Shaped by Christ
READ
There's a profound difference between self-improvement and spiritual transformation. Self-improvement says, "Try harder. Be better. Fix yourself." Transformation says, "Behold Jesus and become like what you see."
Paul describes it beautifully: "And we all, who with unveiled faces contemplate the Lord's glory, are being transformed into his image with ever-increasing glory, which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit" (2 Corinthians 3:17-18). Transformation happens through beholding.
Let’s take a moment to read Romans 12:1-2:
Therefore, I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God—this is your true and proper worship. Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will.
REFLECT
Think about how we're shaped by what we look at. Scroll through social media for an hour and notice how it affects your mood, your comparison meter, your anxiety level. Binge-watch cynical television and feel how it tinges your worldview. Surround yourself with complainers and notice how you start complaining more. We become like what we behold.
This is why the Christian life centers on fixing our eyes on Jesus. Not in some abstract, mystical way, but practically—through reading Scripture where we encounter His words and actions, through worship where we declare His worth, through prayer where we abide in His presence, through community where we see His character reflected in others.
The distinct life isn't manufactured through moral effort alone. It's cultivated through consistent exposure to Jesus. As you behold His compassion for the broken, compassion grows in you. As you witness His courage to speak truth, courage strengthens in you. As you observe His willingness to suffer for others, self-sacrifice becomes less foreign to you.
Romans 12 calls this refusing to conform to the pattern of this world and being transformed by the renewing of your mind. The world's pattern is everywhere—success defined by wealth and status, security found in control, identity built on performance, love given conditionally. These patterns are so pervasive we don't even notice we're swimming in them.
But transformation happens when you step into a different current—when you regularly position yourself to be shaped by Jesus rather than by the culture around you. This requires intentionality. You won't accidentally become like Christ any more than you'll accidentally become fluent in a language without exposure and practice.
Here's the hopeful part: this is the Spirit's work. You're not transforming yourself through spiritual disciplines like some kind of self-help project. You're cooperating with what God is already doing in you. You're making yourself available. You're showing up. You're creating space. And the Spirit meets you there, slowly, gradually, persistently shaping you into the image of Jesus.
Transformation isn't about perfection by Tuesday. It's about "ever-increasing glory"—a lifelong journey of becoming more like Jesus, one encounter at a time.
RESPOND
Take a moment to process what God might be leading you to do in light of what you read.
What are you currently beholding most—what gets the majority of your attention, time, and mental energy—and how is it shaping you?
Which spiritual practices (Scripture, prayer, worship, solitude, community) help you encounter Jesus most clearly, and are you regularly engaging in them?
When you look back over the past year or several years, where can you see evidence of the Spirit's transforming work in your life, even if it feels slow?
REST
Take a moment to rest in God’s presence and consider one thing you can take away from your time reading, then close your devotional experience by praying:
Lord Jesus, I want to become like You, but I confess I often look everywhere else for identity, security, and direction. Help me fix my eyes on You—to behold Your character in Scripture, to encounter Your presence in prayer, to see Your image in community. Spirit, do Your transforming work in me. I can't change myself, but I trust You can change me as I position myself to be shaped by Jesus. Thank You that transformation is Your work and Your promise. Amen.