The Transformed Life

Many Christians are chameleons. A chameleon is a small lizard whose skin changes color according to its surroundings. A chameleon is a conformist. It is the opposite of a butterfly, which is a caterpillar transformed. So the question is, are you a chameleon or a butterfly? Simply put, are you a pagan, pretending to be a Christian in certain situations, or are you a true child of God-one who has been born of God and transformed in your heart? The answer can be found in another question: what do you love-this world or God?

In Romans 12:1 we considered the nature of true Christian worship. All of our life must be lived every day in service to God: “So whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God” (1 Cor. 10:31). In view of God’s gracious salvation, we are to present our bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God. That is our spiritual act of worship.

Now in verse 2 Paul tells us how to reach the goal of verse 1. Doctrinally, he is dealing with progressive sanctification-that is, how to live a holy life in a pagan world.

There is a negative and a positive side to our Christian life. Negatively, we are not to be conformed to the pattern of this age, meaning we are not to be worldly. Positively, we are to be renewed in our minds so that we may discern, delight, and do the good, pleasing, and perfect will of God. We are not to be transformed by getting rid of our minds; rather, we are to be transformed by the renewing of our minds and not conform to the ways, standards, and values of this age.

We are to please God, not by doing our will but by doing the will of God. As a child of the devil, every unbeliever does the will of his father the devil. But every believer, being a child of God, chooses to do the will of his heavenly Father, as Jesus taught us: “Thy will be done.”

The child of God, therefore, worships God by obeying him. The unbeliever’s mind is twisted and depraved; he can only do sinful things. He cannot submit to God or please him. It is an utter impossibility. But a believer’s mind is straightened out, so he can do what is pleasing to God.

Be Not Conformed

First, Paul exhorts us, “Be not conformed” (mê suschêmatizesthe). The Greek verb is in the present tense, passive voice, and imperative mood. The present tense means this action is continuously prohibited. We are not to be conformed to the pattern of this age, now or ever. We must oppose the ways of the world until we die.

It is in the passive voice. This means God helps us in our opposition to the world’s values. We are to work out what God works in us. So with Paul we say, “I can do all things through Jesus Christ who gives me strength” (Phil. 4:13). Jesus himself said, “Without me you can do nothing.” Only with God’s help can we do the whole will of God.

This prohibition is in the imperative mood. Though in the passive voice, it is a command, meaning that we have a responsibility to act as God enables us. We may want to say, “I will let God do everything. Let him work in me and let him also work out.” No, we must work as he works in us. He says, be not conformed, so we must not be conformed. He helps us to work six days a week, but we must do the work with our hands and minds. He helps husbands to love their wives, and we must love them. He helps us lose weight, but we must eat less and exercise more.

Unlike regeneration, which is a monergistic act of God, progressive sanctification is a joint venture between God and the believer. Earlier, Paul wrote, “For if you live according to the flesh, you will die. But if by the Holy Spirit you put to death the misdeeds of the body, you will live” (Rom. 8:13). What are we to put to death? “The acts of the sinful nature are obvious: sexual immorality, impurity and debauchery; idolatry and witchcraft; hatred, discord, jealousy, fits of rage, selfish ambition, dissensions, factions and envy; drunkenness, orgies, and the like” (Gal. 5:19-21). We must kill them by the power of the Holy Spirit. We have been set free; therefore, we can exercise dominion over sin, the devil, and the ways of the world.

A false believer is a chameleon conformist. When he is with sinners, he behaves like them. But when he comes to church, he smiles and shouts, “Praise the Lord” and “Hallelujah!” The unbeliever conforms to the ways and fashions of this world. Watch people and see what values they embrace. We can deduce whether they are pagans or Christians by their actions.

A Christian is a non-conformist. He knows that there is pleasure in sin and lawlessness, but he also knows that sin will deceive and kill us. He knows that this age is not permanent but temporary. It is like Sodom, about to be destroyed. A Christian knows not to invest in a real estate deal in Sodom! So Paul speaks of “those who use the things of the world, as if not engrossed in them. For this world in its present form is passing away” (1 Cor. 7:31).

