Revelation to Transformation

Chapter 1 “Sir, We Would See Jesus” Charles H. Spurgeon, a preacher from the 19th century, said that it was his goal in preaching to take a text and follow it like a road until it led him to Christ and His cross. If the text from which he was preaching did not seem to lead in that direction, he would simply jump over to another scripture that did. I may share few qualities with the late, great Spurgeon, but I do share his desire to have my sermons lead to Jesus. In a time when mankind is looking all around to find help and hope, I believe that the answer has already been given. Together, I want us to go on a journey toward a place where we are free from the vice and failures that have defined us. Not content to put on a different appearance or to change other people’s perceptions of us, but to actually BE different than we have ever been before. We will deal with religion and relationship in full detail in the next chapter, but let me begin our journey by acknowledging why many of you have made the decision to read this book. I concede some are reading to learn what I might think of scripture or to become familiar with my ministry, but I pray many more of you were drawn to the book out of a desire to change something about your life. It is to you that I focus my attention throughout these pages. I understand the longing to change and I can tell you early on, CHANGE IS POSSIBLE. Now if you are looking to change your physical appearance or your mental capacity, then move on to a different book. I have no diet tips, exercise advice or investment information. I don’t even have practical steps for changing the way you act. In no way is this book about teaching you to change your performance, so let it be said very clearly: THIS BOOK IS NOT ABOUT BEHAVIOR MODIFICATION. The change I speak of is a change of heart. I realize that many of you are believers in Christ and have had a born-again experience. For those of us who call ourselves Christians, it is difficult to conclude that we need to change anything but our behavior. We know our hearts were changed when we accepted Christ, and it is for this reason we have become accustomed to hearing sermons and teaching that focus on what we need to do in order to change. This has led to us focusing on modifying our behavior to line up with the change that Christ made in us at conversion. “But don’t you think changing our behavior is important?” I do think changing our behavior is important, since our behavior serves as a window to the world of who our Jesus is. However, please note that I have no intention of teaching you how to modify your behavior, as I believe man CANNOT modify it permanently. I don’t want to attack your behavior, but rather inform you of the things that are leading to the behavior. If we adjust those areas, I believe that your behavior will follow suit. “Sir, we would see Jesus!” “And there were certain Greeks among them that came up to worship at the feast: the same came therefore to Philip, which was of Bethsaida of Galilee, and desired him, saying, ‘Sir, we would see Jesus’” (John 12:20, 21, KJV). This verse is my personal mandate every time I step into the pulpit. I see these Greek men, strangers to the Jewish faith, hungry to meet the man they have heard so much about. They chose to speak to Philip, perhaps for his Greek sounding name, in order to have someone present their case to the Master. They wanted nothing more than to “see Jesus,” and it reminds me that men are still seeking as much today. The pulpits in our churches are full of all kinds of preaching. It varies as much in content as it does in style. I know, because I’ve used different styles and different content! By my own account, it seems much of it is man-centered, concentrated on teaching the listener how to fix his life. While the methods are different from church to church, the means are very similar: sin is pointed to, exposed, and the offender is reprimanded. We are then told to do better through various programs. All in all, we are put the through the ringer of guilt and condemnation, shamed into either getting it right, or getting left behind! This constant preaching and teaching of guilt and condemnation is pulling people’s eyes off of the loveliness of Jesus and His finished work and onto the unfinished areas of their lives. We know that we are flawed; we don’t need someone screaming at us to figure that out. Our problem is not the absence of knowledge that we need help, rather it is the utter inability to help ourselves. Calvary was God’s intervention in all of our issues. By relieving us of the punishment of sin, He is freeing us from the weight of guilt and from the fear of death. The author of Hebrews said that when Jesus died He did so to “release those who through fear of death were all their lifetime subject to bondage” (Hebrews 2:15). Jesus has delivered us from fear of eternal punishment by being punished in our place! Regarding the men seeking Jesus in John 12, we may not be like these Greeks in our heritage or nationality, but we are very much like them in another way. While “Greek” tells us where they are from, in biblical terminology it tells us much more, as Jewish writers referred to all non-Jews as either Greeks or barbarians (see Romans 1:14, 16). At the close of this chapter we will see what the end result was for both the seekers and for us. For whatever cause you are reading, let my intentions be crystal clear. I intend to unveil to you the loveliness of my Jesus so you see Him as I believe the Word presents Him. He is perfectly beautiful, and only He holds the power to change your life. As we see Him together, we are seeing our destiny held firmly in His hands, and all modification of behavior is sure to come as a result of an encounter with Jesus. The Dividing Line of Scripture Did you know the dividing line of the Bible is not the blank page between the Old Testament and the New Testament? That page divides the two Testaments, but it does not give us a clear change in the way God dealt with man. The division point of scripture was an important point in the ministry of the Apostle Paul, as he mentioned in his letter to the young pastor Timothy. “Be diligent to present yourself approved to God, a worker who does not need to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth” (2 Timothy 2:15). Obviously, if there is a right way to divide the Word, then there must be a wrong way. Our job is to differentiate between what falls on one side of the Word and what falls on the other. In doing so, we are pulling out truths, within the context of each Testament, to find how they apply in our lives. Context This is a good time to mention a very important point that will surface time and time again throughout the course of this book. When we read scripture it is vital that we remember the context of a particular scripture. In other words, we damage the integrity of a text when we take a verse and act as if it stands alone. The verses in front and behind the text affect its meaning and acting as if they are not there will often leading to the twisting of scriptures. Be careful not to make scripture fit into your doctrine, but rather, make sure your doctrine fits into scripture. As you and I journey toward transformation together, an abundance of scripture to either support or destroy our case is absolutely essential. This is why we will constantly resort back to the text to find out what it is actually saying to us. Another thing that determines context is a proper knowledge as to whom and about what the scripture was written. Sometimes we can find this information in the first few verses of a book (like the Book of James for instance), or we can simply look at the title (i.e., Hebrews). Other times, a more intensive study is necessary, and though it may be time consuming, it is of supreme importance if we are going to fulfill Paul’s mandate to “rightl