And I will give you a new heart with new and right desires, and I will put a new spirit in you. I will take out your stony heart of sin and give you a new, obedient heart. And I will put my Spirit in you so you will obey my laws and do whatever I command.
Ezekiel 36:26-27
Imagine that a really skilled mechanist takes the materials from a tractor and changes it into a formal-one vehicle. He replaces the big, heavy tractor engine with a small fast one, replaces the wheels into some fast ones which is excellent to win a race on the asphalt –road. And after some strokes with a painting brush, oil and some practicing with a skilled formal 1-driver, the car is ready for its first race!
Get set go! The car is now on the road –no longer on the field, like it used to be as tractor. The engine is changed –it can easily drive faster than any other car, not like the tractor with a maximum speed of 41, 5 in downhill.
But suddenly, while the car is having a good time peaking more than 150 km/h of speed, it fails a curve, and drives off the road. Suddenly, it situated in the middle of a field!
I have a question for you: Does the formal-one vehicle turn into a tractor again, because it fell back on the field? –Of course not! It’s still a formal-one car, right? It has the same engine, the same wheels, and the same purpose for life –only in a little more dusty and injured condition. So what do you think the formal-one car should do now- in the middle of a field? Give up the race and become a tractor again, or go back on track and continue the race?
Of course get back to the road as fast as possible and win the race!
A permanent transformation
Why do I talk about cars? Because in the same way as the mechanic transformed the tractor completely into a car, God has now transformed your life permanently. You’re a righteous person now with a righteous heart! You are a child of God –God has forever changed your engine –removed the old sinful heart and given you a new one where he has imputed a desire to walk with him –win a race –not drive in circles around on a field in 20 km/h. Your master-mechanic –Jesus Christ has done a finished work changing your life inside out. You are forever changed!
You are not a sinner!
For some reason, some Christians, who has even received the forgiveness of sins and become new creations in Christ, are still fighting for the right to name themselves as sinners. Of course, like the formal-one car, we all once in a while experience to fail in life; miss the curves and drive off the track. But notice, that the Bible never mention Christians, who has received Jesus Christ as their Savior, who fail some of Gods ways as sinners. I have good news for you -God is not willing to do a heart-surgery, and replace back your old stony heart! So if you give up the race and start to live as a sinner again, you will have a lot of work to do. Imagine how hard it would be for the formal-one car to drag big plows and machines in circles in the muddy field. -You can really trust with all your heart that when you have received Jesus, your old, sinful way of living is simply not proper to you anymore!
Nobody becomes a fish falling in the water. Nobody becomes a hamburger walking into Mc Donalds. 1 John 3:1a states
See how very much our heavenly Father loves us, for he allows us to be called his children, and we really are!
We really are!
When you are a child of somebody, you really are! Your heritage of DNA is exposed both through your inner attitudes and personality, your outside behavior, and you are even similar to your parents at your looking! And in the same way, there is a certain DNA, a way of looking, mindset, and behavior which follows you when you really are a child of God! The description of your new “vehicle” if found in Romans 8:29a
For whom He foreknew, He also predestined to be conformed to the image of His Son...
You are supposed to look like Jesus! Maybe your reaction to this is “Oh, that’s too much work for me”. I can never make myself as holy and perfect as Jesus!
That’s true. But God can. And the good news is: He already has made you like Jesus, by born you again!
You have a new heart!
- the same as is within Jesus! This new heart you have after becoming a Christian is not like the old one, when you mostly desired to live for your own pleasure: Look what the bible says in Philippians 2:13
For God is working in you, giving you the desire to obey him and the power to do what pleases him.
Jesus only lived to please God (John 4:34). And if you take a closer look at your life, your enjoyment and satisfaction are also found in doing the will of your Heavenly Father!
Let me testify for you. I became a Christian in the age of 3. My mum and dad loved Jesus very much and filled our home with worship songs to honor him all the time. I understood that “I need to become a Christian”
And I’m telling you the truth; it was never a temptation for me even in my teens to try out sinning, like going out to drink, take drugs, and have sex. Because I had another life inside of me who desired to be like Jesus! Spend my time in worship, spend my money on missionary-trips, do good works, and go to church. Sometimes I failed of course. But I all the time, with God’s help, I came “back on track”. Today I am a missionary, helping drug-addicted women in Ukraine. I get to help people who have messed up their life with the help of God, even though I have never been a drug addicted myself.
Take a look at yourself –you are created to live to please God! When you’re living to please yourself or other people’s opinions, you’ll be like a flower cut off from its roots. -You’ll always carry a sad-face. Admit it! You have the heart of Jesus.
Always back on track
You need to know; Even though you’ll commit mistakes which are awful: You’re still God’s child! –And as a good Father, He is always willing to run to you and help you when you turn to Him for help. Of course He is said about the accident and the extent of damage it may have brought into your life; but He is more than willing to help you back on track. -He has predestined you to win the race!
