Episode 31
How Then Shall We Live? Unpacking the Blueprint for a Transformed Life
The heart of our conversation today revolves around the pivotal question: "How then shall we live?" We've been delving into the transformative nature of the kingdom and what it means to be part of God's people, moving beyond the confines of traditional worship to embrace a life that reflects a deeper spiritual reality. This isn’t just about attending church; it’s about embodying the teachings of Christ in our daily lives, showcasing a new creation that Paul describes in Romans 12. As we explore the biblical foundation for living out our faith, we’ll discuss how our minds must be renewed to drive true transformation, allowing us to become agents of change in a world that often tries to mold us in its image. So, grab your metaphorical hard hats and join us as we break down the blueprint for a life shaped by God’s truth, leaving behind the old and stepping into the new!
Takeaways:
- The nature of God's kingdom is more complex than mere church attendance; it's about embodying a transformative lifestyle.
- Transformation, as highlighted by Romans 12, begins with a renewed mind, which is essential for living out one's faith.
- True redemption serves a higher purpose than forgiveness; it aims to cultivate a community reflecting Christ's image and values.
- Understanding the essence of 'ekklesia' challenges modern church practices, emphasizing a spiritual fellowship over mere institutional structures.
- The process of transformation is intentional; it requires a heart willing to embrace God's truth rather than waiting for a mystical experience.
- The question 'How then shall we live?' is not just about avoiding sin but about actively pursuing a life that reflects God's will and character.
Transcript
Good day to you and welcome to our studies together.
Speaker A:We have been entertaining the thought of doing some more writing and I have really been focusing the last couple years and our studies together on the nature of the kingdom, the ecclesia, just exactly what that is, how the first century was an age of preparation to establish a pattern of life for God's people in the new kingdom.
Speaker A:We've been talking about that extensively.
Speaker A:We've talked about Romans quite a bit because he talks about that new creation that has been accomplished by the death, burial and resurrection of Christ and the transformed life of Romans, chapter 12.
Speaker A:In addition to that, we have spent a considerable amount of time in the book of Ephesians, where Paul talks about the grand scheme of redemption that has been brought to pass through Christ coming into the world and into this period of time, the perfect time, the fullness of time, and accomplish the will of God by his own atoning, sacrifice, and then giving gifts unto men, apostles, prophets, evangelists, pastors and teachers for the perfecting of the saints and.
Speaker A:And for a specific period of time.
Speaker A:That is, it had a purpose and it had a duration, at which point the plan of God had been accomplished and fulfilled, using the Greek word teleos, which has to do with a goal being fulfilled or accomplished, an end being achieved.
Speaker A:And so we've spent quite a bit of time talking about all of that.
Speaker A:And now I want to direct our attention to some very practical things.
Speaker A:I have asked on a number of occasions just exactly what does God's people look like?
Speaker A:If you had to describe the people of God, what would it look like?
Speaker A:Well, in the modern world, you think, well, it looks like people going to church somewhere and going to a worship service or something of that kind.
Speaker A:I hope that you realize by now that that is not what God's people look like and it really doesn't describe at all.
Speaker A:As a matter of fact, we don't put God in a box or between four walls and call it God's house and go to this thing and then leave this place of worship to return to the world on this horizontal plane that we live in from day to day and put God back on the shelf, as it were, until such a time that we return to this place of worship and repeat the same thing over again.
Speaker A:That does not describe someone who is a servant of the living God.
Speaker A:So for several weeks now, I want to focus on that.
Speaker A:I don't know exactly where this will take us inevitably, but as we study together, we will allow God's Word to direct us in the study and where it actually takes us.
Speaker A:I would like to try to develop this theme on the foundation of a title which I will call How Then Shall We Live.
Speaker A:You know, everything that Christ accomplished in his death, burial and resurrection and his ascension was not merely for our forgiveness.
Speaker A:It was for our transformation.
Speaker A:We are to be holy.
Speaker A:And this sanctified life that describes what the Bible calls his people, the saints, is something that has been accomplished by Christ, his death, burial and resurrection, and our obedience to that form or that pattern of teaching.
Speaker A:And it is a resurrected life.
Speaker A:And when Paul discusses it in chapter six, he talks about being raised to newness of life.
