Living by the Book/Living by the Book Workbook Set (49 page)

So what changes? Notice that Paul sets up a contrast between “old things” and “new things.” The old things have “passed away,” the new things “have come.” Using the technique of comparison (
Chapter 32
), we discover that the contrast of old-versus-new is common in Paul’s writings (e.g., Romans 6:1– 23; Ephesians 4:17–24; Colossians 3:1–17).

What are those old things? They are the old ways of living in which a person apart from Christ lives. Old beliefs. Old values. Old behaviors. Old habits. Old relationships. An old outlook. Old dreams. An old purpose. An old environment. An old job. Old career plans. An old character. Old morals. Old desires and passions. Old ways of communicating. Old language.

By the way, some of those old things are not inherently bad. For instance, here’s a person apart from Christ working at a job, providing a useful service and earning a living for her family. Is that bad? Of course not. In fact, she may be a really decent person. A lot of people apart from Christ are decent people. Maybe even more decent than some of us who are in Christ. But their decency doesn’t change the fact that they are apart from Christ. They have no life in themselves. They are, as Ephesians 2:1 puts it, dead in their trespasses and sins. They are sinners standing under God’s judgment. They need the gospel.

So what happens when someone tells them the gospel and they respond in faith and turn toward Christ? The verse says they become a “new creature,” and a transformation takes place (actually, the transformation begins taking place, but the language of the verse treats it as an accomplished fact, because it will, in fact, become a complete transformation by the time Christ is finished with them).

What is that transformation? Well, the very same person who formerly had an old way of living now has a new relationship with Christ, and that affects everything about that person. She has a new standing before God, a new heart, a new empowerment from the Holy Spirit, a new capacity to
understand God’s Word, and a new destiny. No wonder she begins to live in a new way.

So, whereas before Christ she had beliefs, values, behaviors, and so on that were not affected by Christ, now, over time, the Spirit helps her replace those old ways with new beliefs, new values, new behaviors, new habits, new relationships, a new outlook, new dreams, a new purpose, a new environment, perhaps a new job (certainly a new way of doing her old job), new career plans, a new character, new morals, new desires and passions, new ways of communicating, even new language. She’s the same person, but an altogether different creature. She’s like the caterpillar we spoke of in Chapter 37 that metamorphoses into a butterfly.

Sanctification is the process whereby God is “cleaning us up pretty.” Removing our sin. Renewing our hearts. Redirecting our path. “Re-forming” us until we’re like Christ. We’re the same person, but a new version of that person. Instead of the same old us, God is forming a “same new us.” He’s not making us into someone else. He’s making us into what he meant us to be when He originally thought us up: His
workmanship
, His masterpiece.

And here I want to take one more look at Ephesians 2:10. You see, to this point we’ve looked at the verse as if it applies to individuals only. And it is true that God fashions each of us as individual pieces of workmanship. But notice to whom Paul addresses this verse: “
We
are His workmanship . . . that
we
should walk in them.” The apostle has more than one person in mind, doesn’t he?

In fact, if we check the context, we discover that Paul has the entire church in mind—both the local church and the universal church. We learn that Christianity is not about isolation, but community—the community of believers
in
Christ, as well as the community of those who are being transformed
by
Christ.

That has significant implications when it comes to applying Scripture. It means that God’s Word is about more than my personal happiness, comfort, or convenience. To be sure, God cares deeply about my particular situation. Jesus said that not even a hair falls from my head that the Father does not take notice (Matthew 10:30). But God’s purposes are much larger than my hairs, my little corner of the world.

I point this out because we live in a time of rampant individualism. Today’s motto is, “It’s all about me.”
My
life.
My
job.
My
family.
My
plans.
My
rights.
My
happiness. It’s me, me, me. That mind-set has a way of invading both how we read the Word and how we apply it. We think the Bible is all about me.

For instance, here’s a sincere Christian lady who is driving around the parking lot of a shopping mall at the height of the Christmas rush, desperate to find a parking space. She’s been studying the book of Philippians, and she remembers that Paul wrote, “My God shall supply all your needs” (4:19). So she prays, “Lord, I really need a parking space. Please help me find a parking space right now.”

I’m not sure what to do with a prayer like that. In truth, I’ve prayed it myself. So I don’t mean to be harsh. I’m certainly glad that the woman
thought to turn to the Lord in the midst of her personal crisis. But I wonder: is that really what Paul had in mind when he wrote Philippians?

