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My usual table leader, Alice, wasn't there this morning, so I sat at the same alternate table as last week. Three men are facing medical issues, two of whom are members of the Fellowship Group and both of whom sit at the table I've been at. The other is the father of a former classmate of mine from HS. And now it turns out my classmate's mother is also in the hospital!! Another woman needs prayer at work. Her boss is unpredictable in moods one day to the next, from what I was hearing. Also keep my other regular table leader, June, in prayer. She seems to have gone exploring for a new Church from what Alice has said. Idk any more about it than that, but just pray that she and her husband, Tom find God's best for them.
Dave led the session again this morning covering the next portion of the material, which is the topic of Conversion.
We looked briefly at Romans 12:1-2 to see what essence of Conversion is --
Romans 12:1-2 – Therefore, I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God's mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God—this is your true and proper worship. Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind.
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Paul tells us here, via his message to the Romans; that Conversion involves the offering of ourselves as a Holy Sacrifice by the transformation of our lives as the direct result of the renewal of our minds to Christ.
It is important to keep a couple of things in mind here -- while the decision of our Conversion to Christianity may either be the result of a long struggle of belief with the evidence of a prayer spoken at a specific time and date or simply a change of heart with unclear boundaries of time or decision resulting from ongoing growth of knowledge; the transforming of our hearts to Christ is an ongoing process. Salvation itself may be a "one and done" decision and/or action, but living for Him every day requires ongoing maintenance in order to "keep the faith" in our hearts and minds*. And maintenance is necessary for growth. With Spring on the horizon, many of you may be looking at your garden space and planning for the new season. You have an understanding that you don't just plant a seed and leave it alone. You water it, keep weeds and pests away from it, prune it if necessary, and finally harvest the crop. A lot of work goes into it. The same goes with anything, really. Learning a new skill demands that you practice it numerous times. If you've read my Sermon Summaries to any great degree, you know that I have a recent history in local Choral groups. The Director of one such group was fond of reminding us, "Don't practice until you get it right, practice until you can't get it wrong." Excellent advice, right?? So why do we allow ourselves to get so lax with our Salvation?? I mean, I believe wholeheartedly in Eternal Security, but if our Salvation is nothing to us but "Fire Insurance", what good is it really doing us now?? How can we properly obey the Great Commission of sharing the Gospel if we're complacent about it for ourselves?? Like stoking a fire to keep it going, we need to keep ourselves "stoked" about God's Word.
Philippians 2:12 says that we need to, "work out your Salvation with fear and trembling." That indicates that we need to pay attention to it consistently until Jesus' return or our own demise, whichever comes first. And just so we're all on the same page, "fear and trembling" doesn't mean we need to be afraid of messing up or of losing our Salvation. It's just talking about the way any healthy relationship should be maintained. We want to be mindful of whether our behaviors or speech will cause our partner to be disappointed in us. If we truly love them, we won't want that to happen any more than necessary. (It's not realistic to expect it to never happen) It's just a part of "tending the garden" or "practicing the song"... While the World is going crazy making up new rules every few months, we have the reassurance of God's stability in His ongoing, never changing love. (Mal. 3:6 and Heb. 13:8) It's the one True Source of hope in this world.
Jesus kept the Gospel simple. Whosoever believes and calls on God will be Saved. That's it!! Anything else is peripheral and ultimately unnecessary to Conversion, if not the Christian Life itself*. A decision based on belief is all that's required. No Bible Study, no Confirmation Classes, not even Baptism when you look at the Thief on the cross next to Jesus.
Paul extorts his people to have passion for Christ. It is our example, after all, that attracts (or detracts) others to or from God; not our words. (communication is 90% body language/tone and only 10% words)
True passion is evidence of our character. This means being sincere rather than "putting on a show" to make ourselves look good. Or "going through the motions" to make God look good. People are smart, they'll know the difference, or someone will tell them. Either way, somebody's going to see through it*.
Romans 12: 9-21 provides a "Character Checklist", if you will. Not that all points need to be covered ahead of Conversion, but all should be evidenced as we mature in Christ. Which brings to mind something I didn't get a chance to share in the group this morning... There are Churches that insist people essentially be "perfect" before they can be invited into Membership or in some cases, even into the building. That is a sad commentary on those denominations/Churches. The first Disciples Jesus called were Peter, James, and Andrew. Fishermen. Why?? I feel like this was His way of reminding us that fish need to be caught before they can be cleaned. If we're not inviting the "fish" in properly, they won't want to come and if they are truly among those who will eventually choose God, they will not belong to our Church, but someone else's*. People have certain ideas about what "character" means, such as "who we are", "integrity", and "the basis for our actions" (the last one was mine). God tells us, through Paul's writings, what He wants it to look like --
-- love without hypocrisy -- devoted in prayer (pray in the moment, not later)*
-- abhor evil -- fill the needs of the saints
-- cling to good -- hospitality
-- be devoted to others in love -- bless those who curse you
-- prefer others in honor -- bless, not curse
-- diligence in faith -- rejoice with those who rejoice
-- fervent in spirit -- mourn with those who mourn
-- serve God -- have unity of mind with fellow believers
-- rejoice in hope -- not haughty
-- persevere in trials -- associate with the "lowly"
and finally...
