He is faithful and just to forgive you and cleanse you. He is merciful. And
even now He ii knocking at the door of your heart, waiting to be invited into your heart, into your life
and into every affair in your life as the Lord. As you surrender the key of your life to Him this way,
making Him the Lord, the Governor, the Director, the Driver of your life, a miracle will take place
immediately (Ezek. 36:25-2 7). He cleanses you, removes from you the head of stone and puts within
you a new heart. He puts in you new spirit. You become a new person inside. It is a miracle. You can bow
down your heart in prayer where you are no' and stretch forth your hands and heart to receive this new
life. It can be yours if you are willing!

b) Spiritual growth. This is the next crucial step into this glorious

inheritance. What does that mean? Gal. 4:1-3 (KJV,NIV,NEB)

Eph.4:13-14, Heb. 5:12-14.

Lack of spiritual growth makes us liable to demon oppression. It causes instability in the faith and
makes \ beggars for crumbs when actually we 'own the whole estat (Gal.4:l). People, false teachers and
false prophets can easily toss a spiritual babe to and fro and make a cheap merchandise of the babe.

And as a child, no one will commit precious things, even your glorious heritage into your hands. Even
Jesus will not commit Himself unto you. Every child of God who will become what his Father plans for
him must of necessity grow on to maturity. It is a precondition for us to possess our possessions.

c) What is the standard, the mould, the yardstick, the pattern for our growth? Eph.4-.13, Rom. 8:17,2 9,1
Pet. 2:21.

Jesus Christ is the standard, the pattern for our development. It is His life that God uses to measure our
growth. He is the pattern Son, the one who has gone ahead of us to possess this inheritance. He has laid
an example for us and we have been called to be conformed to His image and follow in His steps. There
is no other person in the Bible or in our contemporary times that God introduced to us as His pattern
Son except Jesus. In Him God is well pleased. As you grow on in the Lord, you must not remove your
eyes from this Pattern Son. Keep looking at Jesus and His lifestyle and pattern your life after Him. You
will not miss your inheritance.

d) Discover from scriptures that God's method for making us to be conformed to the image of the Lord
Jesus Christ in order to possess our glorious inheritance is DISCIPLESHIP. Matt.4:19-22, Matt. 11-.28-30,
Matt. 28:18-20(NIV), Acts 4:13-14.

Following Jesus and learning of Him is the secret unto becoming like Jesus. And that is DISCIPLESHIP. It is
the 'SHIP' that conveys us from the realm of being fishers of fish to the realm of being fishers of men. It
is the relationship that conveys us into our glorious inheritance, to possess this great offer that God, in
mercy and by grace, is extending to us.

Dodging it is the same as dodging your inheritance. Being a believer alone will not take you into this
inheritance. Even demons believe and tremble (Jas.2-.19); yet they have no part in this inheritance.
Many believed in Jesus in Jn.2:23-25, but Jesus did not commit Himself to them. That means He would
not entrust the inheritance unto them. You must enter into this Discipleship relationship with Jesus. Will
you?

1. Share with us how you became a child of God. What was your life like

before this experience? In your personal assessment, what has

this new birth various dimensions in which brought to your life?

Explain the this experience has affected you

2. Spiritual growth is so crucial in your possessing your possession: What

has been the major hindrance to your growth spiritually? What steps have you

taken or are you taking to tackle this problem.

3. In what practical areas would you say you are becoming like your Master

Jesus? If none, what is your challenge?

4. Have you experienced any form of discipleship? Discuss: when, how and under who

Copyright- Peace House discipleship outlines