"Until Christ Is Formed In You"

"My little children, for whom I labor in birth again until Christ is formed in you...." (Galatians 4:19)

This is different from Christ coming in us, viz., our receiving Jesus Christ as King, Lord, and Savior.  This is a forming, and forming is a process.  A person is not the same when he is born of the Spirit that he is years later, because the forming process is a, "working in you...."  It is a, "working in you what is well pleasing in His sight," not your sight, not mine, not anyone's.  It is, "working in you," forming "Christ... in you," conforming you and me "to the image of His Son."  The word translated, "formed," in our text is from the same root word as, "conformed," in our text yesterday.  You and I are Father's work in progress, and that work will not stop until we are with our Living Triune God in the Eternal Realms.  Only dastardly pride would say otherwise.

Remember how hungry you were for the Scriptures when you first yielded your life to follow Jesus Christ?  Remember how central prayer and prayer meetings were?  Remember how eager you were to share Jesus Christ with others? Do those fires burn as hot as they once did?  Paul had to tell Timothy to "fan into flame the gift of God which is in you...."  Perhaps the fire had gone to just embers------------- and the forming and conforming just goes on. 

The natural man resists, "until Christ is formed in you."  Just think of the times someone spoke into our lives, spoke a "word" which the Holy Spirit was using to fulfill our text in us.  Our pride resisted that word, not so much because it was untrue, but just that someone else had to tell us something we probably already new, but had been doing nothing about.  It is difficult to accept, but nonetheless true, that the longer we are in Christ, the more difficult it is to accept the need for, "until Christ is formed in you." 

The Bible says, "And yet, O Lord, you are our Father.  We are the clay, and you are the potter.  We all are formed by your hand."  A potter once said, "For the simple clay shapes, very little equipment is needed.  For more complex pieces, you will need more elaborate equipment...."!!

Father, in Jesus' Name, help me to reevaluate, "labor."  Amen. 
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"Looking Unto Jesus"
Hebrews 12:2