-- be humble
-- no payback of evil with evil
-- do right in front of others
-- be peaceable
-- no revenge
-- don't be overwhelmed by evil
PHEW!!!
Quite a list, isn't it?? How many can you check off?? Paul is not looking just at the moment of Conversion here; but at how our lives should look after the fact, over time. Dave quoted former College Basketball Coach, John Wooden, as saying, "Ability may get you to the top, but it takes character to keep you there."*
As we look at John 14:6, we see Jesus talking to the Disciples saying, "I am the Way, the Truth, and the Life. No man comes unto the Father but through me." Romans 5:8 Reminds us that we were all sinners before accepting Jesus as Savior. Both of these verses have the following points in common --
1) Conversion is impossible without belief. That being said, belief in the existence of God is possible without the result of Conversion. James 2:19 tells us that, "even the demons believe and tremble at the knowledge of God." They know He exists, but don't accept His Salvation. Therefore, knowledge and belief are not guarantees of understanding the truth of Who God IS.
2) The promise of Eternity by way of Salvation
3) Jesus is faithful regardless of our sin. We're GOING to mess up, that's the exact reason for Jesus' sacrifice. The fact of our continued humanity has no bearing on His love or Salvation once we have accepted it. Not to say that His grace gives us permission to misbehave; but that His grace remains consistent regardless of our mistakes.
4) The Holy Spirit guarantees God's promise of Salvation. Think of the Spirit as "collateral" against a loan. God has left us something of value to assure His full payment on His part of the Covenant of Salvation. As a bonus, that "collateral" is useful in guiding our paths in the Christian Life. We have only to request His help.
Another element of Conversion involves repentance from sins. This doesn't just mean turning away from sin and standing there. We need to then move toward Jesus in order to support our changes of attitude/behavior. Satan doesn't just stop bugging us when we get Saved. He continues to prey on our human weakness and thereby reduce the reputations of Christians to the World in an attempt to lower the numbers stacked against him. Of course, this is in spite of the fact that he knows God has already beaten him by Jesus' death and resurrection... But God allows it in order to make us stronger in Him. Anyone who's ever worked out knows that resistance increases strength.
The smaller group discussions followed with these questions posed --
How might repentance play a part in the conversion process?? Is repentance even likely to occur prior to one's conversion or is it just viable after one is converted??
Our answers included the realization of a problem, resulting in the need for conversion (mine), and an evolution of change (Bill's).
What are some of the character checklist items that pose the biggest obstacles to taking the step of conversion??
No one really had a solid answer for this other than the possibility of blessing those who curse you (Bill). I was going to mention here the thing I said above about Churches expecting perfection ahead of their invitation, but didn't get the chance.
What secular issues exist in our Western Culture today that hinder the conversion process??
I mentioned the varying definitions of "truth" that abound lately. Dave brought up the weakness of Churches to resist Evil Political movements. He cited German Churches not standing up against Hitler in spite of the best efforts of Dietrich Bonhoeffer. Someone else also brought up the skepticism of people in believing that Jesus is the only way to God or that God is the only source of salvation.
Why is the conversion process more fruitful in underdeveloped areas of the world??
The points of fewer media distractions, fewer material goods, and poor governments were cited. These people need something/someone positive to provide hope in their lives. (my thought rn)
God Bless!!
Footnotes --
1) Maintenance is required to "keep the faith in our hearts and minds" -- Due to the promise of Eternal Security, our souls are safe trusting that our decision for Salvation was sincere. Hebrews 6:4-6 is key here.
2) Nothing other than belief in Who God is and calling on His Name are mandatory to Salvation -- there are those who believe that the evidence of speaking in other tongues is a necessary sign and that Baptism is mandatory as a next step in obedience. Once again, the Thief on the cross who repented to Jesus at the last minute is clear evidence against both. Besides which, if anything else were mandatory to Salvation every. single. verse. on the subject would include them. They don't. End of story.
3) People can spot a fake -- that being said, not everyone who is thought to be fake actually is. We can't see people's hearts, and the judgment of their lives based on their possessions can be unfair. I have personal experience with Jesse and Cathy Duplantis. Their hearts for God are undeniable when you experience a service under their ministry. I've also attended a Benny Hinn meeting and am deeply disappointed in his later financial scandal, but I believe that the healings were real. (I've been healed 2x by others) It's also true that even a "fake" can still be used of God to bring "stray sheep" back to the fold. Case in point, a good friend of mine who was influenced by Joel Osteen.
4) Pray in the moment -- I've started doing that when someone on my FB needs prayer. I stop and do it right then so I can't forget and I'm being honest when I comment about having prayed or that I am praying.
5) The "fish" will end up elsewhere -- we don't always know if our job is "setting the bait", "tending the net", or "bringing in the catch". The point lies in doing it, and doing it right.
6) When I re-checked the wording of the quote, I noticed that others have been cited as having said basically the same thing. Zig Ziglar and Stevie Wonder, for two.
