Yeah, I Could Use Some Purpose (Part 2)

“Yeah, I Could Use Some Purpose.” Part two

Chris Hughes did a great job last week. He asked me to resend this one as the original one was not correct. Thanks, Chris.

“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. 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.” Romans 12:1-2 (ESV)

Metamorphosis in the world of biology means there are marked changes in form and mode of life during development to maturity. But for the believer it should mean to have a change in character. In the “Purpose Driven Life” Pastor Warren references Ephesians 4:22-24 as a list of three responsibilities that Paul has written as a guideline to begin to develop a character that would be like Christ.

The first thing to do is to get rid of the old self. “That ye put off concerning the former manner of life, the old man, which is corrupt according to the deceitful lusts.” This is a “you have to do” thing. In some circles we call this move surrender but in others it is called death to self. I believe that death to self is a daily practice that I must do…uh, daily. If we look at the old man in “The Message” it say’s “It’s rotten through and through. Get rid of it!” Guess that say’s it all.

The second thing is change the way we think. “And be renewed in the spirit of your mind.” Now there was some fluff that went along with what I read in the book….caterpillars becoming butterflies in some beautiful picture of what happens to us spiritually etc…..definitely not me but I believe the idea is the same as saying retooling our interior principle’s of life. I’m talking getting in there with the Word of God, as our instrument, and stripping out the parts that have failed and revamping our whole thought process. Just as a side note…part of my background is working on machinery. There is not a “magical metamorphosis” in the renewing process just hard work.

The third thing is to put on the character of Christ. “And that ye put on the new man, which after God is created in righteousness and true holiness.” This is where we put on some new habits. In this third chapter of “The Purpose Driven Life” Pastor Warren has written, “Your character is essentially the sum of your habits; it is how you habitually act.” Now I’ll tell you the truth I had gone to the dictionary on this one and didn’t find a definition that reflected this statement but I did go to my wife. I asked her if my character is the sum of my habits. Now after a brief smile she agreed that our character is essentially the sum of our habits. I think I have an idea where she was going with her brief smile too.

I have looked at this in Scripture many times before but didn’t break it down into a list of three responsibilities. I’ll agree with Pastor Warren that they are indispensable for Christ-like character development. But I still like keeping in the older translation. It gives God’s Word the punch it needs to get the truth out there. I think with “The Purpose Driven Life” use of the lighter translations it can get a bit squeamish but if we take an apologetic approach (being a good Berean that is) to reading it, God’s truth about His Son’s work comes through. After all, it is about knowing the truth. -- Chris Hughes is a graduate of the Colony of Mercy and a frequent Freedom Fighter contributor

God's WORD for YOU: Proverbs 30; Isaiah 9-10; Ephesians 3

“Do you wonder that Paul could say with tingling joy and exultation, “To me to live is Christ”? He did not say, as I had mistakenly been supposing I must say, “To me to live is to be Christ-like,” nor, “To me to live is to have Christ’s help,” nor, “To me to live is to serve Christ.” No; He plunged through and beyond all that in the bold, glorious, mysterious claim, “To me to live is Christ.” I had never understood that verse before. Now, thanks to His gift of Himself, I am beginning to enter into a glimpse of its wonderful meaning.” The Life That Wins
Charles G. Trumbull