{"id":13587,"date":"2025-09-18T08:00:09","date_gmt":"2025-09-18T12:00:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.garycombs.org\/blog\/?post_type=oyb&#038;p=13587"},"modified":"2025-09-18T08:00:10","modified_gmt":"2025-09-18T12:00:10","slug":"is-christ-being-formed-in-you","status":"publish","type":"oyb","link":"https:\/\/www.garycombs.org\/blog\/oyb\/is-christ-being-formed-in-you","title":{"rendered":"IS CHRIST BEING FORMED IN YOU?"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\">\n<p>\u201cMy little children, for whom I am again in the anguish of childbirth until Christ is formed in you!\u201d (Galatians 4:19 ESV).<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n<p>Paul had already brought the Galatians to faith in Christ, but now he saw them drifting into religious legalism. With parental tenderness, he described himself as a mother in labor, groaning until Christ was formed in them. The Greek word morpho\u014d speaks of shaping, of being formed, becoming like Christ. This isn\u2019t about outward rule-keeping but inward transformation. Paul\u2019s vision for them echoes God\u2019s purpose revealed elsewhere: \u201cto be conformed to the image of His Son\u201d (Rom. 8:29) and to be \u201ctransformed into His image with ever-increasing glory\u201d (2 Cor. 3:18). In other words, Paul was praying and laboring for their sanctification\u2014the Spirit\u2019s ongoing work of making believers more like Jesus.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>This verse challenges us to see sanctification as the central aim of the Christian life. Salvation is not only about forgiveness but also about formation\u2014Christ being fully formed in us. Too often, we measure spirituality by outward performance, yet Paul reminds us that what matters is inward transformation by the Spirit. Sanctification is God\u2019s work, but we must yield daily by abiding in Christ, meditating on His Word, and walking in step with the Spirit. The question we must ask is: Are we looking more like Jesus today than we did yesterday? Is His character being reflected in our thoughts, words, and actions? As Christ is formed in us, others should see His love, humility, and holiness lived out through us.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>PRAYER: Dear Father, thank You for calling us not only to salvation but to sanctification. Forgive us when we settle for outward appearances instead of inward transformation. By Your Spirit, conform us to the image of Your Son. Day by day, transform us from one degree of glory to another until Christ is fully formed in us. May our lives display His presence in us and bring glory to His name. In Jesus\u2019 name, amen.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>\u201cMy little children, for whom I am again in the anguish of childbirth until Christ is formed in you!\u201d (Galatians 4:19 ESV). Paul had already brought the Galatians to faith in Christ, but now he saw them drifting into religious legalism. With parental tenderness, he described himself as a mother in labor, groaning until Christ<\/p>\n","protected":false},"featured_media":0,"template":"","meta":[],"categories":[],"tags":[],"scripture-book":[1315],"scripture-chapter":[1337],"oyb_day":[1788],"location":[],"class_list":["post-13587","oyb","type-oyb","status-publish","hentry","scripture-book-galatians","scripture-chapter-1337","oyb_day-september-18"],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.garycombs.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/oyb\/13587","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.garycombs.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/oyb"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.garycombs.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/oyb"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.garycombs.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=13587"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.garycombs.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=13587"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.garycombs.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=13587"},{"taxonomy":"scripture-book","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.garycombs.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/scripture-book?post=13587"},{"taxonomy":"scripture-chapter","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.garycombs.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/scripture-chapter?post=13587"},{"taxonomy":"oyb_day","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.garycombs.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/oyb_day?post=13587"},{"taxonomy":"location","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.garycombs.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/location?post=13587"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}