The words of this heading, `As He is', are taken from 1 John 3:2 :

`Beloved, now are we the sons (children) of God, and it doth not yet appear what we shall be: but we know

that, when He shall appear, we shall be like Him; for we shall see Him as He is'.

It is the hope of every believer to `be like Him', like the Lord Jesus Christ, and one day we shall be. We shall

be `as He is'.

When man was first created by God, he was made like God in one way at least. Read Genesis 1:26,27 :

`And God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness ... So God created man in His own image,

in the image of God created He him'.

When the serpent (Satan or the devil) brought about the fall of Adam, then he (Adam) became a sinner, and the

likeness to God was spoilt. The coming of sin into the world interfered with the purpose of God for man, and

made necessary the death of the Lord Jesus Christ to undo this work of the devil. Read the second part of

1 John 3:8 :

`For this purpose the Son of God was manifested, that He might destroy the works of the devil'.

Read also verse 5 of the same chapter:

`He was manifested to take away our sins'.

The Lord Jesus Christ was given to destroy the devil and his works, and to take away our sins. Read also

Hebrews 2:14,15. By the death and resurrection of the Lord it was made possible for us to be `like Him' one

day. This is one of the objects of salvation for us, to make us like Him. But this is yet future; what difference

should there be in us now?

In 1 John 3:2 we saw that our hope as believers is one day to `be like Him'. But God desires that even now,

in our everyday life, we should `be like Him'. Read 1 John 3:2 again and then notice the following verse:

`We shall be like Him ... And every man that hath this hope in Him purifieth himself, even as He (the Lord

Jesus) is pure'.

The word `pure' here means separated from all sin. God, through the Lord Jesus Christ, has delivered us who

believe in Him from sin and we should now have nothing more to do with it. We still have to live in a world in

which there is much that is sinful, and we will find ourselves tempted to sin from time to time, but the Lord

knows this and helps at these times. See what the Lord prayed for His disciples in John 17:15 :

`I pray not that thou shouldest take them out of the world, but that thou shouldest keep them from the evil'.

The Lord has prayed that those who follow Him should be kept out of the evil of this world, that they should be

kept separate from sin. If we are following Him, as believers in Him, then we should see that we keep away

from all that is sinful in the world. We should be like Him even now, in the way we live.

What does salvation mean to us now? It means that we should strive to be like Him and this includes being

separated from the sin in this world.

All things that are of any worth have been tested or tried. Many of these tests are unpleasant, but they are

necessary. So God tests us believers to find out our worth and to examine our faith in Him. These tests are

really for our benefit of course, for God knows beforehand how we will react under any circumstances, and He

is well pleased when our faith is not shaken. How does He test us ? Read firstly the word of God to Israel in

Deuteronomy 8:2,3 :

`Thou shalt remember all the way which the LORD thy God led thee these forty years in the wilderness, to

humble thee, and to prove (test) thee, to know what was in thine heart ... and he humbled thee, and suffered

thee to hunger, and fed thee ...'.