Speaker A:And then in chapter 12, he describes this life as being something that's not conformed to the world.
Speaker A:We're not shaping ourselves by culture's norms and by the expectations of society, but rather we're being transformed by the renewing of the mind.
Speaker A:That's an ongoing process, the renewing of the mind.
Speaker A:But the transformation, at least the point at which we begin that transformation, is the point in which we have changed our mind, that we have surrendered our wills to the will of Christ.
Speaker A:It has to do with the heart, the soil.
Speaker A:If you go back to the parable of the sower, it has to do with the kind of soil we become, because that will determine whether the seed will produce or not.
Speaker A:The seed is God's power.
Speaker A:It's the same.
Speaker A:Doesn't make any difference.
Speaker A:It's the power of God unto salvation.
Speaker A:Romans, chapter one, verse 16.
Speaker A:That's the gospel.
Speaker A:It has the same power today as it ever had before.
Speaker A:The problem, the real determining factor as to whether it grows and produces according to its kind is what kind of soil that seed has been sown into.
Speaker A:And so we are preparing hearts.
Speaker A:We're talking about heart transformation, so it's called.
Speaker A:It's being transformed by the renewing of the mind.
Speaker A:That we may then prove what is that good and perfect and acceptable will of God.
Speaker A:The proof, then, is by presenting our bodies a living sacrifice.
Speaker A:The proof is how we live our lives.
Speaker A:And that's really what I want to focus on.
Speaker A:But to get to that point, I want to be sure that we understand, if you might call it steps or the progression that leads us to this new way of living.
Speaker A:The purpose of redemption was never simply to pardon us.
Speaker A:It was to produce a different kind of people, a people who bear the image of His Son and live as citizens of his kingdom.
Speaker A:In the previous studies, and if you were to go back to some of my writing, the books that I have already published, we've begun to trace the identity of the people of God.
Speaker A:From Scripture.
Speaker A:We describe the people as a called out people, not by human organization, but by divine initiative.
Speaker A:We've explored the meaning of the word ekklesia, which is not a church planting project or establishing churches across the Middle East.
Speaker A:And it certainly isn't denominational structures that exist today.
Speaker A:But we've described it as a class of people.
Speaker A:The people are called out of the world.
Speaker A:They've been brought into fellowship with Christ.
Speaker A:God knows those that are his and that is his redeemed his people.
Speaker A:But as this redeemed assembly of God's children, they are a spiritual family that span all ages, from all time, and yet, for the moment, at least in the present form, a spiritual community.
Speaker A:It is seen and lived out in our homes, the sphere of fellowship and it's the expression of hospitality and goodwill toward others.
Speaker A:We've contrasted this biblical identity with the modern phenomena of churchianity, I call it, which is a religious industry that too often replaces the living community of Christians with human inventions.
Speaker A:Noted.
Speaker A:We've also noted in the past the role of the Holy Spirit that prepared God's people for this new and better kingdom.
Speaker A:But from there we considered the new creation reality that's described there in Romans 6.
Speaker A:Those who are united with Christ have died with him.
Speaker A:They have been buried together with him into his death.
Speaker A:And it's done, Paul said in verse four, by baptism being buried with him and risen with him into a new realm of life.
Speaker A:But our story does not end at the cross.
Speaker A:It begins at the resurrection.
Speaker A:So we walk, Paul says, in newness of life.
Speaker A:No longer slaves of sin, no longer condemned.
Speaker A:Chapter 8, verse 1.
Speaker A:But we are to be led by truth, by God's Spirit.
Speaker A:In other words, we need to be spirit minded people who set our mind.
Speaker A:That's where transformation takes place.
Speaker A:It's where we've set our hearts, where our mind is set.
Speaker A:And being led by that, we can then be called sons of God and heirs.
Speaker A:Heirs with Christ.
Speaker A:Joint heirs with Christ.
Speaker A:There is simulation and agreement then between two spirits in Romans 8, mine and the holy Spirit of God.
Speaker A:It's mentioned twice in that text, I'm convinced.
Speaker A:But once this foundation then is laid, we've spent a great deal of time talking about all of those elements.
Speaker A:A question would naturally emerge and it confronts God's people in every age.
Speaker A:And the question is, how then shall we live?
