Romans 12:2
And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God.
There is a big difference between being reformed and transformed. To be reformed is to make changes to something to make it better; whereas, to be transformed is to take something and remold it from one thing to another. God does not command us to be reformed Christians, but He commands us to be transformed. To reform what is corrupt only sustains corruption for a bit longer. However, to transform corruption into incorruption is only done through the power of God.
God commands you to be transformed. God does not want you to be a better you; He wants you to be transformed into His image. A better me is what Satan wants from the believer, but a transformed believer is what God wants from you. There are several things that must take place if you are to be transformed.
First, you must present your body to Christ as a sacrifice for His use. A transformed person is not worried about changing their outside to look more like Christ. In other words, I am to realize my body belongs to God, and to sacrifice my body for Christ’s sake is no sacrifice at all. To present my body to God as a living sacrifice is to be willing to change anything on the outside that would keep me from being used by God. Yes, your body belongs to God, and He should have the right to tell you to dress like He would want you to dress and to change your appearance to look like a follower of Christ.
Second, you must be willing to stop conforming to the world’s standards to be transformed. You will never be transformed until you live a life of separation from the world. I am not to look like the world, nor am I to look for a church that looks like the world. To be conformed means to live by one’s rules and standards. In other words, I am not to look to the world and its culture to define the standards by which to live, but I am to look to the Scriptures to define my standard of living. If the world is the standard by which you live, then you have conformed to the world. However, to be transformed means you must be willing to let God’s Word dictate the standards for your life: the standard of dress, talk, and actions.
Third, you must be willing to endure the transformation process if you are to be transformed. To be transformed takes pressure and the breaking down of the old to be formed into Christ’s image. Transformation takes a dying to self to become something new for God. God must send you through His refining process of trials to remove dross from your life. This is not easy, but this is the transformation process that you must be willing to go through if you want to obey God.
Fourth, you must renew your mind to be transformed. The mind is renewed through the Word of God and prayer. Psalm 119:9 says, Wherewithal shall a young man cleanse his way? by taking heed thereto according to thy word. God’s Word is the only thing that can change your mind. You don't need your mind, but you need the mind of Christ, and that is only done by filling your mind with the Scriptures and spending time in prayer with God. You become who you spend time with; therefore, you will only be transformed by spending much time in the Scriptures and prayer.
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