A Christian knows that this age, which is passing away, is evil. Paul says that God sent his Son, Jesus Christ, to deliver us from this “present evil age” (Gal. 1:4). Satan is the god of this age. The whole world lies under his total control by divine ordination. John tells us, “Do not love the world or anything in the world. If anyone loves the world [this is worldliness], the love of the Father is not in him. For everything in the world-the cravings of [the flesh], the lust of his eyes and the boasting of what he has and does-comes not from the Father but from the world. The world and its desires pass away, but the man who does the will of God lives forever” (1 John 2:15-17). Peter says, “As obedient children, do not conform to the evil desires you had when you lived in ignorance” (1 Pet. 1:14).

As believers, we know that Christ has defeated Satan once for all by his death on the cross. It is foolish for a Christian, therefore, to conform to the ways of Satan. We have been given authority over the devil: “Resist the devil, and he will flee from you” (Jas. 4:7). And we resist him in the name of Jesus Christ our Lord. The devil cannot harm us, for God has rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the Son he loves, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins (Col. 1:13-14).

The Christian knows that he has been given eternal life and is held by the hand of the Father and the hand of the Son. He knows he is secure; no one can snatch him out of the grasp of God triune. This age is temporary. It is passing away. Paul says, “So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen. For what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal” (2 Cor. 4:18). But there is a coming age, which we read about it in Ephesians 1:20-21: “[The power] which [God] exerted in Christ when he raised him from the dead and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly realms, far above all rule and authority, power and dominion, and every title that can be given, not only in the present age but also in the one to come.”

What do we have in this age? Sin, misery, the devil, and death. But in the coming age, there is no sin, devil, or death, as John tells us in his description of the new heaven and the new earth: “And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, “˜Now the dwelling of God is with men, and he will live with them. They will be his people, and God himself will be with them and be their God. He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away'” (Rev. 21:3-4; see also 22:3-5).

We will enjoy perfect happiness and incomparable joy as we live beholding the face of God in the coming age! So the one who amasses wealth in this age yet cares nothing for his soul is a fool. He is deceived by wealth. The Bible speaks of the deceitfulness of two things: sin and wealth. Ask today’s multibillionaires, “What are you hoping for? You must die.” And then ask millionaires, “What are you hoping for? You must die.” Then ask those who have $500,000, “What are you hoping for? You must die.” Those who trust in their wealth are without hope and without God in this world. They run after these things, but they do not want to seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness.

J. B. Phillips translates Romans 12:2 this way: “Don’t let the world around you squeeze you into its own mould, but let God re-mould your minds from within.” We are imitative by nature, but we must not imitate the world around us. That would be living like the devil, like a chameleon. Rather, we must imitate God the Father as his dear children: “Be imitators of God, therefore, as dearly loved children and live a life of love, just as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us as a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God” (Eph. 5:1-2). We must also imitate godly people. Paul exhorts, “Follow my example, as I follow the example of Christ” (1 Cor. 11:1).

Don’t be like Judas, who was with Christ at the Last Supper. Then he joined with the enemies of Christ at Gethsemane. He was a chameleon. Don’t be like Peter, who was with Christ at the Last Supper; then he denied Christ three times and cursed him. Don’t be like Ananias and Sapphira, who for money lied to the Holy Spirit and died instantly. Don’t be like Demas, who abandoned Jesus, Paul, and the gospel, having loved this present evil age (2 Tim. 4:10). Demas conformed and was condemned.

Numbers 25 speaks of the children of Israel who joined in worshiping the Baal of Peor. They conformed and were condemned, and the Lord destroyed them. Later when ten tribes of Israel conformed to the ways of the world, God’s covenant curse came upon them, and God threw them out from his presence: “Therefore the LORD rejected all the people of Israel; he afflicted them and gave them into the hands of plunderers, until he thrust them from his presence” (2 Kings 17:20). The people of Judah also conformed to the ways of the world and worshiped all the pagan gods, and God threw them out of his presence: “It was because of the LORD’s anger that all this happened to Jerusalem and Judah, and in the end he thrust them from his presence” (2 Kings 24:20).

