14 ways you should be like Jesus

One of the clearest and most uncomfortable things Paul ever says about following Jesus comes in Ephesians 4:

“We are to grow up in every way into him who is the head, into Christ.” (Ephesians 4:15)

In every way.

I kind of wish Paul had left those three words out.

Because it would be much easier if following Jesus were mostly about going to church, knowing the right answers, singing the songs, and sounding spiritual or looking religious.

But that isn’t discipleship.

The goal of Christianity isn’t just for you to become a Christian. The goal is for you to become like Christ.

And Paul says that should eventually touch every part of your life.

So here are 14 places to examine:

1. Your words.

Do you speak with more grace? Gossip less? Complain less? Are you more likely to encourage someone than tear them down?

2. Your work.

Do you work hard even when nobody is watching? Are you honest? Dependable? Do you see your work as an opportunity to honor Jesus?

3. Your thoughts.

What gets your mental attention? Are you learning to recognize thoughts that are sinful, fearful, lustful, bitter, or simply untrue—and replace them with what is true?

4. Your reactions.

Anybody can look like Jesus when everything is going their way. My friend Erik Reed often says you see a person’s true character when they don’t get their way. What comes out of you when you’re frustrated, inconvenienced, criticized, or exhausted?

5. Your marriage.

If you’re married, is following Jesus making you a better spouse? Are you becoming less selfish? More sacrificial? Quicker to listen, apologize, forgive, and serve?

6. Your parenting.

Are your children merely hearing you talk about Jesus—or are they seeing Jesus reflected in the way you love, discipline, forgive, apologize, pray, and live?

7. Your purity.

Are you learning to say no to desires that pull you away from God’s design? Are you becoming more serious about holiness, even in the parts of your life nobody else sees?

8. Your relationships.

Are you becoming a better friend? A better neighbor? A better coworker? Are you learning to love difficult people instead of only the people who are easy to love?

9. Your spending.

Your checking account tells a story about what matters to you. Is Jesus changing the way you think about what you have, what you need, and what you can live without?

10. Your generosity.

Are you becoming more willing to give—your money, your possessions, your time, your attention—because you increasingly recognize that everything you have belongs to God?

11. Your forgiveness.

Are you getting better at releasing grudges? Quicker to seek reconciliation? More willing to apologize or extend the same grace to others that Jesus has extended to you?

12. Your courage.

Are you increasingly willing to obey Jesus when obedience is uncomfortable? To tell the truth? Share your faith? Stand firm when following Christ costs you something?

13. Your humility.

Do you need to win every argument? Get the credit? Have your way? Or are you becoming more willing to listen, learn, serve, admit when you’re wrong, and put others ahead of yourself?

14. Your integrity.

Are you becoming the same person everywhere? At church. At home. At work. Online. Alone. Is there less distance between the person everyone sees and the person only God sees?

Here’s the point.

You probably read that list and found some areas where you can genuinely say, “Jesus has changed me.”

Praise God for that.

You probably found some others where you thought, “I’ve still got a long way to go.”

That’s okay, too.

Christian maturity isn’t about perfection. It’s about growth.

So ask yourself an honest question:

Does my life look more like Jesus than it did five years ago?

You don’t have to fix all 14 things today.

But maybe you should pick one.

Where does your life look least like Jesus right now?

Name it.

Pray about it.

Find out what Scripture says about it.

Tell another Christian about it.

And start practicing obedience.

Because Jesus loves us enough to meet us where we are.

And he loves us too much to leave us there.

If you are trusting in Jesus, God has promised to make you like him (Rom. 8:29).

In every way.