Therefore we also, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which so easily ensnares us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith…
Hebr 12:1-2a
Maybe you are one of those people; maybe you have failed Gods commands awfully and happened to find yourself in the middle of a muddy, dirty field, where you can’t see any escape. Maybe you are like the son in the story in Luke 15. Fear not. -Come back you yourself; remember that your Father is good! Turn back to him. You’ll be surprised by the grace of your Heavenly Father – Luke 15:20-24
But when he was still a great way off, his father saw him and had compassion, and ran and fell on his neck and kissed him. And the son said to him, 'Father, I have sinned against heaven and in your sight, and am no longer worthy to be called your son.' But the father said to his servants, 'Bring out the best robe and put it on him, and put a ring on his hand and sandals on his feet. And bring the fatted calf here and kill it, and let us eat and be merry; for this my son was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found.' And they began to be merry.
You are still a child of your Father! Don’t be afraid of him! Call upon his name for help right where you are and as you are. Don’t try to “dress up” –He longs to receive you, welcome you back, nurse your wounds, and dress you up so you also look like a real son of your Father! If you have forgotten how you were supposed to look like –He for sure hasn’t!
You are supposed to look like your parents!
Your problem with failing God’s ways is never caused by that you aren’t His child anymore. Maybe the problem is just that you behave yourself in a way that makes your relation a little hard recognize? Or maybe you need to get a revelation about who your parents really are, just like me;
I have heard all my life that I’m very similar to my parents. Some say I’m a copy of my mum; other say’s that I’m a female version of my dad –just without the beard (my father has a year-around-look like Santa Claus:)
And as you probably know, such kind of comments, however, is not a compliment for a teenager. When I was a teenager (Although, according to Ukrainian measures, I’m almost still a teenager:), I was so embarrassed by my parents! Praise God, my “teen-rebellion” passed really soft –I loved Jesus so much so I did never get drunk, never smoked, and had no bad experience with any boys. But I had a problem; I got so easily embarrassed by my parents! I even tried to hide that I was their child, dying my hair black, red, even purple. I remember a situation in school hiding in the toilet when my father came for parent’s call. I always walked 5 meters behind him. When he sang a song with guitar in birthdays or weddings, I got so embarrassed that I ran out. I got a piercing in my lip, (which didn’t look good at all) –just to have “my own image”. My mum wore so many colors on her clothes –It was so embarrassing, –so I picked my clothing from black, grey or beige.
The autumn when I turned 17, I finally “found a reason” to move from home. I moved to the capital, Oslo. I started to live my life independently; which I considered myself as suitable for. But however, my independence brought me every weekend home to my mum’s dinner table in our small village, asking dad for more money.
-But fortunately, after while, I “grew up”. I don’t know exactly what happened, but little by little I didn’t consider my parents’ advices as strange anymore. I started to appreciate the way they had used their parental authority to protect me in “dangerous” situations. I understood that they actually did it all, not because I wasn’t good enough, but because they loved me. In the end, I started to like them, as the persons they were.
And as I started to like them, I found it easier to be myself -even to like myself! Because of our common DNA, I recognized the things I liked in them in myself! I realized that in my time considering my parents as "weird" had kept myself in bondage -by being embarrassed over myself!
Finally, I came out from my black-beige “cocoon” realizing that my face looked better wearing colors. I dyed my hair back to normal. I started enjoy spending time with my mum and dad again, not walking 6 meters behind. I let my dad teach me to play on the guitar. He gave me one, and after a while, God also gave me the freedom to write songs –just like my dad used to do. And finally, I removed the piercing –because I realized that they didn’t like it, and I loved them so much!
Of course my parents are still human and do also have weaknesses –which I don’t want to apply to my life. But after all, I can say that today, my willingness to co operate and take advices and knowledge from my parents, and of course to receive love and support from them makes our relationship to one of the most precious relationships in my life.
Today, honestly I can say that I’ve given up the struggle of making my own image. I have no problem with being “sneezed out of the nose of my parents”, as we say in Norwegian. I’m joyful that when all comes to all –
I am created in the image of God! (Gen 1:27) And I can freely be the one I am created to be, because He is my Artist who has the final fingerprint on my life.
You have His behavior and way of thinking!
It’s nothing wrong with God your Father. And there are also nothing wrong with you. You are born with His heavenly DNA which abides in you to behave like Him! ! john 3:9 says:
Whoever has been born of God does not sin, for His seed remains in him; and he cannot sin, because he has been born of God.
The Bible even says that we have the same mind like Jesus Christ! (1.cor 2:16)
So as you understand; We are like Him -the Bible says in 1. John 4:17 that as He is, so are we (right now -present tense!) in this world! You have His DNA inside you, which -in case you didn't know, makes you able to walk on water, move mountains, love your enemies, heal the sick, and do all the things that Jesus did!
Maybe you ask "But why am I not seeing this things in my life today?"
Grow up!
