God Perfects His People into His Image
But we, looking as into a mirror at the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory, just as by the Spirit of the Lord. He also predestined us to be conformed to the image of His Son, that He might be the firstborn among many brethren.
(Deuteronomy 8:5-6 NKJV) “You should know in your heart that as a man chastens his son, so the LORD your God chastens you. {6} “Therefore you shall keep the commandments of the LORD your God, to walk in His ways and to fear Him.
(Deuteronomy 32:36 NKJV) “For the LORD will judge His people And have compassion on His servants, When He sees that their power is gone, And there is no one remaining, bond or free.
(Deuteronomy 32:39 NKJV) ‘Now see that I, even I, am He, And there is no God besides Me; I kill and I make alive; I wound and I heal; Nor is there any who can deliver from My hand.
(2 Chronicles 7:13-14 NKJV) “When I shut up heaven and there is no rain, or command the locusts to devour the land, or send pestilence among My people, {14} “if My people who are called by My name will humble themselves, and pray and seek My face, and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin and heal their land.
(Job 5:17-19 NKJV) “Behold, happy is the man whom God corrects; Therefore do not despise the chastening of the Almighty. {18} For He bruises, but He binds up; He wounds, but His hands make whole. {19} He shall deliver you in six troubles, Yes, in seven no evil shall touch you.
(Psalms 7:8-10 NKJV) The LORD shall judge the peoples; Judge me, O LORD, according to my righteousness, And according to my integrity within me. {9} Oh, let the wickedness of the wicked come to an end, But establish the just; For the righteous God tests the hearts and minds. {10} My defense is of God, Who saves the upright in heart.
(Psalms 66:10-12 NKJV) For You, O God, have tested us; You have refined us as silver is refined. {11} You brought us into the net; You laid affliction on our backs. {12} You have caused men to ride over our heads; We went through fire and through water; But You brought us out to rich fulfillment.
(Psalms 94:10-15 NKJV) He who instructs the nations, shall He not correct, He who teaches man knowledge? {11} The LORD knows the thoughts of man, That they are futile. {12} Blessed is the man whom You instruct, O LORD, And teach out of Your law, {13} That You may give him rest from the days of adversity, Until the pit is dug for the wicked. {14} For the LORD will not cast off His people, Nor will He forsake His inheritance. {15} But judgment will return to righteousness, And all the upright in heart will follow it.
(Psalms 96:13 NKJV) For He is coming, for He is coming to judge the earth. He shall judge the world with righteousness, And the peoples with His truth.
(Psalms 118:16-21 NKJV) The right hand of the LORD is exalted; The right hand of the LORD does valiantly. {17} I shall not die, but live, And declare the works of the LORD. {18} The LORD has chastened me severely, But He has not given me over to death. {19} Open to me the gates of righteousness; I will go through them, And I will praise the LORD. {20} This is the gate of the LORD, Through which the righteous shall enter. {21} I will praise You, For You have answered me, And have become my salvation.
(Psalms 119:67 NKJV) Before I was afflicted I went astray, But now I keep Your word.
(Proverbs 3:11-12 NKJV) My son, do not despise the chastening of the LORD, Nor detest His correction; {12} For whom the LORD loves He corrects, Just as a father the son in whom he delights.
(Proverbs 17:3 NKJV) The refining pot is for silver and the furnace for gold, But the LORD tests the hearts.
(Isaiah 5:15-16 NKJV) People shall be brought down, Each man shall be humbled, And the eyes of the lofty shall be humbled. {16} But the LORD of hosts shall be exalted in judgment, And God who is holy shall be hallowed in righteousness.
(Daniel 11:32-35 NKJV) “Those who do wickedly against the covenant he shall corrupt with flattery; but the people who know their God shall be strong, and carry out great exploits. {33} “And those of the people who understand shall instruct many; yet for many days they shall fall by sword and flame, by captivity and plundering. {34} “Now when they fall, they shall be aided with a little help; but many shall join with them by intrigue. {35} “And some of those of understanding shall fall, to refine them, purify them, and make them white, until the time of the end; because it is still for the appointed time.
(Daniel 12:9-10 NKJV) And he said, “Go your way, Daniel, for the words are closed up and sealed till the time of the end. {10} “Many shall be purified, made white, and refined, but the wicked shall do wickedly; and none of the wicked shall understand, but the wise shall understand.
(Zechariah 13:9 NKJV) I will bring the one-third through the fire, Will refine them as silver is refined, And test them as gold is tested. They will call on My name, And I will answer them. I will say, ‘This is My people’; And each one will say, ‘The LORD is my God.'”
