Crestview has the mission statement, “helping people experience life change through Jesus Christ,” but what exactly is supposed to change? It would be easy, and accurate, to say that everything changes; but it isn’t always helpful to take such a broad approach to life change. The Bible holds valuable truth to teach us how to change when we follow Jesus, and one of those key passages is from Ephesians 4 which is the core passage for this whole series.
“That, however, is not the way of life you learned when you heard about Christ and were taught in Him in accordance with the truth that is in Jesus.” Ephesians 4:20-21 NIV
How do you measure the new life?
I think people can be discouraged when they try to follow Jesus and don’t always notice changes in themselves. Now, there may be some true conviction from the Holy Spirit at work when you consider how you still need to become more like Jesus, but if that feeling doesn’t drive you towards Jesus, then it is likely shame instead of conviction. Several years ago, early on in my pursuit of Jesus, I struggled with having self-control with my language. Certain friends that I spent time with did not worry about watching what they said, and when I was around them I fit right in. The music that I listened to used the language that I needed to eliminate from my own vocabulary, but I struggled to actually cut it out. Until I made changes, that sin of unwholesome speech stayed the same in my life. I had to change what and who I listened to the most, and then that changed what I said too.
A good question to consider how you may or may not be growing in your faith is to imagine a conversation with a younger version of yourself. If you have been following Jesus for a short period of time, then maybe your “younger” self would only be a few months younger than you. If you have been following Jesus for much longer than that, then your younger self could be much younger. Imagine giving your younger self advice about how to follow Jesus. If you can point to what you have done to become more like Jesus, and your younger self would be able to tell the difference, then you have probably been making some great progress. But if you have not changed the same struggles that you have continuously had for your time following Jesus, then consider what is stopping you from living that new life out.
Jesus is the one that changes you.
Some change that we experience in our walk with Jesus seems to come from really intentional effort. Other changes seem like something we just woke up to one day. There is a process for life change, but the catalyst and completion of that process is always Jesus. When the Bible talks about the fruit of the Spirit in Galatians 5, or the branch that bears much fruit in John 15, the fruit grows from the same place. It is not the effort of the branch that produces fruit, it is its connection to the vine.
“Remain in Me, as I also remain in you. No branch can bear fruit by itself; it must remain in the vine. Neither can you bear fruit unless you remain in Me.” John 15:4 NIV
While we do need to intentionally abide with Jesus, we don’t produce change. Jesus changes us and grows fruit in our lives when we are near to Him. I would encourage you this week to shift your focus. Rather than considering all the ways that you need to change, focus instead on all the ways that you can abide with Jesus. When I shared the example of my own life and needing to change the way I spoke, yes there were some specific actions that I took; but the actions weren’t about me changing myself for the sake of myself. I had to change the music I listened to because there was a different list of songs that would help me keep my eyes on Jesus. The friends I stopped hanging out with - that change wasn’t just about making my life better, it was because there was a community that was going to encourage me and remind me to stay close to Jesus. So don’t look at all the bad habits, look at the Good Shepherd. Don’t focus on changing yourself, because the focus stays on yourself. Focus instead on your Savior, your friend, Jesus. Being near to Christ will bring the change that you need.