Speaker A:This question is not survival.
Speaker A:It's a standard of living.
Speaker A:It's a way of life.
Speaker A:It's not about emotion though.
Speaker A:There are emotions as a byproduct of that life.
Speaker A:It's about ethics.
Speaker A:It's not about some mystical experience, but by daily obedience rooted in the truth of God.
Speaker A:At this point, I'd like to illustrate what I mean by that by just simply looking at a New Testament example of a man by the name of Cornelius.
Speaker A:And simply Cornelius asked, without wording it directly, he said, we're all here before God to hear all things commanded you by God, man.
Speaker A:This man was so excited to hear what God wanted, what God's will was.
Speaker A:He was already a good man, had already displayed his goodness by giving alms to the people and to the Jewish people, very supportive of them, and was one who prayed to God continually.
Speaker A:He was a good man, but he had to hear words.
Speaker A:According to chapter 11 of Acts, he had to hear words whereby he and his house could be saved.
Speaker A:The gospel had to be preached.
Speaker A:He had to hear it in order to respond to it.
Speaker A:He wasn't waiting for some religious experience to save him.
Speaker A:The Bible very clearly addresses this.
Speaker A:He had to hear words whereby he and his house could be saved.
Speaker A:But the point that I want you to see is that Peter was.
Speaker A:I mean, Cornelius was already prepared.
Speaker A:His heart, the soil of his heart, it was already ready.
Speaker A:We're all here present.
Speaker A:He had called his friends and family to come.
Speaker A:He had surrendered himself to listen, had opened his heart to take in and receive the message from Peter.
Speaker A:That's very critical.
Speaker A:We have to prepare the soil in order for the seed to germinate and produce according to its kind.
Speaker A:So at this point, when Cornelius is simply asking, he doesn't have anything to go off of.
Speaker A:He has a good heart.
Speaker A:He's prepared it.
Speaker A:But he has to hear the words.
Speaker A:He has to have the revelation.
Speaker A:He has to know God's will in order to respond to it.
Speaker A:So he's ready.
Speaker A:He surrendered.
Speaker A:He's humble and he's hungry.
Speaker A:But he hadn't yet known the truth that's necessary for the transformation to begin.
Speaker A:His spirit was willing.
Speaker A:What was he needing?
Speaker A:He was lacking the revelation.
Speaker A:And that same thing is true for us, my friends.
Speaker A:Resurrection gives us new life and revealed truth, though gives us a pattern for living it.
Speaker A:So it's a matter of.
Speaker A:Once the transformation process begins, it's a matter of, speak, Lord.
Speaker A:Your servant hears.
Speaker A:Command, and I'll obey.
Speaker A:It's wanting and asking and seeking for the truth that will then do the transformation work.
Speaker A:See, transformation is never passive, nor is it automatic.
Speaker A:It is never a matter of waiting for God to zap us into holiness.
Speaker A:Some people liken this to the work of the Holy Spirit.
Speaker A:They're altogether passive, waiting on the Holy Spirit to zap them.
Speaker A:Transformation is intentional, it is thoughtful, it is deliberate, and it is rooted in a renewing of the mind.
Speaker A:It's the response of a heart that just longs to please the Lord, to make him the ruler of their life, to surrender their wills to him, to.
Speaker A:To submit themselves to the truth.
Speaker A:And that reveals his will.
Speaker A:So this period of studies will show how Romans 12, together with Ephesians 4, provides the very blueprint for the transformed life.
Speaker A:The answer to the question, the ancient question, how then shall we live?
Speaker A:Paul's language in Ephesians 4 gives us a very practical structure for understanding what transformation is.
Speaker A:And it is what I've called the put off, put on principle.
Speaker A:It's clearly taught in Ephesians 4.
Speaker A:And so with that in mind, I'd like to direct your attention to, if you have a Bible to turn over there with me, to chapter four of Ephesians.
Speaker A:And I just want to read a little section out of it.
Speaker A:We'll not spend all the time to look at all the chapter at this point.
Speaker A:Begin reading with me, please, at verse 22.
Speaker A:You know, we're going to have to back up a little bit so that we can get the sense of it.
Speaker A:This I say, therefore this is 17.
