Spiritual Transformation Study

 

 

The nature and process of Spiritual maturity

 

by Steve Cornell 

 

 

We must begin with an affirmation of the power of the gospel to change lives.

Consider the following scriptures: 

Romans 1:16;Colossians 1:13;Ephesians 2:1-10;John 6:44,65;Matthew 11:27-30;John10:27-30;I John 5:13 w/ 1:6-8,10;2:3-4,6,15-17;3:6,9-10,14-15;4:5-6,20;5:1;I Peter 1:17-19;

 

 

Evidence of a salvation encounter with God is recognized in:

Five desires found in true believers

 

1. To _please__God (II Corinthians 5:9)

2. To _know__God’s Word (I Peter 2:1-2)

3. To _be with_God’s people (Hebrews 10:25;I John 5:1)

4. To _share_the gospel (Matthew 28:19-20)

5. To _overcome_sin (I John 3:9)

 

 

 

Consider three dimensions of spiritual transformation:

 

 

1. God’s work: Philippians 1:6;I Thessalonians 5:23-24;Hebrews 12:10;13:20-21;II Peter 1:2-3;Jude 24-25

 

2. Our responsibility: Philippians 2:12-13;Romans 12:1-2;13:14;I Corinthians 9:25-27;I Timothy 4:7-“exercise yourself toward godliness” or “train yourself to be godly”-athletic metaphor; II Corinthians 7:1w/ I John 1:9;I Peter 1:17;2:11;Ephesians 6:10-12. Note: We are not passive recipients but active participants.

Forgive as Christ forgives-Ephesians 4:32

Love as God loves- Ephesians 5:1-2

Be merciful as God is merciful- Luke 6:36

Be holy as God is holy- I Peter 1:15-16

 

 

3. Our destiny: Philippians 3:19-20;I John 3:1-2

 

 

 

Additional Scriptures on spiritual transformation:

 

“And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose. ²⁹For those God foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the likeness of his” (Romans 8:28-29)

 

^“Therefore, I urge you, brothers, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God–this is your spiritual act of worship.

 

²Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is–his good, pleasing and perfect will” (Romans 12:1-2)

“Rather, clothe yourselves with the Lord Jesus Christ, and do not think about how to gratify the desires of the sinful nature” (Romans 13:14)

 

“But we all, with open face beholding as in a glass the glory of the Lord, are changed into the same image from glory to glory, even as be the Spirit of the Lord.”  (II Corinthians 3:18 )

 

“My dear children, for whom I am again in the pains of childbirth until Christ is formed in you”  (Galatians 4:19)

 

“¹¹It was he who gave some to be apostles, some to be prophets, some to be evangelists, and some to be pastors and teachers, ¹²to prepare God’s people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up ¹³until we all reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God and become mature, attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ. ¹⁴Then we will no longer be infants, tossed back and forth by the waves, and blown here and there by every wind of teaching and by the cunning and craftiness of men in their deceitful scheming. ¹⁵Instead, speaking the truth in love, we will in all things grow up into him who is the Head, that is, Christ. ¹⁶From him the whole body, joined and held together by every supporting ligament, grows and builds itself up in love, as each part does its work (Ephesians 4:11-13).

 

“I planted the seed, Apollos watered it, but God made it grow. ⁷So neither he who plants nor he who waters is anything, but only God, who makes things grow. ⁸The man who plants and the man who waters have one purpose, and each will be rewarded according to his own labor. ⁹For we are God’s fellow workers; you are God’s field, God’s building”  (I Corinthians 3:6-9).

 

“As obedient children, do not conform to the evil desires you had when you lived in ignorance. But just as he who called you is holy, so be holy in all you do; for it is written: “Be holy, because I am holy” (I Peter 1:14-16).

 

“Since we have these promises, dear friends, let us purify ourselves from everything that contaminates body and spirit, perfecting holiness out of reverence for God” (II Corinthians 7:1).

         

“Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you. Be imitators of God, therefore, as dearly loved children and live a life of love, just as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us as a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God” (Ephesians 4:32-5:2).

 

“God disciplines us for our good, that we may share in his holiness” (Hebrews 12:10).

          “Make every effort to ….be holy; without holiness no one will see the Lord” (Hebrews 12:14).

         

“But the day of the Lord will come like a thief. The heavens will disappear with a roar; the elements will be destroyed by fire, and the earth and everything in it will be laid bare. Since everything will be destroyed in this way, what kind of people ought you to be? You ought to live holy and godly lives” (II Peter 3:10-11).

 

“…train yourself to be godly (I Timothy 4:7b).

