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Katididaustralia 66F
49 posts
8/25/2015 5:33 am
Let The Truth Transform Your Life


Transformation = Metamorphosis
Metamorphosis = change of form, e.g., a caterpillar into a butterfly.
Romans 12:2 And stop being molded by this system of things, but be transformed by making your mind over, so that you may prove to yourselves the good and acceptable and perfect will of God.

Paul is a wonderful example of this transformation of the mind. From being an opposer of God he became one of the principle witnesses of The Good News.
Was it easy for him to make this change? No.
Initially the other Christians were very wary of this former opposer and they did not want to include him in their midst and he, during his spiritual growth, during his preaching work, suffered greatly.
Acts 9:26On arriving in Jerusalem, he made efforts to join the disciples, but they were all afraid of him, because they did not believe he was a disciple.
2Cor 6:4-10 but in every way we recommend ourselves as God’s ministers, by the endurance of much, by tribulations, by times of need, by difficulties, by beatings, by imprisonments, by riots, by hard work, by sleepless nights, by times without food; by purity, by knowledge, by patience, by kindness, by holy spirit, by love free from hypocrisy, by truthful speech, by God’s power; through the weapons of righteousness in the right hand and in the left, through glory and dishonor, through bad report and good report. We are regarded as deceivers and yet we are truthful, as unknown and yet we are recognized, as dying and yet look! we live, as punished and yet not handed over to death, as sorrowing but ever rejoicing, as poor but making many rich, as having nothing and yet possessing all things.
2Cor 7:5 In fact, when we arrived in Macedonia, our bodies got no relief, but we continued to be afflicted in every way—there were fights on the outside, fears within
2Cor 11:23-28 Are they ministers of Christ? I reply like a madman, I am more outstandingly one: I have done more work, been imprisoned more often, suffered countless beatings, and experienced many near-deaths. Five times I received 40 strokes less one from the Jews, three times I was beaten with rods, once I was stoned, three times I experienced shipwreck, a night and a day I have spent in the open sea; in journeys often, in dangers from rivers, in dangers from robbers, in dangers from my own people, in dangers from the nations, in dangers in the city, in dangers in the wilderness, in dangers at sea, in dangers among false brothers, in labor and toil, in sleepless nights often, in hunger and thirst, frequently without food, in cold and lacking clothing. Besides those things of an external kind, there is what rushes in on me from day to day: the anxiety for all the congregations.

Since Paul was such a fine example of the transformation possible by the Truth of the Good News, we can be imitators of him, using the lessons taught and learned by him as our template, as one imperfect man to another.
1Cor 11:1 Become imitators of me, just as I am of Christ

Isaiah's prophecy of the New World conditions can also be likened to the transformation which can take place in us. Changing out beast-like corrupt natures to the dove-like natures of God's .
Many people have allowed God's spirit to work on them in this way, changing their demeanor and personality, in their manner and character.
A change from an aggressive, nasty, hypocritical and indolent personality to a loving, Godly character.
Such a huge transformation is only possible with God's help by His spirit.
Imagine the New World to come filled with people loving God and loving each other with no hatefulness to deal with. Especially so after the 1000 year period is concluded.
Isaiah 11:6-9 The wolf will reside for a while with the lamb,
And with the young goat the leopard will lie down,
And the calf and the lion and the fattened animal will all be together;
And a little boy will lead them.
The cow and the bear will feed together,
And their young will lie down together.
The lion will eat straw like the bull.
The nursing will play over the lair of a cobra,
And a weaned will put his hand over the den of a poisonous snake.
They will not cause any harm
Or any ruin in all my holy mountain,
Because the earth will certainly be filled with the knowledge of Jehovah
As the waters cover the sea.


At present we all fall short of this ideal but we want to progress, to be able to reflect God's qualities just as Jesus did/does.
Of course, God knows our shortcomings, and He does not expect perfection from us, but He does expect us to try our best in every aspect of our daily lives, to live up to His holiness and this is where many of our hardships come from. Our own shortcomings.
Romans 3:23 For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,
Psalm 103:13+14 As a father shows mercy to his sons, Jehovah has shown mercy to those who fear him. For he well knows how we are formed, Remembering that we are dust

We want our dominant mental attitude to be changed from the negative of corruption to the positive of Jehovah God. Transforming our mind, the center of our perception and understanding.
We want our mind's spirit to be actuated by God and not by satan.
The spirit of the mind is the force that makes a person display a certain attitude which dominates our action and our inclinations. All too often we struggle to change our dominant attitude because of sin and corruption.
Romans 12:2 And stop being molded by this system of things, but be transformed by making your mind over, so that you may prove to yourselves the good and acceptable and perfect will of God.

This implies a present tense and a continuous action. It cannot be stated and then set aside.
It takes a continuous study of God's word with meditation on His scriptures and application of His standards and principles into our daily undertakings and our mental thinking processes.
We want to change past thinking in the chemical patterns in our brains neural pathways to leave a new indelible imprint so that continual use of these pathways gets stronger daily.
Eph 4:23 And you should continue to be made new in your dominant mental attitude

We cannot make these changes ourselves but we can ask for God's help by His Spirit.
By committing God's principles and standards to our minds we will be able to recall what we need to know, the best course to follow, when making decisions on all levels, each day of our lives.
1John 5:14+15 And this is the confidence that we have toward him, that no matter what we ask according to his will, he hears us. And if we know that he hears us concerning whatever we are asking, we know that we are to have the things we ask for, since we have asked them of him.

Let Jehovah God's Truth actuate the changes in your life, changes to your mind to have an automatic outlook towards God's view in your mental attitude.
Have we gotten so far and then stopped progressing?
Are we dole-like in our thinking, not progressing past the initial change made when we first started studying and meditating on God's word?
2Cor 13:5 Keep testing whether you are in the faith; keep proving what you yourselves are.Or do you not recognize that Jesus Christ is in union with you? Unless you are disapproved

Thinking of the pupae of a caterpillar before its transformation into a butterfly, it often becomes a beautiful iridescent chrysalis. Sometimes gold in colour.
Have we broken out of the chrysalis or are we still pupating and just hanging?
Better to reflect, like the broken open chrysalis, the shining gold of Jehovah's love.
Join our voices with those of His Kingdom in glorifying His name.
2Cor 3:18 And all of us, while we with unveiled faces reflect like mirrors the glory of Jehovah, are transformed into the same image from one degree of glory to another, exactly as it is done by Jehovah the Spirit

Love,
Katidid.