2 Corinthians 5:17 Therefore if any man is in Christ, he is a new creature; the old things passed away; behold, new things have come.
Romans 12:2 And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what the will of God is, that which is good and acceptable and perfect.
On Facebook I read a post from one of the Celebrate Recovery pages that 'Some say "God loves us if we change. The Gospel says: God's love CHANGES us." ' And I thought isn't that the truth. Why do we get it so confused? He came and redeemed us! We were already in a broken state and He didn't ask us to change and then die on the cross. He came so that we could break free from such brokenness.
I looked up a few Bible verses to help illustrate that exact point. The first verse in 2 Corinthians states that IF any may is in Christ he is a new creation. It doesn't say that WHEN. It just says that we have to believe and God will make a new creature out of us.
And the second verse in Romans 12:2 states that we should not conform to this world but instead allow ourselves to be transformed and you will prove the will of God. Again His will is already there before ours.
If we stayed in the ways of this world, wouldn't we be stuck in our world of addictions? This world that says it's OK to drink to block out the world no matter what the cost, or it's OK to check out with drugs or it's OK to view pornography and view women in such a degrading way and it's OK to eat the supersize at McDonald's even if it is bad for your health - all because these things make you feel good. For a fraction of a moment. And then the regret and shame kick in. And so the cycle continues.
Jesus knows we can't do this on our own and is NOT asking for us to change and then come to him. He is saying "Hey..down there...I want better for you! I actually have a plan to get you out of your pit! Your way isn't working..wanna try my way?!" And check out that verse in Romans 12:2 - it says His way is perfect. PERFECT! Well goodness knows I have made a mess of my life so why wouldn't I want to go with the way that has only good things in store for me and is perfect.
We have got to try and stop measuring up to what we think Jesus wants us to be before we approach Him. It's just not how he works. If you haven't come to accept this yet please search the scriptures for this evidence. If you already know this message and believe it then it's our job to share this message with others. That IS part of His plan.
