Transformation through Experience..Craig Denison Ministries

Transformation through Experience

Craig Denison Ministries

Weekly Overview: 

We serve a God of powerful transformations. All throughout Scripture God takes those whom the world deemed the lowest, the hopeless, and the helpless and uses them to change the world. You are not beyond transformation. God longs to break off that which inhibits you from experiencing fullness of life. He longs to heal you, deliver you, and set you free. May your life be forever changed as we spend time discovering God’s heart for transformation.

Scripture:

“And we all, with unveiled face, beholding the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from one degree of glory to another. For this comes from the Lord who is the Spirit.” 2 Corinthians 3:18

Devotional:    

No Christian practice can take the place of experiencing God. It’s in experiencing God that we begin to live in response to the unconditional, unfathomable depths of God’s love. It’s in experiencing God that we learn to discern and trust his perfect, pleasing will. And it’s in experiencing God that our hearts are transformed into powerful reflections of his wonderful character.

2 Corinthians 3:18 says, “And we all, with unveiled face, beholding the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from one degree of glory to another. For this comes from the Lord who is the Spirit.” When we see God face-to-face everything changes. You can’t see God and stay the same. Encountering him always requires something from us. Experiencing his holiness always calls us to be holy as he is holy(1 Peter 1:15). Experiencing his love always calls to love because he has “first loved us” (1 John 4:19).And experiencing his heart for transformation always calls us to surrender our lives to him as a “living sacrifice, holy and pleasing” (Romans 12:1).

In Isaiah 6:1-6, Isaiah’s encounter with the living God speaks to the truth of transformation through experience. In response to seeing “the Lord sitting upon a throne, high and lifted up” and hearing the Seraphim calling to one another, “Holy, holy, holy is the Lord of hosts; the whole earth is full of his glory,” Isaiah’s natural response was, “Woe is me! For I am lost; for I am a man of unclean lips, and I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips; for my eyes have seen the King, the Lord of hosts!” And upon declaring the truth of his depravity a seraphim touches his lips with a burning coal and says, “Behold, this has touched your lips; your guilt is taken away, and your sin atoned for.” Isaiah was transformed through experiencing God.

If you want your life to be transformed you must set out to seek the face of God. You must respond daily to his invitation to meet together. Your life must be centered around the fact that perfect, blameless Jesus gave his life that you might simply have relationship with the Father. If you do—if you give your life to experience the fullness of God’s love, power, and presence—you will never be the same. May you “[behold] the glory of the Lord” today as you enter into a time of guided prayer (2 Corinthians 3:18).

Guided Prayer:

1. Meditate on the transformation that takes place in experiencing God.

“And we all, with unveiled face, beholding the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from one degree of glory to another. For this comes from the Lord who is the Spirit.” 2 Corinthians 3:18

“Behold, this has touched your lips; your guilt is taken away, and your sin atoned for.” Isaiah 6:7

2. Turn your heart to God and seek his face. Have faith that when you set aside time to experience God he will manifest his presence to you. His presence is his promise.

“You have said, ‘Seek my face.’ My heart says to you, ‘Your face, Lord, do I seek.’” Psalm 27:8

“You will seek me and find me, when you seek me with all your heart.” Jeremiah 29:13

3. Rest in the presence of your loving Father. Confess any sin you have in response to his holiness and promise to forgive you. And receive the cleansing that comes from repentance.

“Repent, then, and turn to God, so that your sins may be wiped out, that times of refreshing may come from the Lord.” Acts 3:19 (NIV)

“If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” 1 John 1:9

So great is God’s love for you that he longs to meet with you. In Revelation 3:20 God says, “Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and eat with him, and he with me.” God is already knocking on the door of your heart. You don’t have to wonder if he will meet with you when you open your heart to him. Revelation 3:20 is his promise. He longs for you to encounter him more than you do. He wants to be known by you more than you want to know him. Have faith in the goodness of your God and live a lifestyle of encounter. May your life be transformed by a revelation of God’s unfailing love and presence.

