More than meets the eye

"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.” - Romans 12v2

I am stubborn. Anybody who reads this and knows me knows that it is true. When I read Romans 12v2 my own personal response is that I don’t want to either conform or be transformed. I have it pretty much figured out, I don’t want to change either way.

For some reason God doesn’t leave me that option. Change is going to happen and God says it goes one of two ways. Either I am going to be conformed to the world, or I am going to be transformed with a new mind as I understand God’s will. The natural thing is conformity. It is so easy to just slide into the mould and conform. If we are not careful that is what is going to happen because the world acts according to the flesh and my flesh still yearns for my attention. Unless something happens conformity will be the result.

Sadly, there are those Christians out there who have adopted a “If you can’t beat them join them mentality” and have chosen to adapt the ways of the world in order to “make it” or succeed. Now I realise that most of my life has been spent with an overreaction to this manifested in pharaseeism and galatianism, but the word of God is still clear. Conformity to the world in our own lives and in our churches is still wrong and still flies in the face of God’s will.

What do we do the? I think, believe it or not, and children’s toy provides an illustration. I think all of us have seen the toys called Transformers. They were popular when my children were growing up and have even recently made it to Hollywood. Looking like cars, trucks, or other vehicles, with just a few twists and turns they become mighty warriors able to take on anything. They look nothing like the vehicle they started out as. An old ad said, “Transformers – More than meets the eye.”

I think this is just a picture of the potential we have if we allow ourselves to be transformed by having our minds renewed by God’s word. In every believer is “more than meets the eye.” Small groups of believers all over the world have amazing potential if, instead of seeing how much like the world we can be we decided to be transformed.

From the ads I have seen of the film the Transformers when they change they have a massive impact on the world. It looks like it is all negative, but think about the impact we could have if we would be transformed to know and do the will of God.

In fact, my mind just went to a film I saw recently about a true transformer. William Wilberforce was an MP in the late 18^th and early 19^th century. When he got saved he was transformed and saw the injustice of human slavery. Almost single handily he changed the world by seeing slave trade outlawed in the British Empire. There was far more than meets the eye to William Wilberforce. He was indeed a Transformer.