THE POWER OF C-H-A-N-G-E
Part 1 - Connect
I've always heard that religion is about reformation. But Christianity is about transformation. Those two things are not the same. The former is about what a person can do to make self-improvements – Ladder People. The latter is about a person totally yielding to the Person of Jesus Christ to develop Christ-likeness within him – Relationship People. Jesus promised that if we would allow Him to by faith, He would come to make His "home" within us. In essence, we become the dwelling place of Christ. In the same sense, Jesus promised that His residence within us would bring about change, real change! The Bible says in 2 Corinthians 5:17 that, "…if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come!" A person who has made a life-changing commitment to Jesus Christ is a person who is being transformed to reflect His character. "And the Lord – who is the Spirit – makes us more and more like him as we are changed into his glorious image." (2 Corinthians 3:18) What does this kind of life change look like? How do I know it when it's happening in my life as a follower of Jesus Christ? How do I identify life change as it happens in the lives of others? There are what we call six "life change indicators" that help us identify our path of spiritual maturity as disciples of Jesus. We use the acronym, CHANGE, to make it easier to remember.
Connects with God and His Family
True life change begins when a person realizes and acts upon his need to be in relationship with his Creator, the One who made him, loves him, and has a purposed plan for his life. Upon that realization, as a person commits his life through repentance and faith to Jesus Christ as his only hope for salvation. Then he submits to the leadership – what we call Lordship – of Christ in every area of his life. This is where spiritual life change begins. Through faith an eternal connection with God takes place.
This new relationship with God through Christ continues and grows when a person connects with God's Family on earth. The Bible calls God's Family on earth the Church. Growing Christians are to gather together on a consistent basis for the purposes of corporate worship, mutual fellowship, spiritual encouragement and instruction, and serving fellow Christians, the community and the world.
Helps Others Know God
People seem to naturally share their positive experiences with others, do they not? These often include restaurants, physicians, auto repair shops, hotels, car dealerships, vacation destinations, lawn services, churches – you name it. Doesn't it make sense, then, if a person has experienced forgiveness of sin and the gift of eternal life, that she would tell others about the incredible joy and satisfaction she has experienced through connecting with Christ?
People are basically the same no matter where we go. People are looking for answers to the meaning of life and any hope for their future. The Bible tells us not only to experience transformational life change, "And if someone asks about your Christian hope, be ready to explain it." (1 Peter 3:15) Out of an overflow of what God is doing in your life, be ready to share that joy and why you have it with others.
There is a sleeping giant in today's Church - the unfulfilled potential [unrealized 'sending' capacity] of God's people. Imagine releasing this capacity, even a small percentage of it. Consider the impact of passionate Jesus-followers reproducing themselves and becoming "sent" leaders in their communities. What would be the impact of every Christian sharing their story with one other person and changing our church from a "caught" mentality to "catching, coaching and sending" mentality?
Jesus intends His followers to live "sent" lives-- and for His family, the Church, to be the means by which they are called, equipped and united. His words and intent are unmistakable: "As the Father has sent me, so I am sending you" (John 20:21). This command was not for a select few but for all believers. He calls each of us to "Go."
Actively Grows in Christ
In a transformational discipleship course called, Experiencing God, Henry Blackaby said, "You can't stay where you are and go on with God." He's saying that a person's spiritual growth takes initiative and intentionality of the part of the Christian.
Jesus' words to his first group of disciples were powerful. He told them, "Follow Me." This "follow-ship" didn't mature overnight. But day after day, year after year, even after He was gone, they followed. They sometimes misunderstood His teachings, but they stayed with Him until they got it right! In other words, they grew spiritually every day they spent with Jesus. Just like those early disciples, this means spending intentional time with Jesus Christ. How do we do that? Two things: Training ourselves to be in God Word so He can speak truth to us, and spending time in heart communication with the Lord through prayer. When we've heard God speak to us through both, then go about actually doing what He's told us.
Nurtures Meaningful Relationships
To nurture means to feed and nourish. Again, this calls for intentionality. Relationships – whether with God, family or friends – are the stuff life is really made of. At the end of the day, little else really matters, does it? That's the way God sees it for sure. Have you ever thought that the people God brings into your circle of relationships are there for a reason? God has put Himself into us so that we can allow Him to use us to be a blessing to them through His love.
The most significant explanation of what it means to nurture meaningful relationships is found in 1 Corinthians 13:4-7. "Love is patient and kind; love does not envy or boast; it is not arrogant or rude. It does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful; it does not rejoice at wrongdoing, but rejoices with the truth. Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things."
Gives Back to God
"For God so loved the world that He gave…." (John 3:16) This is the nature of God. A magnificent aspect of the character of God is His generosity. He gave us the beauty of Creation. He gave us a free will. He gave us the free gift of eternal life. He gave sacrificially of Himself through Jesus Christ as our only bridge of reconciliation with Him. He gave! And He gives, and gives, and gives!
Paul quoted Christ in Acts 20:35, "It is more blessed to give than to receive." This aspect of spiritual life change is directly connected to our commitment to faith stewardship of our finances for God's work in the world through His Church. Giving out of our resources is truly a matter of the heart. A heart that is yielded to God does not argue the issue of giving back to God in this way. Paul said in 2 Corinthians 9:7 that a Christian should "…give [financially] as he has made up his mind…." The meaning of this passage is not that Christians have the right to set a certain amount in their stewardship, but that a Christian understands the priority of giving in such a way that it comes automatically and sacrificially for the purposes of the Kingdom.
Exercises Spiritual Gifts
The Lord brings people into His Church through salvation and baptism. 1 Corinthians 12:12 and Ephesians 4:12 characterize the Church as the Body of Christ metaphorically. The idea is that a body has many moving parts and each part contributes to the welfare of the whole. When we think of the Church as a body and each member of the Church being a fully functioning part of that body, then we get the idea.
Each born-again person in the Church has been gifted by God to contribute their abilities and talents with the context of church life by "doing" certain things well. The New Testament calls these abilities "spiritual gifts." Every Christian has at least one spiritual gift. Some people are terrific at organization while others are outstanding at serving. One person may be very proficient with public speaking while another is more effective with actions of mercy. 1 Corinthians 12 and Romans 12 give a pretty good list of the ways in which people serve in their church. The point is that we are to refuse to become church "pew potatoes." We are to serve the Lord in our Church by serving others!Email Subscription: