One of the common scriptures used in the body of Christ to defend conformity is the following:
Imitate me, just as I also imitate Christ. 1 Corinthians 11:1 (NKJV)
The word “imitate” does not exist in King James Version (KJV). Instead the word “follow” is used the in King James version of this scripture:
Be ye followers of me, even as I also am of Christ. 1Corinthians 11:1 (KJV)
There is a difference between mindlessly imitating and intentionally following!Mindless imitation is conformity but intentional following causes growth and transformation! A parrot imitates its master and can speak something without ever understanding the meaning of what has been said. On the other hand, children mimmic their parents because they are learning a skill. They repeat what a parent says or does because the child is curious and interested to be like mom or dad. As we all know, eventually, the children stop mimicking their parents and form their own words and sentences. This is an important part of the development. I don’t think any parent wants their 10 or 15 year old to sound or act just like them.
Similarly, Paul is asking the Christians to follow his way of life as he is following Christ. Looking up to our spiritual mentors and initially imitating them can be part of our spiritual development. However, there should come a time that our faith has taken its own life. We learn to hear the Lord and His direction for us, and it is not always the same as our mentor’s instruction. As a matter of fact, there may be times that we actually challenge a perspective/interpretation that our mentor has regarding a topic or a scripture.
Our children stop conforming at some point as well. There comes a time in teen-age years that they don’t actually like or agree with everything we say, and that is ok. If we desire for them to develop independence from man’s approval, we have to give them room to be their own person. We don’t need to get overly concerned that this is the end of our relationship with them. There may be some rocky years ahead, but hopefully that will subside in time and instead we will develop a mutual respect and love for each other’s views.
If we remain in imitation mode, we will not grow beyond those whom we have been following. If we grow beyond what our mentors have taught us, it may get uncomfortable at times, but we are allowing God to shape us uniquely for His purpose. If we remain in conformity mode, we will disengage with God and just develop a religious vocabulary and activity. This will cause us to miss the most important part of our faith which is to being transformed into likeness of Christ.
Jesus called His disciples to follow Him. The call has not changed. He is not calling us to follow the crowd, a particular denomination, or a certain preacher. He is calling us to Himself!