(Malachi 3:1-3 NKJV) “Behold, I send My messenger, And he will prepare the way before Me. And the Lord, whom you seek, Will suddenly come to His temple, Even the Messenger of the covenant, In whom you delight. Behold, He is coming,” Says the LORD of hosts. {2} “But who can endure the day of His coming? And who can stand when He appears? For He is like a refiner’s fire And like launderer’s soap. {3} He will sit as a refiner and a purifier of silver; He will purify the sons of Levi, And purge them as gold and silver, That they may offer to the LORD An offering in righteousness.
(Matthew 3:11-12 NKJV) “I indeed baptize you with water unto repentance, but He who is coming after me is mightier than I, whose sandals I am not worthy to carry. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire. {12} “His winnowing fan is in His hand, and He will thoroughly clean out His threshing floor, and gather His wheat into the barn; but He will burn up the chaff with unquenchable fire.”
(Matthew 5:10-12 NKJV) Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake, For theirs is the kingdom of heaven. {11} “Blessed are you when they revile and persecute you, and say all kinds of evil against you falsely for My sake. {12} “Rejoice and be exceedingly glad, for great is your reward in heaven, for so they persecuted the prophets who were before you.
(Matthew 10:18-22 NKJV) “You will be brought before governors and kings for My sake, as a testimony to them and to the Gentiles. {19} “But when they deliver you up, do not worry about how or what you should speak. For it will be given to you in that hour what you should speak; {20} “for it is not you who speak, but the Spirit of your Father who speaks in you. {21} “Now brother will deliver up brother to death, and a father his child; and children will rise up against parents and cause them to be put to death. {22} “And you will be hated by all for My name’s sake. But he who endures to the end will be saved.
(Matthew 10:26-28 NKJV) “Therefore do not fear them. For there is nothing covered that will not be revealed, and hidden that will not be known. {27} “Whatever I tell you in the dark, speak in the light; and what you hear in the ear, preach on the housetops. {28} “And do not fear those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. But rather fear Him who is able to destroy both soul and body in hell.
(Mark 8:34-38 NKJV) When He had called the people to Himself, with His disciples also, He said to them, “Whoever desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow Me. {35} “For whoever desires to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake and the gospel’s will save it. {36} “For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world, and loses his own soul? {37} “Or what will a man give in exchange for his soul? {38} “For whoever is ashamed of Me and My words in this adulterous and sinful generation, of him the Son of Man also will be ashamed when He comes in the glory of His Father with the holy angels.”
(Luke 3:16-17 NKJV) John answered, saying to all, “I indeed baptize you with water; but One mightier than I is coming, whose sandal strap I am not worthy to loose. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire. {17} “His winnowing fan is in His hand, and He will thoroughly clean out His threshing floor, and gather the wheat into His barn; but the chaff He will burn with unquenchable fire.”
(Luke 21:10-19 NKJV) Then He said to them, “Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. {11} “And there will be great earthquakes in various places, and famines and pestilences; and there will be fearful sights and great signs from heaven. {12} “But before all these things, they will lay their hands on you and persecute you, delivering you up to the synagogues and prisons. You will be brought before kings and rulers for My name’s sake. {13} “But it will turn out for you as an occasion for testimony. {14} “Therefore settle it in your hearts not to meditate beforehand on what you will answer; {15} “for I will give you a mouth and wisdom which all your adversaries will not be able to contradict or resist. {16} “You will be betrayed even by parents and brothers, relatives and friends; and they will put some of you to death. {17} “And you will be hated by all for My name’s sake. {18} “But not a hair of your head shall be lost. {19} “By your patience possess your souls.
(Romans 8:27-39 NKJV) Now He who searches the hearts knows what the mind of the Spirit is, because He makes intercession for the saints according to the will of God. {28} And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose. {29} For whom He foreknew, He also predestined to be conformed to the image of His Son, that He might be the firstborn among many brethren. {30} Moreover whom He predestined, these He also called; whom He called, these He also justified; and whom He justified, these He also glorified. {31} What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us? {32} He who did not spare His own Son, but delivered Him up for us all, how shall He not with Him also freely give us all things? {33} Who shall bring a charge against God’s elect? It is God who justifies. {34} Who is he who condemns? It is Christ who died, and furthermore is also risen, who is even at the right hand of God, who also makes intercession for us. {35} Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword? {36} As it is written: “For Your sake we are killed all day long; We are accounted as sheep for the slaughter.” {37} Yet in all these things we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us. {38} For I am persuaded that neither death nor life, nor angels nor principalities nor powers, nor things present nor things to come, {39} nor height nor depth, nor any other created thing, shall be able to separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.
(2 Corinthians 3:16-18 NKJV) Nevertheless when one turns to the Lord, the veil is taken away. {17} Now the Lord is the Spirit; and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty. {18} But we all, with unveiled face, beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory, just as by the Spirit of the Lord.
