I recently read an all too familiar verse that most Christians have heard several times:
Therefore I exhort you, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a sacrifice—living, holy, and pleasing to God, which is your spiritual service of worship. And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, so that you may approve what the will of God is, that which is good and pleasing and perfect.
Romans 12:1-2 LSB
I took a moment to let the verse marinate for a moment because, as you should know, even though you have heard a verse a million times God can easily reveal to you something new about it on the millionth and one time of reading it. And so He did…
Renovate
In verse 2 it says: “do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind…”
Renewing. What does that mean? Because, as the verse states, if we can have our mind renewed then we will be transformed. Therefore it is important we understand what it means to have our mind “renewed”. In search of the meaning of the word I came to another translation for the Greek word behind it: renovate. I knew instantly God was explaining to me a deeper meaning.
How do I know this? Well it just so happens I recently bought a home. But as first time home buyers my wife and I bought quite the fixer-upper. We quickly found out that this will be no small project but will need to be a full renovation. At the present moment if you walk into the house you will see that the drywall is torn down, floors removed, plumbing exposed, and in a few weeks even the foundation will be getting fixed. That is what I call a true renovation.
Renovation of the Mind
In our verse Paul says we are to be transformed by renovating our minds. But now you see a bit more closely what that will look like. That does not mean simply building good thinking habits. It does not mean blocking out the bad and putting in the good. You see, a true renovation involves tearing down, throwing away, and filling the dumpster outside of the house with all the old/bad material never to be seen again. It involves getting your hands dirty, sweat equity, mask and gloves on, and making things happen.
To truly be transformed by the Spirit of God you must first surrender the house of your mind to the best renovator: Jesus Christ. He will then come in and begin a process that will transform you more than you ever thought or imagine could take place. He will destroy your old ways of thinking, He will rip up the foundations of your old man, He will scrape the paint off with His word and then, AND THEN, oh please understand the beauty of what comes next, and then He will build such a beautiful home that you can’t help but kneel down and give Him the praise, honor, and glory.
Summary
Be transformed by the renovating of your mind. Allow Christ to come in and start that process. He came to give you life and life more abundant but you must surrender to Him. What good is it if the foundation company comes to my house next week just to be met with a locked door. He must have the keys.
Doing so will transform your life. You will have a distaste for the things of the world and begin developing the mind of Jesus. Your love for souls and God will increase, your hatred of sin will rise, and your desire to walk with Jesus will abound more and more. Oh don’t you want that!?
Action
- Praise God for His mercy and grace and love for your soul
- Surrender to God the house of your mind and give Him access
- Confess to God your hesitancy and lack of belief in His renovation
- Thank God for His willingness to help you and desire to transform you