Many Christians live lives of practical materialism and practical atheism. Like the pagans, they run after material riches. They live like pagans all their lives and die as hopeless wretches. They do not see the world to come. They are without hope and without God. They live for this age because “the god of this age has blinded the minds of unbelievers, so that they cannot see the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God” (2 Cor. 4:4). If you are an unbeliever, the devil has blinded your eyes, so that you may not see the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ in the gospel. I command you to repent and believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, that you may become truly rich.

The Problem of Pagans

Pagans glory in their wisdom and philosophy, a philosophy that denies the greatest fact: the existence of the true and living God. They exchange the knowledge of God for idolatry and every form of immorality. They are wise in their own eyes. They look at Christians and say, “I make more money than you. Why should I listen to you?” But Paul warns, “Do not deceive yourselves. If any one of you thinks he is wise by the standards of this age, he should become a “˜fool’ so that he may become wise. For the wisdom of this world is foolishness in God’s sight” (1 Cor. 3:18-19).

Unbelievers are under divine judgment, as Paul explains: “For although they knew God, they neither glorified him as God nor gave thanks to him, but their thinking became futile and their foolish hearts were darkened. Although they claimed to be wise, they became fools and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images made to look like mortal man and birds and animals and reptiles. Therefore God gave them over in the sinful desires of their hearts to sexual impurity for the degrading of their bodies with one another. . . . Because of this, God gave them over to shameful lusts. . . . Furthermore, since they did not think it worthwhile to retain the knowledge of God, he gave them over to a twisted, depraved mind to do what ought not to be done” (Rom. 1:21-24, 26, 28). Godlessness and immorality go hand in hand.

Unbelievers are depraved. Their minds are twisted; they cannot interpret any fact correctly. They cannot understand the reality of God or their own depraved condition or their moral inability. This is due to the noetic effect of sin (the effect sin has upon the mind). Sin perverts our intellect. Without the Holy Spirit’s regenerative work, no sinner can correctly understand God or himself.

As creatures of this fallen world, all sinners are blinded by the devil. They may speak about philosophy, but they are blind fools. Having wrong theology, they practice wrong morality. Unbelieving theologians may study the Bible carefully for years, but they cannot believe in miracles. So they demythologize the Bible. When asked about the fruit of their lifelong research, they will say, “Jesus was just a sinner like us who died on the cross. This is the precious result of all my intense study.”

Unbelievers hate Jesus Christ, the Bible, true Christians, and Christian morality. In their minds they hate God. About such people Paul says, “Once you were alienated from God and were enemies in your minds because of your evil behavior” (Col. 1:21). Go to any university. Those who are hated are biblical Christians.

Pagans conform to the Zeitgeist, not the Heilige Geist. They have a Weltanschauungthat is anti-God and anti-Christian.¹ Paul explains, “Those who live according to the sinful nature have their minds set on what that nature desires. . . . The mind of sinful man is death, but the mind controlled by the Spirit is life and peace; the sinful mind is hostile to God. It does not submit to God’s law, nor can it do so. Those controlled by the sinful nature cannot please God” (Rom. 8:5-8). They have deep enmity toward God and therefore toward the Bible and Christians.

Be a Non-Conformist

What, then, should we do as Christians? Do not conform to the pattern of this evil age. Rather, shine as stars in this crooked and depraved generation. Be different. Be separate. Don’t share the value system of this world. Paul says, “Do not be yoked together with unbelievers. For what do righteousness and wickedness have in common? Or what fellowship can light have with darkness? What harmony is there between Christ and Belial? What does a believer have in common with an unbeliever? What agreement is there between the temple of God and idols? For we are the temple of the living God. As God has said: “˜I will live with them and walk among them, and I will be their God, and they will be my people.’ “˜Therefore come out from them and be separate'” (2 Cor. 6:14-17). We must be separate in school and at work because we are light and they are darkness. We are alive; they are dead. “”˜Touch no unclean thing and I will receive you. “˜I will be a Father to you and you will be my sons and daughters,’ says the Lord Almighty. Since we have these promises, dear friends, let us purify ourselves from everything that contaminates body and spirit, perfecting holiness out of reverence for God” (2 Cor. 6:17-7:1).

Don’t be a chameleon. Be separate. Shine as stars in this crooked and perverse generation. We are the light of the world and the light for the world. The question is, who is going to evangelize whom? We must evangelize the world.