Extended Reading: Revelation 3

Acquiring Great Faith..Dr. Charles Stanley

 Acquiring Great Faith

Dr. Charles Stanley

Hebrews 11:17-19

I’ve had people tell me, “I wish that I had great faith.” While most of us would like God to just drop that kind of confidence into our laps, it’s not the way He operates. Faith increases as a result of our obedience in little things. We all marvel at Abraham’s willingness to offer up Isaac at the Lord’s command. But have you ever stopped to consider all of his smaller steps of submission that prepared the way for this enormous test?

Throughout his lifetime, Abraham obeyed God. At the Lord’s command, he left his country (Gen 12:1-4), was circumcised (17:10, 26), conceived Isaac in his old age (21:1-3), and sent his son Ishmael away (21:9-14). By the time he was asked to offer Isaac as a sacrifice, he already knew that his God would always be faithful to His promises. His previous experiences had taught Him to trust the Lord.

In the same way, each small step of obedience solidifies our confidence in God. Then, when He challenges us with a more difficult assignment, a firm foundation of assurance enables us to trust and obey Him. Great acts of faith flow from our past interactions with the Lord. By neglecting His simple commands, we miss priceless opportunities to witness His faithfulness.

Having trouble trusting God for something big? Maybe it’s because you’ve ignored those “small” and “insignificant” promptings of the Holy Spirit. The Lord considers each of His commands important and promises to reward every act of obedience, regardless of size. Great faith begins with little steps.

The Blessing of the Father’s Discipline..Emily Rose Massey

 The Blessing of the Father’s Discipline

By Emily Rose Massey

“All discipline for the moment seems not to be joyful, but sorrowful; yet to those who have been trained by it, afterwards it yields the peaceful fruit of righteousness” (Hebrews 12:11, NASB).

Recently, I have been studying parenting styles, and it has helped me better understand how I grew up and want to raise my boys. In my understanding, raising kids with an intentional lack of guidance (“do whatever makes you happy” mentality) causes more harm to them in the end. Children need guidance from their parents, especially when they are young and don’t fully understand the world around them yet. “Free-range” parenting is quite harmful to a child's psyche; they are children, not chickens. 

There is also a growing and popular parenting philosophy called “gentle parenting.” According to Parents.com, “Gentle parenting is a means of parenting without shame, blame, or punishment. It is centered on partnership as both parents and children have a say in this collaborative style.” It sounds reasonable. Especially, not shaming or blaming our children when they are disobedient. But where I take issue with this approach is in the lack of discipline, and in the lack of seeing the parent as the one who leads in the relationship. This approach to parenting creates a child-centered home. 

God designed the family for each person to have a specific role: the father, the mother, and the children. Guidance and discipline are both gifts from parents to their children. God also designed our relationship with Him and His church to have specific roles as He leads us, empowers us to walk in obedience, and disciplines us when we have sinned and disobeyed Him. God chastens the ones He loves (Hebrews 12:6). Instead of running from His discipline, it benefits us to see the often difficult and uncomfortable reality of discipline and correction as a blessing in our own life when the Father chastens us. He allows consequences to touch us in the hope they will lead us back to the path of righteousness. 

“All discipline for the moment seems not to be joyful, but sorrowful; yet to those who have been trained by it, afterward it yields the peaceful fruit of righteousness” (Hebrews 12:11, NASB).

Intersecting Faith and Life:

Even as believers, we sin and disobey God. In Christ, we are covered in His righteousness and stand forgiven, but we must still repent our disobedience. 1 John 1 reminds us of the importance of confessing our sins:

“If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness” (1 John 1:9, NKJV).

Trying to hide our sin causes us to hide from God, similar to Adam and Eve when sin first entered the world. They felt overcome with shame. Because of Jesus, and the finished work of the cross, we are forever made righteous in our position as we stand before the Father. We are forever forgiven, yet when we sin it causes our fellowship with God to be hindered, making it easy for us to stray from Him. The Father’s love toward us never changes when we sin, yet we may still experience consequences and correction for our disobedience. Repentance, as a believer, keeps fellowship with our Father open and unhindered. 

Sin can often cause our hearts to grow callous, decreasing our sensitivity toward the conviction of the Holy Spirit. Conviction, repentance, and discipline are all great gifts from our Father in heaven. God’s love is unconditional and perfect, and nothing can stop His pursuit of us. He wants us to be honest with Him so that we can see real transformation happen in our lives, as He conforms us to the image of His Son. Let us joyfully receive godly discipline, which yields the peaceful fruit of righteousness. Then, we get to participate in His holiness and reflect Him to the world.

