Dear Church Family,
“I appeal to you, therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship. 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.”
-Romans 12:1–2. ESV
Transformation. If you’ve been around the church for more than a week or two, you’ve probably heard it. In Greek, this word is “metamorphomai”, meaning “change the essential form or nature of something.” This word is also related to the English word “metamorphosis,” i.e. the process through which a caterpillar becomes a butterfly. So what we see in the Scriptures is that God wants to take our lives, characters, relationships, ways of being, from one state—one defined by the scars and habits of sin and death—to a completely different state, one characterized by love, joy, peace . . . (Gal 5:22). But, how has this process of “transformation” been going for you lately?
If you’re anything like me, you probably find yourself wondering—particularly after a rough couple of days—why this transformation is taking so long, and even if it’s really happening at all. Maybe you wonder if you’re trying hard enough, thinking that all that you need is a little more effort—pray a little more, wake up a little earlier, read a little more Scripture. But if your experience has been like mine, you soon find yourself back in your old ruts, secretly wondering if all this talk about transformation is even realistic.
Luckily, we’re not the first group of people to struggle with the process of becoming more like Jesus. God, through the apostle Paul’s letter to the church in Rome, informs us about how He actually changes us, and His way may be quite different than what we’ve imagined.
If it’s your desire for God to “metamorphomai” your life, I invite you to come this Sabbath as we explore the two-step process of transformation!
Looking forward to seeing you there,
Ian Reyes