ARE YOU BEING CHANGED INTO GOD'S IMAGE? The Bible teaches that Christ came to make disciples who would then be formed into a unique, close knit family such as He did on the day of Pentecost (Acts 2). A convert without the commitment of the cross is not a disciple of Christ and remains essentially unchanged. The change most noticeable is the new convert's attempts and desires to use the name of Christ to take away his reproach before God. The convert will also never be formed into the closely knit family unit Christ desired. Being unwilling to prefer God's ways above their own, they will never be able to prefer their brothers or sisters in Christ above themselves. Isaiah the prophet accurately predicted this in Isaiah 4: 1: "And in that day seven women shall take hold of one man, saying, 'We will eat our own bread, and wear our own apparel: only let us be called by thy name, to take away our reproach.'" The disciple must lay down his own ambitions, plans, and desires to become a new creature. He must take up God's ambitions, plans and desires and incorporate them into his own life. This is what the Lord referred to in Luke 9: 23-24: "And he said to them all, 'If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow me. For whosoever will save his life shall lose it: but whosoever will lose his life for my sake, the same shall save it.'" The theme of these writings is to change the very nature of who we are and to make disciples of us. It is not enough to just change what we do in our lives. Good conduct, which results from who we are, is pleasing to God. This order is never reversed. Good conduct by itself never changes who we are, but serves only toimpress and mislead our fellow servants of our status before God.