9 Marks Sunday School Lesson- A Biblical Understanding of Conversion
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Today we are dealing with the doctrine of Soteriology.
Insufficient development in this arena leads to a weak understanding of conversion and in many cases a church comprised of unregenerate people.
If we are to be a healthy church, we must understand what it means to be a Christian.
Discussion Questions:
What happens when a person is saved? How does it happen?
What do you think are some consequences of getting conversion wrong?
The author accomplishes this goal by asking 5 questions.
1. Is Change Needed?
· Rom. 3:9-20
· Paul makes it clear that none are righteous. We are all sinful and in rebellion against God.
· Mankind tries to convey sin as a part of human nature, but this is not the case. Sin is not the original disposition of mankind, thus what we see is not true humanity, but a twisted distorted picture of it that came into being in the Fall.
2. Is Change Really Possible?
· Many people deny the ability to be changed but the Bible speaks in direct opposition to this idea.
3. What Change is Needed?
· The World’s best attempt at the concept of change is not about altering ourselves. Instead, change ought to be geared at becoming the best version of ourselves, or maximizing our potential.
· Instead of going on a journey to find ourselves, or becoming the “real me” the Bible describes the type of change needed.
· Not discover but Repent
· “The word repent in the Old and New Testament literally means to turn. It means to turn from our sins and to the one true God. We need to resign the claims to be the final judges and governors of our own lives and acknowledge that that role belongs to God alone. Our past sins need to be forgiven. Our present lives need to be reoriented. Our future destiny needs to be changed from the Hell of God’s righteous judgment to the heaven of God’s gracious forgiveness in Christ.”
· “The real change that we need is this conversion from worshiping ourselves to worshiping God, from being guilty in ourselves before God to being forgiven in Christ. This is the change we need.”
· True Christians are not self-obsessed but instead have a new disposition. We seek to live lives that honor God.
4. What Will This Change Involve?
· Mental Acceptance?
o Some reduce salvation to a mere acceptance of a few truths, and if you adhere to them then you are saved. This is called easy-believism. You make a decision, walk an aisle, fill out a card, and say the mystical sinner’s prayer.
§ Within this view, there is little to no true change.
o This line of thinking has condemened many men and women for the Bible speaks of a much more radical change necessary.
o Two things will be evident in the heart of a Christian:
§ Repentance: change of heart towards God.
§ Faith: belief and trust in Christ and His Word.
· Moral Resolve?
o Every other religion focuses on moral achievement, but Christianity says it is impossible. Thus, this is an insufficient change.
· Mere Relying on Christ
o In true conversion, there is not an attempt to justify oneself before God.
o In the great change, the person moves away from self-worship and justification, instead resting in the salvation secured by Christ alone.
5. How Does This Great Change Happen?
· We Do Nothing?
o All over the Bible, there are commands to repent and believe the Gospel. This indicates a call for mankind to respond.
· We Do Everything?
o This leads to the next question. Is it all about my decision?
o If it is all a matter of our decision then ultimately we are the ones in charge of our destiny, and the destiny of others. This line of thinking led to many of the unbiblical practices that plagued so much of evangelicalism today and is foreign to the Bible.
· God Works Saving Faith in Us
o You and I as image bearers of God were made to know and worship Him, but the issue is our heart/ will is unwilling to obey and love Him. We need a new heart.
o We are saved and given a new heart by the initiative of the Father
§ Ezek. 11:19
And I will give them one heart, and a new spirit I will put within them. I will remove the heart of stone from their flesh and give them a heart of flesh,
· In order to turn to Christ, we must first have a heart willing to do so.
§ John 6:44
No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws him. And I will raise him up on the last day.
· The drawing is done by the Father.
o This occurs through the regenerating work of the Holy Spirit.
§ Eph 2:8
For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God,
· Faith is a gift given by God.
§ Titus 3:5-7
he saved us, not because of works done by us in righteousness, but according to his own mercy, by the washing of regeneration and renewal of the Holy Spirit, whom he poured out on us richly through Jesus Christ our Savior, so that being justified by his grace we might become heirs according to the hope of eternal life.
· It is through the regeneration of the Holy Spirit that Christians are justified and redeemed.
o The means used by the Spirit is the Word of God.
§ Isaiah 55:10-11
“For as the rain and the snow come down from heaven and do not return there but water the earth, making it bring forth and sprout, giving seed to the sower and bread to the eater, so shall my word be that goes out from my mouth; it shall not return to me empty, but it shall accomplish that which I purpose, and shall succeed in the thing for which I sent it.
· The Word accomplishes exactly what God intends it to.
§ Ezekiel 37:1-10
“Conversion certainly includes our own actions. We must make a sincere commitment. We must make a self-conscious decision. Even so, conversion- real conversion- is more than that. Scripture is clear that we are not all journeying toward God- some having found Him, others still seeking. Instead, Scripture presents us as needing to have our hearts replaced, our minds transformed, our spirits given life. We can do none of this for ourselves. The change each human needs, regardless of how we may outwardly appear, is so radical, so near our roots, that only God can bring it about. We need God to convert us.”