Be Ye Transformed

The Christian life is not just negative; it is also positive. Not only do Christians not conform to the world, but they also experience total transformation in their minds. As unbelievers, we were dead, disobedient, and condemned. Because our minds were twisted and depraved, we failed to interpret reality correctly. We always spoke wrong things and lived in ignorance.

But something miraculous happened. We were born again, made new creations by God. In the context of gospel preaching, God performed a mighty miracle and raised us from the dead. Jesus said, “You must be born again.” New birth is a monergistic, unilateral, punctiliar, miraculous, instantaneous, sovereign work of God. We were passive; God was active. We did nothing to bring about our regeneration. God gave us new hearts, new minds, and new natures. Our hearts of stone were taken away, and we were given soft, responsive hearts. Now we know and love the God of the Scriptures. We understand and delight in God’s word. We love God and choose to do his will.

Paul says, “But because of his great love for us, God who is rich in mercy, made us alive with Christ, even when we were dead in transgressions. It is by grace you have been saved through faith. . . . For we are God’s workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God has foreordained that we should do them” (Eph. 2:4-5, 10). Peter writes, “For you have been born again, not of perishable seed, but of imperishable, through the living and enduring word of God” (1 Pet. 1:23; see also James 1:18). Paul says, “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come!” (2 Cor. 5:17). He also declares, “Neither circumcision nor uncircumcision means anything; what counts is a new creation” (Gal. 6:15).

Many of us have experienced this transformation and will continue to experience and grow in it. This transformation has taken place in our hearts and minds, and it manifests in our outward life. Transformation goes on deep within a person. Metamorphosis occurs deep within but also manifests outward. When we observe a person who is baptized, yet who is disobedient, rebellious, and stubborn, we must conclude that person is not born again. In due time he will fall away.

This transformation takes place deep in our hearts. Jeremiah tells us the heart is deceitful above all things and desperately wicked (Jer. 17:9). But God has given us a new heart. This transformation manifests in our outward life in how we live in obedience to God, how we live toward our spouses and children, how we live toward our brothers and sisters in the Lord, and how we live toward unbelievers.

Conforming to the Image of Christ

We are now conformists, not to the world, but to Jesus. So Paul says, “For those God foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the likeness of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brothers” (Rom. 8:29; see also Col. 3:10). He speaks of being “made new in the attitude of your minds” (Eph. 4:23). He also declares, “And just as we have borne the likeness of the earthly man, so shall we bear the likeness of the man from heaven” (1 Cor. 15:49). We are non-conformists and conformists at the same time.

To be like Christ is the epitome of spirituality and godliness. John says, “Dear friends, now we are children of God, and what we will be has not yet been made known. But we know that when he appears, we shall be like him, for we shall see him as he is” (1 John 3:2). That is our goal and destiny. Paul writes, “For God, who said, “˜Let light shine out of darkness,’ made his light shine in our hearts to give us the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Christ” (2 Cor. 4:6).

Not only are we given a new nature, a new heart, and a new spirit, but we are also given the Holy Spirit to dwell in us forever to lead us, to teach us, and to empower us to do what is pleasing in God’s sight. So we read, “”˜This is the covenant I will make with the house of Israel after that time,’ declares the LORD. “˜I will put my law in their minds and write it on their hearts. I will be their God, and they will be my people. No longer will a man teach his neighbor, or a man his brother, saying, “Know the LORD,” because they will all know me, from the least of them to the greatest,’ declares the LORD. “˜For I will forgive their wickedness and will remember their sins no more'” (Jer. 31:33-34). The word of God is no longer alien to us; it has become our very nature. So we love it and want to do it. Every believer has an innate knowledge of God. Yes, we have to grow in our knowledge. But everyone who is born of God knows God. And we cry out, “Our Father in heaven.”

The Lord spoke of this marvelous transformation throughout the Old Testament: “I will give them singleness of heart and action, so that they will always fear me for their own good and the good of their children after them” (Jer. 32:39). Not only do the parents fear God, but their children will fear him. “The promise is for you and your children” (Acts 2:39). In Ezekiel we read, “They will return to [the land] and remove all its vile images and detestable idols. I will give them an undivided heart and put a new spirit in them; I will remove from them their heart of stone and give them a heart of flesh. Then they will follow my decrees and be careful to keep my laws. They will be my people, and I will be their God” (Ezek. 11:18-20).

