Based on Ephesians 4:17-24 (New King James Version)
“This I say, therefore, and testify in the Lord, that you should no longer walk as the rest of the Gentiles walk, in the futility of their mind, having their understanding darkened, being alienated from the life of God, because of the ignorance that is in them, because of the blindness of their heart; who, being past feeling, have given themselves over to lewdness, to work all uncleanness with greediness. But you have not so learned Christ, if indeed you have heard Him and have been taught by Him, as the truth is in Jesus: that you put off, concerning your former conduct, the old man which grows corrupt according to the deceitful lusts, and be renewed in the spirit of your mind, and that you put on the new man which was created according to God, in true righteousness and holiness.”
What should happen with a person that is born again in Christ? Do they start going to church? Do they start to tithe and give offerings? Do they have to become a member of a choir or singing group? Do they have to give sacrificially so a church building can be built? Do they start living a more moral life, so they can be accepted in church? Are they always full of joy, happy and content? Do they have to go to a seminary? Do they need to speak in tongues so they can demonstrate that they received the Holy Spirit? These things are not necessarily bad, but they are what many have determined that should happen in the life of a Christian, in one way or another. But, these things do not necessarily determine if there is salvation or life in Christ. It’s not about turning into a religious person, but that is what happens when a person does not understand what truly occurs when they are born again in Christ.
For starters, today’s Word says that there should be some sort of a change in a person, and that yes, there should be a difference between a person that knows Christ and a person that does not know Christ, nor the things of God. How do you know if you have truly come to know Christ personally, if you have come to be born again in Him? Converting to the Lord consists of very simple yet determining things. The way a person comes to be born again in the Lord is through complete repentance, repenting 100% (not 80%, or even 99%), and converting to Christ, by accepting him as the Lord of their life, and doing it with all of their heart, not just with words or lacking faith. A person really needs to believe what they’re doing because a person is effectively giving themselves over to the Lord, giving Him their life. And when this really takes place, something great happens in the life of believer. An initial transformation or regeneration takes place, as it is written: “But when the kindness and the love of God our Savior toward man appeared, not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to His mercy He saved us, through the washing of regeneration and renewing of the Holy Spirit, whom He poured out on us abundantly through Jesus Christ our Savior.” Titus 3:4-6. So then, what literally happens is that the Holy Spirit comes into the life of a person, and regenerates and renews their spirit, the being within them that has the capacity to live eternally. And when the Holy Spirit comes in, that Holy Being of God, then something significant should happen in the life of a person. It cannot be a day like any other, because in the end, God came in; the most powerful Being in all of the universe. So, by virtue of completely repenting, there are noticeable things that change right away in a person, because of the manifestation of the Holy Spirit in their life. It does not mean that they will be perfect right away, but there are going to occur involuntary (per se) changes that happen at the beginning. For example, in my own life, when I gave my life to the Lord, the first things He worked on and helped me abandon was idolatry, stealing, and attraction for alcohol. No one told me that I had to leave those things, or that Christians should not follow or do those things. It happened all on its own, without any kind of effort, because it was the work of the Holy Spirit. God transformed by life.
Now then, what should continue happening in the life of a Christian? The transformation process should continue. Things should not stop at that initial moment, and here is where what we read at the beginning applies. Christ died so that not only we could be saved, but also, so that our lives could be completely transformed, so we can be useful, ready for all good work. That’s why the Word encourages us as follows: “Wash you, make you clean; put away the evil of your doings from before mine eyes; cease to do evil; learn to do well; seek judgment, relieve the oppressed, judge the fatherless, plead for the widow.” Isaiah 1:16-17. The Word is very clear in that there should be a process in a believer, that there needs to be a continuing transformation. And how does that transformation continue occurring? Through the Word, for it is written: “Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ also loved the church and gave Himself for her, that He might sanctify and cleanse her with the washing of water by the word, that He might present her to Himself a glorious church, not having spot or wrinkle or any such thing, but that she should be holy and without blemish.” Ephesians 5:25-27. The washing only happens through the Word of God. The Holy Spirit, through the Word, teaches us what needs to continue changing, what we should stop doing (evil), and what we should learn how to do (good). And doing good consists of doing good works, not of doing religious things.
Why is this process so important, and a person should not just stay at that initial point only? The Bible teaches us this principle, something that never changes, whether a person has never known the Lord (obviously), or even if a person has come to be born again: “For the wages of sin is death…” Romans 6:23a. Even though we have been forgiven, redeemed and born again, sin never stops producing death, whether great or small. So then, we know that we will not be perfect until the day we are made free from this body of death (the flesh), but that’s why it is so important to follow the process, because what produces death must be reduced as time progresses. This is the counsel and warning the Word gives us also: “I say then: Walk in the Spirit, and you shall not fulfill the lust of the flesh. For the flesh lusts against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh; and these are contrary to one another, so that you do not do the things that you wish. But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under the law. Now the works of the flesh are evident, which are: adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lewdness, idolatry, sorcery [drug use is involved in this also], hatred, contentions, jealousies, outbursts of wrath, selfish ambitions, dissensions, heresies, envy, murders, drunkenness, revelries, and the like; of which I tell you beforehand, just as I also told you in time past, that those who practice such things will not inherit the kingdom of God.” Galatians 5:16-21. So then, if a Christian dedicates themselves to practice sin, or living a sinful lifestyle, (what goes beyond just sinning), they will simply not inherit the kingdom of God.
So, are you living a life that is continually being transformed, for your own good, and for the good of others? Lord bless! John