Speaker A:And testify in the Lord that ye henceforth walk.
Speaker A:That's a matter of life.
Speaker A:Not as other Gentiles walk in the vanity of their mind, having the understanding darkened, being alienated from the life of God through the ignorance that is in them because of the blindness of their heart.
Speaker A:See, that already tells us there's a heart issue here.
Speaker A:And as long as that that condition exists, there will be no transformation.
Speaker A:And I think we've established that already from previous studies.
Speaker A:Who, he continues to describe them who, being past feeling, have given themselves over to lasciviousness, to work all uncleanness with greediness.
Speaker A:But you have not so learned Christ.
Speaker A:You see that pattern of life.
Speaker A:How then shall we live?
Speaker A:The answer to that question, you didn't learn how to live that way from Christ.
Speaker A:You didn't get that kind of pattern of living.
Speaker A:He says, verse 21.
Speaker A:If so be that ye have heard him, and have been taught by him, as the truth is in Jesus.
Speaker A:Now here it is, verse 22, that you put off concerning the former conversation, the old man which is corrupt according to the deceitful lusts, and be renewed in the spirit of your mind.
Speaker A:Listen carefully to that, please, that you Be renewed in the spirit of your mind.
Speaker A:And that you put on the new man.
Speaker A:So he says, you put off concerning the old man, right?
Speaker A:Verse 22, verse 24.
Speaker A:And that you put on the new man.
Speaker A:Which after God is created in righteousness and true holiness.
Speaker A:And then he illustrates what he means by that by noting several examples.
Speaker A:Where we put off certain behaviors and replace it with the positive, the good.
Speaker A:And so this is not modern psychology.
Speaker A:This is not behavioral modification.
Speaker A:It's just moral transformation that's grounded in truth.
Speaker A:The truth that we find in Jesus Christ.
Speaker A:Paul, you see, he never teaches moral improvement by just willpower.
Speaker A:He teaches transformation by replacement.
Speaker A:Sin is not defeated by just suppression.
Speaker A:It's not just gritting your teeth and saying, I've got.
Speaker A:Got to quit doing that.
Speaker A:But rather it's displayed by righteous living.
Speaker A:And so you replace that which is to be put off.
Speaker A:And you begin the practice of a new way of living.
Speaker A:You don't conquer anger by trying not to be angry.
Speaker A:You replace anger by practicing humility and patience and gentleness.
Speaker A:You don't cure lust by avoiding images.
Speaker A:You cultivate a heart of purity, a covenant fidelity.
Speaker A:And a reverence for God's creation.
Speaker A:So that when we see something of beauty, it's not just the object of our own lust.
Speaker A:But rather it's the creation of God to be respected and honored.
Speaker A:It's not an object for our pleasure.
Speaker A:You see, transformation is a transfer of allegiance.
Speaker A:It begins there anyway, from the old self to the new.
Speaker A:From lies.
Speaker A:Not just lies with regard to what God's will is.
Speaker A:But lies with regard to what we've been telling ourselves for many years.
Speaker A:About our condition and our life.
Speaker A:Those are lies as well.
Speaker A:And so the old self to the new self.
Speaker A:Transformation is accomplished by recognizing those lies, you see, putting them away, putting them aside and off and away from us.
Speaker A:And accepting the truth about ourselves.
Speaker A:It is formed by leaving the impulse of the flesh.
Speaker A:To the intention of a renewed mind.
Speaker A:This is where transformation begins.
Speaker A:It's with the recognition that the mind is the battlefield, friends.
Speaker A:That's where it starts.
Speaker A:Romans 12 does not begin with behavior, though there's several examples of behaviors in that chapter.
Speaker A:But rather it begins with the mind.
Speaker A:Paul says, be transformed by the renewing of your mind.
Speaker A:Just like Ephesians 4:24 teaches about the renewed in the spirit of your mind.
Speaker A:The same thoughts, just different people that he writes it to.
Speaker A:Same principle, same teaching.
Speaker A:The only way that we can begin this transformation.
Speaker A:Is through the renewing of the mind.
Speaker A:The body is not the origin of sin.
Speaker A:It's merely its stage.
Speaker A:It's where it's acted out, the body expresses, though whatever the mind produces the real struggle here, then the genuine war is all on the inside.
