Day 6: Life Transformation

Scripture tells us that eternity is planted in the human heart, in other words, humanity longs for immortality. This is the way God has created us, to live forever. (Ecclesiastes 3:11)

A butterfly is an amazing creature. In the beginning, there is just an egg. Then the caterpillar actually chews its way out of the egg. That caterpillar is extremely hungry and begins to consume all that it can. Once the caterpillar molts its exoskeleton a few times, it enters into the pupa stage. This is when the chrysalis is formed and an amazing transformation is taking place. That caterpillar is becoming something new – a beautiful butterfly! 

It can be good to think of your new life in Christ as you becoming something completely new, like the caterpillar. 2 Corinthians 5:17 says, “Therefore if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creature; the old things passed away; behold, new things have come.” Your life should be different now that you follow Jesus. You now have the Holy Spirit living inside of you! God is beginning to give you new affections, new desires, and to conform you to the image of His Son, Jesus. That is the goal of the Christian life – to become like Jesus. 

At West Ridge, our mission is to lead people to become fully devoted followers of Jesus. After you’ve placed your faith and trust in Christ alone to be your Savior, your journey is not over. Your journey is just beginning. There should be a process (think of the caterpillar again) of continued maturity. This is what we call progressive sanctification. Sanctification is the process of being freed from sin and becoming more like Jesus. The reason we call it progressive is because it takes time. Romans 6:15 tells us that because we have grace from God, we should not continue to live sinful lives. Life doesn’t get easier, but we have hope in Jesus and help from the Holy Spirit (John 16:33). 

You are now on a life-long journey with Jesus and we are commanded in God’s word to be connected to the local body of Christ. Hebrews 10:25 says, “And let us not neglect our meeting together, as some people do, but encourage one another, especially now that the day of his return is drawing near.” We gather each Sunday to remember and respond to what God has done for us, and to know that we are not alone on this journey!

Pray:

God, it is so good to know that I am not alone. Thank you for giving me a new heart. I pray that you would fill me with the Holy Spirit and help me become more like Jesus. Thank you that I am no longer dead in my sins, but I am alive in Christ! I need you today and every day, in Jesus’ name, amen.