Romans 12:1-2
I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that you present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, which is your reasonable service. And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God.
One of the more recent quotes I’ve adopted as my own is attributed to American writer and businessman Alvin Toffler - “The illiterate of the 21st century will not be those who cannot read and write, but those who cannot learn, unlearn, and relearn.” This quote really stands out to me as a truism we must take very seriously. As we approach a new season (fall), we’ve already been warned of new challenges on the horizon. But I pray we’ve learned that with every new challenge, God provides new opportunities for His name to be glorified. The challenges ahead are not what worries me. I’m more concerned about how we are going to respond. Have we learned anything this last year? Do we have the capacity to forget the constructs and conventions of our past and move forward in our newly discovered realizations with new strategies, methodologies and convictions? Or are we forever stuck in the dungeons of our past?
I sincerely tried not to once again break out my favorite scripture from my favorite New Testament writer, but I just couldn’t resist. The events of our day continuously call for proactive discovery. We can no longer afford to casually or thoughtlessly stroll through life assuming everything is going to be just fine. There is a fight on our hands that can only be won as we adopt the principles set forth in scripture for our lives. Not doing that automatically makes us susceptible to the tricks of the Enemy. Let’s never forget we’re in a battle. Thank God the battle is not ours, it’s the Lord’s. But fought the Lords way.
As much as we resist change have you ever noticed that all of scripture speaks of change? The believer is waiting to be changed from mortal to immortal. Jesus came and changed the fate of mankind. And we Christians testify all the time that since coming to Jesus our lives have been forever changed. Yet all too often, we find ourselves resisting meaningful change in our daily walk. We’re looking to be changed, but not necessarily to make changes. What’s going on with us? We know change is inevitable, yet we doggedly hold onto spiritual distractions, often to our own detriment. What is it?
I contend this is what I’m identifying as cultural conditioning. Cultural conditioning is a demonic stronghold that no matter which environment you find yourself in, renders you powerless to escape its clutches without heavenly intervention. No matter where you end up on the worldly societal scale, unless you give everything to Jesus, innovate, resist and deny yourself, you’re on the wrong side of the will of God. And nobody wants to live there. But we will if we give into cultural pressures.
The world has a way of thinking. The world’s thoughts are contrary to the will of God on every level. The Bible is crystal clear. In Isaiah God remarked, “For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways…As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts.” There’s no tying the world’s way of thinking to God’s way of living. Righteousness is not a human expression. Holiness is not carnally accessible. The only way out of our earthly dilemma is through transformative change. And that necessitates a change in our minds.
We spoke about the idea of learning, unlearning and relearning in a recent Bible study and concluded that there were numerous historical and societal issues that pressure us each and everyday. Things as simple as how we introduce ourselves in public hold tremendous strongholds over our lives. We place education, attainment of wealth, titles, positions, race, color, clothing and any number of things in the forefront our the discussion of who we are, while placing our association with Jesus Christ well in the background. Simply identifying ourselves as believers and nothing else would be a significant start toward self sacrificial living. Redeploying our resources, rethinking what corporate worship could look like with us all on the same page, loving without dissemination, sharing with parity in mind and dozens of other selfless acts of affection could set the stage for the true spiritual revival we know God is seeking to release. But we can’t do any of that with our old mind set, can we?
So, dear Children of the Most High, I ask you once again. Who’s ready for change?