Further Reading:

• Psalm 89:32
• Psalm 118:18
• Proverbs 15:10

Don’t Take 1 Timothy 6:10 Out of Context.. Stephen Sanders

 Don’t Take 1 Timothy 6:10 Out of Context

By Stephen Sanders

What does this scripture really mean?

"For the love of money is a root of all sorts of evil, and some by longing for it have wandered away from the faith and pierced themselves with many griefs." - 1 Timothy 6:10

Well, you may say, “I don’t need to see anything else! The Bible is the Word of God so if that’s what it says then, well, that’s what it means! End of story!” Or perhaps you may say, “See, it says the ‘love’ of money, so I can have as much money as I want as long as I don’t ‘love’ it.”

While 1 Timothy 6:10 is probably the most well-known verse in the book of 1st Timothy, we need to look at the verses that surround it to discover exactly what Paul was saying here. I mean, what if I told you that the movie Star Wars was all about Luke Skywalker discovering that Darth Vader was his father?

It’s not JUST about that, even though, “I am your father!” is probably the most famous line from that movie. Get my drift? We don’t treat movies or other books like that so why would we treat the Bible that way?

So what was Paul warning Timothy about? Let’s start here...

3-5
If anyone advocates a different doctrine and does not agree with sound words, those of our Lord Jesus Christ, and with the doctrine conforming to godliness, he is conceited and understands nothing; but he has a morbid interest in controversial questions and disputes about words, out of which arise envy, strife, abusive language, evil suspicions, and constant friction between men of depraved mind and deprived of the truth, who suppose that godliness is a means of gain.

6-10
But godliness actually is a means of great gain when accompanied by contentment. For we have brought nothing into the world, so we cannot take anything out of it either. If we have food and covering, with these we shall be content. But those who want to get rich fall into temptation and a snare and many foolish and harmful desires which plunge men into ruin and destruction. For the love of money is a root of all sorts of evil, and some by longing for it have wandered away from the faith and pierced themselves with many griefs.

Next, Paul claims that Christianity does involve prosperity (great gain) when accompanied with contentment with having food and clothes (our needs met). Timothy is being warned about teaching a gospel that includes a guarantee of riches because:

- They are temporary
- Lead to temptation
- They cause people to wander away from the faith

11-16
But flee from these things, you man of God, and pursue righteousness, godliness, faith, love, perseverance and gentleness. Fight the good fight of faith; take hold of the eternal life to which you were called, and you made the good confession in the presence of many witnesses. I charge you in the presence of God, who gives life to all things, and of Christ Jesus, who testified the good confession before Pontius Pilate, that you keep the commandment without stain or reproach until the appearing of our Lord Jesus Christ, which He will bring about at the proper time. He who is the blessed and only Sovereign, the King of kings and Lord of lords, who alone possesses immortality and dwells unapproachable light, whom no man has see nor can see. To Him be honor and eternal dominion! Amen.

So far, we can ascertain that Paul is warning Timothy that, the love of money, which we have just determined is a Christian teaching that equates godliness is a means of gain, is something that we need to flee from. Instead of following that teaching, we need to:

- Pursue righteousness, godliness, faith, love, perseverance and gentleness
- Grab the gift of eternal life which we have through Jesus Christ and share THAT message

17-19
Instruct those who are rich in this present world not to be conceited or to fix their hope on the uncertainty of riches, but on God, who richly supplies us with all things to enjoy. Instruct them to do good, to be rich in good works, to be generous and ready to share, storing up for themselves the treasure of a good foundation for the future, so that they may take hold of that which is life indeed.

Finally, before he switches gears, Paul instructs Timothy on how to minister to those who are already rich:

- Warn rich people how their riches are temporary, how they lead to temptation and how they cause people to wander away from the faith
- Teach them to instead be rich in righteousness, godliness, faith, love, perseverance and gentleness

The concept of “riches” in the Christian walk can be a tricky thing to navigate. Some things, like the love of money, can be more difficult for some people in certain cultures than it is for those in other cultures. And, when it all comes down to it, we all probably have something - money, people, stuff, selfish desires - we choose to place above Jesus in our everyday lives.

