God’s character and our character

The Bible says something astonishing about God’s purpose for humanity: that those whom He foreknew He also predestined “to be conformed to the image of His Son” (Romans 8:29). Conformed. That is God’s objective. Not simply forgiven. Not simply informed. Not simply religious. Conformed to the image of His Son. The more we understand this, the more clearly we see why character matters. God is not preparing people merely to occupy a place. He is preparing people to share eternity with Him. And eternity is life in harmony with His character.

What is God like?

If God is forming His own character in us, we should ask what that character is. Moses asked for something extraordinary. He had been speaking with God for years, and he said, “Please, show me Your glory” (Exodus 33:18). God’s answer is surprising. He did not describe a blaze of light. He said:

I will make all My goodness pass before you, and I will proclaim the name of the LORD before you.

God’s glory is His goodness. And when He passed before Moses, He proclaimed His name:

The LORD, the LORD God, merciful and gracious, longsuffering, and abounding in goodness and truth, keeping mercy for thousands, forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin.

Merciful. Gracious. Longsuffering. Abounding in goodness and truth. Forgiving. Read that list beside the fruit of the Spirit and the qualities of the last seven chapters, and the family likeness is unmistakable. The character God is forming in His people is the character He has always had. That is why Moses came down from the mountain with a face that shone (Exodus 34:29): he had been in the presence of that goodness.

Be holy as He is holy

The New Testament states the aim as plainly as it can be stated. Peter takes up the Old Testament command:

But as He who called you is holy, you also be holy in all your conduct, because it is written, “Be holy, for I am holy.”

Jesus said the same in terms of love: “Therefore you shall be perfect, just as your Father in heaven is perfect” (Matthew 5:48), a statement that follows directly after the call to love our enemies. And Paul puts it more simply still: “Therefore be imitators of God as dear children. And walk in love, as Christ also has loved us” (Ephesians 5:1-2). Children resemble their father.

Partakers of the divine nature

How could such a thing be possible for creatures like us? Peter gives the answer:

By which have been given to us exceedingly great and precious promises, that through these you may be partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust.

Notice that it is given. The promises are given. The divine nature is shared by participation, not produced by effort. We do not become God. But, by the Spirit of Christ living in us, we begin to share the qualities that belong to Him: His love, His truth, His mercy, His faithfulness. This is not an invention of this book. It is the New Testament’s own description of what salvation includes.

Why eternity needs this

Think again about what eternity will be. The kingdom is one in which God’s character is the atmosphere. A heart that has never learned to love would find love foreign. A heart that has never learned to tell the truth would find truth uncomfortable. A heart that has never learned to humble itself would find worship burdensome. This is why God begins the work now. It is not cruelty. It is kindness, because the only way to enjoy God’s presence forever is to have a heart that has been made like His.