Metamorphosis of the Soul

I get such a kick out of God’s creation.  Some creatures truly astound me.  The butterfly is one of them. Seriously, how on earth could a lowly insect with up to 16 legs go through a “metamorphic” process to emerge the most breathtaking creature that can now fly? Yet, when I think about the transformation this caterpillar must go through to become this free-flying butterfly, I can easily visualize a similar metamorphosis of the soul for us as humans. As unbelievers we can be compared to the caterpillar, and as Christians, as we continually surrender our lives to the Lord, it is as if we can be compared to the new creature—the butterfly. But, it all begins with faith. The caterpillar must have instinctively had faith that something better was waiting for him. He didn’t want to spend the rest of his life crawling around on his belly. So, he began the process of spinning himself into a chrysalis where he would remain and undergo a radical transformation. Likewise, we need faith to begin our journey with God too. In God’s infinite wisdom, He placed an instinctive need and desire in all humans to seek after Him. There is a void in our hearts that simply cannot be satisfied with anything or anyone else. Furthermore, we will not experience this full life until we fill it with His Presence.

Faith is the root of the Christian life. It is a confident belief and trust that God exists; that His only Son, Jesus Christ, came to earth as a baby, lived, suffered, and died for our sins. This faith gives us hope to live our earthly lives, often times filled with tragedy and heartache, with perseverance, knowing that one day we shall receive eternal life with our Father. This faith allows us to live in this sin-filled world and be a light unto the darkness, not succuming  under it. In the Bible, faith is defined as “being sure of what you hope for and certain of what you do not see” (Hebrews 11:1). “And without faith it is impossible to please God because anyone who comes to Him must believe that He exists and rewards those who earnestly seek Him” (Hebrews 11:6).  Ironically, faith is something that God Himself imparts to us. His righteousness imparts to all people the ability to believe that He is God and that He sent His only Son, Jesus Christ, into the world to save us. “For God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him” (John 3:16-17).

We have been given the ability to believe; however, we are the ones who must put our faith in Jesus Christ.  This is something God will never force us to do. Sometimes, however, God allows us to get to the end of ourselves. In other words, although He doesn’t cause hardships, He allows the natural consequences of life, which includes the choices we make, to bring us to a place of desperation where there is nothing else to do but “look up.” This is the place of utter neediness and the place of surrender.  We surrender our hearts and our lives to a holy God who is and remains Sovereign.  We finally recognize that we are NOT in control, and this brings us to the perfect place where God works the most incredible miracles in our lives. When we turn to Him with childlike faith asking Him to help us in our distress, He performs the most radical surgery in our hearts.  He turns our hearts of stone into hearts that long to believe and love Him.  This isn’t an instantaneous thing.  Rather, it is a processing of surrendering our desires and turning our lives over to the One who knows and loves us the most. 

Believe me, there is work involved in this process.  This is what I call proactive faith.  Faith always requires action—it is not passive—idly sitting by doing nothing and expecting God to do it all. Our job is to seek after God with all of our heart, soul, and mind. “Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives; he who seeks finds; and to him who knocks, the door will be opened” (Matthew 7:7-8). His job is to transform our hearts.  And He will! The more we seek after Him through prayer, immersing ourselves in the Bible, and fellowshipping with other believers, the more radically He transforms us.  We slowly begin to change on the inside—comparatively like a butterfly going through a metamorphosis. “And we, who with unveiled faces all reflect the Lord’s glory, are being transformed into his likeness with ever-increasing glory, which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit” (2 Corinthians 3:18). Sometimes we will not even be aware of how much we are changing, but eventually we will notice that we have been transformed on a deeper level. Maybe the same TV shows we used to watch appall us now, or when we hear the Lord’s name being spoken in vain, we cringe. And, we may even notice our own language beginning to “clean up.”  Others, too, will notice that we are different.  Those who are going through their own spiritual transformation will understand and applaud you.  Those who are not will question what happened to the “old” you.

