I saw this picture on a Facebook post the other day. It reminded me of several things. The first was the scripture in 2nd Corinthians. The second was a quote from John Newton (the Amazing Grace guy) The third was a conversation I had recently about who I am now and who I was. Let's start with John Newton.
"I am not what I ought to be, I am not what I want to be, I am not what I hope to be in another world; but still I am not what I once used to be, and by the grace of God I am what I am." Let's break that down.
John Newton, a former slave ship captain was saved by grace through faith and became an Anglican minister. He mentored William Wilberforce who championed the abolition of slavery in England. But still Newton knew that he still fell short of his full transformation - that being conformed to the image of Christ.
"For whom He [God the Father] foreknew, He also predestined to be conformed to the image of His Son, that He might be the firstborn among many brethren" - Romans 8:29
"And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God [the Father]" - Romans 12:2
Given who he had become, he was still not who he wanted to be. He was not content.
"Brethren, I do not count myself to have apprehended; but one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind and reaching forward to those things which are ahead, I press toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus." - Philippians 3:13-14
Newton realized that he was changed within and no longer what he once was and understood it was by God's grace.
So know back to 2nd Corinthians. If you are born again then you are a new creation. Like the butterfly. What happens to the caterpillar or the lost person is called "metamorphosis". It is a radical change. For us that change begins to take place at the moment we yield our lives by faith to Jesus. The way I see it is that our time on earth after salvation is like being in the "chrysalis" where the caterpillar becomes a butterfly. "Not who I want to be but not who I used to be" When we get to heaven - we will complete our metamorphosis. "Who I am going to be" Fully conformed to the image of Jesus.
There is a song by Steven Curtis Chapman called "The Change".
"Well I got myself a T-shirt that says what I believe. I got letters on my bracelet to serve as my ID. I got the necklace and the key chain and almost everything a good Christian needs ... I got the little Bible magnets on my refrigerator door and a welcome mat to bless you before you walk across my floor. I got a Jesus bumper sticker and the outline of a fish stuck on my car. And even though this stuff's all well and good, I cannot help but ask myself--
What about the change. What about the difference. What about the grace. What about forgiveness. What about a life that's showing. I'm undergoing the change."
You cannot see inside a cocoon as the caterpillar goes under the transformation. But you can see that change in a person. You also know that the caterpillar can never go back to what it once was. The change is irreversible. I can never be a caterpillar again. I cannot lose my salvation.
Third. When I try to tell my kids or other people what I used to be like, they don't believe me. They never knew THAT me, only THIS me. And it is by the grace of God, that I am what I am.
So what about you? Look at the picture again. What side of the table are you sitting on?
Think about it – Pray about it – Believe it – Walk in it. Let your light shine and give God the glory.
By Faith Alone By His Grace Alone And For His Glory Alone
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