I'm Being Transformed

Introduction

1 John 5:4–5 CSB

4 because everyone who has been born of God conquers the world. This is the victory that has conquered the world: our faith. 5 Who is the one who conquers the world but the one who believes that Jesus is the Son of God?

Over the course of 2020 we have spent a great amount of time covering 1 John 5.4-5. Here we learn:

Everyone who has been born of God conquers the world.

We conquer the world by faith.

Our faith is based on the fact that Jesus is the Son of God.

This year we have set it as our goal to develop an unshakable faith that no one can destroy.

2020 Vision Plan Review

➟ ➟ ➟ We spent last winter talking about how to be strong, steadfast, and immovable. What does it mean to stand on what we believe?

During the spring we spent the time talking about challenges to our faith. We could have never imagined the great challenges we’d be facing as the country went on lockdown during March-May. Our faith was challenged in ways we could not have imagined.

Over the course of the summer we talked about defending our faith, taking the battle to Satan, and we spent August seeing how the church is built on Jesus.

And finally, over the last two months we’ve been talking about looking forward to the time when our faith becomes sight.

God fills us with the power to endure and carry on … no matter what life throws out.

And last month, we looked at how Jesus’ faithfulness to the Father inspires our faith.

November Sermon Preview

➟ ➟ ➟ Now as we reach the culmination of our teaching on Victorious Faith, during November we’ll get very practical on what victorious faith looks like.

Each lesson will be positive and uplifting.

We want to get you excited about day to day living where you can begin and end each day knowing that you’re making progress toward the goal of being conformed to the image of Christ.

What does Victorious Faith in Everyday Life look like? Over the next 4 weeks we’ll see:

Today: I’m Being Transformed Everyday (Romans 12.1-2)

11/8: I’m in the Word Everyday (2 Timothy 3.16-17)

11/15: I’m Busy in Prayer Everyday (Ephesians 6.18-19)

11/22: I’m Living in Thankfulness Everyday (Colossians 3.16-17)

I’m Being Transformed

➟ ➟ ➟ Before we dive into today’s text, it might be good to read from Paul’s writing:

2 Corinthians 5:17 CSB

17 Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has passed away, and see, the new has come!

This is a statement of fact if you’ve received Christ as your Savior through repentance, confession, and baptism.

The old has passed away, the new has come.

➟ ➟ ➟ Let’s look at Titus 3.5. You were made new on the day of your baptism:

Titus 3:5 CSB

5 he saved us—not by works of righteousness that we had done, but according to his mercy—through the washing of regeneration and renewal by the Holy Spirit.

On the occasion of your baptism, the Holy Spirit went to work directly regenerating your spirit.

Your heart was renewed by the Spirit.... not you. You can’t regenerate yourself.

"Renew” is a verb that stresses the quality of the Spirit’s work.

It is something “better than the old,” “wonderful,” or “superior in value or attraction.”

➟ ➟ ➟ 3.6 - “He poured out His Spirit on us abundantly.” The work of the Spirit was more than enough.

No person is too sinful or too far gone to be reborn.

God can take the worst and transform them into something beautiful.

Ephesians 2.10 says we are the workmanship of God - we owe everything to God. He has made us new and is recreating us in the image of Christ.

➟ ➟ ➟ Today we’ll look at Romans 12.1-2 and discuss how we participate in the process.

We get salvation from God… But what will we give in return?

Romans 12:1–2 CSB

1 Therefore, brothers and sisters, in view of the mercies of God, I urge you to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God; this is your true worship. 2 Do not be conformed to this age, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, so that you may discern what is the good, pleasing, and perfect will of God.

Here we see the Christian life is primarily an act of worship in which we give ourselves.

These verses are the first after 11 chapters of doctrinal instruction. Here the teaching turns practical.

What should be my response for what God has done for me?

Answer: you give yourself as a living sacrifice.

Its all about worship … and worship is about giving ourselves to God.

Romans 12.1-2 defines the Christian life. It spells out our personal responsibility to be participants in the process of transformation. One writer has described it as “the foundation of sanctification.”

What is sanctification?

It is the lifelong process of being transformed into the image of Christ.

It is a complete and comprehensive offering of ourselves to God .... as if we were priests placing ourselves on an altar.

By the way … your spiritual life is not about what you can get from God. (You already received everything you need in your salvation)

Your spiritual life is based on what you give to God.

The living sacrifice Paul mentions in v. 1 incorporates soul, body, mind, and will.

Lesson Overview

➟ ➟ ➟ Today, we’ll talk about what it means to be a living sacrifice.

