JOURNEY OF TRANSFORMATION
(7-minute read)
Suppose you are asked to rate your journey with God so far, how many stars would you give it? You might give it a 5-star rating if you are enjoying a stable income, frequent travels, dining at upscale restaurants, and pursuing any hobby and interest you want without any constraints. But when you think about all that you do not yet have, or perhaps even likely to lose right now, you may wonder if you should downgrade your score. After all, God’s promises have not yet been fulfilled in your life. He would certainly deserve a 5-star rating when you win that unfair divorce settlement, when you can finally be mortgage-free, or if you never have to see a complaint filed against you for your abusive behavior that makes the office a toxic place for others.
If this reflects your thinking, it is most likely that your journey with God has never strayed far from the shore. Your life has continued to be anchored in what mattered to you only, and hindered you from embracing God’s restorative discipline that leads to spiritual wholeness.
God has planned great journeys for us to discover with Him only when we completely hoist our anchors and ride through the thick and thin, the highs and lows of surrendering to Him. However, the headwinds and hard hitting waves we face are often the forces of resistance within ourselves such as sticking to unhealthy habits and self-centered values, as well as elevating opinion over obedience that altogether impede our spiritual regeneration. We may have all the appearances of being on a journey with God, yet having no evidence of progress and growth.
Whatever our age and life stage, we are to ‘continue to work out (our) salvation with fear and trembling… for it is God who works in (us) to will and to act in order to fulfil His good purpose.’ (Philippians 2:12-13 paraphrased).
Salvation opens up for us a new journey of transformation with our Savior and Lord; not one where we remain in the false security of shore, or stuck in a trajectory of performative Christianity that is skin-deep and superficial. Rather, our lives are to accurately reflect the Gospel (Philippians 1:27a).
There are three C’s to look out for as important guideposts in the journey of transformation.
CONVICTION WITH HOLY FEAR
Anyone who enjoys daily communion with God will experience His regular conviction of missteps and errors through the Holy Spirit’s prompting. It is really not a healthy sign to say that we have been doing everything right and have not given God any reason to be displeased with us. Such one-sided assessment of the state of our journey with God contributes little to real progress and growth.
God has given us the Holy Spirit who is like the best-in-class navigation device that no ship will ever set sail without. The Holy Spirit monitors any deviations in our lives from the Word of God, calculates the safest course to God’s intended destinations, warns us about dangers and risks, and helps us navigate rough conditions and also around other travellers for the best outcomes (Ephesians 5:3-7).
After King David had committed adultery and murder at the same time, he went on to live in complete denial of any moral crime until “The Lord sent Nathan to David” for a full exposé of David’s sins (2 Samuel 12:1). Nathan declared unequivocally, “You are the man!” (2 Samuel 12:7). But instead of mounting a self-righteous argument to defend his behavior, David simply responded, “I have sinned against the Lord.” (1 Samuel 12:13). Consider for a moment that a most powerful king who could legally do anything he wanted did not do a single thing to exonerate himself of his sins before God.
You see, David understood this fundamental truth: that God’s conviction of sin is not a condemnation of his personhood. God convicts us to repair the wounding in our relationship with Him when we repent, ask for His forgiveness and stop the sinful behaviour. Sure, David had to face severe consequences for his sins but he should immediately stop murdering people and taking their wives.
Our cultural norms of the day do not give us the license to live outside the Word of God (John 16:8). But when convicted, we will be moved to the next response.
CONFESSION WITH DEEP REPENTANCE
King David confessed out of his desire for rightness with God. He did not confess with words of platitude to sound remorseful but he did it with a heart of sincere penitence. “Against You, You only, have I sinned
and done what is evil in Your sight; so You are right in Your verdict and justified when You judge.” (Psalm 51:1-4 in full). David’s strength came from his vulnerability, and his security came from his submission to God.
Godly repentance is motivated only by the desire to change, to be accountable to another human (for David, it was the prophet Nathan), and to walk humbly towards healing and transformation.
David was desperate for change because he knew the spiritual void of living in disobedience. It is a difficult and painful estrangement from God that no material comfort can mask. Hence, he cried out to God, “Create in me a pure heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me. Do not cast me from Your presence or take Your Holy Spirit from me. Restore to me the joy of Your salvation and grant me a willing spirit, to sustain me.” (Psalm 51:10-12).
When we submit fully to God’s redemptive love to transform us, we will experience something remarkable.
CONVERSION WITH OVERFLOWING GRATITUDE
Conversion is not just a cosmetic touch-up on the outside. Neither is it some work on self-improvement. But a deep transformation that God works inside of us through the Holy Spirit.
“My old self has been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me. So I live in this earthly body by trusting in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me.” (Galatians 2:20). When we accept God’s conviction and respond with a truthful confession of our sin (calling a spade a spade), what we will experience is a complete shift in our position on whatever God sees as sin in our life. Once cold and hard, we are now drawn towards Jesus. Connected to the Vine, His DNA becomes our DNA as we grow in Christlikeness.
True transformation follows true conversion and it involves continuous improvement and incremental change. It is not a one-time act or something that happens to us after a weekly dose of Christian activity. Conversion takes place when we recognize aspects of ourselves that fail to thrive in godliness and we surrender our struggles to God. Pride and disobedience are often hidden in our normative coping behaviour (what we call preference and personality) that develop into negative patterns that cause problems and difficulties in life.
Jesus taught His disciples, “Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free… Very truly I tell you, everyone who sins is a slave to sin.” (John 8:32, John 8:34).
This journey of transformation into Christlikeness is critical for all believers, or we might as well not call ourselves Christians. But where our transformed lives are lived out, who Christ is will become more important than who we are. When transformation takes place, we move from self-preservation to investing in other lives.
As the apostle Paul puts it so strikingly clear, “I don’t mean to say that I have already achieved these things or that I have already reached perfection. But I press on to possess that perfection for which Christ Jesus first possessed me. (Philippians 3:12).
Let nothing and no one stop or hinder you from walking through the journey of transformation so that your life will stand out from the rest like a shining star in the sky as you “hold firmly to the word of life” (Philippians 2:15).
This is a summary and reflection based on a virtual BIR Session held on 6 May 2024