It shouldn’t demand much effort and stress from your behalf to become like your Heavenly Father. Like me, becoming like my parents consisted mostly in 1: Be born, 2: Eat the food they gave me and 3: Spend time with them.
A: Get born.
You are already (hopefully) born again. If not, you can become one today by inviting Jesus into your life as your savior according to the prayer listed in chapter 1. Jesus will save you from hell to live with him forever, and make you a new creation!
B: Eat food
It's very important for us as Christians, new as old, to admit that we need to grow! We are not fully like Jesus any of us. In fact, the Bible tells us that those who claim to know all, don’t know anything as they should.(1 Cor 8:2) We need food! No babies are very similar to their parents the first two-three weeks. Maybe not even the first 15 years. But the closer we get to their age, the more similar we become! But the Bible promises us that we can be “full grown in the Lord”. Eph 4:13 says
…until we come to such unity in our faith and knowledge of God's Son that we will be mature and full grown in the Lord, measuring up to the full stature of Christ.
But how does God feed you? -Through His word! (matt 4:4). You need to read the Bible. "Yes I know, but it's so hard to me sometimes. Sometimes the words appear to me smaller and less significant than the numbers in the phone-book of LA..."
Good news -God knew this! Let's look at what he says in the previous verses, 11 and 12:
He(God) is the one who gave these gifts to the church: the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, and the pastors and teachers. Their responsibility is to equip God's people to do his work and build up the church, the body of Christ,
If you didn’t know, God also has some “parents in flesh” for you that gladly want to "feed you" in order for you to grow up to become like Jesus. You will find them in a local church. God’s plan for your life is to be deeply rooted in a local church. I will talk more about church in chapter 6. God has given you the church so you can have (and become yourself ;) good spiritual mothers and fathers here on earth your whole life. These are not harmful, but are filled with the love and grace from God to help you. However, they are like our fleshly parents; they are human and they may have some weaknesses. But I tell you; If they are placed there by God, you can trust that they will guide you and help you to become like God. The next verse in Ephesians 4 promises
Then we will no longer be like children, forever changing our minds about what we believe because someone has told us something different or because someone has cleverly lied to us and made the lie sound like the truth. 15 Instead, we will hold to the truth in love, becoming more and more in every way like Christ, who is the head of his body, the church.
Christians who live their life without church are very likely to become like children believe everything you tell them. And children growing up without parents are also very likely to fall into a destructive lifestyle. In Ukraine, 94% of all kids growing up in orphanage end in prison.
My friend Ania, on the other hand, grew up with her loving mum, dad and two brothers, but living in the workers-room of a Teen Challenge rehab-center in Poland. I’ve lived in a Teen Challenge rehab center for one and a half year, and even though I was more than 20, I found it as a bit “challenging” sometimes; so I asked her: Did the students ever hurt you verbally during your childhood? Her answer was: Well, sometimes they said something not so nice, but then I just ran and asked my mum “is it true?”, and she usually said “no”, and then, I was fine.”
Don’t be a “spiritual orphan”. Find a home in a local church that “teaches you the truth in love”, -eat and receive.
I had a hard time getting along with my parents because I believed that they didn't love me so much. Many Christians have problems in their relationship with God because they believe lies about Him -believes that He doesn't love them so much. I believe we'll all face times when we lack revelation of the love and goodness of our Heavenly Father; and in these times -as always -don't miss the fellowship with your brothers and sisters! As described so beautifully in Ephesians 3:18 (NIV)
I Pray.. 18 That you may have power, together with all the saints (the other christians;), to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ,
You will have a wonderful time -seing Gods true loving nature -together!
C: Spend time with Him.
Staying in a relationship with your Father in Heaven will transform you to be similar to Him! Talk to him –let Him also talk to you! The Bible says that our faces becomes like his when we see His face (1. John 3:2 and 2. Cor 3:18) –You will simply recognize that you have in your own life what you’ll see in His! You will start to like what He likes, and hate what He hates. Start doing the things He does. I think I became very much in love with the forest by walking with my Father in the forest -because my Father is filled with passion, stories and knowledge about everything in the forest.
As I explained in the previous chapter -God loves people. Start care about those He care about. God loves what Jesus has done at the cross -start tell about that. Then God will speak directly through you -He loves to talk about what Jesus has done.
And receive His help! My dad loves to help me so much that he even happens to forget some of his obligations. He is actually feeling a little bit neglected and offended if I do things myself which he is capable to help me with. How much more doesn’t you Heavenly Father long to help you - In time of need! Hebrews 4:16 says:
Let us therefore come boldly to the throne of grace that we may obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need.
Letting God help you with something difficult, is one of the best ways having fellowship with Him. He will reveal himself to you in so many different ways you would never even imagine!
But now it’s time to release the great secret: Maybe you wonder: If God is my Father, and Jesus is my brother… Who is my mother? Get ready for the most kept, precious, hidden secret to be unveiled!
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