Transformed to Christ-like
And so, dear brothers and sisters, I plead with you to give your bodies to God because of all he has done for you. Let them be a living and holy sacrifice—the kind he will find acceptable. This is truly the way to worship him.
Don’t copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. Then you will learn to know God’s will for you, which is good and pleasing and perfect. Romans 12:1-2
Growing up, I believed that as you grow, you change. That made sense because you can see how your body changes and how you may not have liked Brussel sprouts until someone made it with butter and garlic. However, as time went on and evidence would prove, the truth became that as we grow, we do not really change. We just discovered who we are. I learned that while I have learned to keep control of my emotions, I still am a very emotional person who still sheds a tear over things that make me very happy. This leaves me to ask a question. Can someone really change? Having grown in my faith, I believe the answer is emphatically yes. Why? Because when God comes into one's heart, change really does become possible.
As followers of Christ, we all struggle with inner battle between what the old version of us is and what God wants us to become. We want to be different, but muscle memory pulls us back to old habits, reactions, and ways of thinking that feel welded to our identity. The more we try to white-knuckle our way to transformation, the more it slips through our fingers. Reading God’s word does not change us right away. It offers a better path. One that is not self-invention but surrender to God’s renewing work. One that is driven by an overwhelming force that truly creates change: God’s love.
Our love for God is what creates true and lasting transformation. Today’s verses begin with mercy. Paul is clear that we do not change to earn God’s love. We changed because we already have it. Paul writes, “For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.” (Ephesians. 2:10). That identity is the ground beneath our feet. When we present our whole selves to God, body, mind, desires, we are not negotiating for His approval. We are responding to grace.
However, transformation does not happen overnight. It is a behavior that requires a renewed mind that learns to see things as Jesus sees them. He knows us fully and loves us completely, and by his Spirit, he leads us into truth (see John 16:13). As our thinking is reshaped by the gospel, the pressures to conform to our worldly desires begin to lose their persuasive shine. We begin to discern God’s will not as a riddle to solve, but as a relationship to trust, “which is good and pleasing and perfect.”
Presenting our bodies as a living sacrifice is daily and practical. We turn ordinary moments into examples of our transformation. The commute that may start with a prayer, a lunch break that becomes Scripture meditation, or a challenging conversation that becomes a chance to speak truth in love. Paul believes over time, God aligns our natural impulses and instincts with Christ’s heart “for it is God who works in you to will and to act in order to fulfill his good purpose. “(Phillipians 2:13). The result becomes a fully integrated life where worship is a daily ritual.
Additionally, today’s verses do not stop at personal renewal. It further ignites our loving others. We belong to one another in Christ. So, real change shows up as sincere love, patient endurance, generous service, and humble honor. While the world focuses on a pattern that promotes self, Jesus’ pattern is one of selflessness. When our minds are renewed, our reflex becomes compassion.
We are always humbled by the changes in our lives through Christ. It has been an amazing journey to become the Christian I am and far different from the person I was over 20 years ago. Many of you, whether the journey has been fairly short or lengthy, can testify to the changes in your life not just because of God’s grace but because of your growth of love for God and His ways. This is what true transformation represents. Let us start each day looking to offer ourselves to God in one simple prayer of surrender and pausing to ask where renewal is needed today. Do that small act daily and let God fill your heart and mind with what transformation looks like. Where am you most tempted to “copy the behavior and customs of this world,” and what belief about God needs renewing there? Who is one person you can honor or serve this week so that your actions become love in action? My prayer is that, anchored in God’s mercy, we would present ourselves to Him each day and be transformed in our thinking so our lives would reflect Jesus Christ. Amen.