Title: The Changed Man/Romans 12:1~3
Content Changed person/Romans 12:1~3 Rev. Kiho Um
Russian writer Dostoevsky, who was once sentenced to death and awaiting death, heard God's voice and met Christ through the New Testament passed down to him by a woman.
He later became a world-famous writer and made this profession of faith.
“Even if someone proves to me that 'Christ is not the truth,' I want to be with Christ. I would rather be with Jesus than the truth."
In this way, when you hear God's voice, meet Him, and open your soul's eyes, a miracle of change will happen.
However, there are positive changes and negative changes.
In the Bible, many changed characters are introduced. Among them, King Saul, King Ahab, and King Uzziah were at one time a model of negative change because they lived according to the Lord's will and received great blessings, but later they became arrogant and collapsed.
However, Saul, who persecuted those who believed in Jesus, became a model for positive change.
After meeting Jesus on the road to Damascus, he changed from Saul, who persecuted Christians, to Paul who preached the gospel of Christ all his life. A heart that kills has been turned into a heart of love (Acts 9).
The same Paul admonishes us today, “Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind.”
There are many other models of positive change in the Bible. After meeting with God, Jacob the deceiver turned into the victor Israel (Gen. 32:28), and Simon the Reed became Peter, the rock (Matthew 16:18). And the woman who had suffered from bleeding for 12 years met Jesus and was instantly healed and completely transformed into a new person (Mark 5:21-43).
But what conditions are necessary for such a positive change?
Transformed when you repent
There are three noble liquids that humans spill. It is blood, sweat and tears.
Blood signifies life and sacrifice, sweat signifies labor, devotion and toil, and tears signify earnestness, repentance, and love. In particular, tears of repentance have the power to change people.
The Bible testifies that people change and circumstances change when there is a prayer of tears and a prayer of repentance.
Hezekiah (2 Kings 20:1-11) was healed of the sick when she wept bitterly. One thief who acknowledged Jesus (Luke 23:40-43) was transformed from a person who would receive eternal punishment to a person who would go to heaven through repentance.
No matter how many faults and sins we have in the past, those who truly repent before God with tears and believe in Jesus Christ as their Savior will be transformed into righteousness. If you truly repent, the closed door to heaven will open.
Those who will be used more preciously by God and those who will enjoy greater blessings will not change because they keep their sins as they are, and there is no change in their lives.
Therefore, we must repent. We need tears of repentance.
Repentance purifies our souls and allows us to experience the comfort of the Lord. It makes you look at the world and soul with the heart of Jesus.
Furthermore, it transforms us into people of love, people of heaven.
Changes in Prayer and Obedience
The Bible emphasizes the importance of prayer over and over again (James 5:13-14, Psalm 50:15, Matthew 7:7-8). In Luke 9:29, it is also testified that when Jesus prayed on the Mount of Transfiguration, “His appearance changed, and his clothes became white and shiny.” Jesus is the Savior of mankind and King of kings, but He was changed when He prayed .
Just as a day has a day and a night, there are times in life that are like day and times when it is dark like night. There will be times of peace and good health, and there will be nights of tribulation, nights of sickness, nights of sorrow and death.
At this time, the unbelievers will have nights of groaning and fear, but what should we believers do? You must pray.
We change when we pray. When we pray, a lazy person becomes a diligent person, a foolish person becomes a wise person, and a failure person changes into a successful person.
Obedience also changes ourselves and our environment.
Naaman, the commander of the Syrian army, was in despair because of leprosy (2 Kings 5:8-14). Then, when he went to the prophet Elisha and obeyed his words and washed himself in the Jordan River seven times, Naaman experienced a miracle of healing and a change of healing like the flesh of a child.
The life of faith is living according to the will of God and living in obedience to His Word.
Verse 2 of today's text also says, "Let us discern what is the will of God, which is good, pleasing, and perfect."
What is the will of God? It is not to be self-centered, but to live completely God-centered. It is God's will to live a life of sacrifice and perfect obedience.
Therefore, we must abandon our thoughts and calculations and abandon our egocentric plans. Even if it is not against my will, we must obey when it is thought to be God's will.
Even in difficult circumstances like a raging wave, when we obey God's word while praying, our lives will be transformed into true joy, blessings, thanksgiving, and miracles.
It changes when you make a happy dedication.
In 1 Kings 17:8 and below, we find the story of the widow of Zarephath, who showed complete devotion.
The widow of Zarephath had lost hope due to drought and hunger, and she was about to die, eating bread with a handful of flour and a few drops of oil left over, and she was about to die when she met the prophet Elijah.
Elijah did not care about the widow's condition and asked for bread to be given to him first. Hearing this, the widow could have complained and complained, but she obeyed the messenger of God. As a result, through Elijah's blessing, she was blessed that she did not go hungry even in severe famine.
There was also Abraham, who showed an image of genuine devotion.
He showed devotion by obeying God to offer his son Isaac, whom he loved more than life, as a burnt offering. Then God promised Abraham the blessing that his descendants would become as great as the stars in the sky (Genesis 22:9~18).
When we completely dedicate ourselves to God in this way, a life of despair is transformed into a life of hope.
However, many Christians still lead a life of faith in the form of a formality rather than devotion with all their heart and soul. Devotion to look like a Pharisee, devotion to my own interests. But putting me first and God next is not an attitude of complete faith or devotion.
You must have a spirit and true devotion. When you can, you must plant a life of complete devotion to God. When we are in good health, when we have time, and when we have money, we must serve diligently, pray, obey, and become faithful saints.
A skilled jeweler cuts, polishes, and polishes a rough gem, knowing in advance how it will transform.
A skilled sculptor also looks at the marble and determines where to put the eyes and where to sculpt the ears and hands to make the perfect sculpture.
When we approach God the Creator in this way, we receive a positive change, a change of being truly valuable.
Therefore, do not imitate the self-centered world, this world that pursues the perishable things of the flesh, but become a converted person and a changed life by becoming a repentant saint, a praying saint, an obedient saint, and a saint of spiritual worship offering full devotion. We must become the main character of the blessing of living.