Saturday, June 22, 2019 -
I’ve often written and spoken about how the process of being transformed into the person God wants us to be is a lifelong process, never fully being complete. A key verse is Romans 12:2 – “And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your minds, that you may prove what the will of God is that which is good and acceptable and perfect.”
In Colossians 1:6, Paul speaks further of the gospel that transforms us, “which has come to you, just as in all the world also it is constantly bearing fruit and increasing, even as it has been doing in you since the day you heard of it and understood the grace of God in truth…” Let me repeat that – the gospel is constantly bearing fruit and increasing in us! This is the process of “walking in Him” (Col. 2:6), “having been firmly rooted and now being built up in Him and established in your faith, just as you were instructed, and overflowing with gratitude (Col. 2:7). When we are transformed by the renewing of our mind, we are being built up in Him and become established in our faith. In Him, we are made complete (Col. 2:10), and we are “made alive together with HIM” (Col. 2:13). In Colossians, Paul calls this process of transformation the putting on a “new self” (Col. 3:10). How do we do this? We “keep seeking the things above” (Col. 3:1), set our mind on the things above, not on the things that are on the earth (Col. 3:2). This means we are to consider our earthly body as dead to immorality, impurity, passion, evil desire, and greed, which amounts to idolatry (Col. 3:5). We are to put aside all of the things we were once living in: anger, wrath, malice, slander, abusive speech from our mouth, and not lying to one another (Col. 3:7-9). This “new self” means our mind is being renewed to a true knowledge according to the image of the One who created us (Col. 3:10). And so, we are to put on a heart of compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience; bearing with one another, and forgiving one another, whoever has a complaint against anyone; just as the Lord forgave us, so we should do. And beyond all these things, we should put on love, which is the perfect bond in unity (Col. 3:12-14).
This is a tall order, but it is what we should be moving towards, becoming truly Christ-like, through the renewing of our minds! The process never stops until we are united together with Christ! “For God has not called us for the purpose of impurity, but in sanctification” (I Thessalonians 4:7).