Learned Obedience

God's ultimate intention is to fill the earth with His glory through a people conformed into the image of His Son. The process of transformation is one of death and resurrection. Even the word translated "transform" comes from the Greek word metamorpheo, from which we get the English word metamorphosis. For a caterpillar to turn into a butterfly, it must wrap itself in a cocoon, a burial shroud of sorts, and be transformed through a process that looks like death and resurrection. For a person to be transformed into the likeness of Jesus Christ, he or she must also engage a process of death and resurrection. This process is initiated at baptism but continues until one's life and will are completely conformed to the will and image of Jesus. This is the process of discipleship.