Sunday Sermons
Such Were Some of You
Such were
Some of you…
With the New Year approaching I want to address in this lesson what are some key ingredients in changing one’s life. The following poll makes it clear that most people in the world do need to change.
Real and Lasting Change is Possible
The Bible is filled with examples of individuals who not only drastically changed their lives (1 Corinthians 6:11; Titus 3:3; 1 Peter 4:1ff), but who equally maintained lasting and real change over the long haul (2 Timothy 4:7). These individuals were just ordinary people who decided to entrust their lives to God and follow His prescription for living.
Win the Battle in your Head
Jesus often noted that the secret behind real change is winning the battle in the heart, “First clean the inside of the cup and of the dish, so that the outside of it may become clean also” (Matthew 23:26). Paul equally noted, “We are destroying speculations and every lofty thing raised up against the knowledge of God, and we are taking every thought captive to the obedience of Christ” (2 Corinthians 10:5). The following points are practical aspects of winning the battle in your head:
· You have the potential and capacity to be godly:
At times people will say something like, “Everything I like is either illegal, immoral, or fattening”. This expression is supposed to be funny, but it infers that self-control takes all the fun out of living and that one was not designed to enjoy wholesome and godly things. The truth of the matter is that there are many things illegal, immoral and fattening that we do not like or would not enjoy. Every human being has been and continues to be created in the image of God(James 3:9), and this means that every person has the potential and capacity to not only be godly, patient, self-controlled and kind, but to equally enjoy such a lifestyle as well.
· Present enjoyment is no reason to stop:
Just because one might find something enjoyable and fulfilling outside of Christ does not mean that all enjoyable experiences have been found. The apostle Paul clearly enjoyed being a Pharisee, and found his life in Judaism very rewarding and fulfilling at times (Galatians 1:14; Philippians 3:7 “Whatever things were gain to me”). Yet after he became a Christian, he realized that he had found an enjoyment and fulfillment that far surpassed his previous enjoyments, to the point that he considered many of his previous goals or experiences as being not worth much(Philippians 3:8). We must not let the devil scare us into thinking that either we can’t change or that if we attempted to change we would lose out concerning any sort of present happiness. Giving up sinful habits and thoughts becomes easier when one realizes that what the devil wants us to keep is absolutely worthless.
· Own up to when you need help:
There are many people in the world who attempt to change something about themselves each year. Often they are looking for some type of physical change, but often they are equally looking for something that only has a spiritual cure. If I want more self-control (even in a physical realm) or more patience, I need to recognize that I am looking for a spiritual remedy. Stanley Baldwin noted, “It’s tough to overhaul a car with a screwdriver and a pair of pliers” (How to Build your Christian Character, p. 27). In like manner many people make the mistake of trying to fix something serious in their lives with some advice they read in Reader’s Digest or Parade Magazine. These are publications can offer some good advice yet they cannot accomplish what the Gospel can (Romans 1:16). Trying to improve your self-control, patience, or control your anger or lust without the gospel is like trying to overhaul a car with a screwdriver and a pair of pliers.
· Be willing to be the whole package:
One common mistake that is made when it comes to change is the desire to change just enough to either get or stay out of trouble. Often people are looking for a quick fix to a relational, personal, or financial problem, yet the Bible presents a different game plan. The plan in the Bible is very thorough and comprehensive, “Applying all diligence, in your faith supply moral excellence, and in your moral excellence, knowledge, and in your knowledge, self-control, and in your self-control, perseverance, and in your perseverance, godliness..” (2 Peter 1:5ff). Thus, real change is not just changing one thing or working on one area of your life, rather, maturity and spirituality is like a musical chord. “The point is that we are to develop all these traits at the same time, because each one augments all the others” (Baldwin p. 29). Not only will ignoring or skipping one of these traits undermine the entire process, but refusing to give up a trait that is sinful will derail the process as well. In addition, focusing on one thing creates a deadly tunnel vision and a false sense of personal growth. “We are apt to become specialists in virtue as in other departments of life. Men will endeavor even to compensate by extreme efforts in one direction for deficiencies in some other direction, which they scarcely desire to make good. So they grow out of shape, into oddities and moral malformations. We have sweetness without strength, and strength without gentleness, and truth spoken without love, and words of passionate zeal without accuracy and heedfulness. Let us never imagine that our defects in one kind will be atoned for by excellencies in another. Our friends may say this, in charity for us; it is a fatal thing when a man begins to say so to himself” (Baldwin pp. 29-30). So when you see something amiss in your character or life, do not make the mistake of throwing more effort into those areas in which you excel, rather have the courage to throw effort into the area in which you are failing.
· Be honest about what has not been working:
This is particularly true when it comes to adopting sinful strategies for surviving or finding happiness. Many people when faced with self-doubt, fear, boredom, self-pity or over-confidence will opt for a sinful alternative. Such a pattern of behavior is easier to break and change when we accept the fact that such a strategy has been a complete failure. We need to be honest about such past choices. These choices that seemed to promise so much, not only were manifestations of rebellion and ingratitude toward God, but they equally failed to deliver or solve the problem. We see an example of this in Titus 3:3, where opting for lust and immediate pleasure only produced addiction, enslavement, malice, envy, anger, and mutual hatred. “For we also once were foolish ourselves, disobedient, deceived, enslaved to various lusts and pleasures, spending our lives in malice and envy, hateful, hating one another”. We need to keep this verse in mind when the devil attempts to convince us that Christians are intolerant, when actually the opposite is true. Christians are only intolerant when it comes to evil and rebellion against God. Yet Paul accurately describes in the above verse the intolerance, lack of mercy and unkindness that is common outside of Christ.
· Look at your motives:
When Jesus talks about cleaning up what was on the inside of the cup, and Paul speaks of taking every thought captive and bringing every thought into submission to Christ, this includes purifying our motives (2 Corinthians 7:1) for wanting to change. The desire to change must be deeper than simply wanting to improve a relationship or reduce the stress and worry in our lives. Peter mentions the need to add both moral excellence (virtue) and godliness into our lives. “True goodness does not so much require intolerance of other people’s sins as it does intolerance of our own” (Baldwin p. 35). There is a deeper question than even the question, “Do we want to change?” That question is, “Do we want to be good?” “Do we want to be like Christ?” It is significant that among the qualities that Peter mentions to add to one’s life if meaningful change is to occur, he mentions “brotherly love” and “love”. There are a couple of ideas here: First, real change can never occur or last as long are we are turned inward, that is, primarily thinking about ourselves. Secondly, the only motive that will keep us on a straight course toward spiritual growth, is the desire to be like Christ(Hebrews 12:2 “Fixing our eyes on Jesus”).
· Admit when we are doomed without Christ:
Paul calls the life spent outside of Christ, “Unfruitful” (Ephesians 5:11), and further says, “The outcome of those things is death” (Romans 6:21). One reason that the Bible makes it very clear that Jesus is the only way to God (Acts 4:12), and that there is absolutely no hope of deliverance for those who reject or ignore Him (2 Thessalonians 1:7-9), is that we can become very motivated when we realize that we are doomed in our present condition, and that the only answer to avoid eternal doom without any second chances or is to change.
The great news is that the gospel message is all about change—change that will only bring out the best in us (Galatians 5:22-23). The world may scoff at our attempts to change, but the Bible never ridicules our goal to mature and grow. Yes, we can be godly, kind, patient, longsuffering, loving, and happy, and yes we can control anger, lust, self-pity or pride.
Mark Dunagan/Beaverton Church of Christ/503-644-9017
www.beavertonchurchofchrist.net/mdunagan@easystreet.com