Speaker A:It's internal.
Speaker A:And so when people ask me the question, is it wrong to do this?
Speaker A:Is it wrong to think this?
Speaker A:Is it wrong to fantasize?
Speaker A:Is it wrong?
Speaker A:And there's all kinds of questions similar to this.
Speaker A:The real question isn't so much as identifying it as a sin, but identifying it as a work of the flesh versus the mind of the spirit.
Speaker A:In other words, is it something that will produce the fruits of the spirit?
Speaker A:Well, is it something that will produce and contribute to this transforming of the mind?
Speaker A:Or is it that which is identified with the flesh, that is this carnal, the old man?
Speaker A:That's the real question.
Speaker A:And so many times I've heard people ask all kinds of questions related to these kinds of things.
Speaker A:They just want to know the brass tacks.
Speaker A:Just give me the basic fundamental yes, no answer.
Speaker A:Is it wrong or is it right?
Speaker A:Is it okay or is it wrong?
Speaker A:That's what they want to know.
Speaker A:What they don't realize is the very things that may not be sinful in and of itself may in fact contribute to the wrong.
Speaker A:It may lead to the wrong because it's on that side.
Speaker A:It's that which contributes to the carnal man, the fleshly man.
Speaker A:So is it wrong?
Speaker A:It does not identify and describe the people of God.
Speaker A:So when we ask this question, probably will be the title of my next book, How Then Shall We Live?
Speaker A:It's not just a matter of is it a sin?
Speaker A:And if it's not, I can do it.
Speaker A:It's a matter of does it contribute to this transforming life?
Speaker A:And if it isn't, I want to avoid it.
Speaker A:I want to put it off.
Speaker A:I want to keep it far from me.
Speaker A:We don't want to get just as close to the world and the sinful things of darkness.
Speaker A:We don't want to be friends with the world as enmity with God.
Speaker A:We don't want to get close to that edge just enough to say, well, it's not sin yet.
Speaker A:We want to just stay as far from it as we possibly can.
Speaker A:That identifies the man that is, as Paul puts it, he's perfecting holiness in the fear of God.
Speaker A:Yes, sir.
Speaker A:It's a process, no doubt, and it's not something that any one of us will accomplish perfectly.
Speaker A:It's not flawless perfection here we're talking about.
Speaker A:It's a desire of patterning our lives that contribute to this transforming mind.
Speaker A:And it's only then that once we've accomplished that, once we've reached that stage, that we'll want to ask, like Peter did, or like Cornelius did.
Speaker A:We're all here to hear words.
Speaker A:We're here to hear what God's will is, and we'll do it.
Speaker A:That's the intent of the heart.
Speaker A:So once that's there, it's just a matter again of taking in the information, taking in the standard, the pattern of living that begins to transform our thinking.
Speaker A:So Romans 7 speaks of the war in my mind.
Speaker A:That's where it starts.
Speaker A:Romans 8 contrasts a mindset that's on the Spirit versus a mindset on the flesh.
Speaker A:I don't think he's talking about a mindset on the Holy Spirit necessarily, though he certainly is involved in this process.
Speaker A:There is, I guess you call it.
Speaker A:There is camaraderie, there is fellowship, there is participation and unity of thought, as we have been, have been influenced by the Spirit of God.
Speaker A:The Spirit bears witness with our Spirit, that we are sons of God.
Speaker A:He also does this later, and I think about verse 21, 22 somewhere there, maybe 24.
Speaker A:But it's an early part of the 20s where Paul talks about the Spirit.
Speaker A:And I think again, he's talking about my Spirit and the Holy Spirit.
Speaker A:There is communication and fellowship between the two.
Speaker A:So I have to set my mind on the things of the Spirit.
Speaker A:It's a lot like Paul says in Colossians 3, where he says, set your affections on things above where Christ is seated at the right hand of God.
Speaker A:See, that's where my affection is.
Speaker A:That's where my home is.
Speaker A:That's where my thoughts are located.
Speaker A:So, see, that's going to influence this transformed mind.
Speaker A:It's going to renew my mind by transforming or through transformation.
Speaker A:And then we've got Ephesians 4, of course, we've already talked about that.
Speaker A:It speaks of being renewed in the spirit of your mind.