Again, I can’t think of a better analogic comparison than that of the caterpillar that once crawled around on the floor, eventually spinning itself into a cocoon, and then emerging a beautiful new creature—a butterfly! And now for Butterfly Metamorphosis 101: Did you know that once inside its cocoon, a caterpillar changes into a pupa and slowly digests itself from the inside out, causing its body to die? During this partial death, some of the caterpillar's old tissues are salvaged to form new ones, and this remnant of cells is used to create a new body. Using its digestive juices, the caterpillar turns his old larval body into food which he uses to rebuild its new body. Eventually he is ready to emerge from his cocoon and then begins the process of pushing on the walls of the shell until it breaks open.  And we all know just how beautiful he is when he emerges with strikingly colorful, iridescent and patterned wings!

This “metamorphic” process is exactly what happens to us as we seek after the Lord with all of our hearts. We cocoon ourselves when we spend time with the Lord in worship and the study of His Word. When we fellowship with other believers, when we sit still in the Lord’s Presence.  It is the Holy Spirit who transforms our souls, and it is what He does best!  Left to our own strength we could never be “good enough” and would never emerge a new creation. Yet, the closer we draw to Jesus, the more the Holy Spirit is able to work in our lives. This, as mentioned before, is a process. (This is no different than the caterpillar that remains in the cocoon for quite a while). That is why believers still sin. Others who judge and criticize them do so unwisely, because walking in the Christian life is a day by day choice.  We are all “works in progress,” and will continue to make mistakes, lose our temper, and sin. However, because the Spirit lives in our hearts, He will convict us of our sin. Quick repentance follows because we will not like how we feel.  We know that our sin has grieved the Holy Spirit who lives within us. As we confess our sins and ask for His help in avoiding sin, we are restored to our Holy Father.  Sin will become less alluring to us as the Spirit continues to deepen our faith and draw us closer to the heart of God. We emerge as new creations in Christ. “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come!” (2 Corinthians 5:17).  This is all such a marvelous mystery.

The beautiful irony is that God knows us so intimately and loves us so immensely that He allows certain trials and tests to come our way in order to deepen our faith.  Simply put, He loves us too much to leave us the way we are. But these hardships are never to harm us…only to teach us to depend on Him and grow spiritually.  Trials have a way of doing that like nothing else.  Ask any strong Christian how they became so grounded in the Lord, and they will, no doubt, talk about some deep trials and struggles they had to face and go through. These struggles brought them to a place of surrender as they relied on Him to deepen their faith and trust in an unseen God; and, how they would never, ever turn back to their old ways!  I am one of them.

It is important to remember that we are not justified or made right with God by “observing the law”, but by faith alone in Jesus Christ (Galatians 2:15). In the Bible, the Galatians were confused as they believed that they received the God’s Spirit by simply observing the law. “Are you so foolish? After beginning with the Spirit, are you now trying to attain your goal by human effort? Have you suffered so much for nothing—if it really was for nothing? Does God give you his Spirit and work miracles among you because you observe the law, or because you believe what you eard?” (Galatians 3:3-5). It goes on to say that Abraham believed God and that his faith was credited to him as righteousness. Likewise, we who believe, are credited as righteous through our faith in Jesus Christ. “The Scripture foresaw that God would justify the Gentiles (all non-Jews) by faith, and announced the gospel in advance to Abraham: ‘All nations will be blessed through you.’  So those who have faith are blessed along with Abraham, the man of faith” (Galatians 3:8-9). 

That is such good news for us because we could never observe the law perfectly anyway.  Jesus took care of that for us when He suffered and died on the cross for our sins. He took on the penalty for our sins through His precious blood. “Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law by becoming a curse for us, for it is written: ‘Cursed is everyone who is hung on a tree.’ He redeemed us in order that the blessing given to Abraham might come to the Gentiles through Jesus Christ, so that by faith we might receive the promise of the Spirit” (Galatians 3:13-14). But be warned—that does not give us license to sin because He took care of it for us.  We should strive to live a sinless life, and with the Holy Spirit’s help, we are empowered turn from sin. “His divine power has given us everything we need for life and godliness through our knowledge of him who called us by his own glory and goodness” (2 Peter 1:3). 

