The men were in the mountains for a week of fun, fellowship and Bible study. The first day included an acclamation hike for those traveling from sea-level to the 10,000 foot plus elevation at Camp Como, Colorado. The balance of the week allotted time to fish; a day to hike the Decalibron – four 14,000+ peaks on one 8-mile journey; a day-trip into Breckenridge; and a day of white-water rafting. A High Country Adventure indeed.
Each morning there was devotion time. Each evening we enjoyed Bible study and discussion. The theme for the week, “I AM, you are”, was printed on cards with scriptural references for everyone to have with them at all times. The charge was to be more Christ-like at the end of the week than when we arrived.
I AM WHO I AM. – Exodus 3:14. I am the Bread of Life; … Light of the world; … Gate for the sheep. – John 6:35; 8:12; 10:7. I am the Good Shepherd; … the Resurrection; … the Vine. – John 10:11; 11:25; 15:1. I am the Way, Truth and Life. – John 14:6. Conform not to the pattern of this world … conform to the image of His Son. – Romans 12:2; 8:29. God conveyed His omnipotence, omnipresence and omniscience when he told Moses to tell the Israelites, “I AM has sent me to you.” Then the Israelites knew the all-powerful, all-present and all-knowing God was in the middle of their exodus out of slavery. Jesus presented His own set of ‘I am’ statements as He walked on this earth, nine of them: With the first three, He presented Himself as Savior providing Bread - a new, eternal perspective on life, Light needed to navigate through darkness and the Gate to enter eternity with Him; Through the next three statements, He exemplified obedience with the selflessness of the Good Shepherd, belief in His Resurrection and trusting the Father as the Vine relies on the Gardener; His last three statements reflect a call to maturity – to embrace Him as the Way, Truth and Life. Through Jesus’ walk and ‘I am’ statements, He provided the example for us to live by. If there was any doubt, Paul reiterated it with his charge to “conform to the image of His Son.” By accepting Jesus the Christ as Savior, emulating His life in obedience and committing to a new level of maturity in relationship with Him, we will become more Christ-like today than yesterday.
Oswald Chambers speaks of “Signs of a New Birth” in My Utmost for His Highest devotion dated August 15th. The bar is set high as he asks, “Do I seek to stop sinning or have I stopped sinning?” He goes on, “To be born of God means that I have the supernatural power of God to stop sinning. … First John 3:9 does not mean that we cannot sin; it means that if we obey the life of God in us, we need not sin.” Christ-likeness is living in obedience to the life of God in us, not in our strength but in the power of the resurrected Christ and indwelling of the Holy Spirit. On the mountain top this is clear. On the day-to-day journey, it takes responsibility to walk in Christ-likeness, to rebuke worldly influences that tempt 24/7.
Prayer guide: Lord, thank You for the blessing of Your example on this earth. I confess I have passively embraced worldly influences instead of stepping up to the call of Your “I am” statements. Forgive me. A generation has caught what I prioritized and the culture has taken it to a new level. Grant me strength Lord to step up to the responsibility to be more Christ-like in my home, church and community – to accept You as Savior, obey You as Lord and mature in You as the Way, Truth and Life. Amen.
A faithful father steps up in Christ-likeness more today than yesterday.