Speaker A:In Second Corinthians 10, it commands us to there to take every thought captive to the obedience of Christ.
Speaker A:So, my friends, this is the inner arena where transformation happens.
Speaker A:The new life begins at resurrection.
Speaker A:But transformation begins when our minds, our spirit, is confronted and corrected and reshaped by divine truth.
Speaker A:It's rethinking our minds, maybe even a carnal mindset to the mind of Christ.
Speaker A:It isn't any surprising thing then to find in Philippians 2 where Paul would begin that section by saying, have this mind in you, which was also in Christ Jesus.
Speaker A:See?
Speaker A:And so Jesus becomes the pattern, the example.
Speaker A:He is the par excellence as far as the example to follow.
Speaker A:And so we pattern our thoughts the way we think, by the way Christ thought.
Speaker A:And thus that influence will impact the way we live.
Speaker A:This is where Cornelius becomes the perfect example, too.
Speaker A:His heart was already prepared, surrendered, and receptive, longing for God, longing for information.
Speaker A:All he lacked was the truth that would instruct him how to live.
Speaker A:So he gathered his household.
Speaker A:He declared, now we are all here before God to hear all things that are commanded by the Lord.
Speaker A:All he lacked was the information.
Speaker A:Cornelius didn't need a mystical encounter.
Speaker A:He didn't need some religious experience.
Speaker A:He needed words, revelation, guidance, commands.
Speaker A:And once the truth was spoken, transformation follows.
Speaker A:He was buried with Christ by baptism into death.
Speaker A:Peter said, can any man forbid water that these should not be baptized who have received the Holy Spirit?
Speaker A:Yes, they had received the baptism of the Holy Spirit, but it wasn't for the remission of sins.
Speaker A:What was for the remission of sins was the same thing expressed in Acts 2:38.
Speaker A:Repent and be baptized, every one of you.
Speaker A:Cornelius had already repented.
Speaker A:All he lacked was being buried with Christ by baptism into death.
Speaker A:That, like as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father.
Speaker A:And even he could walk in newness, newness of life.
Speaker A:That's resurrected life.
Speaker A:But he had to hear the words, right, revelation.
Speaker A:He had to see the pattern.
Speaker A:He had to have the guidance.
Speaker A:And so the same principle applies to believers today.
Speaker A:There's the readiness in the soil.
Speaker A:The heart must be prepared.
Speaker A:Truth is the seed, not lies, not human innovation, not falsehood, but truth.
Speaker A:And obedience, then, is the fruit.
Speaker A:So now let's look a little bit.
Speaker A:Consider, for example, a little of this teaching, as we will elaborate on this as we go through from week to week.
Speaker A:But I want you to think a little bit more about this Romans 12 passage with me, because it provides an ethical pattern or an ensample.
Speaker A:It's the blueprint for the resurrected lifestyle.
Speaker A:It answers the question, what does new creation living look like?
Speaker A:And the sequence is very deliberate.
Speaker A:Verse one.
Speaker A:Present your bodies.
Speaker A:A living sacrifice.
Speaker A:The body becomes an instrument of righteousness because the mind is changed.
Speaker A:There's a renewing process that's starting to take place.
Speaker A:And the sacrifice is not dead.
Speaker A:It's living.
Speaker A:It's a life offered daily to God.
Speaker A:And as he continues, be not conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing.
Speaker A:The world presses us and molds us and wants to shape us and define us.
Speaker A:It wants to coerce us into thinking like it thinks.
Speaker A:The people of God resists that pressure.
Speaker A:It refuses to allow the world to shape their thinking.
Speaker A:Instead, it is transformed by the renewing of the mind.
Speaker A:This is the hinge of transformation.
Speaker A:Without renewed thinking, nothing changes.
Speaker A:And so Paul then gives the most condensed description of a transformed life in the New Testament.
Speaker A:And there are other examples of this.
Speaker A:I just want to share with you the marks of true godliness as Paul presents it, starting in about verse nine.
Speaker A:Again, I just want you to see the outline, please.
Speaker A:Well, our time is up.
Speaker A:I'll return to this, and, Lord willing, next week.
Speaker A:Thank you again.
Speaker A:Have a pleasant day and a good week.