We’ll see why we should be fully ready to offer ourselves to God.

We’ll learn how to offer ourselves.

We’ll see how this demonstrates the will of God.

Romans 12.1 - Living Sacrifices

The Basis of Paul’s Appeal

Therefore, brothers and sisters, in view of the mercies of God, I urge you to present your bodies as a living sacrifice.

It’s Personal

Paul appeals to them as a brother in Christ, a fellow believer, and with all sense of love and care, he exhorts them to respond accordingly.

And yes, he’s speaking with apostolic authority here, but this is personal for him.

➟ ➟ ➟ “I urge you.”

This is the word that means “to call to one’s side,” “to plead for,” or “to make an earnest request or appeal.”

Paul truly cares about their spiritual progress and growth.

The Mercies of God

➟ ➟ ➟ Paul makes his appeal in view of the mercies of God.

When you truly understand and contemplate all that God has done to save you through Christ, how can you do less than offer your body as a living sacrifice? Really, we need no other motive than this.

Check out these magnificent verses from Psalm 116:

Psalm 116:1–4 CSB

1 I love the Lord because he has heard my appeal for mercy. 2 Because he has turned his ear to me, I will call out to him as long as I live. 3 The ropes of death were wrapped around me, and the torments of Sheol overcame me; I encountered trouble and sorrow. 4 Then I called on the name of the Lord: “Lord, save me!”

Psalm 116:7–8 CSB

7 Return to your rest, my soul, for the Lord has been good to you. 8 For you, Lord, rescued me from death, my eyes from tears, my feet from stumbling.

Psalm 116:12 CSB

12 How can I repay the Lord for all the good he has done for me?

How can I repay the Lord for all the good he has done for me?

You can also connect Paul’s writing at the end of Romans 11. v. 36 says, for from him and through him and to him are all things. To him be the glory forever.

Our God is truly magnificent … and words can hardly describe our hearts response to His amazing mercy and grace!

Present Your Bodies as a Living Sacrifice

Present Your Body

➟ ➟ ➟ What does it mean to “present your body?”

"To surrender, yield, offer up.”

To hold nothing back.

And when Paul says to present your body… for what?

As a Living Sacrifice

➟ ➟ ➟ He is speaking of the whole life, or the whole person.

This is the dedication of every aspect of our being to God:

Soul, mind, body, and will.

All the components of our being human: How you think; how you reason; all that you are as a human being.

It is not only what we can give that God demands; he demands the giver.

And also note the three aspects of our sacrifice:

➟ ➟ ➟ It is living or dynamic.

No more dead sacrifices. God wants living men and women who present themselves as in indication of the genuineness of their faith.

➟ ➟ ➟ It is holy, which means “completely dedicated,” or “set apart” from the world & belonging to God.

➟ ➟ ➟ It is pleasing to God. We have completely surrendered to God so that He can equip us for what is good.

➟ ➟ ➟ Hebrews 13.20-21 - God is working in us what is pleasing in His sight, through Jesus Christ...

This is True Worship

➟ ➟ ➟ 12.1 - this is your true worship.

We are being called to worship that is not confined to one place or one time … But that which involves all places and all times.

I think we’ve done a disservice to ourselves by thinking that worship only involves what we are doing here today in this building together.

While corporate worship is a time of praise and mutual edification are important and commanded in Scripture ...

They are only one part of the continual worship each of us is to offer to God in the sacrifice of our bodies day by day.

Chrysostom:

“And how is the body, it may be said, to become a sacrifice? Let the eye look on no evil thing, and it hath become a sacrifice; let thy tongue speak nothing filthy, and it hath become an offering; let thine hand do no lawless deed, and it hath become a whole burnt offering.”

Romans 12.2 - Transformed by the Renewing of your Mind

There are two distinct contrasts in this verse. Here we see:

The pattern of the world vs.

the will of God.

The contrast here is between two differing types of models by which we can shape our life.

We are not to allow ourselves to be shaped by the world....

but to continue to allow ourselves to be recreated according to God’s will.

This is the process that began at your baptism … and it continues as we continually surrender to the truth of God’s word and the power of His Spirit.

Don’t Be Conformed to the World

➟ ➟ ➟ 12.2a - first the negative … do not be conformed to this age...

What does “conformed” mean in Romans 12.2a?

Philips translation: Don’t let the world around you squeeze you into its mold.

Don’t be “stamped out” with the world’s stamp. Don’t assimilate to the thinking and behavior of this world.

This is where we pick up the habits, mannerisms, expressions, and styles of this world.

We need to see the damage this does to us spiritually:

Worldliness makes the Christian unstable.

