And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed (changed, transfigured) by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God. Romans 12:2
No amount of physical effort can produce spiritual transformation. Your spirit doesn’t grow, it’s either righteous and made one with God or it’s not. What needs to happen is that we begin to think, feel and act in agreement with the condition of our spirit so the rest of our being experiences transformation. If you want changes in your life, they come through renewing your mind, not behavior modification. Renewing your mind persuades your heart of the truth and as a man thinks in his heart, so is he
You will think about, feel and then do what you believe in your heart, so take the time to persuade your heart of Kingdom truth. Tend the garden of your heart so you’re yielded to the influence of God rather than focused on the way of the world or the world’s system. You can preach external, behavioral, specific, cultural issue focused messages or you can go after people’s hearts by preaching spiritual truth rather than carnal failure.
- Everything God has for us, every spiritual gift within us is worked out of us by grace through faith
- Faith accesses grace and faith works by love
- Faith is a response to what Jesus has done
- So do you know what Jesus has done? (see the Renew Your Mind posts to discover what he has done in believers)
Any attempt to earn or qualify through physical effort nullifies (renders ineffective) grace.
I do not nullify the grace of God, for if righteousness comes through the Law, then Christ died needlessly. Galatians 2:21 NASB
Falling from grace is not when you sin per se, it’s when you start trying to experience spiritual truth in your own strength. What we’re talking about is being in the flesh. The flesh is a mindset that trusts self-effort to establish a spiritual truth rather than God. Being spiritually minded is vital to facilitating transformation. It’s important to know none of of these efforts make you more spiritual or put you more in the spirit, there’s one way to know you’re in the spirit and that’s to have the spirit of God within you. This is important because transformation is a process that works from the inside out rather outside in. In other words it happens as we allow what’s already true in our spirit to permeate the rest of our being rather than through external performance, behavior modification or external circumstances.
Romans 8
1 Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus, 2 because through Christ Jesus the law of the Spirit who gives life has set you free from the law of sin and death. 3 For what the law was powerless to do because it was weakened by the flesh, God did by sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh to be a sin offering. And so he condemned sin in the flesh, 4 in order that the righteous requirement of the law might be fully met in us, who do not live according to the flesh but according to the Spirit. 5 Those who live according to the flesh have their minds set on what the flesh desires; but those who live in accordance with the Spirit have their minds set on what the Spirit desires. 6 The mind governed by the flesh is death, but the mind governed by the Spirit is life and peace. 7 The mind governed by the flesh is hostile to God; it does not submit to God’s law, nor can it do so.8 Those who are in the realm of the flesh cannot please God. 9 You, however, are not in the realm of the flesh but are in the realm of the Spirit, if indeed the Spirit of God lives in you. And if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, they do not belong to Christ. 10But if Christ is in you, then even though your body is subject to death because of sin, the Spirit gives life because of righteousness. 11 And if the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead is living in you, he who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies because of his Spirit who lives in you. 12 Therefore, brothers and sisters, we have an obligation—but it is not to the flesh, to live according to it. 13 For if you live according to the flesh, you will die; but if by the Spirit you put to death the misdeeds of the body, you will live.
- No amount of physical effort can produce a spiritual transformation
- Again, Faith is not an action to establish a spiritual blessing, it’s a response in your heart to what is already true
- Faith can include action but it must be a step in confidence, not fear
- Faith says, God has already given me that spiritual blessing, now I’ll behave accordingly
- Faith takes action because its convinced of Gods goodness and faithfulness
Romans 10
1 Brothers and sisters, my heart’s desire and prayer to God for the Israelites is that they may be saved. 2 For I can testify about them that they are zealous for God, but their zeal is not based on knowledge. 3 Since they did not know the righteousness of God and sought to establish their own, they did not submit to God’s righteousness. 4 Christ is the culmination of the law so that there may be righteousness for everyone who believes. 5 Moses writes this about the righteousness that is by the law: “The person who does these things will live by them.” 6 But the righteousness that is by faith says: “Do not say in your heart, ‘Who will ascend into heaven?’ ” (that is, to bring Christ down) 7“or ‘Who will descend into the deep?’ ” (that is, to bring Christ up from the dead). 8 But what does it say? “The word is near you; it is in your mouth and in your heart,” that is, the message concerning faith that we proclaim: 9 If you declare with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. 10 For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you profess your faith and are saved.
Not just talking about being born again, it’s Jesus’s way of talking about experiencing the promises. We’ve been given promises so we would partake of God’s divine nature
Part of renewing the mind includes speaking truth, not to convince God to move but to exercise authority.
