Major Ian Thomas emphasizes that true godliness comes not from our ability to imitate God, but from His ability to reproduce Himself within us. He explains that righteousness is not self-generated but is a result of faith and dependence on God, allowing His divine action to restore us to His image. The sermon clarifies that while we cannot achieve sinless perfection, we can embody Christ's perfection to the extent that we allow Him to work in us. Thomas highlights the importance of a faith-love relationship with Christ, which enables us to access His fullness and live out our divine purpose. Ultimately, it is through Christ's activity in us that we can reign in life and reflect His glory.

For godliness is not the consequence of your capacity to imitate God, but the consequence of His capacity to reproduce Himself in you; not self-righteousness, but Christ-righteousness; the righteousness which is by faith a faith which by renewed dependence upon God releases His divine action, to restore the marred image of the Invisible God. It is not inactivity, but Christ-activity; God in action accomplishing the divine end through human personality - never reducing man to the status of a cabbage, but exalting man to the stature of king! "For if by one man's offence death reigned by one; much more they which receive abundance of grace and of the gift of righteousness shall reign in life by one, Jesus Christ" (Romans 5:17). At first sight this might seem to offer to you the possibility of sinless perfection as the result of spiritual regeneration, but this is far from being the case; for it is only your faith and your obedience which allow Him to be in you now what He was then (perfect) - and you will be what He was then only to the degree in which you allow Him to be in you what He is now (perfect)! All of the Father was available to all of the Son, because by His faith-love relationship, all of the Son was available to all of the Father, and this constituted His perfect manhood; and the availability of the Son to you will be in the degree of your availability to the Son, because of your faith-love relationship to Him! From: The Mystery of Godliness. Grand Rapids: Zondervan Publishing House. ©1964.