To be like Christ

Most people try to be basically ‘good’. But as disciples of Jesus Christ, we are called to be more than generally good; we are called to be like Christ.

Paul wrote, we ‘seek for glory and honour and immortality – eternal life’ (Romans 2:7). We’re not just seeking to do well in this temporary world, but to prepare and fit ourselves for an eternal one. That requires a lot more than just a goal of basic goodness.

Paul also wrote:

For the grace of God which bringeth salvation to all men, hath appeared, teaching us that, renouncing ungodliness and worldly desires, we should live wisely, righteously, and godly, in this present world;

Looking for that blessed hope, and the glorious appearing of the great God and our Saviour Jesus Christ; Who gave himself for us, that he might redeem us from all iniquity, and make a people who belong to him, purified by him and zealous for good works.

Titus 2:11-14

We should renounce UN-godliness – zealously seek godliness – and renounce desires of this world – live wisely and righteously, in this present world – these conditions, these circumstances. We belong to Jesus Christ, because He has paid for our souls, and we have committed to follow Him.

The scriptures teach us what it means to belong to Christ, and to seek to be like Him. A KnoWhy article on the Book of Mormon Central website describes how the Book of Mormon calls us to this:

In a very real sense, being a good person is also being a godly person. Such a person will humbly acknowledge that God possesses “infinite goodness and grace” (Moroni 8:3). Those who have faith in God will “cleave unto every good thing” (Moroni 7:28) and will then become more like Him, through his love and goodness. Enabling this, our ultimate goal, is His work, glory, and purpose.

How do we ‘cleave unto every good thing’ and develop the attributes of godliness, mortal and weak as we are?

In his letter to the Romans, Paul explains that we are saved, not by depending on ourselves alone to do everything correctly, but by faith in Jesus Christ, who does have the power to save us from our weakness and weaknesses. Our faith in Him leads us to righteous actions, enabled by His grace – His own attributes of perfect godliness.

After explaining this, Paul then writes:

Therefore (because we have a Saviour, who suffered on our behalf, and are not left alone) being justified (made clean) by faith (in that Saviour), we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ:

By whom also we have access by faith into this grace wherein we rest firm, and rejoice in hope of the glory of God.

And not only so, but we glory even in tribulations: knowing that tribulation worketh (produces) perseverance;

And perseverance, victory over trials; and this victory, hope:

And (our) hope is not in vain; because the love of God is shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Ghost who has been given to us.

Romans 5:1-5, with some translations from the French edition by Louis Segond.

The development of godly attributes is an intertwined process involving ourselves and our Saviour – our faith and efforts, and His saving power. We can also see (from Paul’s teachings here) that these attributes aren’t developed in a vacuum; they come through experiencing tribulation. It’s as we experience difficulty that our faith in Christ is made alive, as we rely on it to persevere and overcome ourselves and our circumstances, and through this process, repeated over and over, we experience the love of God.

The one help we all need is given to us freely through the Atonement of Jesus Christ. Having faith in Jesus Christ and in His Atonement means relying completely on Him – trusting in His infinite power, intelligence, and love. Christlike attributes come into our lives as we exercise our agency righteously. Faith in Jesus Christ leads to action. When we have faith in Christ, we trust the Lord enough to follow His commandments – even when we do not completely understand the reasons for them.

Elder Uchtdorf – Developing Christlike Attributes, October 2008 General Conference

By becoming more like the Saviour, we will grow in our ability to “abound in hope, through the power of the Holy Ghost” (Romans 15:13). We will “lay aside the things of this world, and seek for the things of a better” (D&C 25:10).

Elder Uchtdorf, Developing Christlike Attributes

How do we ‘seek for the things of a better world’, while living in this one? How do we retain hope for what we can one day become, while being what we currently are?

The scriptures affirm that those who practise the works of righteousness and strive to walk in the meekness of the Spirit of the Lord are promised the peace they need to survive the days of commotion in which we live today.

Elder Soares, Followers of the Prince of Peace, April 2023 General Conference

Learn of me, and listen to my words; walk in the meekness of my Spirit, and you shall have peace in me.

Doctrine and Covenants 19:23

The Saviour says, ‘you shall have peace in me’: we don’t have peace in our circumstances, or things going on in the world, or in ourselves; our hope, faith, and peace has to rest in Christ. That’s what keeps drawing our sights upwards; renewing our hope. Reminding us that we are striving to, and able to, become more like Him. Something better.

But to gain that, we need to

• learn of Him,
• listen to His words, and
• walk in the meekness of his Spirit.

But learn that he who doeth the works of righteousness shall receive his reward, even peace in this world, and eternal life in the world to come.

Doctrine and Covenants 59:23

Gaining victory over trials also brings us something else which is essential to this process: the love of God, ‘shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Ghost, which is given to us’. Why is the love of God essential to developing godly attributes?

Let’s read more from the KnoWhy:

Because true goodness comes from God, it is logically and practically impossible for any person to become “good” without the help of Christ. Mormon’s polarized and war-torn struggles reinforced the [truth] that “all things which are good cometh of Christ; otherwise men were fallen, and there could no good thing come unto them” (Moroni 7:24), that in Christ comes “every good thing” (v. 22), and that through Him we can “lay hold on every good thing” (v. 21). Seeing beyond the darkness of his bedevilled people, Mormon adamantly affirmed that in doing this, all can truly become a “child of Christ” (v. 19). Ultimately, “every thing which inviteth to do good, and to persuade to believe in Christ, is sent forth by the power and gift of Christ; wherefore ye may know with a perfect knowledge it is of God” (v. 16).

As Jesus Christ himself spoke to Moroni, “good cometh of none save it be of me” (Ether 4:8, 12). Thus we see that being a good person necessarily involves reflecting the light of Christ, listening to the promptings of the Holy Ghost, who bears witness of Christ, patterning our lives after Jesus Christ, and loving God the Father as fully as possible with all of our might, mind, heart, and strength. As we follow the “good shepherd” (Helaman 7:18), we will become more than simply “good people” in the worldly or ethical sense. We will become more like God, who is the author of all that is truly good.

What Does It Really Mean to Be a Good Person? by Scripture Central, 24 January 2019

It’s definitely not easy to develop the attributes of Christ. But our ultimate hope is that it’s possible – and in those moments when we feel the very real power of Christ helping us to be more than we are alone, we know that it works. I feel this power, when I’m humble enough to properly seek and expect it, and when I do my part sincerely. That’s what creates the miracle – the type of healing that Christ brings to us all.

May we always hope, always act in faith, and receive the peace that our Saviour offers us through this process.

This is the text of a talk I gave in Sacrament Meeting at church recently, on the topic of developing Christlike attributes.