If we examine that letter, we discover that Paul was writing from a Roman jail—not exactly a resort. Moreover, the immediate context of chapter 4 shows that the Philippian believers had sent Paul a gift that seems to have involved money, perhaps as a result of their commitment to Christ. That’s amazing, given that the Philippians were probably dirt poor themselves. Yet their concern for their spiritual father outweighed their personal sacrifice. So for that reason the apostle thanked them for their gift, and then assured them that “my God will meet all your needs according to his glorious riches in Christ Jesus” (NIV).

Given that background, I think it’s fair to ask a hard question: if I’m driving around at Christmastime in 21st-century America, do I really “need” God to supply me a parking space? Is that really the most important thing I could be praying about? I mean, if I’ve got a car, a shopping mall, and a credit card, what does it say about me if I’m imploring God to serve me up a parking space, as well? Whose will am I asking the Lord to carry out?

Let’s be clear, the Word applies to me, but the Word is not centered around me. Jesus taught His disciples to pray, “
Thy
kingdom come,
Thy
will be done” (Matthew 6:10, italics added). It’s not about me. It’s about God. Ephesians 2:10 shows that I was made to fit into God’s plan, not the other way around.

So what is God’s plan? He hasn’t revealed all of it. But we know from Acts 1:8 about part of the plan, and our part in that plan: we are to be Christ’s witnesses throughout the whole world.
We
, both individually and collectively.

Which brings us to the diagram on
page 317
. Have you ever asked yourself,
How can I bring about change in my society?
Ephesians 2:10 provides an answer. Change comes about when God’s truth transforms my life, so that I begin to live out God’s purposes for me. I then discover that God’s truth is also transforming countless other individuals around the world. We call that community of transformed persons the Church. Individually and collectively,
the Church engages the world and brings the transforming power of God’s Word into whatever sphere of influence God opens for us.

Does it really work that way? Absolutely. Consider the Wadani tribe of Ecuador. The Wadani (formerly known as the Aucas) lived for generations in an endless cycle of murder and revenge. Then in 1956, five missionaries and their families were led by God to take the gospel to this violent culture. While attempting to make contact, the five men were speared to death. I felt that loss personally, because one of those men was Jim Elliot, who was assigned to be my “little brother” while he was a freshman at Wheaton College, where I was an upperclassman.

The killing of Jim and his companions would seem to have been a defeat for the gospel. But instead, it opened a door for the wives and children of the missionaries to live among the Wadanis—and do what? Yes, show them the transforming power of Christ. Over time, a number of the Wadanis began to turn to Christ. Eventually the killings stopped. A church was planted. Those who once killed their enemies now prayed for them instead. A transformation had taken place.

But the story does not end there. Remember that God uses His people to penetrate the world with His grace. So it is with the Wadanis. In 2006, members of the tribe agreed to participate in the making of a major motion picture,
The End of the Spear
, which tells the story of reconciliation between Steve Saint, son of one of the missionaries, and Mincayani, the Wadani warrior who killed Steve’s father. Few films have ever communicated the gospel so powerfully and convincingly.

But here’s what you need to know: the Wadani Christians decided to be part of the film because they had heard about neighborhoods in America where revenge killings are the norm. They reasoned that if God could change their society, perhaps He could use their story to change American society.

Now that’s transformation! The Word of God lived out in my life first, then lived out together with other believers so that we make an impact on our world for Christ.

W
hat is the process of life-change all about? It begins with the Word of God. The Bible is God’s divine means of bringing change into our lives. But notice, the Word must first change my life. Then it can begin to change my world. You see, when God’s truth changes my life, I can become a change element in my sphere of influence. Have you ever asked yourself, How can I bring about change in my society? The only way to bring about permanent and significant change is by changing individuals.

M
any Christians are like poor photographs—overexposed and under-developed. They’ve had plenty of exposure to the light of God’s Word. Yet what difference has it made in their lives?

The problem is not with Scripture. As we’ve seen in the previous chapters, Scripture can transform us. But if that’s true, then spiritual growth is a commitment to change. And therein lies our problem: the human heart resists nothing as strongly as it resists change. We will do anything to avoid it.

In this chapter I want to suggest a means of overcoming the bias toward spiritual inertia. There is a four-step process of application, four principles which I’ve reduced to four words, not to oversimplify things but to provide some handles to work with. They will help you apply Scripture in any circumstance.

If you want to apply the Bible, you need to know two things.

Back in
chapter 4
I gave a definition for Bible study method. The first part of my definition is that
method
is
“methodicalness.”
That is, you have to take certain steps in a certain order to guarantee a certain result. Not just any steps; not just any order; not just any result.