I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that you present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, which is your reasonable service. 2 And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God. Romans 12:1-2
The word ‘transform’ means to change. God wants to change us from the inside out. He is after us to transform us into the image of Christ. The Christian life is not about remaining the same. We are always being renewed and going to another level in God.
The written word is powerful and alive (Hebrews 4:12). When we hear the Word, things begin to happen in our lives. It penetrates our soul and our spirit. It checks our hearts and our thoughts before we do things that we shouldn’t. The Word that we read last year or yesterday is still in us. Without the Word, we are persons who are living without food and water. If change is going to happen, we need the word of God.
People are reluctant to change because religion has a firm grip on their lives. Religion keeps you bound. It is a spirit that wages war against the Spirit of God in our lives. It kills us and stops us from growing in the Lord. If we want a true relationship with God, religion has to go. It is a trick to keep God’s people from being transformed.
But know this, that in the last days perilous times will come: 2 For men will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy, 3 unloving, unforgiving, slanderers, without self-control, brutal, despisers of good, 4 traitors, headstrong, haughty, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God, 5 having a form of godliness but denying its power. And from such people turn away! 2 Timothy 3:1-5
In the last days, a lot of people will love pleasure more than they love God. Religion goes after pleasure. It is having an appearance of godliness. One learns and has a lot of knowledge but not the knowledge of the truth. It’s not enough to hear the Word but it must get on the inside of us and live in and through us. The Word must be active in our lives. The Word keeps us in the midst of trials and tribulations. What we hear, must get pass our brain and go into hearts, then change happens. When Jesus was tempted, He spoke the Word. He spoke what was on the inside.
The word ‘conform’ means to act in accordance or in harmony with the world. It means to put on the appearance of the world whether habits, styles or beliefs. Romans 12 tells us not to comply with these things. The Christian life is not about fitting in. It is not about pleasing others. We will never fit into the things of the world. We can’t be like God and still fit in. If we conform, we can’t be transformed.
The Greek word used for ‘world’ is ‘ion’. It speaks of culture and values. As Christians, we should not conform to the habits and manner of this world. Our lives must be governed by the Word of God. When we live by the Word, we recognize that we don’t live for people, we live for God.
The system of the world originates from demonic spirits (Ephesians 2:1-3). We can’t pattern ourselves after any and everyone. The singers, actors and celebrities can’t be our heroes. They then become the pattern of how we live. Jesus Christ must be our hero, the One that we look to. We have to watch how we live and the things that we accept. We don’t live according to the world. All the fun is not in the world. As Christians, we can have fun. We can enjoy our lives. Jesus came to give us life and life more abundantly.
The way to transformation is the renewal of our minds. The word ‘mind’ speaks of intellect and emotions. Transformation must not only pertain to the body but to the soul. External change without internal change is not effective. The Holy Spirit renews our mind but we also have the responsibility to allow Him to do the work. The carnal mind refers to the flesh of the mind (Romans 8:5-6). God wants to take all of that out so that we can be spiritually minded. To be carnally minded is death and to be spiritually minded is life. God is after our stinky thinking. He is after the things that will lead us in the wrong direction. God doesn’t want us to function like ourselves but like Christ.
What are we being transformed into? Why is God after us? We were not saved to go to heaven but to live Christ in the earth. We are being transformed into the image of Christ. God wants the character and the mind of Christ to be in us (Ephesians 4:20-23). God will transform us through trials, worship and spiritual encounters.
My little children, for whom I labor in birth again until Christ is formed in you. Galatians 4:19
For whom He foreknew, He also predestined to be conformed to the image of His Son, that He might be the firstborn among many brethren. Romans 8:29
And as we have borne the image of the man of dust, we shall also bear the image of the heavenly Man. 1 Corinthians 15:49
