In this series, we’re trying to wrestle with how significantly Jesus changes a life. Jesus himself described it as someone starting over, being born again.
One of the first Christian leaders, Paul, said it this way in 2 Corinthians 5:17 (ESV): “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come.”
This might make it sound like a one time thing, but it’s actually just the beginning of constant transformation. Here’s how Paul put it in Romans 12:1-2 (ESV): “I appeal to you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship. Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.“
Like when a baby is born, all kinds of development suddenly kickstarts – breathing air, feeding by mouth, seeing unfiltered light, and more. No longer in the womb, a baby’s mind and body start transforming to adapt to a new world.
In coming to earth as Jesus, then dying and rising again to destroy death’s power over humanity, God has reset the world. We can be born afresh into a new world – the kingdom of God.
If you’ve never accepted his offer to reset your life, to make you a new creation, then it’s quite simple. Tell Jesus, then tell someone else.
Start by telling Jesus. Simply pray, and ask him to let you start over. Apologize for all the things you’ve said, done and thought to turn away from him, and tell Jesus you want to turn back to him.
Then tell others. First, let me know, and another Christian in your life who can support you. Then, tell the world, by being baptized. We are about to celebrate Redeemer Church / Redeem the Commute’s first baptism on February 8th, and we’d love for you to be next. This is the way to show on the outside what God is already doing on the inside.
Then follow this series to learn how Jesus intends to transform each area of our lives. How we adapt to the kingdom of God, even in the midst of a world where others haven’t. We’ll look at these key areas of life:
Why does it matter if God uses the poor? Why does it matter to us, if we’re not poor by the world’s standards, if this is a night that changes the poor? We may not be nomadic shepherds sleeping with the sheep in a field, but this still matters to us.
We are in spiritual poverty. It’s different from material poverty, but very important to recognize.
A sign is offered to us, from the poorest among us to the wealthiest, and it’s a poor baby in a manger. This comes to us direct from God, though his heavenly messengers. God helps us see our own poverty – spiritual and material – by his standards rather than our own.
When we see our own spiritual poverty compared to Jesus, we realize we need to get up and get to this baby, get to Jesus’ bedside just like those shepherds. A spiritually or materially wealthier group may not have bothered – they may have considered themselves just fine – but the poor are those God started with because they are those who know they need outside help.
When we have enough, we can’t hunger for food. It’s the same with God – if we consider ourselves spiritually rich and self-reliant, we won’t bother with reliance on God.
This is why, in the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus said, “Blessed are the poor, or poor in Spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of God.”
In the Christmas story, all of humanity sees its poverty, its spiritual poverty, compared to this divine baby. We realize we are unable to get back to relationship with God, and yet he comes to us anyway. We realize we can’t buy our way out of this debt to God (called sin), so someone else bailed us out and paid it off.
In the Christmas story, God helps us see our own poverty – spiritual and material.
In so doing, we realize the world’s standards are empty – we are all poor compared to God’s standards, and all need him equally. This can motivate us to extend to others, who we now recognize as spiritually poor themselves, the same generosity God has shown to us.
Challenge: Give to the spiritually and materially poor in your life! Toy drive, food bank, direct to a friend. Tell them why – because God has been generous and loving to you.
Reminder: We are reading the Bible in sync as one community - so check out today's reading here.