 

 

 

         5 Essential Resources for spiritual transformation:

 

1.  God’s _Spirit–_ Ephesians 5:18-21; Galatians 5:16-17, 22-23

 

 

 

 

 

2.  God’s _People_ Hebrews 3:13-14;13:17; Ephesians 4:11-16

 

 

 

 

 

 

3.  God’s _Word__ Hebrews 4:12; I Timothy 3:16-17; James 1:21-25; I Peter 1:23;2:1

 

 

 

 

 

 

4.  God’s _throne_ Hebrews 4:16; Colossians 4:12; James 4:8; I Peter 5:7-8

 

 

 

 

 

 

5.  God’s _discipline_ Hebrews 12:1-11; James 1:2-5; I Peter 1:6-8

 

 

Church: A Worshipping and Witnessing Community

 

The church is a worshipping and witnessing community (I Peter 2:5, 9) responsible to evangelize, establish and enlist people by bringing them to Christ, helping them grow in Christ, and encouraging them to serve Christ.

 

1.     Evangelize – Bring people to Christ to know Him as Savior and follow Him as Lord.  “Follow Me!”  (Matthew 4:19, Luke 9:23; 14:33; Colossians 2:6)

 

2.     Establish – Help people come to maturity in Christ – to grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ (II Peter 3:18; Ephesians 1:17; 4:1-16; Colossians 1:28-29; 2:6-7; 4:12)  “Abide in Me!”

 

 

3.     Enlist  - To encourage each believer to serve Christ in witness and ministry (Matthew 5:13-16; 28:18-20; Galatians 5:13; I Peter 4:10-11)

“Make disciples of all nations!”

 

 

 

 

Each believer must be: Ministry minded, Ministry equipped, and Ministry enlisted

 

 

Question:  How does the structure of our church facilitate the fulfillment of God’s purpose?

 

Purpose - - - — Strategy - - — - Structure

 

 

 

Steve Cornell

 

 

 

The path to spiritual maturity

by Steve Cornell

 

A maturing Christian is in the process of bringing his will into conformity with God’s will. Under the gracious and compelling influence of God’s Spirit, this growth process will impact his intellect (as he uses his mind to explore God’s truth), his will (as he increasingly yields to God’s authority), and his emotions (as he cultivates godly affections and repudiates evil desires).

 

“For the Christian, the path of connectedness to God involves the development of a Christlike mind, will, affections (or emotions), character, relationships and actions. When any of these capacities is undernourished, our spiritual growth will be stunted” (e.g. When physically and emotionally depleted, we are less available to God) (Bruce Demarest, Satisfy Your Soul: Restoring the Heart of Christian Spirituality).

 

A maturing Christian will demonstrate increased personal holiness– tempered by a godly humility that rejects self-righteousness and legalism. True obedience to God flows from love for God (Deuteronomy 6:1-9).

 

Spiritual maturity is God’s primary goal for our lives. God is actively and progressively changing us into the image of Christ. He is far more concerned about changing us than He is about changing our circumstances. God’s changes are thorough—affecting every aspect of our being—our thoughts, attitudes, values and actions. It is a deep transformation of character. Consequently, sometimes these changes are painful (Hebrews 12:1-11).

 

 

Protect your marriage by changing the way you speak to each other!

 My burden to help troubled marriages compelled me to start a sermon series on communication in marriage relationships. When marriages fail, their demise can often be traced back to destructive communication patterns. My series will focus on four of these patterns.

Four negative patterns of communication that hurt good relationships:  

 

1. Escalation: What Goes Around Comes Around

 

Escalation occurs when partners respond back and forth negatively to each other, continually upping the ante so the conversation gets more and more hostile.

 

2. Invalidation: Painful Put-Downs

Invalidation is a pattern in which one partner subtly or directly puts down the thoughts, feelings, or character of the other.

 

3. Negative Interpretation: When  perception is worse than reality

 

Negative interpretations occur when one partner consistently believes that the motives of the other are more negative than is really the case.  This can be a very destructive, negative pattern in a relationship.  It makes any conflict or disagreement harder to deal with constructively.

 

 

4. Withdrawal and Avoidance: Hide and Seek

 

Withdrawal can be as obvious as getting up and leaving the room or as subtle as “turning off” or “shutting down” during an argument.  The withdrawer often tends to get quiet during an argument, look away, or agree quickly to a partner’s suggestion just to end the conversation.