God takes our stubborn, rebellious, argumentative hearts and makes them like the heart of King Josiah, responsive to the word of God. Obedience now is our nature. The Lord declares, “I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit in you; I will remove from you your heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh. And I will put my Spirit in you and move you to follow my decrees and be careful to keep my laws” (Ezek. 36:26-27). Those who are born of God will repent of their sins and believe on the Lord Jesus Christ. They will reject their old ways and embrace the new ways and values of God revealed in the Scripture. God renews their minds, and this renewal continues till death. As Christians, we are always learning from the Scripture.

The Foolish Become Wise

Paul writes, “We have not received the spirit of the world but the Spirit who is from God, that we may understand what God has freely given us” the gospel (1 Cor. 2:12). Then he says, “The man without the Spirit does not accept the things that come from the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him, and he cannot understand them, because they are spiritually discerned. The spiritual man makes judgments about all things, but he himself is not subject to any man’s judgment” (1 Cor. 2:14-15). One person told me that when she was a student, a professor told her, “You are a Christian only because the Sunday School teacher told you to believe. But you will grow out of it.” That is a foolish statement. Such people are fools whose minds are twisted and depraved. According to Cornelius van Til, such people do not understand even one fact correctly. People misinterpret everything when they reject God. An old woman, who never had a university education but has been born of God, will instantly understand God and everything else in the world correctly because she has “the mind of Christ” (1 Cor. 2:16).

When we are born again, what was foolishness before is now wisdom, and what was wisdom before is now foolishness. What drastic, fundamental change in our understanding! Now we see all things with the new mind, the mind of Christ. (PGM) So we no longer live the old life, patterned after the world. A transformation has taken place in our minds. So we read, “For Christ’s love compels us, because we are convinced that one died for all, and therefore all died. And he died for all, that those who live should no longer live for themselves but for him who died for them and was raised again” (2 Cor. 5:14-15; see also Eph. 4:17-19).

See the drastic transformation! “He who has been stealing must steal no longer, but must work, doing something useful with his own hands, that he may have something to share with those in need” (Eph. 4:28). The thief was taking that which did not belong to him. Now he is converted, and he works and gives to those in need. When the old drunk John is converted, the new John works with his hands and gives. This 180-degree transformation is because of regeneration. “For the grace of God that brings salvation has appeared to all men. It teaches us to say “˜No’ to ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright and godly lives in this present age [not in heaven], while we wait for the blessed hope-the glorious appearing of our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ” (Titus 2:11-13). Before, we said, “Yes” to every sin. Now we say, “No.”

A Renewed Mind

When we are born again, we become like the new Naaman. After he was healed, he instantly confessed the God of Israel and understood spiritual things. His behavior was changed as his attitude changed as his heart changed. There is new life, new thinking, and new behavior. Look at the man with the legion of demons. Jesus cast out thousands of demons from him. He had been crazy, restless, lonely, and naked. But now he is sitting down at the feet of Jesus, clothed and in his sound mind. That is what divine transformation does to us. God gives us the Holy Spirit-the Spirit of love, power, and a sound mind. With this sound mind, we can think, interpret, and speak correctly.

Look at Saul of Tarsus. This wild beast of a man was breathing out slaughter and threatenings against Christians. But the Lord Jesus Christ arrested him and gave him a new heart and a new mind. He believed in Jesus, was filled with the Holy Spirit, and began to pray. He became obedient to Christ. He became different from the inside out. And he started preaching that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God.

So the positive exhortation is, “Be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind.” Again, the verb is in the present tense, passive voice, and imperative mood. Present tense means we are to be transformed continuously. Passive voice means God helps in our transformation by renewing our minds. Imperative mood means we have a responsibility in this ongoing transformation. Paul exhorts, “Work out your salvation with fear and trembling, for it is God who works in you both to will and to act according to his good purpose” (Phil. 2:12-13).