More good news—we can escape the corruption in the world caused by evil desires.  If we add to our faith goodness, knowledge, self-control, perseverance, godliness, kindness, and love, and if we continue to increase these qualities through the help of the Holy Spirit, God’s Word promises that we will not be ineffective and unproductive in our knowledge of the Lord, Jesus Christ.  We do not have to be slaves to sin. “It is for freedom that Christ has set us free.  Stand firm, then, and do not let yourselves be burdened again by a yoke of slavery” (Galations 5:1).

Throughout God’s Word, we are given precious promises from the Lord Himself that encourage and motivate us to godly living.  One of the promises I treasure the most comes from 2 Peter 1:10-11, “For if you do these things you will never fall, and you will receive a rich welcome into the eternal kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.”  I can almost imagine the scene.  Jesus welcoming me into His loving arms and eternal Kingdom forever.  No matter what has happened in my life, all the hardships I have endured and all the pain that I have suffered, will have been worth it all.  To know that my life counted for something bigger, including all of its sorrows and disappointments; to know that I am His, and that I will live forever with Jesus….well, nothing on earth could ever compare to this immense joy!

Spirit-Led Christians

I was so excited when our pastor announced that he would be preaching a series on the Holy Spirit. I vividly remember in my Christian walk wondering what all the hoopla was about the Holy Spirit. I had always believed in God as Creator of heaven and earth, and I knew that Jesus, His Son, died for my sins. But as I began to study God’s Word more intently, the question kept coming up, “Who and what is the Holy Spirit?” I must confess that I did not even know that the Holy Spirit was a Person. In fact, I thought He was an “It” or just some kind of powerful force. Thankfully, my curiosity led me to the Christian bookstore where a myriad of books lined the shelves on that very topic. One of my favorite eye-opening books about the Holy Spirit was written by Charles Stanley—The Holy Spirit Filled Life. I even memorized his definition of being filled with the Spirit—“A moment by moment sensitivity to and dependence on the initial promptings of the Holy Spirit.” These books, along with the most important book of all, the Bible, are what opened my eyes to the power of the Holy Spirit that is available to all Christians. Unfortunately, far too many Christians are not aware of His power, and, therefore, not living Spirit-led lives.

So, can you guess what the difference is between a Christian and a Spirit-led Christian? Of course, a Christian is someone who has surrendered his life to Jesus Christ as his Lord and Savior. He believes in the triune God—Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, and he knows that he is a sinner in need of forgiveness and grace. He is typically a church-goer, worships and prays to God on a somewhat regular basis, and may have even been baptized. He is a normal person with many of the everyday struggles that are common to everyone. He tries to be a morally upright person, and he has the assurance that if he died tomorrow, he would be guaranteed entrance into heaven. Sounds pretty good, right? What else is there to being a Christian? Well, if that is as good as it gets, no wonder so many Christians don’t live their lives any different than unbelievers do. These Christians have neglected the power source that lives within them—the Holy Spirit. That is probably why statistics report higher divorce rates among Christians, and why so many continue to struggle with the same issues and addictions that plagued them before they gave their lives to Christ. If this is the case, is there anything about a Christian that would even attract an unbeliever to God?

A Spirit-led Christian, on the other hand, is someone who not only has surrendered his life to Christ, worships and attends church services, prays and read his Bible, but has learned the art of staying connected to the true power source—the Holy Spirit. He has experienced hardship and trials and realizes that independent of the ongoing power of the Holy Spirit, he is incapable of doing anything worthwhile. He knows the vital difference between being a believer and living his life empowered by the Holy Spirit. He has learned that in his own strength he will burn out, and that it is absolutely necessary to draw on the power of the Holy Spirit in order to make it through this world’s temptations, struggles, and hardships.

