“Change” (2 Corinthians 3:12-18) RIVERBEND CHURCH, APRIL 8, 2018

A Sermon Series Begins This morning we begin a new series of messages on Sunday mornings. Where the series began is difficult for me to pinpoint. A river begins somewhere in the mountains where thousands of small channels become hundreds of draws, which flow into dozens of creeks, which empty into a few tributaries, which feed a great river. I can trace this series back to several thoughts. A long-standing one was the false conclusion that adopted as a young Christian. I was in my teenage years, growing in my faith, yet struggling against sin, Satan, and the surrounding world system. I assumed that, by the time I reached middle-age, would be natural to me. I imagined that following Christ would be like riding the current down a river. Older Christians seemed to me to be on course, at full speed, and making great strides. Compared to mine, their Christian lives looked easy. One day, I foolishly presumed, I would be like them.

What I realize at 58 is that following Christ is harder today than ever. Satan’s attacks seem more intense and more frequent. Indwelling sin seems more stubborn. The world around scratches at my desires more frantically like a cat on one of those carpet towers. The Christian life looks less like riding a river and more like climbing Mt. Everest. The higher you climb the more difficult the mountain’s face, the thinner the air, and the more hostile the weather conditions. I recall hearing J.I. Packer in 2001 say that the difference between the present generation of Christians and previous generations of saints is that our Christian forerunners understood that greater maturity in Christ means greater awareness of sin not less. He spoke to correct us. I remember at the time hoping he was wrong but suspected otherwise. The Christian life is one of ongoing change and struggle.

Another stream running toward this series is the reality that I cycle through seasons of depression. When I’m low, I know that something must change. I first insist that my circumstances must change. Then I want to demand that the people around me change. I get angry with God in a futile hope that he will change. But I end up back at the same point knowing that I’m the one that must change. When I think about change, one verse keeps rising to the surface. It is 2 Corinthians 3:18. This verse has been rolling around in my mind for the past year or so as I have contemplated when and how to preach this series. This verse appears in a letter from the Apostle Paul to the Christians gathered as the church in the ancient city called Corinth. Look at it on the screen.

A Verse About Change

2 Corinthians 3:18 And we all, with unveiled face, beholding the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from one degree of glory to another. For this comes from the Lord who is the Spirit. Say it with me…. This verse is about change. At the heart of the verse, literally, is a “change” word: “transformed.” I argue that the whole context around the verse (from 3:7 to 4:6 and beyond) is about how we change. But if we focus solely on this verse for a moment note this outline:

The verse describes the People who change – all unveiled-face people. The change I long for will happen only if I am one of the people of the unveiled face. We will describe what this means next week. The verse also describes the Process of change. Change happens because unveiled-face people are beholding the glory of the Lord. We will have to unpack what the phrase, “beholding the glory of the Lord” means. But that’s how change happens. 2 Corinthians 3:18 also defines the Property or kind of change we are discussing. It is to be transformed. We will say more about this in a few moments. But the outline continues by defining the Purpose for change. Change involves a transformation into same image. Again, we must dig down to discover what this “same image” is, but that is the goal this change is to produce. We also note the Pace of change – “one degree of glory to another.” Then Paul concludes clarifying the Power for change. It is a person, the Holy Spirit of God.

Thinking hard about change is both frightening and exciting. Frightening because we all resist change. Why do I have to change? If God loves me unconditionally, why must I change? If something significant about me changes, will I still be me? If I ask three people how I should change, I’ll get three conflicting answers. Who decides how I should change? Even if I do change, no one will accept the new me. They will continue to treat me by the old labels. I could never change enough to make up for the mistakes I’ve made in the past. I’ve failed at change so many times, I doubt can change anymore. And if I did change, I doubt it would last. Talking about change feels like so much pressure. Seems like I can’t change enough to please anyone.