(2 Corinthians 4:6-11 NKJV) For it is the God who commanded light to shine out of darkness, who has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ. {7} But we have this treasure in earthen vessels, that the excellence of the power may be of God and not of us. {8} We are hard pressed on every side, yet not crushed; we are perplexed, but not in despair; {9} persecuted, but not forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed; {10} always carrying about in the body the dying of the Lord Jesus, that the life of Jesus also may be manifested in our body. {11} For we who live are always delivered to death for Jesus’ sake, that the life of Jesus also may be manifested in our mortal flesh.
(2 Corinthians 6:17-18 NKJV) Therefore “Come out from among them And be separate, says the Lord. Do not touch what is unclean, And I will receive you.” {18} “I will be a Father to you, And you shall be My sons and daughters, Says the LORD Almighty.”
(2 Corinthians 7:1 NKJV) Therefore, having these promises, beloved, let us cleanse ourselves from all filthiness of the flesh and spirit, perfecting holiness in the fear of God.
(Galatians 6:7-9 NKJV) Do not be deceived, God is not mocked; for whatever a man sows, that he will also reap. {8} For he who sows to his flesh will of the flesh reap corruption, but he who sows to the Spirit will of the Spirit reap everlasting life. {9} And let us not grow weary while doing good, for in due season we shall reap if we do not lose heart.
(Ephesians 5:27 NKJV) that He might present her to Himself a glorious church, not having spot or wrinkle or any such thing, but that she should be holy and without blemish.
(1 Thessalonians 4:3-8 NKJV) For this is the will of God, your sanctification: that you should abstain from sexual immorality; {4} that each of you should know how to possess his own vessel in sanctification and honor, {5} not in passion of lust, like the Gentiles who do not know God; {6} that no one should take advantage of and defraud his brother in this matter, because the Lord is the avenger of all such, as we also forewarned you and testified. {7} For God did not call us to uncleanness, but in holiness. {8} Therefore he who rejects this does not reject man, but God, who has also given us His Holy Spirit.
(Hebrews 12:1-15 NKJV) Therefore we also, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which so easily ensnares us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, {2} looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith, who for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. {3} For consider Him who endured such hostility from sinners against Himself, lest you become weary and discouraged in your souls. {4} You have not yet resisted to bloodshed, striving against sin. {5} And you have forgotten the exhortation which speaks to you as to sons: “My son, do not despise the chastening of the LORD, Nor be discouraged when you are rebuked by Him; {6} For whom the LORD loves He chastens, And scourges every son whom He receives.” {7} If you endure chastening, God deals with you as with sons; for what son is there whom a father does not chasten? {8} But if you are without chastening, of which all have become partakers, then you are illegitimate and not sons. {9} Furthermore, we have had human fathers who corrected us, and we paid them respect. Shall we not much more readily be in subjection to the Father of spirits and live? {10} For they indeed for a few days chastened us as seemed best to them, but He for our profit, that we may be partakers of His holiness. {11} Now no chastening seems to be joyful for the present, but painful; nevertheless, afterward it yields the peaceable fruit of righteousness to those who have been trained by it. {12} Therefore strengthen the hands which hang down, and the feeble knees, {13} and make straight paths for your feet, so that what is lame may not be dislocated, but rather be healed. {14} Pursue peace with all people, and holiness, without which no one will see the Lord: {15} looking carefully lest anyone fall short of the grace of God; lest any root of bitterness springing up cause trouble, and by this many become defiled;
(James 5:10-11 NKJV) My brethren, take the prophets, who spoke in the name of the Lord, as an example of suffering and patience. {11} Indeed we count them blessed who endure. You have heard of the perseverance of Job and seen the end intended by the Lord; that the Lord is very compassionate and merciful.
(1 Peter 3:14 NKJV) But even if you should suffer for righteousness’ sake, you are blessed. “And do not be afraid of their threats, nor be troubled.”
(1 Peter 4:1-2 NKJV) Therefore, since Christ suffered for us in the flesh, arm yourselves also with the same mind, for he who has suffered in the flesh has ceased from sin, {2} that he no longer should live the rest of his time in the flesh for the lusts of men, but for the will of God.
(1 Peter 4:12-19 NKJV) Beloved, do not think it strange concerning the fiery trial which is to try you, as though some strange thing happened to you; {13} but rejoice to the extent that you partake of Christ’s sufferings, that when His glory is revealed, you may also be glad with exceeding joy. {14} If you are reproached for the name of Christ, blessed are you, for the Spirit of glory and of God rests upon you. On their part He is blasphemed, but on your part He is glorified. {15} But let none of you suffer as a murderer, a thief, an evildoer, or as a busybody in other people’s matters. {16} Yet if anyone suffers as a Christian, let him not be ashamed, but let him glorify God in this matter. {17} For the time has come for judgment to begin at the house of God; and if it begins with us first, what will be the end of those who do not obey the Gospel of God? {18} Now “If the righteous one is scarcely saved, Where will the ungodly and the sinner appear?” {19} Therefore let those who suffer according to the will of God commit their souls to Him in doing good, as to a faithful Creator.
