Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is-his good, pleasing and perfect will. Romans 12: 2, NIV.
Holy God, we are thankful for the opportunity to study Your Word. Therefore, we pray that You will draw near to us, as we seek to be transformed into Your image. Please stay with us during this hour; we pray in the blessed name of Jesus. Amen.
It is much easier to conform, than to be transformed. Conforming, is like going down a hill, just let the law of gravity have its way, and in no time, you will be at the bottom of the hill. So it is with conforming to the practices of this world. It is so much easier to imitate a bad habit than to cultivate a good one. You see, my friends, we are predisposed to sinning. We were “sinful at birth, sinful from the time my mother conceived me” (Psalm 51: 5). So it feels natural to do wrong, because we are, by nature, sinful. Not so with transformation. It takes the joint effort of both body and mind, to bring about transformation. This is like going up the hill. It takes a decision, a plan, some skill, a lot of effort, and in some cases, additional resources (rope, special shoes, etc.). In the spiritual realm, along with all our efforts, to be successful, it takes the grace of God! The good news is, that He who is in charge of transforming you and me, is greater than he who encourages us to conform. That is where the strength to transform lies, in the One who is in charge!
The Bible makes mention of “the prince of this world” (John 12: 31; 14: 30; 16: 11). He will use you, abuse you, and then dispose of you. About a week ago, we made mention of the agenda of the Adversary, “to steal, kill, and destroy” (10: 10). He will encourage you to conform to all manner of evil. He has one plan; to steal your life, to keep you from fulfilling the plans God has for you. And whatever he has to do to bring about his designs, he will do.
But it is very encouraging to know that the Prince of Peace is greater than the prince of this world. Hallelujah! Listen to the apostle John, as he encourages the believers: “You dear children, are from God and have overcome them, because the one who is in you is greater than the one who is in the world” (1 John 4: 4, emphasis provided). Perhaps some of you have seen a sign which reads, more or less, as follows: “God plus one is a majority.” His strength + our weakness = victory! In any equation!
Even though Paul lamented, “I know that nothing good lives in me, that is, in my sinful nature. For I have the desire to do what is good, but I cannot carry it out. For what I do is not the good I want to do; no, the evil I do not want to do-this I keep on doing” ( Romans 7: 18, 19). Nevertheless, he ends by saying, “Thanks be to God-through Jesus Christ our LORD! He knew where he could find the strength to resist conforming to our sinful nature, and to be “transformed by the renewing of our minds, to the image of God.”
We do have the tendency, in our sinful genes, to conform, but “thanks be to God,” we also have the power, in our spiritual genes, to be transformed!
We will continue this conversation tomorrow.