 

 Audio for first message:

Download Sermon (8.36 mb)

 

Source of categories: A Lasting Promise: A Christian Guide to Fighting for Your Marriage, Scott Stanley

 

 

 

 

The best sign of Spiritual growth

 

“Pervasive, all-of-life repentance is the best sign that we are growing deeply and rapidly into the character of Jesus” (Tim Keller).

 

How does the gospel affect and transform the act of repentance? What is the difference between gospel repentance and religious repentance?

 

To learn more, http://www.greentreewebster.org/Articles/All%20of%20Life%20is%20Repentance.pdf

 

Steve Cornell

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Five part summary of Christian living

A recent evangelical manifesto (http://www.anevangelicalmanifesto.com/), emphasizes seven central beliefs considered “at the heart of the message of Jesus and therefore foundational…” The seveth is a nice summary of the Christian life and can be considered in five parts: 

 

 

We believe all followers of Christ are called to:

 

1. know and love Christ through worship

 

2. love Christ’s family through fellowship

 

3. grow like Christ through discipleship

 

4. serve Christ by ministering to the needs of others in his name

 

5. share Christ with those who do not yet know him, inviting people to the ends of the earth and to the end of time to join us as his disciples and followers of his way.

 

 

Could you attach supporting Scripture to each point? Would you add or take away anything from these points? I think the fifth could include an ephasis on discipling those who come to know Christ. Which one/s especially challenge you? What do you plan to do to strengthen areas where you are lacking?

 

 

 

Steve Cornell 

Three motives for pleasing God

In my walk with God, three motivations for obedience have become important. I do not see an order of priority to them but view each as an expression of a good relationship with God. The three are faith, love and fear.

1. Faith:

When I choose to disobey God, I show my lack of faith in him. Scripture says, “…without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him” (Hebrews 11:6). Each time I sin, my confession could involve an admission of my failure to believe in God.

2. Love:

Disobedience also expresses a lack of love for God. This is the all-encompassing requirement of God which reveals his desire for a relationship with us. Jesus identified love for God as the greatest command for us to obey. “Love the Lord your God,” he said, “with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind” (Matthew 23:37). Obviously, when I choose to displease God, my actions betray superficial or weak love. Again, my confession could involve an admission of the inadequacy of my love for God.

3. Fear:

Finally, fear of God is clearly the required attitude toward Him. Not only is the fear of the Lord the beginning of wisdom (Proverbs 9:10), fearing the Lord is repeatedly associated with shunning evil (see: Proverbs 3:7; Genesis 22:12). Further, “To fear the Lord is to hate evil” (Proverbs 8:13). Each time I choose to disobey God, I show that I do not fear Him. Confession of sin should involve acknowledgement of my refusal to fear God.

Three motivations for pleasing God: faith, love and fear. Each one has a strong relational dimension. God desires a relationship with us through our redeemer, Jesus Christ. But God defines the nature of how to relate to him. Build these three motivations into your walk with God and your confession of sin.

Steve Cornell

Hopeless without my Advocate!

by Steve Cornell

 

A truth that has become increasingly real and special to me is found in the New Testament letter titled First John. I am sure you’ll find immediate application because of the opening line. Here it is: “…if anybody does sin, we have one who speaks to the Father in our defense—Jesus Christ, the Righteous One” (I John 2:1). The goal of life was mentioned in the prior verse. “My dear children, I write this to you so that you will not sin” (I John 2:1). Another verse in the New Testament, describes the Christian life as a “struggle against sin” (Hebrews 12:4).

 

For many people, sin is an unclear and undesirable subject. Yet we all recognize that we do wrong things for which we feel guilty. If sin is understood as an offense against another, we all sin. Therefore, the need for forgiveness is real to all honest people. Some, of course, limit this to a horizontal experience. Human forgiveness is all they trouble over. But, deep inside, I believe most people feel a need for forgiveness that is greater than human forgiveness. If we were created to be in a reconciled relationship with our Creator, we need His forgiveness when we sin against Him. And, I suggest that sin is more than violation of the Creator’s Law. It is equally offense against the Creator on a personal level. My confession of each sin could always be started with the admission, “I have sinned against you, my Creator.” Jesus pictured the prodigal son saying, ‘Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you. I am no longer worthy to be called your son (Luke 15:21). Sin is always a relational issue.

 

This takes me back to my opening reflection.  “…if anybody does sin, we have one who speaks to the Father in our defense—Jesus Christ, the Righteous One” (I John 2:1). Another translation renders it, “…if anyone sins, we have an Advocate with the Father…” (NASB). The New Living Translation opens up the meaning further with the rendering, “if anyone does sin, we have an advocate who pleads our case before the Father. He is Jesus Christ, the one who is truly righteous” (I John 2:1). And the next verse is crucial to the matter: “He (Jesus Christ) is the atoning sacrifice for our sins, and not only for ours but also for the sins of the whole world” (I John 2:2).

