Coming down from the Mountain to Changeformation
There is a transition that must take place to experience changeformation.
Psalm 25:8-9 Amplified Bible, Classic Edition
8 Good and upright is the Lord; therefore will He instruct sinners in [His] way.
9 He leads the humble in what is right, and the humble He teaches His way.
-What is the difference between instruction and teaching/learning???
Instruction Teaching/Learning
Step by step process - providing guidance
Dependent upon the teacher - to apply what you have learned
Telling someone to do something - explaining the why
Regimentation - liberation
3 Keys to Moving Forward
1. We must remain Humble
9 He leads the humble in what is right, and the humble He teaches His way.
Humility is honestly assessing our strengths and weaknesses in light of God’s holiness and our imperfection. It has been said that “Humility is not denying your strengths; it is being honest about your weaknesses.”
Humility is acknowledging the truth about what we are and what we’re not.
James 4:6 Amplified Bible, Classic Edition
6 But He gives us more and more grace ([a]power of the Holy Spirit, to meet this evil tendency and all others fully). That is why He says, God sets Himself against the proud and haughty, but gives grace [continually] to the lowly (those who are humble enough to receive it).
John 3:30 Amplified Bible, Classic Edition
30 He must increase, but I must decrease. [He must grow more prominent; I must grow less so.]
“Humility is not thinking less of yourself, but thinking of yourself less.” —C.S. Lewis
Matthew 18:1-4 Amplified Bible, Classic Edition
18 At that time the disciples came up and asked Jesus, Who then is [really] the greatest in the kingdom of heaven?
2 And He called a little child to Himself and put him in the midst of them,
3 And said, Truly I say to you, unless you repent (change, turn about) and become like little children [trusting, lowly, loving, forgiving], you can never enter the kingdom of heaven [at all].
4 Whoever will humble himself therefore and become like this little child [trusting, lowly, loving, forgiving] is greatest in the kingdom of heaven.
He didn’t tell the child to become like His disciples; He told the disciples to become like this little child
So how do we “become like little children”?
Being childlike means:
Being humble enough to trust Jesus when we’re tempted to place all our trust in ourselves
Understanding our dependence on others.
Knowing our limitations.
Responding to God’s world with wonder.
***To keep the right perspective, we must remain close to The Source.
2. Stay close to The Source
Acts 17:28 Amplified Bible, Classic Edition
28 For in Him we live and move and have our being; as even some of your [own] poets have said, For we are also His offspring.
In the Scriptures, God is referred to as a Refiner and Purifier.
Malachi 3:3 Amplified Bible, Classic Edition
3 He will sit as a refiner and purifier of silver, and He will purify the priests, the sons of Levi, and refine them like gold and silver, that they may offer to the Lord offerings in righteousness.
-The story of the woman that watched a silversmith
Psalm 139:23-24
Amplified Bible, Classic Edition
23 Search me [thoroughly], O God, and know my heart! Try me and know my thoughts!
24 And see if there is any wicked or hurtful way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting.
When we look at beautiful jewelry made of silver, we are looking at a finished product. It is a long process to mine and extract the metal from the rock deep in the earth.
After the silver is mined, it has to be refined. When heat is applied, all the impurities embedded in the silver float to the top where it is skimmed off. These impurities, called dross, must be removed for the silver to be used properly. Every time the silver is heated, there is less and less dross until finally you have a pure product.
If the silver is not pure the jeweler cannot use it. Jewelry made from impure silver will not hold up to the pressure put on it because it is in a weakened state. It simply will not hold its shape. The impurities must be removed.
3. It’s time to shine
Matthew 5:14-16
Amplified Bible, Classic Edition
14 You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden.
15 Nor do men light a lamp and put it under a peck measure, but on a lampstand, and it gives light to all in the house.
16 Let your light so shine before men that they may see your [a]moral excellence and your praiseworthy, noble, and good deeds and [b]recognize and honor and praise and glorify your Father Who is in heaven.
Matthew 5:14-16
The Message
14-16 “Here’s another way to put it: You’re here to be light, bringing out the God-colors in the world. God is not a secret to be kept. We’re going public with this, as public as a city on a hill. If I make you light-bearers, you don’t think I’m going to hide you under a bucket, do you? I’m putting you on a light stand. Now that I’ve put you there on a hilltop, on a light stand—shine! Keep open house; be generous with your lives. By opening up to others, you’ll prompt people to open up with God, this generous Father in heaven.