James the Just - Part 6 - The Upward Spiral of Metamorphosis

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Tuesday, August 20, 2019

If you claim to be religious but don’t control your tongue, you are fooling yourself, and your religion is worthless.  Pure and genuine religion in the sight of God the Father means caring for orphans and widows in their distress and refusing to let the world corrupt you.  James 1: 26-27

Metamorphosis is the process of change; complete change!  Tadpoles change into frogs; caterpillars enter the cocoon and emerge transformed into butterflies.  Spiritual metamorphosis (transformation) is expressed as a renewed mind.^[2]  Spiritually transformed believers have…

A Controlled Tongue

The tongue can bring death or life; those who love to talk will reap the consequences. Proverbs 18:21

James called the tongue a raging fire, totally unable to be tamed.  He says it’s like the rudder on a big ship, or a bit in the horse’s mouth.  It is a small thing, behind the scenes, yet the most powerful muscle in the body.  As surely as harsh words cripple people, good words inspire people to live higher-purposed lives: 

·      I regret that I have but one life to give for my country. –  Nathan Hale

·      Ask not what your country can do for you.  Ask what you can do for your country.  – President John F. Kennedy

Words such as those changed the course of history. They challenged our souls and spirits, and as a result we will never be the same.  I have been the recipient of kind words in difficult circumstances.  There were times when such words put my heart back together and gave me the courage to go on.

Spiritually transformed people have a controlled tongue that speaks words of healing and encouragement.  And they have …

A Compassionate Heart

James visiting, or caring-for orphans and widows, is his way of helping us understand that the least powerful in our society, those who are most likely to be forgotten or fall through the cracks…these are the ones we must always help.  Transformed, spiritually renewed people have their tongues under control, and they are compassionate.

But you probably have known people who are not what we would call religious; they never attend church or even seem to have faith in God at all.  Yet, they are compassionate towards the less fortunate; they do more than even many believers who talk a good talk.  They seem to be more Christian than the Christians.  Are they Christians of “genuine religion” after all?  Well, they might be; it isn’t up to you and me to judge another’s motives for what they do.  But remember this, practicing kind words and even doing wonderful good deeds are not what make you a Christian – those are only indications you follow a strong moral code of kind and unselfish ways.  If living like that could bring about forgiveness for our sins the cross is God’s chief mistake; it would mean Jesus didn’t have to die.  The Apostle Paul said it clearly, you cannot buy salvation:

God saved you by his grace when you believed.  And you can’t take credit for this; it is a gift from God.  Salvation is not a reward for the good things we have done, so none of us can boast about it.  Ephesians 2:8-9

So, then, if it’s by grace, why all this “genuine religion” talk about doing good stuff?  It’s simple – if you have truly been born again, you will be like the One who gave you life.  

There is a good example of this in the science of fiber optics.^[3]  

The strands of glass or plastic are about the thickness of a human hair.  Bundled together they carry light, electrical impulses and even sound waves at incredibly fast speeds.  They’re the reason why your TV picture is so sharp, and your cell phone works. 

Imagine a thousand of these (hair-sized) fibers bound together like a cable.  Each strand has a beam of light to offer, but each one came from the same, single light source.  The light at the end of the “cable” reflects the source.  And the source, through all the little cable connections, sheds light that changes the world.  This is how it is when you allow yourself, like a caterpillar submits himself to the cocoon, to let God have you in His cocoon of salvation.  In it, he nourishes and changes you – you become transformed and renewed to live a life that reflects His glory and beauty.  That’s metamorphosis!

For You Today

The Christian life is so much simpler when we stop trying to force the change, and simply accept the change God is bringing!

You chew on that as you hit the Rocky Road; have a blessed day.

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[1] Title Image:  Courtesy of  Wikimedia Commons     Unless otherwise noted, Scripture used from The New Living Translation©

[2] Romans 12:2

[3] Image courtesy of Pixabay.com

From Saul To Paul

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Thursday, February 7, 2019

Afterward he ate some food and regained his strength.  Saul stayed with the believers in Damascus for a few days.  And immediately he began preaching about Jesus in the synagogues, saying, “He is indeed the Son of God!”  All who heard him were amazed. “Isn’t this the same man who caused such devastation among Jesus’ followers in Jerusalem?” they asked.  “And didn’t he come here to arrest them and take them in chains to the leading priests?”  Saul’s preaching became more and more powerful, and the Jews in Damascus couldn’t refute his proofs that Jesus was indeed the Messiah.  After a while some of the Jews plotted together to kill him.  They were watching for him day and night at the city gate so they could murder him, but Saul was told about their plot.  So during the night, some of the other believers lowered him in a large basket through an opening in the city wall.  Acts 9:19-25(NLT)

Recently one of the rages on Facebook has been the 20-year challenge.  You post a picture of you from the turn of the century next to a recent one.  How have the years been for you?  We see the differences…new hair (or less), Botox, happier or the other?  And certainly, the weight thing…ok, let’s leave that one alone!

