It is a truism that everyone was created by God to be a special person, a unique individual with special assignments to carry out in their lifetime. God has a purpose for your creation. That purpose can only be fulfilled when you become yourself. You have to diligently work on yourself to become your true self. Becoming yourself is a lifetime process which only you can aspire to achieve. Nobody can do it for you.
We are all born as spirit with soul and body. At birth, this spirit of man is dead because it has no relationship with the Father. I love the way David put it in Psalm 51:5, which says, “Behold, I was brought forth in iniquity, and in sin my mother conceived me.” As long as you remain a natural man, as born by your mother, without a relationship with God, you cannot be your true self.
The great question is how to connect or actually restore a spiritual relationship with God. It is a restoration because this relationship existed with Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden but was broken when they sinned. The restoration process was effected by the sacrificial death of our Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ, the Son of God, on the cross of Calvary. His death took away the sins of those who believe in Him. John 3:16 (NKJV) says, “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.” Your decision to receive Jesus Christ assures your salvation. Jesus Himself said in John 3:3 (NKJV), “Most assuredly, I say to you, unless one is born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.” This spiritual transformation is the beginning of your new life in Christ.
This new birth or new beginning is a spiritual change, and not a physical or mental one. Your soul and body remain the same. Your soul controls your mind, emotions, and will. Some Christians think that they can run the race of this life just because they are born again. No. You are only a child of God by your belief and confession and this is just the beginning or entry point into your new life, just as you were physically born on a certain day. Your birthday is the beginning of your natural life but your born-again experience is the beginning of your spiritual or Christian life. These two days are noteworthy in a Christian’s life.
While our spirit is recreated instantly when we make Jesus our Lord and Saviour, our mind, which is part of the soul, remains the same. Your fears, bad attitude, desires, and thoughts have remained unchanged. Therefore, the mind must be changed for an effective Christian walk.
In Romans 12:2 (NKJV), St. Paul addressed the Christians in Rome as follows: “And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God.” Renewal of the mind is the key to Christian growth and maturity. Growing spiritually is an ongoing process of renewing your mind to the Word of God. You need to programme your thoughts with the thoughts of God, changing the way you think as a natural man to the way God says you should think.
Even though you are a Christian, you may still be conformed to the world and its negativity, failures, and problems, until your mind is renewed. You may be on your way to heaven but your life here could be unpleasant. Many Christians struggle through life with negative attitudes, sin, divorce, depression, envy, and so on because their minds are not renewed and they are still conformed to the world. When our mind is renewed to the Word of God, we will overcome negative desires and live according to God’s perfect will for us.
Struggling with poverty and sickness, having illicit sex, enjoying pornography, stealing, telling lies, engaging in bribery and corruption, maltreating the poor and needy, and setting affection on earthly things are symptoms of a mind not yet renewed.
Through renewing our mind, we overcome life’s challenges and failures. We walk with God and become an example of His will. When transformed, the Christian will begin to see the fullness of their salvation, enjoy the promises of God, become their true self, and accomplish great things according to God’s plans.