The Bible teaches us a lot about the Holy Spirit. Not only does He convict the world with regard to sin, He guides us in truth, and He brings glory to God as He works in harmony with the Father and the Son. Nothing He does is ever contradictory to the Word of God. In fact, He uses the Word of God to illuminate truth into our hearts and enables us to recall what we have read. There is no limit to what the Holy Spirit can and will do through a believer who is faithfully dependent on His continual guidance and empowerment. He continually intercedes, comforts, teaches, corrects, encourages, and leads us in living our lives to bring honor and glory to God. His mission is to bring all men unto Himself and He uses Spirit-led Christians to help fulfill this enormous task. The Holy Spirit cannot be fully fathomed nor can He be adequately described. He is experienced. One thing we know—He is the reason we can have a vibrant relationship with our Heavenly Father. He knows God’s thoughts and makes them known to us. He gives us the mind of Christ.

As Spirit-led Christians, there must be a difference between us and the world. If we just blend in with the rest of the world, there will be nothing different about us to attract others to Christ. We are to be set apart, to be holy. We are to live in the world, but not be of the world. Some thought provoking questions you might ask yourself—“Is the Holy Spirit active in my life? Does He own all of me?” Instead of asking, “How can I get more of the Holy Spirit?” make your question, “How can the Holy Spirit have more of me?” Is there anything I need to do, confess, or surrender? Maybe I need to give up control over a certain area of my life. Do I need to forgive someone who has hurt me? How can I become more proactive in my relationship with Jesus?

The beauty of having a relationship with Jesus is that you can come to Him just as you are—flaws and all. You don’t have to have it all together first, and you don’t have to fix yourself or be perfect. That is the work of the Holy Spirit. When you surrender your life to Jesus, the Holy Spirit takes up residence in your spirit. He is your helper, comforter, and advocate. It is so comforting to know that you don’t have to change yourself on your own. In fact, you can’t. He is the one who is at work in the deepest places of your heart teaching, guiding, and even disciplining you. He is the one responsible for changing your perspective as He continually leads you through the process of sanctification. As you stay connected to the Lord through prayer and His Word, you will make progress day by day. You are literally being changed into the likeness of Jesus. This is the Holy Spirit in action—He’s busy at work changing you from the inside out.

Yes, you need Jesus for your eternal life, but you need the Holy Spirit for your internal life. He is the One who initiates, enables, and sustains your relationship with God. He is often compared to the wind—you can’t see Him, but you can feel His presence. Now isn’t it time to give Him the attention He deserves? Make it your goal to walk with an ever- increasing awareness of God’s power that is available to you every single moment of the day through His Holy Spirit. There is simply no need to walk around in defeat, for our victory has already been secured by Jesus on the cross. Now, let us hold unswervingly to the hope we profess, because He who promised is faithful. And may the eyes of our hearts continue to be enlightened in order that we may know the hope to which He has called us, the riches of His glorious inheritance in the saints, and His incomparably great power for us who believe (Ephesians 1:18-19).

Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom. And we, who with unveiled faces all reflect the Lord’s glory, are being transformed into his likeness with ever-increasing glory, which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit. 2 Corinthians 3:17-18

But the counselor, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you all things and will remind you of everything I have said to you.” John 14:26

If you love me, you will obey what I command. And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Counselor to be with you forever—the Spirit of truth. The world cannot accept him, because it neither sees him nor knows him. You know him, for he lives with you and will be in you. John 14:15-17

..because those who are led by the Spirit of God are sons of God. For you did not receive a spirit that makes you a slave again to fear, but you received the Spirit of sonship. And by him we cry, Abba,Father. The Spirit himself testifies with our spirit that we are God’s children. Romans 8:14-16