“ I ’ ve changed my mind ” or that I ’ m somehow better now because I individually read the latest book , watched a Ted Talk , listened to a podcast , attended the conference , or took the class , filled out the workbook and shelved it alongside all the others .
And wake up as the same person . No lasting transformation . Not without relationship .
Adult transformation comes not from human doing but from human being . It ’ s an ancient way . Jesus of Nazareth called people to loss : “ any one of you who does not renounce all that he has cannot be my disciple ” ( Luke 15:10 ). He led this way , having created human beings and knowing what it takes for them to transform . We want to learn from Him . We see three core elements in His way that show the transformational pathway for leading human beings to transformation .
Encounter Transformational Ideas
As Jesus walked among humans being , He most often taught in stories or parables that challenged the norms of the day and opened up new ideas . Modern equivalents are sermons , etc . These new ideas initiate transformation . And maybe there ’ s a call to hoped-for lasting action . Freedom and emancipation are the themes of beginning transformation .
In our line of work , that call is to believe that God created humans for His good purpose , but humans turned against God . He lovingly pursues them by sending His own Son , Jesus , to die for and save them . And then to defeat death once and for all in His resurrection . When you enter into a relationship with Jesus as God and Savior , you are transformed – freed from selfishness , your soul now stands with God for eternity . It required loss .
A faithful church teaches this over and over . We ask people to embrace the freedom-giving gospel . And there ’ s a loss of a person ’ s entire former way of being . No one can bear that alone .
Encountering a new idea is one thing – following it into lasting transformation requires loss . And one another .
Experience Transformation
Not long ago , we heard an African pastor share about the American church , “ I ’ ve observed that everything in your churches is about getting more knowledge . But why would you gain more knowledge when you don ’ t already obey the knowledge you have !”
Many well-intentioned churches see community as a sidecar to the machine of knowledge . Less relationship , more information . More time in rows , not circles . Most efforts were spent telling people what to think rather than cultivating a community that could live those ideals .
Most of Jesus ’ time was spent with twelve men with whom He traveled and shared life . Honest , probing questions about what it really looked like to live Jesus ’ teachings were asked and answered forthrightly , not just in words but in community . In this First Century small group , knowledge of God , self , and friends began to transform the persons in the group . It changed the world .
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