Even if I knew what kind of change I need, how do I change? Where do I start? I’m too old to change. “You can’t teach an old dog new tricks,” right? Change is painful. It’s too hard to change. As Hamlet said, “I’d rather bear those ills I have than fly to others I know not of.” But it seems like change is always happening. Yet, it doesn’t seem like anything really changes. Life puts on different costumes but it’s still the same underneath. The more things change the more they remain the same. How do I know that change will be better than the way things are now? Things could get worse. And if I change, there’s no guarantee that the people around me will change the way I want them to change. Other people need to change more than I do. How much can I really change about me anyway? Isn’t who we are determined by our DNA or our upbringing? The thought of changing can be really frightening.

On the other hand, change sounds exciting. There’s a lot that’s wrong in my life and society that needs to change. Change is possible. Hope expects change. If I expect different results in the future, I must change. But if I want to change, does that mean that I’m ungrateful for who I am right now? How would I effect change in myself? Can I effect change in others? Can I do anything to effect change in society or the church? Could I do anything about problems so massive like racism or corruption in the prison system? Such questions have swirled in my mind and my prayers for a long time. We will address a lot of them over the next couple of months as we ponder this verse.

2 Corinthians 3:18 And we all, with unveiled face, beholding the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from one degree of glory to another. For this comes from the Lord who is the Spirit. Turn with me to the context where we find this verse. 2 Corinthians 3 is on p. 965 of the Bible you find in the row with you.

An Introductory Word

I begin the series thinking with the word in the center of verse 18. It describes the kind of change we hope to investigate during this series. It is the word “transformed.” If we take the word from the original Greek of the and sound it out in English, we get something like, “metamorPHO-o.” This closely resembles (in both sound and meaning) our word English metamorphosis. It is the word we use to describe the process that turns a caterpillar into a butterfly. A tube-shaped, earth-toned crawling creature transforms into a beautiful, multi-colored, winged creature. The one is so different from the other and yet both are the same creature.

This word appears just four times in the New Testament. Two are in the gospels. Matthew and Mark use it to describe the change that took place in when he took Peter, James, and John up on a mountain and was “transfigured.” He metamorphosed into a being whose “face shone like the sun, and [whose] clothes became white as light.” (Matthew 17:2). His divine glory overtook the limitations of his humanity. The change was obvious and dramatic. Yet his disciples still recognized him. He was the same yet completely different. In this incident, to be transformed is “to change in a manner visible to others” (to quote one Bible dictionary).

The other uses of this word are here in 2 Corinthians 3:18 and Romans 12:2. Listen to this second text.

Romans 12:2 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.

The emphasis in 2 Corinthians 3:18 and Romans 12:2 is change that happens from the inside-out. It means, “to change inwardly in fundamental character or condition,” to quote the same Bible dictionary. This involves a complete change in perspective, a renewing of the mind (Romans 12:2). An entirely different worldview emerges. In the context of 2 Corinthians, transformation involves heart change. But the first sense of the word does not disappear. The transformation is both profound and obvious, both internal and external, both personally experienced and publicly evident.

Christians are promised transformation that is not just an emotional experience nor a merely external change. The first (emotional experience) has no proof. The second (mere external adjustment) has no power. Superficial change happens all the time. Bookstores are overwhelmed with self-help volumes about how to: lose weight, communicate better, work harder, network more effectively, plan more efficiently, and dream bigger. People try to solve really entrenched problems with surface changes in lifestyle or schedules. Such change is more about technique than transformation. It is as futile as a caterpillar trying to fly.

In 2 Corinthians 3, Paul reminds the Corinthians that on Mt. Sinai experienced a kind of transfiguration. He met with God and returned with his face shining. Look at: 3:12–13 Since we have such a hope [the hope of permanent glory, v. 11], we are very bold, 13 not like Moses, who would put a veil over his face so that the Israelites might not gaze at the outcome of what was being brought to an end.

Being in God’s presence changed Moses’ outward appearance. But he covered his face because this glory was not permanent. His face illustrates what happens when people try to change by keeping the law. The law cannot change hearts. It can control outward behavior but cannot effect inward change. It can identify sin but not remove it. It sentences to death but does not give life. Look back at v. 7. Paul calls the law a ministry of death. In v. 9 he identifies it as a ministry of condemnation.