 

The idea of an atoning sacrifice for sin (or, as older translations say, “propitiation”) is common to religion. But there is a major difference between the Christian understanding and all the other religious concepts of it. In religion, the sinner brings something to offer to the deity hoping to pacify the angry god/s. In Christianity, God’s righteous anger toward our willful rebellion and sin is withdrawn from us because the punishment it deserves has been placed on our willing Savior, Jesus Christ (See: John 10:17-18). In this way, the satisfaction of the wrath of God toward sin has been accomplished by the love of God through the gift of God. From our end, the hymn writer paints the right picture, “Nothing in my hand I bring, simply to the cross I cling.” God is both the propitiator and the propitiated.

 

As I walk with God in this life, I have an increased awareness that I would be doomed if I did not have an advocate with God the Father. I would like to say that I don’t sin anymore but the truth is the more I learn about God and His will, the more I realize that I do not measure up to His glorious being and purpose. Yes, I desperately need the one who pleads our case before the Father. And, with profound gratitude, I know that God has provided for my need. And, not for mine only, but for the whole world! Reflecting on this truth, the apostle broke out in a line of praise:

 

“And all of this is a gift from God, who brought us back to himself through Christ. And God has given us this task of reconciling people to him. For God was in Christ, reconciling the world to himself, no longer counting people’s sins against them. And he gave us this wonderful message of reconciliation. So we are Christ’s ambassadors; God is making his appeal through us. We speak for Christ when we plead, “Come back to God!” For God made Christ, who never sinned, to be the offering for our sin, so that we could be made right with God through Christ (II Corinthians 5:18-21, NLT).

 

This draws me to three passages from the New Testament book of Hebrews. Let these truths settle deep within your heart. Here you’ll find peace that passes human understanding to guard your hearts and minds in Jesus.

 

“Such a high priest meets our need—one who is holy, blameless, pure, set apart from sinners, exalted above the heavens. Unlike the other high priests, he does not need to offer sacrifices day after day, first for his own sins, and then for the sins of the people. He sacrificed for their sins once for all when he offered himself (Hebrews 7:26-27).

 

“For Christ did not enter a man-made sanctuary that was only a copy of the true one; he entered heaven itself, now to appear for us in God’s presence. Nor did he enter heaven to offer himself again and again, the way the high priest enters the Most Holy Place every year with blood that is not his own. Then Christ would have had to suffer many times since the creation of the world. But now he has appeared once for all at the end of the ages to do away with sin by the sacrifice of himself. Just as man is destined to die once, and after that to face judgment, so Christ was sacrificed once to take away the sins of many people; and he will appear a second time, not to bear sin, but to bring salvation to those who are waiting for him” (Hebrews 9:24-28).

 

“Therefore, since we have a great high priest who has gone through the heavens,^[e] Jesus the Son of God, let us hold firmly to the faith we profess. For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are—yet was without sin. Let us then approach the throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need” (Hebrews 4:14-16).

 

Closing with a great hymn seems appropriate. Reflect on these words, or hit the link below and sing it!

 

Rock of Ages, cleft for me,
Let me hide myself in Thee.
Let the water and the blood,
From Thy wounded side which flowed,
Be of sin the double cure,
Save from wrath and make me pure.

Not the labor of my hands
Can fulfill the law’s demands;
Could my zeal no respite know,
Could my tears forever flow,
All for sin could not atone;
Thou must save, and Thou alone.

Nothing in my hand I bring,
Simply to the cross I cling;
Naked, come to thee for dress;
Helpless, look to Thee for grace;
Foul, I to the fountain fly;
Wash me, Savior, or I die.
Foul, I to the fountain fly;
Wash me, Savior, or I die.

While I draw this fleeting breath,
When my eyes shall close in death,
When I soar to worlds unknown,
See Thee on Thy judgment throne,
Rock of Ages, cleft for me,
Let me hide myself in Thee.
Rock of Ages, cleft for me,
Let me hide myself in Thee.
Let me hide myself in Thee.

 

http://x.imeem.com/zUilvW_RhA

 

 “God saved you by his grace when you believed. And you can’t take credit for this; it is a gift from God. Salvation is not a reward for the good things we have done, so none of us can boast about it. For we are God’s masterpiece. He has created us anew in Christ Jesus, so we can do the good things he planned for us long ago” (Ephesians 2:8-10, NLT).