Holiness: Holy Spirit Transformation
Hello friends…. Welcome back! Hope all is well with you and yours as we begin to transition to a “Fall Harvest Frenzy” time! I love this time of year for all the “transitions” we see going on around us. We are excited for Fall this year! The “Colors” should be amazing due to all the snow and rain we have had this year here in Mid-Missouri… I’ll try to post some as the leaves begin to fall. 😉
What is “Spiritual” Rebirth Transformation?
It is ultimately a paradigm shift from trying to understand “Spiritual” things within a “Physical” worldview paradigm, due to the fallen state of our World ever since “The Fall”. It just does not happen. there is too much that is “Lost in Translation”.
As we have stated previously, when Adam and Eve chose to disobey God in the Garden and eat the fruit of the Knowledge of “Good and Evil” from the World’s view, they chose to do things their way. They also believed the Serpent’s lie, that they would not DIE… but they did… Spiritually. From that point on we have all been DEAD in our disobedience, sin, and rebelliousness toward God. By not choosing to eat of all the other fruit that God had graciously provided, including the fruit of the Tree of Life, they died and were immediately separated from God in three ways, they died Spiritually, they were separated from God. They could no longer live in His Presence. As we all know, theirs and our Physical bodies will decay and eventually die Physically. Then at the end of all time our Lives will ultimately die Eternally with Satan and all his minions in the pit of Hell… and eternal fire.
As we said last time in our closing statement, If you have accepted God’s gracious plan of Redemption and New Life through Christ, you have been reborn, Spiritually, as a new Creation in Christ, a Son or Daughter of God! You have been REBORN through the Death, Burial, and especially the Resurrection of Jesus, our Deliverer! Jesus was victorious over Sin, Death, and the Grave to rebirth us Spiritually back into God’s Presence, from which we had fallen and died in through the Fall of Mankind (Adam) Rom.5:15-19 …. and that is just the beginning.
The Holy Spirit “seals” our Rebirth!
Our Rebirth into the Family of God negates the 3 ways of death that emanated from the Garden. We are Spiritually Reborn through the Death, Burial, and Resurrection of Christ. Christ’s sinless life paid the sacrificial price on the Cross to reconnect us back into Fellowship with God that was lost in the Garden. The Holy Spirit Presence of God seals us permanently in that new birth… We Are HIS! We are also now Physically Reborn due to Christ’s Resurrection, so that when we die, we will, like Christ, be resurrected when our Lord and King returns to take us Home to glory. We will then be Eternally Reborn, as we spend precious and glorious time forever with our Heavenly Father, and all of those who have also received “so great a Salvation”. Remember This….
The Truth is that God never created us to be a Slaves. That is a lie of Satan. The Truth is that God created mankind, Men and Women as the climax of His creation. A Creation He dearly loved. Yet due to the Fall of mankind, God graciously provided a way of repentance and return, a Deliverer… Jesus. As we have mentioned in our earlier conversations on “Adoption“, and “First Steps”; you are a New Creation in Christ, with all of the rights, privileges, and responsibilities of being adopted in the Family of God, as His child, and heir of His Kingdom. It is very important for us to understand what has happened in our Spiritual rebirth. (Romans 8:1-11) We need to know Who we are as Men and Women of Almighty God. Otherwise, as you can guess, our new relationship with God gets very confusing and dysfunctional; which is understandable as many stumble with understanding their Faith in Christ. That confusion was never His plan.
The Father’s plan was to reset mankind, and to infuse His people with the Spiritual Presence of Christ, the Holy Spirit of God; that was lost at the Fall in the Garden. The Holy Spirit is our adoptive confirmation and “seal” as His sons and Daughters. (Gal.4:4-7) “Therefore you are no longer a slave (to sin), but a son, and if a son, then an heir through God” (Gal 4:7) This the essence and meaning of water baptism. Baptism depicts our personal Spiritual Death, Burial, and Resurrection to New Life in Christ.
As we begin this new chapter, this picture depicts our coming to Christ; baggage and all. God accepts us right there, as we come, just as we are; surrendering our dreams and plans, for the dreams and intentions God had when He created us….We’ve come Home.
I remember vividly the time years ago as a young kid (12), accepting Christ. My pastor told me about my need for baptism (immersion) as I would need to die to my sin, be buried into the waters of Baptism, and raised (resurrected) to walk in “Newness of Life”. My heart was so tender before God at that time I could not hold in my excitement. I remember telling everyone who would listen, excitedly, that I was going to die this Sunday! They were shocked. Then I clarified, that I was to be baptized, and that it was just a “Spiritual” Death, (not physical death) as I was beginning my walk with Jesus!
My Baptism that day was a Spiritual “marker” for beginning my new life in Christ. As we close today, I want to share a great song about our Baptism in Christ. It’s called appropriately “Watergrave” by Dogwood, a Contemporary Christian group from the 1980s. Drink deep into the message of the triumphant refrain…
“I’m goin’ down to the river, my Lord; I’m gonna be buried alive! I’m wanna show my Heavenly Father, The man I used to be has finally died!”
Blessings on you as we walk confidently in Christ! Talk soon… ♥