God’s Plan from the Beginning - Daily Hope with Rick Warren - April 7, 2025

Audio By Carbonatix

God’s Plan from the Beginning
By Rick Warren

“Your hearts and minds must be made completely new, and you must put on the new self, which is created in God's likeness and reveals itself in the true life that is upright and holy” (Ephesians 4:23-24 GNT).

From the beginning, God’s plan has been to make you like his Son, Jesus. This is your destiny. God announced his intention at creation: “Then God said, ‘Let us make human beings in our image and likeness’” (Genesis 1:26 NCV).

In all of creation, only human beings are made in God’s image. But the image is incomplete and has been damaged and distorted by sin. So God sent Jesus on a mission to restore the full image that we have lost.

What does the full “image and likeness” of God look like? It looks like Jesus Christ! The Bible says Jesus is “the exact likeness of God,” “the visible image of the invisible God,” and “the exact representation of his being” (2 Corinthians 4:4 NLT, Colossians 1:15, Hebrews 1:3 NIV).

People often use the phrase “like father, like son” to refer to family resemblance. When people see my likeness in my kids, it pleases me. God wants his children to bear his image and likeness too. The Bible says, “You were . . . created to be like God, with a life that truly has God’s approval and is holy” (Ephesians 4:24 GW).

Let me be absolutely clear: You will never become God, or even a god. That prideful lie is Satan’s oldest temptation. Satan promised Adam and Eve that if they followed his advice, “you shall be as gods” (Genesis 3:5 KJV).

Many religions and new age philosophies still promote the old lie that we are divine or can become gods. This desire to be a god shows up every time we try to control our circumstances, our future, and the people around us.

But as creatures, we will never be the Creator. God doesn’t want you to become a god. He wants you to become godly by taking on his values, attitudes, and character.

As you work to fulfill your calling, remember that God’s ultimate goal for your life on earth is not comfort but character development. He wants you to grow up spiritually and become like Christ.

In The Message paraphrase, Ephesians 4:22 says, “Take on an entirely new way of life—a God-fashioned life, a life renewed from the inside and working itself into your conduct as God accurately reproduces his character in you” (Ephesians 4:22). That’s what you are meant to do!

PLAY today’s audio teaching from Pastor Rick

For more Daily Hope with Rick Warren, please visit pastorrick.com!

Your Gift Brings Hope to the World

Transform your prayer life with God’s Word! 

True breakthrough from the struggles of life begins with prayer—and there is no better place to start cultivating a powerful prayer life than the Bible. 

Discover the biblical wisdom you need to transform the way you pray when you dive into this special collection of verses from God’s Word. You’ll be inspired and encouraged by Scripture as you learn to trust in his promises. 

Drawing key verses from Pastor Rick’s "40 Days of Prayer" teaching series, this set of 52 beautifully designed cards will help you memorize God’s Word so you can access it when you need it most—and it’s our thanks for your gift today to help more people experience the transformative power of prayer through Daily Hope! 

Thank you for helping share the hope of Jesus Christ. May you enjoy a time of breakthrough as you fill your heart and mind with the truth of Scripture. 

*The USA IRS code permits you to deduct the amount of your financial gift to Daily Hope that exceeds the fair market value of “current offer” materials you received from Daily Hope.

This devotional © 2018 by Rick Warren. All rights reserved. Used by permission.

You can listen to Rick Warren on OnePlace.com.