Changed, Yet Changing
“A Christian is a radically changed person the moment he or she trusts Christ.
This doesn’t mean we become ‘saints’ in practice overnight. It does mean a new creation — a new principle of life — has been planted within us by the Holy Spirit, and we can never be the same again.
– Jerry Bridges, The Discipline of Grace
Yesterday morning we sang the song once. Twice. Three times.
Each time, I was moved.
“I’m no longer a slave to fear/
I am a child of God”
That usually means something. The song was meant for me.
No Longer Slaves \\ Jonathan and Melissa Helser \\ Bethel Music
But it’s one thing to sing the words. And another thing to mean them.
I do know I’m a child of God. I totally believe that.
But no longer a slave to fear?
Um, I’m not there yet.
It can make me question whether I’ve been truly transformed into Christlikeness. I know I’ve been fully justified, but what happened to being sanctified?
It’s a process. A long one.
But a real process, nonetheless. I mustn’t forget. Because the truth is, I have been delivered from bondage to fear. And as I grow in understanding and practice of that, I continue to see more of the transformation.
“In justification we rely on what Christ did for us on the cross. In sanctification we rely on Christ to work in us by His Holy Spirit. In justification, as well as regeneration, God acts alone. In sanctification He works in us but elicits our response to cooperate with Him.”
– Jerry Bridges
I want to fully depend on what Christ did then.
And I want to fully cooperate with what he’s wanting to do now.
So I continue singing:
- to declare it as truth,
- to preach it deeper into me,
- and to claim it as a promise that will be fulfilled.
“You split the sea so I could walk right through it /
My fears were drowned in perfect love /
You rescued me so I could stand and sing /
I am a child of God”
Even though I’ve been changed, I still continue to change—sometimes in ways I can see, and sometimes in invisible ways that lie beneath the surface.
Either way, I’ll never be the same again, praise God.
* * *
In what ways have you seen change? In what ways do you still long to see change? Please share in the comments.
Listen, believe, and worship with No Longer Slaves here.
So very true, Lisa. We are changed and at the same time, we are ever changing. So grateful for His grace and mercy in my life. Blessings!
I’m grateful for his grace and mercy, too, Joanne! What would we do without it? I don’t even want to think about it.
Thanks for sharing this new-to-me song, Lisa. I’m letting its beauty soak into my soul even as we speak.
Truth sinks in deep, by the power of His Spirit. We all come hungry, don’t we …
I’m glad to be able to introduce this song to you, Linda. Isn’t it beautiful? The words really declare God’s truth deep into my soul.
I get discouraged when I keep needing forgiveness and help with the same old sins. I’m thankful that God does not get weary of being the Helper.
Me, too, Michele. If I were God, I would be finished with me by now. 🙂 So it’s a good thing on MANY levels that he is God and I am not.
Hi Lisa! You hit on a place that I need to work on. Saying my faith vs. being truly invested in it. I think I’ll be working on that my whole life.
But I have seen change in the way I don’t sink quite so low in the bad times. I’m working on prayer and then ‘letting go’, realizing that God has everything in his hands. It’s actually very freeing!
Happy Monday,
Ceil
Yes, I do believe it’s a lifelong journey, this transformation into who we’re meant to be. It sounds like you’re on a great path, Ceil. Anytime we see progress, rejoice! 🙂
I love that song! And, yes, becoming a fearless person of grace is a lifelong process. Frustrating sometimes. But so rewarding and life-giving all the time. Thanks, Lisa! Blessings to you!
I am learning to release that frustration more an more, but it still lingers underneath. 🙁 But yes, his grace is a life-giving answer to all our problems. Thanks, Mari-Anna.
Accepting change can be a hard lesson to learn, but i am working on it.
We are in it together. This lesson is one of the hardest.
You know, Lisa, that I will totally relate to and understand your thoughts in this one. We have talked about being *fear friends* – not something that I’m happy about for either one of us, but comforting all the same. Yes, the Lord has delivered me from fear, and it is now the process of working out that victory that He is seeking to do in my life. It’s a long process, sometimes I sail and sometimes I fail. I’m just glad that He doesn’t give up.
I remember the time that these verses struck me in a new way:
“Because God’s children are human beings—made of flesh and blood—the Son also became flesh and blood. For only as a human being could he die, and only by dying could he break the power of the devil, who had the power of death. Only in this way could he set free all who have lived their lives as slaves to the fear of dying.” (Hebrews 2:14-15, NLT)
What struck me was the wording – “lived their lives as slaves to the FEAR of dying.” Notice that we are freed from death, once and forever. So the devil was disarmed of that weapon. But, in absence of that, he still uses the FEAR to enslave us. Somehow knowing that fear isn’t just an emotion, but a weapon used against me, sometimes makes me braver in the fight. I don’t like to give the enemy any territory!
Thanks for your thought-provoking words. And I join you in praising the Lord that we are being changed, transformed, renewed all the time in His Spirit!
GOD BLESS!
I know you know how I feel, Sharon. This is so good: “It is now the process of working out that victory that He is seeking to do in my life. It’s a long process, sometimes I sail and sometimes I fail.” Your words really speak to me. The enemy of fear can be so debilitating, even when there is no substance behind it. I like your attitude and join you in praising God for what’s he’s already done and will continue to do in us!
First of all – love the bottom graphic, and looked up and installed Bible Screen!
Yes, I have areas like that where I’ve seen God work and change me, but I still have a long way to go: fear/anxiety, pride, the need to love more and better. I’m so thankful for His grace and longsuffering.
I had never heard of Bible Screen until I found that image. I’m glad I ran across it now for both of our sakes. 🙂 Yes, his long-suffering and grace are priceless gifts!
