So, let’s say we know better and we live accordingly. Can we be labeled as "spiritually mature"? Is the goal to know and to live a certain way? Some would say yes. And certainly the Bible calls to us toward increasing in knowledge and living Godly lives. But it doesn’t stop there.
The final level of transformation involves changing who we are. While the first two transformations include significant interactions with other people to teach and model, this final transformation is one done primarily through the grace of God and the power of His Word.
Let’s look one more time at Psalm 86:11 and Romans 12:2:
Teach me your ways, O Lord, that I may live according to your truth! Grant me purity of heart, so that I may honor you. Psalm 86:11 (NLT)
Don’t copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. Then you will learn to know God’s will for you, which is good and pleasing and perfect. Romans 12:2 (NLT)
God is not merely after transforming our minds and lifestyles. He is after something much, much more important. Those transformed minds and lifestyles allow Him to change the very nature of who we are. As our worldview is focused on God and our lifestyles reflect that lifestyle, the very nature of who we are gets transformed more and more into the likeness of Him. We are transformed into a new person!
The ultimate prize in the Christian race not knowing more about Him, though that is important. It is not living a Godly life, though that is essential. No, the ultimate prize in the Christian race is the character of Christ and intimacy with Him!
So all of us who have had that veil removed can see and reflect the glory of the Lord. And the Lord—who is the Spirit—makes us more and more like him as we are changed into his glorious image. – 2 Corinthians 3:18 (NLT)
We should not rest contented without knowing the transforming power of the gospel, by the working of the Spirit, bringing us to seek to be like the temper and tendency of the glorious gospel of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, and into union with Him. We behold Christ, as in the glass of his word; and as the reflection from a mirror causes the face to shine, the faces of Christians shine also. – from the Matthew Henry Concise Commentary on 2 Corinthians 3:18
Praise God! I mean seriously, this is absolutely amazing, and it is only possible through the power of the Holy Spirit working in the lives of Christians. At Grace Point, we try be used by Him to encourage that transformed person. We encourage every one to spend as much time in the Bible as possible, as it has the power to transform us from the inside out. Our Discipleship Groups exist to help two or three people walk side-by-side in a close, accountable relationship that is simply not possible when too many people are involved.
So, what are the markers of a spiritually mature person? How do we know if we are making progress toward prize? That will be the subject of the final post in this series.
