Day Seven, January 18th – Renewed in Christ
Day 7- Renewed in Christ
You’re doing so well! Continue to press in as you are halfway through our fast. Things get a bit clearer in these last days. Be diligent to record what the Lord speaks over your life.
Where does renewal start? Does it happen at a conference or in an experience with God? Does it happen when you “feel” or experience the power of God through a manifestation of his glory? In our charismatic circles, the answer would be a resounding yes, and while I agree, it leads me to a second question.
What gives renewal its staying power in our lives?
This one is a bit tricky, as most can reflect on an encounter with the power of God but lament slipping back into old ways shortly after it. So then, what gives renewal its staying power?
I had a lovely encounter with God at our Tuesday night worship time. It was powerful! I wept at the altar as his love overwhelmed my soul, and I poured out my heart to him in ways I had never done before. I cried out, “I don’t ever want to leave this moment,” and Jesus made it clear that I didn’t have to. But I can’t live my life lying before the altar, so then how does this moment last? What must I engage in to have that moment last?
There are two scriptures for today that I would encourage you to meditate on. Perhaps you struggle with that and are saying, “I don’t know how to meditate on something.” Bill Johnson shares that if you have lain awake at night worrying about something, you know how to meditate; now we just need to change the subject matter to something better … Jesus and His kingdom.
Ephesians 4:23–24 (ESV) 23 and to be renewed in the spirit of your minds, 24 and to put on the new self, created after the likeness of God in true righteousness and holiness.
Romans 12:1-2 (ESV) (ESV) 1 I appeal to you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship. 2 Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.
Paul shares with the Ephesians and Romans the importance of renewing our minds. First, what does that mean? Over the years, I have defined the renewal of the mind as learning the kingdom perspective on a subject and making that the truth I live by. It is changing our mindset from one way of thinking to the kingdom way of thinking.
Often, I think that Paul’s expertise in this gets overlooked. Paul had a profound renewal of his mind as a result of his experience on the road to Damascus in Acts 9. Paul’s power encounter required a radical renewal of his mind. He thought followers of Jesus were an abomination. His understanding was that they needed to be imprisoned, punished, or put to death for their heresy. Only to be confronted by the power of God and hear Jesus say, “Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me?” 5 And he said, “Who are you, Lord?” And he said, “I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting (Acts 9:4b-5).
Saul the persecutor became Paul the apostle, but it wasn’t a power encounter alone that changed him; it was the renewal of his mind in “true righteousness and holiness”(Eph 4:24). He had to decide that what Jesus said was true, and he had to choose to unlearn what he previously thought and adopt what Jesus told him was true. He was transformed from a murderous persecutor to a sold-out lover of Jesus and of those who follow Him. This is the fruit of a renewed mind. A transformed life.
For union in Christ to go from a concept to a reality, we have to change the way we think. We must learn the kingdom’s perspective on everything and determine that it will be the truth we live by, especially when it comes to our identity in Christ. Slipping back to former ways of thinking robs us of stepping into God’s desired outcome of our encounters with Him.
As our minds are renewed, our lives are transformed. We grow from one measure of faith to another (Rom 1:17), and our transformation leads from one measure of glory to another (3 Cor 3:18).
What are you learning about the kingdom of God and where you fit as a son or daughter in Christ? What are you unlearning as Jesus reveals these truths to you? Write them down, and pray this with me, “Jesus, as you are teaching me the ways of your kingdom and who I am in You, reveal the lies I have believed and the new truths I need to live by, and help me to live that out. I invite your Spirit to convict me whenever I slip back into old ways of thinking so I can reengage the wonder of your kingdom and move from glory to glory in You.”
All my love,
PL