Thinking of fear, I am always reminded of Yoda’s classic line in “The Empire Strikes Back”.
When faced with Luke’s declaration that he’s not afraid, Yoda says, “You will be.”
And that is the crux of the matter for me. I don’t ask freedom from fear; I am quite happy with God giving me the sand to keep doing something useful in the face of fear that turns my guts to water and empties my bladder of its own accord.
Please pardon the image, but start terror does that, and as recent events have shown – it is coming to a neighbourhood near me, and near you.
I pray to God that I will continue to run to the sound of the guns, rather than away. That’s honour enough for anyone.
http://blessed-are-the-pure-of-heart.blogspot.com/2016/09/your-dying-spouse-208-drinking-from.html
Yes, that is honor enough. You’re a brave soul, Andrew. Not many of us have your courage. But I pray for grace to respond with bravery if I’m ever in your circumstances. We do know for certain that death is around the corner for each of us; the question is how we will respond in the face of it. You’re answering that daily.
So enjoyed this post, Lisa! I could not agree more…transformation and sanctification are long processes and I am not sure they are really accomplished until the moment He calls us home. There is so much to discover about Him and ourselves and there are some things I don’t think He can show us until we are older. I love the Jerry Bridges’ quote and it is from one of my favorite books!! Have a richly blessed day in Him.
Good point, Pam. There are lots of things that we aren’t even prepared to see until we’re older. That’s more evidence of God’s grace itself! Thank you for sharing that with me. I’ve loved every Jerry Bridges’ book that I’ve read. Glad you liked this one too. So sorry we’ll no longer have more writings from him.
Yes … sanctification is a loooong process. I’m grateful that God is willing to take the necessary time in order to help us (me) become like His Son. Learning new aspects of the same lesson. I, too, want to fully cooperate with Him! I love the “repeat” of music to drive the theme deeper into our souls …
Great insight, Dianne: God is willing to invest TIME in us to change us. I’m grateful for that too!
Yes, I can agree with you on this. I am no way living perfect yet so thankful for His grace and sanctifying work in me to bring me to a better place. Thanks for these encouraging words! (Stopping by from #Intentional Tuesday)
Yes, we are blessed that he doesn’t leave us where we are, but is always bringing us to a better place. Nicely stated, Rachel! Thanks for sharing.
Never the same, praise God. Love that song and the encouragement here. Sometimes we need to preach to ourselves and claim His promises over our lives.
Thank you, Lisa, for sharing! : )
Isn’t that song amazing? It grabbed me the first time I heard it, and every time since. It’s one that I keep singing in my head. Thanks for stopping by, Crystal.
We also sang the same song on Sunday and I remember repeating the words “I am no longer a slave to fear” throughout the day. It was almost as if I needed to get myself to believe what God has already proved.
I know I am a work in progress and continue to work through change. However, I choose God to walk this journey with me. He is patient and is willing to wait for me to catch up. Blessings my friend!
You sang it too? Love when that happens. I need to keep the chorus on repeat in my brain. 🙂 Love this: “He is patient and is willing to wait for me to catch up.” Thanks, Mary!
beautiful song and message. Yes yes a process. over and over again, slow transformation. Often we don’t ever see the change but it happened. I always read your posts and leave with something to think about. Thank you for all your work here.
Thank you, Jean. On World Gratitude Day, I am grateful for your friendship and encouraging words you always share with me! I’m doing good so far to not complain about anything. 🙂
Love that song. We are members of Passion City Church in Atlanta (Louie Giglio, Kristen Stanfill, Chris Tomlin) And obviously, have sung it a lot on the past. Yes, I know exactly what you mean about “not being there” — sometimes we are “slaves” to things that we don’t even realize. But if we are willing to explore our souls with the Lord, he promise to free us. Then, when He opens the door, we have to be willing to walk out of our prison and live in the freedom He gives. … which in itself can be a scary prospect. Thanks for the post!
Oh, I can imagine it’s such a blessing to be a part of that church, Karen. Wow. I hear good things from there. I love your analogy that even with the prison doors flung open, we still have to be willing to walk out. It definitely takes courage. Thanks for sharing!
I’m reminded of how often Christ spoke of fear, which sometimes comes cloaked in anxiety, but it’s all the same in the end; reverence to the flesh instead of the One that supplies us breath.
This is one of those things that I believe we all need to be reminded of, and constantly. Reverence to our Father first, and the fears melt away.
Thanks for the reminder, Lisa.
Yep, this was what I was trying to say summed up in one sentence: “Reverence to our Father first, and the fears melt away.” Praying for my reverence for God to outweigh all my worries!
I love that child of God song too, Lisa. So many thoughts come to mind here, how we long to be changed, yet we’re daily faced with reality. The now and not yet. But I choose to believe that God will complete the good work He has begun in me!
Yes, I’m believing too that he’s still at work in us and that he’ll never give up. I need more of his perseverance! 🙂
There is so much goodness here, Lisa. Oh, I know the feeling of being chained to fear. For an entire 6 months I cried out to the Lord using this Isaiah 51:14 verse, “The cowering prisoners will soon be set free. They will not die in their dungeon nor will they lack bread.” I love how you’re singing your way free! Thank you for this testimony!
Thanks for sharing that verse here, Summer. A beautiful one in both words and imagery!
My absolute favorite song right now! The deliverance is really a layer by layer process. As we peel one layer of bondage away, another is revealed. One we may not have even noticed because the bigger one on top kept it hidden. We just continue to work at it. One layer at a time. Aiming for the victory we will experience someday on the other side of the cross!
Blessings, friend!
Lori
Great analogy, Lori. One layer of bondage at a time. I’m not sure I’ve thought of it that way before, but it really helps me if I look at it that way. Thank you, friend!