What is our responsibility? As we pray, as we study daily the Scriptures, as we worship God, as we hear the preached word, as we listen carefully to pastoral counsel, we will come to know Christ more and more, and we will be changed into his likeness in attitude and actions. We become like Jesus Christ. “But we all with unveiled faces, beholding as in a mirror, the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory, just as by the Spirit of the Lord” (2 Cor. 3:18, KJV). Paul uses the same word here (metamorphoumetha) as he did in Romans 12:2, but this time it is a present active indicative. Romans 12:2 commanded us to be transformed. In this verse we see the reality of being transformed as we behold the glory of the Lord.

What do you think about? Most people focus on the things of this present world. After eating breakfast, they will immediately focus on lunch. While eating lunch, they focus on supper. What are we focusing on? In Hebrews 12:2 we read, “Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and the perfecter of our faith” (see also Heb. 3:1). Do you see Jesus in the pages of the Scripture? Paul says, “Since, then, you have been raised with Christ” – that is regeneration – “set your hearts on things above where Christ is seated on the right hand of God. Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things” (Col. 3:1-2). This is God-given responsibility for every Christian.

Where do we behold the glory of the Lord? Is Paul talking about an epiphany? No, we behold the glory of our Lord in the word of God. Jesus himself said that all Scriptures-the Law, the Prophets, and the Psalms-all speak of him.

Notice, we are passive in this transformation: “We are being transformed into his likeness.” This is God’s work. If a person worships idols, he becomes stupid like idols. This is what happened to the people of Israel. “They rejected his decrees and the covenant he had made with their fathers and the warnings he had given them. They followed worthless idols and themselves became worthless. They imitated the nations around them although the LORD had ordered them, “Do not do as they do,” and they did the things the LORD had forbidden them to do” (2 Kings 17:15). In their minds, wills, and affections, they became worthless, and God threw them out of the land.

But when we focus our eyes on the glorious Christ, we also become glorious. We go from one degree of glory to another. Paul describes the character of one who is focused on Christ: “The fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control” (Gal. 5:22-25). We can become like Jesus, or we can become like the worthless idols. We must make up our minds what we want.

Unbelievers can never think correctly, for they deny God who is the meaning of every fact. Because their minds are depraved, they suppress the truth of God. Unbelievers are enemies of God in their minds. Only Christians have sound minds. They are not mindless people. Unbelievers are mindless and anti-intellectual.

The mind has two dimensions-intellectual and moral. Those with bad minds do not know God, so they practice immorality. But Christians have new minds, so we know God and practice his morality. We do the will of God and walk in obedience to him. Jesus commanded us to love the Lord our God with all our heart, soul, mind, and strength, and our neighbor as ourselves, and he enables us to do that.

If you are a Christian, I urge you to exercise maximally your mind, first and foremost in knowing Christ as you behold his glory in the holy Scriptures. Christians are non-conformists to the world because they have reprogrammed minds. The more we hear and do the will of God, the more our minds will be renewed and the more we will be transformed into the likeness of Christ.

Most modern evangelical churches have become mindless. The reason is because they do not preach the word. They have become anti-intellectual, contradicting, and emotional. They do not teach systematic theology. It is the word of God that makes us intelligent and enables us to think straight. The Spirit of the Reformation Biblesays this about Romans 12:2: “The Christian’s mindset is to be determined and reshaped by the knowledge of the gospel, the power of the Spirit and the concern of the age to come . . . not by the passing fashion . . . of this age.”²

The Bible says all Scripture is God-breathed and is profitable for teaching, rebuke, correction, and training in righteousness, that the man of God be thoroughly furnished for every good work (2 Tim. 3:16-17). The blessed man of Psalm 1 delights in the law of the Lord and meditates on it day and night. That is why we should listen to God-appointed preachers, because it is their job to preach the gospel correctly. Paul writes, “It was he who gave some to be apostles, some to be prophets, some to be evangelists, and some to be pastors and teachers, to prepare God’s people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up until we all reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God and become mature, attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ” (Eph. 4:11-13).