According to Jesus it is the believer’s responsibility to:
to believe that you RECEIVE when you pray [Mark 11:24, Matthew 21:21]
to SPEAK to the mountain or problem you have; rebuke, give directions to the problem, and cast out the problem from you body, circumstance, or environment [Mark 11:23, Matthew 21:21, Matthew 17:20, Luke 17:6,Mark 16:17, Luke 11:20, Matthew 12:28].
to SAY what you want to come to pass, into existence [ginomai] [Mark 11:23]. It shall be done [ginomai], according to God’s Word [Matthew 21:21]. O woman, great is your faith! Let it be [ginomai] to you as you desire [Matthew 15:28]. And Jesus said unto the centurion, Go thy way; and as thou hast believed, be it done unto thee [ginomai] [Matthew 8:13].
Jesus promises “it will be done” [Matthew 21:21], it “shall come to pass” [Mark 11:23], it will “obey you” [Luke 17:6], and “it will move” [Matthew 17:20]. Jesus says that it is the believer’s responsibility to speak to the mountain.
Luke 17:20 And when he was demanded of the Pharisees, when the kingdom of God should come, he answered them and said, The kingdom of God cometh not with observation: 21 Neither shall they say, Lo here! or, lo there! for, behold, the kingdom of God is within you.
How many of you believe God can do anything?
How many of you believe God can do anything through co-laboring with you?
The Kingdom of Heaven is within
We’ve been given promises
We are co-laborers with the Spirit of God in this earth
Life and death are in the power of the tongue
A man’s belly shall be satisfied with the fruit of his mouth; and with the increase of his lips shall he be filled. 21Death and life are in the power of the tongue: and they that love it shall eat the fruit thereof. Proverbs 18:20
The Young’s Literal Translation reads this way:
fruit will eat love of the tongue the power and life death
The fruit you will eat is what your tongue loves to give power to, whether it be life or death.
What does your tongue love to give power to?
Some of us have dysfunctional tongues
The problem is many times we still have the view that we’re waiting for God to show up out here and change our circumstances when everything that Jesus teaches points to us having the authority (Kingdom) within us to manifest change.
It’s easy to believe God can show up out here but are you trusting Him to empower you in here to the degree that nothing is impossible?
What is your mouth professing?
7 Questions to locate what your tongue loves
- Do you talk about your bills more than you talk about God’s provision?
- Do you talk about your sickness more than you talk about God’s healing power?
- Do you remember your failures more than you believe all things are possible?
- Do you yell at your kids more than you speak blessing over them?
- How much time did you invest in yourself last week?
- How much time did you invest in watching tv last week? Last year?
- And we wonder why we’re still struggling with the same old issues!
Faith doesn’t act to get God to do something
Faith acts so that what is already true can be revealed
It’s like the Indiana Jones bridge scene where he steps out then can see the bridge
It’s there and from any other perspective the bridge can be seen
When we see something as impossible we’re carnally minded because we are only seeing the options we can come up with
But we all, with open face beholding as in a glass the glory of the Lord, are changed G3339 into the same image from glory to glory, even as by the Spirit of the Lord. 2 Corinthians 3:18
And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God. Romans 12:2
So what do we do?
No one can define your steps for you but it must include renewing your mind
Faith steps must be taken knowing that God is faithful, that there’s a promise for what you’re moving toward and believes that God is empowering you.
Faith can see it before it manifests
The Spirit is in you so you’ll know everything that God has given you
The attitude should be, this is mine because God has given it to me already, I just need to
The Kingdom is like a seed
The Kingdom is like leaven
Some kingdom parables describe the way it works
Some kingdom parables describe the Father’s heart
Some parables describe other things
To live this kind of faith walk you have to know God is good, God is for you, God has plans to prosper you, God wants to touch people’s live through you (laying hands on the sick, making disciples…)
Where do you want to see the Kingdom in your life?
What needs to change in you so you confidently trust God with your actions?
If Faith is a response to a spiritual truth, how are you going to respond this week
How will respond to what God has already given me rather than live in default mode and coast through life
Faith isn’t blind, it just looks at what’s unseen
The Spitting Image of Jesus
We know we’re predestined to be conformed to the image of Christ. And we’re transformed by the renewing of our mind. If you put off looking like Jesus until after death that you can just smile and nod and pretend like you’re listening. If you’re willing to take 1 John 4:17 literally, that as he is so are we in this world then let’s proceed.
Romans 8:29 For G3754 whom G3739 he did foreknow, G4267 he G4309 G0also G2532 did predestinate G4309 to be conformed G4832 (having the same form as another, similar, conformed to) to the image G1504 (the image of the Son of God, into which true Christians are transformed, is likeness not only to the heavenly body, but also to the most holy and blessed state of mind, which Christ possesses) of his G846 Son, G5207 that G1519 he G846 might be G1511 the firstborn G4416 among G1722 many G4183brethren. G80
I’ll just touch briefly on predestination:
God has predestined everyone to life, that all would be conformed to the image of his son, but God doesn’t aways get his way
God wishes that none should perish but will some perish?