As we let the real meaning of 1 Timothy 6:10 sink in today, we should ask ourselves this: “What am I treasuring over Jesus?” And as we answer that question, I pray that God uproots all forms of evil that keep us from living as He wants us to.

A Prayer to Persevere in Affliction..By Kristine Brown

 A Prayer to Persevere in Affliction

By Kristine Brown

“Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer.” (Romans 12:12 NIV)

Let’s be honest. No one wants to pray for patience. I may even cringe a little when I come across the word patience in Scripture. I’m tempted to skim right past it to get to the good part. Praying for patience? No thank you. Especially, when I’m not getting the answer I want, or my difficult circumstances never seem to end.

If you’ve found it hard to pray for patience, you’re not alone. But I have good news for us today that just might change our perspective on patience. My apprehension in praying for patience has kept me from seeing the beauty of what God has to say on the subject. Maybe that’s why I breathed a deep sigh of relief when I discovered the meaning behind Paul’s powerful words in Romans 12:12, “Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer.” 

I can say with all confidence, this is not the verse you want to quote to someone facing a long-term health battle. Yet these Holy Spirit-inspired words hold so much hope for our hurt. The Greek word for patient in this context can mean “to stay behind; to stand firm, endure, or persevere.” I love the NASB translation which reads, “rejoicing in hope, persevering in tribulation, devoted to prayer.” (Romans 12:12 NASB, emphasis mine) 

The word persevering gives us a broader picture of what it looks like to exhibit godly patience. God doesn’t call us to simply tolerate the hurt; he expects us to trust him with it. The Believer’s Bible Commentary says, “We are exhorted to be patient in tribulation—that is, to bear up bravely under it.” To bear up bravely. What a call to action for us all! That’s what Paul did, and what God admonishes us to do, too. Then, God’s promise goes even further. 

God not only refuses to leave us in our suffering, but He also goes before us. “The LORD himself goes before you and will be with you…” (Deuteronomy 31:8) By staying safely behind Jesus Christ— our guiding Light— we allow him to lead us through affliction. He will whisper a quiet, calming peace on even the most difficult days. In this way, he teaches us to persevere and draw strength from him. So, as we stand behind our Lord and persevere through the trials we face, let’s rejoice in our new understanding of godly patience in affliction. We can do this, with Jesus leading the way. Let’s band together today and commit to persevere and bear up bravely in affliction.

Let’s Pray:
Dear Heavenly Father,

Thank you for your guiding presence. I know you are here in the midst of my suffering. It’s hard for me to be patient and endure the trials I face. But you are a faithful God, and I trust you completely in the good times and the struggles of life. Your Word says in Romans 5:3, “Not only so, but we also glory in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance.” I don’t always feel like giving praise when I’m sick or afflicted. Sometimes I try to understand why suffering exists on earth. But your truth reminds me that through the hardest seasons of my life, you are helping me “grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.” (2 Peter 3:18) In difficult times, I learn to persevere. Thank you, Lord.

When I get impatient, weary, or discouraged, help me remember you go before me. You are leading the way, encouraging me with every difficult step forward. You also stand right beside me, offering peace and comfort. My affliction will not last forever. As long as I keep my eyes on you, I have hope for tomorrow. May others be drawn to your perfect love when they see me following your ways. May they see patience and perseverance in me that draws them to you. In Jesus’ name, I pray, Amen.

THE RESURRECTION..Rebecca Barlow Jordan

 THE RESURRECTION

Rebecca Barlow Jordan

Jesus said to her,
 "I am the resurrection and the life."
JOHN 11:25

FROM THE FATHER'S HEART
My child, you've walked away from the funerals of your loved ones with fresh memories still clinging to you like grave clothes. Tears have filled your eyes as you've said good-bye to the last dreams of your heart. Remember, for those who love Me and are My children, death is but a step into eternity with Me. It is never the end but the start of forever - what you were created for! Take heart. I am the resurrection and the life. Where I am, you will be also. Find peace in Me.

A GRATEFUL RESPONSE
Lord, death could not hold You. And because of You, the resurrection, we, too, can live. Thank You that the grave is only a journey into the presence of God. You have removed the sting of death and empowered this thing called life. Now I will live in Your presence forever.

SIMPLE TRUTH

On the other side of death is the real side of life.