Discerning, Delighting, and Doing God’s Will

We were darkness, but now we are light in the Lord. Let us live as children of light (Eph. 4:8). Understand and do the Lord’s will. Paul says, “You, however, did not come to know Christ that way. Surely you heard of him and were taught in him in accordance with the truth that is in Jesus” (Eph. 4:20-21). He also says, “so that you may become blameless and pure, children of God without fault in a crooked and depraved generation, in which you shine like stars in the universe” (Phil. 2:15). It is easy to blend in, like a chameleon, doing what the world does. It takes regeneration and renewing of your mind and transformation in your heart to shine as stars in crooked and perverse generation in an evil world. This is our purpose. Jesus said, “You are the light of the world. A city on a hill cannot be hidden. Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before men, that they may see your good deeds and praise your Father in heaven” (Matt. 5:14-16).

We discover the will of God in the word of God. When our minds are renewed by the Spirit through God’s word, we are able to discern the will of God in every life situation. And not only can we discern God’s will, but we also delight in it and do it for the glory of God and for our own peace and happiness. Paul says that he received apostleship to call the Gentiles to the obedience of faith (Rom. 1:5). Elsewhere he wrote, “And this is my prayer: that your love may abound more and more in knowledge and depth of insight, so that you may be able to discern what is best and may be pure and blameless until the day of Christ” (Phil. 1:9-10). What is best for us comes from the Bible.

The will of God we are speaking about is not the hidden, decretive will of God; rather, it is the moral, preceptive will of divine revelation, which tells us how we should live in this evil age (Deut. 29:29). The Bible tells us to be holy; it is the will of God. The Bible tells us we must pray always; it is the will of God. The Bible tells us to love one another; it is the will of God. The Bible tells us we must forgive one another as God has forgiven us in Christ; it is the will of God. The Bible tells us we must work six days a week; it is the will of God. We are to pray according to the will of God. Jesus came to do the will of God, as written in the volume of the book. So he defeated Satan by quoting the Scriptures, saying, “It is written.” Paul says, “Let the word of Christ dwell in your heart richly” (Col. 3:16). The psalmist says, “Thy word I have hid in my heart that I may not sin against you.”

Therefore, we are to study and search the whole Bible diligently to discern, delight, and do the will of God. The will of God alone is good because God alone is good, and so his will is good. So we pray, “Thy will be done,” not “My will be done.” Always choose God’s will over your own desire. God’s will is good and good for us. When we do the will of God, he is pleased and it will be pleasing to us. The will of God is also perfect. It is not changing moral relativism-it is absolute and unchanging. It abides always. No one can improve on it. It lacks nothing.

Conclusion

Christians live now in this present evil age. Yet God has transferred us from the dominion of the darkness of this age into the kingdom of Jesus Christ. In fact, we live in two worlds at the same time-this world and the world to come. We are in Christ. We are seated with Christ. We experience the powers of the age to come in the power of the Holy Ghost. We have been set free from the dominion of sin, Satan, flesh, death, and the world. We have been buried with Christ and been raised with Christ to live a new life, the indestructible resurrection life of Christ. We are united with Christ and live by his life. We are more than conquerors through him who loved us. So we love holiness and hate wickedness. To God be all the glory.

We walk on the highway of holiness, following Jesus, who is the way, the truth, and the life. So in this world we live like Joseph as he lived a holy life in pagan Egypt. We live like Daniel and the three Hebrew children as they lived for God’s glory in pagan Babylon. We live like Moses, as he followed the invisible God of glory through the wilderness: “By faith Moses, when he had grown up, refused to be known as the son of Pharaoh’s daughter. He chose to be mistreated along with the people of God rather than to enjoy the pleasures of sin for a short time. He regarded disgrace for the sake of Christ as of greater value than the treasures of Egypt, because he was looking ahead to his reward” (Heb. 11:24-26).

Yes, we are in the world, but thank God, we are not of the world. Our citizenship is in heaven. Let us live as light in the world-a life of separation and holiness. Let us offer our bodies as living sacrifices to God by the transformation of renewed minds by which we discern, delight, and do the will of God from his word-God’s good, pleasing, and perfect will.

¹Zeitgeist means “spirit of the times.” Heilige Geist is the Holy Spirit.Weltanschauung means “worldview.”

²New International Version Spirit of the Reformation Bible (Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 2003), 1832.