{"id":5056,"date":"2019-01-24T23:58:54","date_gmt":"2019-01-24T23:58:54","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/baonline.cog7engage.net\/?p=5056"},"modified":"2023-08-29T11:23:51","modified_gmt":"2023-08-29T17:23:51","slug":"transformation-2","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/baonline.cog7engage.net\/transformation-2\/","title":{"rendered":"Transformation"},"content":{"rendered":"

With the Great Commission<\/a>, Jesus includes us in His mission to rescue a lost world. However, He can\u2019t use us to rescue others if we\u2019re in need of rescue ourselves. In our day-to-day lives, we often fail to see our need for transformation. We compare ourselves to each other and think we\u2019re doing OK. We\u2019re kind to those who are kind to us, and we feel justified to be unkind to those who are unkind to us.<\/p>\n

God’s Law, God’s Love<\/h2>\n

God\u2019s law requires us to love others \u2014 period! It makes no exception for how others treat us. When we return evil for evil, we become the authors of evil, and the penalty for sin is death. God\u2019s still, small voice convicts us of our sins, but it\u2019s easy to ignore His Spirit in our tumultuous world. Consequently, we don\u2019t realize the peril we\u2019re in. To gain perspective, we need some quiet time with God. In other words, we need a mountaintop experience.<\/p>\n

We want to think of ourselves as good, not evil. However, Jesus told us that no one is good except God. Goodness doesn\u2019t come from us; it comes from Him. That\u2019s why we need a Savior. Jesus left the safety of heaven, not to rescue the righteous but to rescue those who would abandon Him, mock Him, and crucify Him. That\u2019s who Jesus died for: us.<\/p>\n

Transformation comes when we abandon our pretense of innocence and own our guilt. We kneel before the cross with nothing to offer but a broken spirit and a trust in God\u2019s goodness. God will forgive us, not because we\u2019re good but because He\u2019s good. When we give our lives to Him, He gives us His good nature.<\/p>\n

[bctt tweet=”God forgives us, not because we\u2019re good, but because He is good. – Jody McCoy”]<\/p>\n

A Mountaintop Experience<\/h2>\n

For me, this mountaintop experience came at a youth camp in Oklahoma when I was 14. I was under a canopy of mimosa trees, sitting on a blanket scratching chigger bites while our group was listening to a young pastor named Jerry Camero. He captured my attention when he started talking about the terror Jesus endured in the Garden of Gethsemane. He said that Jesus chose to remain in the garden even though He was so scared that He sweat great drops of blood. When Jerry described the brutality Jesus suffered on the cross, it seemed as if the rest of the group faded away. Then he told me that Jesus died in my place, to pay for what I\u2019ve done.<\/p>\n

At that time, I didn\u2019t understand words like justification<\/em> and sanctification<\/em>. I just knew that I felt convicted for my sins that caused Jesus to suffer and die for me. I told Jesus I was sorry for all the things I\u2019d done, and I asked Him to forgive me. I felt my guilt release into peace, and I knew I\u2019d been forgiven. With my heart flooding with gratitude, that day I gave my life to the One who gave His life for me. In that moment, I became a new creature. I became a Christian and began to follow Jesus\u2019 plan.<\/p>\n

We all need transformation, and it happens differently for each of us. Thank God for His grace that brings it!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Seeing our need for transformation before we respond to the Great Commission. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":333,"featured_media":5057,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"sync_status":"","episode_type":"","audio_file":"","castos_file_data":"","podmotor_file_id":"","cover_image":"","cover_image_id":"","duration":"","filesize":"","filesize_raw":"","date_recorded":"","explicit":"","block":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[37,602],"tags":[145,184,582,163,591,600],"yoast_head":"\nTransformation - Bible Advocate<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"With the Great Commission, Jesus includes us in His mission to rescue a lost world. 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