With the Apostle Paul (who was originally named Saul) the change didn’t take 20 years; the transformation was night and day in a week.  Saul had been the religious zealot, foaming at the mouth variety, angry enough to be the chief persecutor of the early church.  But when he met Jesus on the Damascus Road, the blinding light changed everything about the way the newly named Paul would see things…and do things.  He saw clearly for the first time in his life that Jesus was indeed the Christ, the Messiah sent from Heaven.  And then he changed what he did, from persecuting the people of the Gospel, to preaching the Lord of the Gospel.  And therein we find the power of God in that Gospel.

Often people think being a Christian is about becoming part of a certain denomination, Methodist, Presbyterian, Catholic.  Or going through a ceremony with all the right hoops, baptism, membership class in a church.  Or getting rid of all the bad habits and becoming a nice person who helps old ladies across the street and refrains from kicking the dog, or gambling with rent money.

Some make the mistake of imagining becoming a Christian is simply like changing your political affiliation – it’s all about the politics of left, right, or resistance.  Perhaps the most dangerous is the idea that it’s all about a heart change – that exhilarating roller-coaster emotional cataclysm of repenting in a revival meeting…from hell-bound sinner, to heaven-bound saint.

Truth be told, it’s all of those; at least, all of those contain elements of what coming to Christ is like.  It is like three blind persons placed on three sides of an elephant report what they think an elephant looks like.  One standing at the side calls it a great wall, the second, touching the front leg describes it as a tree trunk, and the third, reaching out and finding the tail, dubs the elephant a scaly rope.  All three were right, but incomplete; there’s more to any elephant than one dimension.  Such is the case with coming to Christ. 

So, how can I tell if I have really become a genuine Christian?  Is there a test?  Will there be a mark of some sort?  How can I know?  Largely the answer is pretty simple, found in this simple question:  Has your life changed?  Consider the worm Saul, who became the butterfly, Paul:

·      It included but was more than a mountain-top emotional moment.

·      It included but was more than joining up with the church family.

·      It included but was more than the words coming out of his mouth.

·      It included, but was more than being nicer, helping others, or politics.

If you study the life of Paul before, and after coming to Christ, you’ll notice that every step towards God included a growth of Christ in Paul, and a loosening of Paul’s control on Paul.  For Paul, and for anyone who would truly want to respond to Christ’s gracious gift of salvation, coming to Christ means loving God, and choosing to obey God by serving others.  It’s a transformation God works in us when His Spirit gets bigger in us, as we get more submissive to Him.

For You Today

Paul was in favor of examining this question – am I really a Christian?

You chew on that as you hit the Rocky Road; have a blessed day.

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[i] Title Image:  via Pixabay.com and Pixabay.com

The Great Divide of AND SO - Part 3

Friday, February 14, 2014

And we know that God causes everything to work together for the good of those who love God and are called according to his purpose for them.  For God knew his people in advance, and he chose them to become like his Son….           Romans 8:28 – 29a (NLT)

Let’s face it – our resistance to this world’s customs and behaviors can only “hold-out” just so long.  The temptations of our culture are relentless:  television, social media, peer pressure, and materialism.

But the power to resist was never intended to be just what you can muster-up; there is power to live that flows from Jesus Christ to the believer who trusts Him enough to give up being lord over his own life, and let God have His way.

In the church we call it transformation.  Paul said that God can transform you into a new person.  That person is the image of Christ; we are being conformed or changed – better, transformed into Christ’s image when we allow God free control over our lives. 

That is what Paul meant by encouraging us to live a life of sacrifice – to freely and constantly submit to whatever God wants to make of us.  That’s the metaphor of the cup we celebrate together – Christ’s life was poured-out in the name of the Father in heaven for us; we follow his example and pour-out our life for others – in His name.

This transformation begins and continues in the heart and renewal of your mind:

So all of us who have had that veil removed can see and reflect the glory of the Lord.  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 (NLT)

Our hearts – that’s a place where others cannot see; only God knows what’s happening there.  But the results of that transformation (or the lack of it) will be seen! 

Metamorphosis is transformation; it is what happens in a cocoon.  Cradled in a nest the nature of a caterpillar begins to change.  Finally it breaks out, looking very little like it looked before.  What was once an ugly little squirming worm is transformed into the very essence of delightful beauty!  It was once conformed to the slinking image of a dust-eater; now it soars with color and majesty – some are even called Monarch!

In a human being follower of Jesus Christ our cocoon is grace.  Surrendering control of our lives to God’s grace allows God’s transforming power to change us.  We emerge with wings, to escape temptation and live a life that is pleasing and acceptable to God.  We can live a life of purpose and dignity, leaving the dust-eating worm-life behind. 

Christian non-conformists resist this World’s Culture and rest their whole being in Christ.

And So….for YOU, Today

Just like a caterpillar must crawl up on the branch of some tree and enter a cocoon to begin the transformation process, a Christian believer (insert YOUR name here) must attach himself to the “grace-branch” of Jesus’ cross. 

The Christian’s grace cocoon is vitally worked-out in a myriad of ways (discipleship, prayer, fellowship with other believers, worship, stewardship and helping others); it is a constant surrender to the presence of Christ, Who changes, transforms us, entirely. 

Today is Valentine’s Day.  It’s a day we naturally turn our thoughts to love and the most significant relationships in our lives.  What an awesome day to turn our hearts to the Author of grace, transformed, walking on the other side of the Great AND SO Divide !

Title Photo:  http://i1.trekearth.com/photos/30018/the_great_divide6.jpg