(Revelation 1:9 NKJV) I, John, both your brother and companion in the tribulation and kingdom and patience of Jesus Christ, was on the island that is called Patmos for the word of God and for the testimony of Jesus Christ.
(Revelation 2:8-10 NKJV) “And to the angel of the church in Smyrna write, ‘These things says the First and the Last, who was dead, and came to life: {9} “I know your works, tribulation, and poverty (but you are rich); and I know the blasphemy of those who say they are Jews and are not, but are a synagogue of Satan. {10} “Do not fear any of those things which you are about to suffer. Indeed, the devil is about to throw some of you into prison, that you may be tested, and you will have tribulation ten days. Be faithful until death, and I will give you the crown of life.
(Revelation 3:17-22 NKJV) “Because you say, ‘I am rich, have become wealthy, and have need of nothing’; and do not know that you are wretched, miserable, poor, blind, and naked; {18} “I counsel you to buy from Me gold refined in the fire, that you may be rich; and white garments, that you may be clothed, that the shame of your nakedness may not be revealed; and anoint your eyes with eye salve, that you may see. {19} “As many as I love, I rebuke and chasten. Therefore be zealous and repent. {20} “Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and dine with him, and he with Me. {21} “To him who overcomes I will grant to sit with Me on My throne, as I also overcame and sat down with My Father on His throne. {22} “He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.”‘ ”
(Revelation 6:9-11 NKJV) When He opened the fifth seal, I saw under the altar the souls of those who had been slain for the word of God and for the testimony which they held. {10} And they cried with a loud voice, saying, “How long, O Lord, holy and true, until You judge and avenge our blood on those who dwell on the earth?” {11} Then a white robe was given to each of them; and it was said to them that they should rest a little while longer, until both the number of their fellow servants and their brethren, who would be killed as they were, was completed.
(Revelation 7:9-17 NKJV) After these things I looked, and behold, a great multitude which no one could number, of all nations, tribes, peoples, and tongues, standing before the throne and before the Lamb, clothed with white robes, with palm branches in their hands, {10} and crying out with a loud voice, saying, “Salvation belongs to our God who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb!” {11} All the angels stood around the throne and the elders and the four living creatures, and fell on their faces before the throne and worshiped God, {12} saying: “Amen! Blessing and glory and wisdom, Thanksgiving and honor and power and might, Be to our God forever and ever. Amen.” {13} Then one of the elders answered, saying to me, “Who are these arrayed in white robes, and where did they come from?” {14} And I said to him, “Sir, you know.” So he said to me, “These are the ones who come out of the great tribulation, and washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb. {15} “Therefore they are before the throne of God, and serve Him day and night in His temple. And He who sits on the throne will dwell among them. {16} “They shall neither hunger anymore nor thirst anymore; the sun shall not strike them, nor any heat; {17} “for the Lamb who is in the midst of the throne will shepherd them and lead them to living fountains of waters. And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes.”
(Revelation 12:10-12 NKJV) Then I heard a loud voice saying in heaven, “Now salvation, and strength, and the kingdom of our God, and the power of His Christ have come, for the accuser of our brethren, who accused them before our God day and night, has been cast down. {11} “And they overcame him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony, and they did not love their lives to the death. {12} “Therefore rejoice, O heavens, and you who dwell in them! Woe to the inhabitants of the earth and the sea! For the devil has come down to you, having great wrath, because he knows that he has a short time.”
(Revelation 13:6-8 NKJV) Then he opened his mouth in blasphemy against God, to blaspheme His name, His tabernacle, and those who dwell in heaven. {7} It was granted to him to make war with the saints and to overcome them. And authority was given him over every tribe, tongue, and nation. {8} All who dwell on the earth will worship him, whose names have not been written in the Book of Life of the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world.
(Revelation 20:4-6 NKJV) And I saw thrones, and they sat on them, and judgment was committed to them. Then I saw the souls of those who had been beheaded for their witness to Jesus and for the word of God, who had not worshiped the beast or his image, and had not received his mark on their foreheads or on their hands. And they lived and reigned with Christ for a thousand years. {5} But the rest of the dead did not live again until the thousand years were finished. This is the first resurrection. {6} Blessed and holy is he who has part in the first resurrection. Over such the second death has no power, but they shall be priests of God and of Christ, and shall reign with Him a thousand years.