There is no solid footing when we adopt the ways of the world. Things constantly shift and sway … like the wind that constantly changes direction.

Written in present passive tense. In other words, this is something we allow to be done to us.

The imperative here is to stop allowing it to happen.

Quit allowing ourselves to be victimized by world and Satan’s devices.

You are no longer a helpless victim. You have been given the power to resist the pressure that comes from without and within.

➟ ➟ ➟ Romans 6.12-13a - consider yourselves dead to sin and alive to God in Christ Jesus. Do not offer any parts of it to sin as weapons for unrighteousness.

➟ ➟ ➟ Romans 6.13b - but as those who are alive from the dead, offer yourselves to God, and all the parts of yourselves to God as weapons for righteousness.

➟ ➟ ➟ Romans 6.14 - Sin no longer rules over you. You are not a helpless victim. You can win! The victory is yours!

Now we yield ourselves to a different pressure … the direction of the Spirit.

Be Transformed

➟ ➟ ➟ 12.2b - now the positive …be transformed....

What does “transformed” mean in Romans 12.2b?

Transformed comes from the word we use for metamorphosis.

It is an expression denoting deep or profound change. It is abiding in nature.

➟ ➟ ➟ 2 Corinthians 3.18:

2 Corinthians 3:18 CSB

18 We all, with unveiled faces, are looking as in a mirror at the glory of the Lord and are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory; this is from the Lord who is the Spirit.

don’t just read over this passage and miss the power of it.

Take a moment and think about who you were before you came to Christ … and now look at how far you’ve come by the power of Christ.

And like the previous verb in the verse, conformed, this one is written in present passive tense.

The transformation is not something we do or can do for ourselves … it is something done to us. The work of transformation is accomplished by the Spirit.

The imperative here is that we desire the change, consent to it, and yield to the power of the Spirit who resides within.

The real responsibility here is to allow ourselves to be transformed.

Paul is saying “stop allowing yourselves to be conformed by the world … and continue to let yourselves be transformed.”

How does this happen?

By the Renewing of Your Mind

➟ ➟ ➟ 12.2c - by the renewing of your mind...

This is the complete change of our thoughts, will, and desires.

Again … I want you to think in the idea of progression.

This change takes place over time. We play the role in the speed of this change.

This renewal changes every aspect of our life. When we change our thinking, orient ourselves to the biblical worldview, it will be seen outwardly by our words and conduct.

When things happen, good or bad, our immediate, reflexive, response should be biblical.

➟ ➟ ➟ Why? Look at Colossians 3.10. You are being renewed in knowledge according to the image of your Creator.

➟ ➟ ➟ Colossians 3.2 - this is the mind that has been set on things above … not on earthly things.

➟ ➟ ➟ Colossians 3.16 - it is the mind that is being saturated with the word of God.

This Proves What the Will of God is

➟ ➟ ➟ 12.2d NASB - So that you may prove what the will of God is, that which is good and acceptable and perfect.

ESV & CSB both use the word discern here.

The word means “to put to the test,” “to prove for oneself,” “to demonstrate the genuineness of.”

When we submit to the renewal of our minds by the power of the Spirit, we prove, by our life, what the will of God is.

We demonstrate the will of God.

You put the will of God on display. We are the living proof that the will of God is good, lofty, and noble.

Again … how can we not be humbled by this … in light of where we were before our regeneration … and the extent that God has renewed and is renewing us to something that is “better than the old,” “wonderful,” or “superior in value or attraction.”

For the Next 7 Days

Over the next 7 days we want to encourage you to think about your personal transformation.

Here we’ve included over 30 different character traits of Jesus.

As you think of those areas in your life and how far you’ve come in the transformation process, how many of these virtues are becoming more evident in your life? What is not as evident as it needs to be?

Think areas that your strong in … how can you thank God for working in this area of your life? How can you come to excel even more in these areas?

Think areas that your weak in … what are some ways you can more effectively surrender to the Spirit’s leading inside these areas?

Starting today … and going through Saturday we want you to pick one of these virtues to focus on.

As We Close

How have you responded to God’s mercy? Have you responded to it?

Have you given all of yourself as a living sacrifice?

Fellow Christian, are you resisting the pressure to conform to this world? Not allowing yourself to be shaped by what everyone else does?

Are you surrendering to the constant pressure of the Spirit to be transformed into the same image from glory to glory?

Are you committed to the renewing of your mind by filling your mind with spiritual things?

Are you proving the will of God and displaying how it is good, lofty, and noble?

If not, why not?

Can you help you today to begin that process? All things are ready.