Renewal then transformation

Renewal Then Transformation (Read time ≈ 8 min)
Romans 12:2 (ESV)
2 Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.
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          Every room you walk into, every crowd you find yourself a part of, has a mold that it wants you to fit into. As Christians we are called to not conform to the world but rather, change the world. To not fit into the mold but to break the mold and change culture around us everywhere we go. We should be influencers of the world not influenced by the world. Jesus calls us “the salt of the earth” (Matthew 5:13). Why? Because salt is effective. Salt changes things around it. Salt is not influenced by the flavor of your food, but rather your food is influenced by the flavor of salt. Salt does not expire, yet it has been used to preserve the life of food that does expire. “Do not be conformed to this world”, Paul warns us. This is because a Christian who is conformed to the world around them is as useless as flavorless salt and is in danger of degenerating to simply becoming just part of this world.
          Rather than conforming to the mold that the world around us so strongly desires to cram you into, you are to be “transformed by the renewal of your mind”. What does this really mean for you? It means that through the process of our walk with God we are continually achieving new levels of transformation in our life. The first step is renewal. The definition of renewed is “having been resumed, re-established, or revived”. Putting this in context of our relationship with Jesus, the renewal of our mind starts at salvation. The walk with God that was severed when sin entered the world is now resumed, re-established, and revived by the blood of Jesus Christ! This renewal is to take place every day as we pick up our cross to follow Christ as we are commanded (Luke 9:23). Renewal is necessary. You cannot have true transformation without renewal first. Since I still have my dictionary out, let’s define transform also, “make a thorough or dramatic change in the form, appearance, or character of”. Renewal, by the grace of Jesus, is the first step for the Christian mind towards God but should not be the last.
          Many people have been renewed by Christ but fail to go through any transformation. This is because transformation is quite challenging. But renewal on its own leaves us exposed to false but cleverly worded ideas of the world that will lead us astray, it leaves us vulnerable to becoming stagnant and reverting to our old self. Our lives and our minds are revived by Christ but if we are to transform our mind, we must be willing to challenge our mind, stretch it, push it to new levels. Renewal is to be followed by new growth, the expanding of our mind and to pursue His wisdom and the mind of Christ within us.
            Let me illustrate it this way, especially since much of our church is on a health kick right now (which is great!). Think of someone’s body transforming. Many people have lost weight and made healthy choices; they have renewed their health. They no longer fill their body with filthy, unhealthy food, and they make efforts to be more active. Then there’s people who go from overweight or even obese; they renew their body through diet and exercise, but they don’t just settle for only being renewed to a good weight, but rather they realize that their body is able and capable of so much more than just not being overweight. No longer eating whatever their belly desires but also challenging and training their body, straining their muscles, growing stronger and getting better. A transformation.
          Your mind is capable of so much more than just not thinking of wicked and unrighteous things. Let the renewal of your mind lead to transformation of your mind and your life! As diet and exercise burns fat, so does the blood of Jesus melt away our sin and renews our minds. But as lifting heavy weights, going through strenuous and regular exercise causes soreness, and discomfort, it also brings growth and strength, the same is true for transformation of your mind. It comes from heavy lifting of reading and studying the Word of God, the strenuous activity of reading books and consuming Christian content that stretches our understanding and challenge our minds, discipline of consistency in prayer and communion with our Father. Anything else should be viewed as junk food for our minds. This is challenging but is necessary if we desire for the renewal of our mind to lead to the transformation of our mind and our lives. To give us strength to break the mold, effect the culture around us and to be effective witnesses of Christ in life. We are either transformers or conformers. If you are not continually transforming your life to the likeness of Christ, you are vulnerable to digressing to into a conformer of the world. Strive to always transform your life until the world around you is transformed with you.