We can’t apply a religious understanding of a word undermine the rest of scripture
We’ve allowed an unbiblical view of sovereignty to define predestination for us that is inconsistent with scripture
from the very beginning we see that man had free will and that God gave mankind dominion (authority, sovereignty, rule and reign) over all the earth
Don’t let traditional, denominational thinking creep in just because a particular word shows up
“Predestination is real. It’s a biblical term and a biblical concept. But what does it really mean? In context, we’ve seen that it’s about God’s plan to unleash the gospel on “those dirty Gentiles.” It’s not about individual selection.”
Farley, Andrew (2011-05-16). God without Religion (p. 125). Baker Books. Kindle Edition.
Romans 12:2 And G2532 be G4964 G0 not G3361 conformed G4964 (sü-skhā-mä-tē’-zō – to conform one’s self (i.e. one’s mind and character) to another’s pattern, (fashion one’s self according to)) to this G5129world: G165 but G235 be ye transformed G3339 (metamorphoō – to change into another form, to transform, to transfigure) by the renewing G342 (a renewal, renovation, complete change for the better) of your G5216 mind, G3563 that G1519 ye G5209 may prove G1381 what G5101 is that good, G18 and G2532acceptable, G2101 and G2532 perfect, G5046 will G2307 of God. G2316
2 Corinthians 3:18 But we all, with open face beholding as in a glass the glory of the Lord, are changed G3339 into the same image from glory to glory, even as by the Spirit of the Lord.
Galatians 4:19 My little children, of whom I travail in birth again until Christ be formed (morphoo) in you,
We see Christ transformed or transfigured when he met with Moses and Elijah
This was the only time he let anyone come with him when he went off to pray
Many times Jesus went off to pray and we have no idea what happened
But this time the inner circle get to see what kind of being Jesus really is and ultimately what kind of being we are spiritually and is being formed in the rest of us
We’ve begun to break out of our cocoon’s but our wings are still wrinkled and weak
God wants a complete change for the better for you
But he hasn’t left us on our own, he’s given us a key
Remember, God created everything, he knows how it all works
He showed us what a human life full of grace and truth can look
Jesus’s life is not the standard we’re to live up to, it’s an example of what life can be like yielded fully to the spirit of God
Yielded fully to righteousness, established and empowered by grace
I don’t want to over define the transformation process, I just want you to realize how big of a deal it really is and how simple once we see the importance
To be spiritually minded is life and peace
There’s more to that than we’ve caught
Lastly, we must understand what is actually being renewed, the mind.
The Mind – nous GR
- the mind, comprising alike the faculties of perceiving and understanding and those of feeling, judging, determining
- the intellectual faculty, the understanding
- reason in the narrower sense, as the capacity for spiritual truth, the higher powers of the soul, the faculty of perceiving divine things, of recognising goodness and of hating evil
- the power of considering and judging soberly, calmly and impartially
- a particular mode of thinking and judging, i.e thoughts, feelings, purposes, desires
- All of these faculties and capacities must be renewed in order to experience consistent, abiding life and peace
Take a look at this definition and see how those capacities and reasoning patterns can be renovated to be in alignment with God’s truth.
Here’s our dilemma, we’re trying to experience spiritual life in the construct of a physical world
We’ve predominantly thought that spiritual life was unseen and physical was seen. I want to submit that we experience the essence, fruit or manifestation of spiritual life in the midst of this physical world. I realized at some point that I thought once something manifested from spirit to physical that it was no longer spiritual because I could see it. It’s true that spiritual life is by and large unseen, that doesn’t mean it’s intangible.
I find this passage to be interesting in light of Paul’s thinking, it’s a glimpse into his mind
2 Cor 5:1 For we know that if our earthly house of this tabernacle were dissolved, we have a building of God, an house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens. 2 For in this we groan, earnestly desiring to be clothed upon with our house which is from heaven:3 If so be that being clothed we shall not be found naked. 4 For we that are in this tabernacle do groan, being burdened: not for that we would be unclothed, but clothed upon, that mortality might be swallowed up of life.
This is where I want to live, not longing for Heaven but experiencing the fulness of life right here and now. I believe the abundant life Jesus came to give us is found in the renewing of our minds, we must trust the process and think in harmony with God as revealed to us in Jesus.
HOMEWORK
Philippians 4:8 Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things. 9 Whatever you have learned or received or heard from me, or seen in me—put it into practice. And the God of peace will be with you.
Take a look at any situation you want to see transformation and ask yourself what’s true, what’s pure in this situation, etc… This is a great tool for actually changing your thoughts to be like God’s.
Faith works by love. Become aware of His love for you as displayed in the life, the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus. Then be thankful.
When you find yourself feeling down, overwhelmed, pull out the list and see what happens.
Think About It. And once you’ve thought about it, be about it.
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