God’s law offers no hope. It defines sin. It levies the payment for sin, eternal death. It reveals why we are all under God’s condemnation, no exceptions. Whenever we conform to the law we reflect outwardly the glory of God. But such glory is temporary. It fades away in the reality that our hearts are dead toward God. V. 14 recognizes the problem as a hardened mind. Thinking that real change happens in our hearts through external conformity to law is dead thinking about God. In v. 15 Paul laments that it is possible to read the Bible as law and never experience transformation. True change is heart change, from the inside-out. Receive Renovation My purpose in this introductory message is to draw three implications from this word “transformed.” The first we have just discussed. Christianity does not involve superficial change. It involves a complete heart and life transformation. It does not bring a few upgrades to our lifestyle. It thoroughly renovates us, gutting and rebuilding from the core. Yet, this transformation does not leave us as some strange, unrecognizable being. Rather, we become exactly who we were created to be. To become a Christian is not to try harder to conform to a set of rules. It is not self-improvement using religious thoughts and practices. Becoming a Christian means acknowledging that I was created in God’s image to live for God the way God intends for me to live. But I have refused. I have ruined my life as I was created to be. I have sinned against God. And he cannot be God and ignore my sin. He must put his glory on display by directing his holy wrath against my sin. So, he sent his glorious Son as a man to take my punishment and purchase my pardon. Jesus Christ conquered death to secure my eternal life. I cannot change my condition. But I turn from my sin to trust that God has done and will do everything necessary to bring me back into complete fellowship with him. He will restore me to his purpose for my life.

If you have not done so, I pray that, even before I’m finished with my sermon, you will reject sin and receive Jesus Christ as your Savior. One of the signs that a person has truly come to Christ is that he or she wants to change. Repentance involves a change in direction. A Christian wants to change from the heart not just superficially. A Christian is not content with cosmetic improvements. A Christian longs to participate in a whole new creation. Promise Not Pressure A second conclusion confronts us in the fact that the word transformed is not a command. It is a statement of fact. The verse does not command you to transform yourself. If you are a Christian, you are being transformed. It is a promise. It is happening. Change is underway. The transformation has begun. Fundamentally, we know that we cannot change ourselves. The need to change is too great. The process toward change is too difficult. Sustaining change in ourselves is impossible. But this thought should comfort us. Look again at v. 17

2 Corinthians 3:17 Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom.

This freedom means in part that the pressure is off to try to manufacture change by yourself. Christian, you are free from the relentless pressure of trying to live up to other peoples’ expectations. You are free from the gnawing guilt that you have not done enough. You are free from the stress of measuring up. The transformation you need and long for is not something that you have to initiate. It is already in progress. Personal Project Which leads very naturally to the third conclusion. This transformation is not something that you as a Christian do. It is done in you. The word transform is passive. We are being transformed. It is true that Paul uses the same word “transformed” in Romans 12:2 as a command. He writes, “Do not be conformed to this world but be transformed.” We participate in this transformation through obedience. But, it is a passive command. Even in Romans 12:2 we are commanded to allow transformation to happen. At its core, this is a transformation is the Holy Spirit’s operation. The last sentence of v. 18 clarifies. “For this comes from the Lord who is the Spirit.” “This” refers to the transformation. It comes from the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit is personal. God is not acting on you by some impersonal force. He himself is active within you to accomplish this transformation. He has not merely given you a set of instructions to follow, he has arrived to accompany you through the whole process. Transformation is a relationship not a set of regulations. The architect has come to live in the very house he is renovating to be his personal temple, his home.

But the Spirit is the Lord. He is God. He has come to take control. Will you submit to him? Will you welcome him in his temple or pretend that he has no right to be there? Will you submit to this transformation or fight it? He’s not come in just to organize a couple of closets. He has grand plans. This is extreme makeover, sledge hammer and all. Will you trust him to complete the work and do it perfectly? Will you work with him, staying in step with the Spirit? At times, change will seem as suffocating as the cocoon surrounding a caterpillar. But the beauty and freedom of the emerging butterfly are breathtaking.