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By Dr. Charles Stanley
Romans 12:1-2
How does the Word of God teach us the truth that sets us free? The original Greek in Romans 12 helps explain the process.
The apostle Paul tells us, “Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, so that you may prove what the will of God is, that which is good and acceptable and perfect” (Rom. 12:2).
Another way of saying it is, "Stop allowing the world to shape you into its mold." The meaning of the phrase is further deepened in the Greek. He used words that mean, "Stop assuming an outward appearance and lifestyle that is inconsistent with your inner being."
Now that Jesus Christ lives within you, it is incompatible with your true identity to allow the world to influence you into old behaviors. You have been freed from those old thought patterns, insecurities, inadequacies, and inferiorities, and freed to become a fruitful, Spirit-filled child of God.
Paul tells us to "be transformed," a Greek word from which the English word metamorphosis is derived. The believer is to have a metamorphosis by making his outward appearance and lifestyle consistent with who is within him and what he has become internally.
This metamorphosis comes by the renewing of our minds—when we replace old, erroneous thought patterns with the truth we find in God’s Word. And when truth becomes a part of your thinking, you become a free man or woman, a free saint, a free child of God fully apprised and confident of your position, personage, and possessions in Christ
Excerpt from In Touch magazine. Subscribe to In Touch magazine free here.
Romans 12:1-2
How does the Word of God teach us the truth that sets us free? The original Greek in Romans 12 helps explain the process.
The apostle Paul tells us, “Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, so that you may prove what the will of God is, that which is good and acceptable and perfect” (Rom. 12:2).
Another way of saying it is, "Stop allowing the world to shape you into its mold." The meaning of the phrase is further deepened in the Greek. He used words that mean, "Stop assuming an outward appearance and lifestyle that is inconsistent with your inner being."
Now that Jesus Christ lives within you, it is incompatible with your true identity to allow the world to influence you into old behaviors. You have been freed from those old thought patterns, insecurities, inadequacies, and inferiorities, and freed to become a fruitful, Spirit-filled child of God.
Paul tells us to "be transformed," a Greek word from which the English word metamorphosis is derived. The believer is to have a metamorphosis by making his outward appearance and lifestyle consistent with who is within him and what he has become internally.
This metamorphosis comes by the renewing of our minds—when we replace old, erroneous thought patterns with the truth we find in God’s Word. And when truth becomes a part of your thinking, you become a free man or woman, a free saint, a free child of God fully apprised and confident of your position, personage, and possessions in Christ
Excerpt from In Touch magazine. Subscribe to In Touch magazine free here.
