“Transformed to Follow”

August 27, 23 - 13th Sunday after Pentecost

Romans 12: 1-8 and Matthew 16: 13-20

BRCC - Pastor Deb Birkeland

Once there was a man whose life became one of misery. The days were cloudy, and the nights long. Henry didn’t want to be unhappy, but he was. With the passing years, his life changed; his children were grown; the neighborhood different; and life seemed harsher. He decided to go to his pastor and ask what might be wrong.

“I am unhappy for some sin I have committed?” asked Henry. “Yes,” the wise pastor replied, “You have sinned.” “What sin might that be?” asked an alarmed Henry. “Ignorance,” said the pastor, “The sin of ignorance. One of your neighbors is “Jesus” in disguise and you have not seen Him.” Henry left his pastor’s office stunned. “Jesus is one of my neighbors?” Henry began to think about who that might be. Tom the butcher? No, he’s too lazy. Mary my cousin down the street? No, too much pride. Aaon the paperboy? No, too indulgent. Henry was confounded, for every person he knew had defects and was not at all like Jesus. But his curiosity made Henry begin to look at every person around him, hoping that he might find Jesus for himself.

Well, Henry began to notice things he hadn’t seen before. The grocer often carried sacks of groceries to the cars of the older people in town. Maybe he is Jesus? The police officer at the corner always had a bright smile for the kids on their way to school. Could he be Jesus? The young couple that moved in next door were so kind to their cat and to their new neighbors, Maybe one of them?

With time, Henry began to see people and daily life differently and his outlook began to change. He still wasn’t sure he had found the REAL Jesus, but he surely found some of Jesus in many people all around him. The bounce returned to his step. His eyes took on a friendly sparkle. And when others spoke, he listened, for afterall, that person might indeed be Jesus! When someone was in need, Henry rushed in to help, for after all, that might be Jesus needing assistance.

The change in Henry was so significant that someone asked him one day, “Henry, you are so happy and helpful all the time, what’s changed?” “I don’t know,” said Henry. “All I know is that something happened when I started looking for God. Jesus seems to be everywhere!” (Story by Max Lucado: A Gentle Thunder, pg. 166)

In Paul’s letter to the Romans, Paul…the first PASTOR of the church, sums up what it means to be disciples of Christ and follow a life that pleases God. And it can be summed up in one word: TRANSFORMATION. “Be transformed by the renewal of your mind,” says Paul. Transformation, it seems, involves the mind; the way we look and see one another; the way we process what is going on in the world around us. I guess Paul knew what he was talking about, because his story is filled with lots of challenging shipwrecks, beatings, imprisonments and crises…yet Paul kept preaching; teaching; and writing his letters, even when chained to a prison cell. Why? So the people God had called him to find would SEE and KNOW the Jesus who transformed his life on that Road to Damascus.

You might remember how black Paul’s mind was before that day. He was a Rabbinic Jew determined to wipe out all those crazy followers of this heretic, Jesus…people of the WAY who were turning Jews away from God’s law to a criminal they called the Messiah. Perhaps there was no darker mind toward Jesus in those days then Paul! Crucifying this fraud wasn’t enough, Paul was determined to wipe out any trace of him by killing, if need be…every single follower that spread his falsehoods. And so the dark righteousness of SAUL…the pharisee extraordinaire, set out to do a service to the God of Israel with darkness in his heart. No wonder Jesus blinded him on that road!

Paul saw Jesus, all right! But he also saw the error of his ways. He was indeed humbled; his mind was hushed; stopped in his tracks…and finally, when Ananius was sent to restore his sight…his mind and sight were RENEWED…AND TRANSFORMED! Paul’s life, like Henry’s, took a 180 turn and he never looked back. Thank goodness, or you see…Jesus cannot be stopped. The force of His LOVE and SAVING GRACE won’t settle for anything less than our transformation!

I’m often told that I have a “perky” personality! I certainly have my darker moments, but for the most part, I have found the joy of being happy, open and creative and I love interaction with others. But I have to tell you, I wasn’t always this way. There was a time in our family life when I struggled with depression. Many people do…and it isn’t an easy journey, for nothing short of a “renewal of your mind” truly leads you out of that depressive place. Medications help, of course, but the mind needs to begin to see and understand things differently to truly get well. Transformation in the renewing of a mind always involves truth telling; humble confession of errors in judgment and perspective; and gracious self forgiveness and acceptance. The wisdom of God raising our eyes to a cross where our bondage to ALL and EVERY sin is exposed…and healed, IS transformative! The Heart must be healed first….then follows the mind. To be renewed in mind and transformed in the spirit is to come fully alive. And I believe it is the only way we can truly KNOW and USE our gifts as ONE BODY in Christ. Remember that phrase…God LOVES us as we ARE…but NEVER leaves us as we ARE!

Peter’s transforming moment is also before us today. Perhaps you remember from past sermons that during this time in Matthew, Jesus and his disciples have left Jewish territory for what might have been up to 6 months, to retreat in a Gentile/Greek/Roman world. Why? So that Jesus could move away from the crushing crowds, teach and “transform” the minds of his disciples. In Caesarea Philippi, a cosmopolitan city of its day, they were surrounded by gods of all kinds within pagan traditions. Yet people still came seeking the God of Israel…this Jesus, whose presence tugged on their hearts and brought a hope and healing unheard of before.

It is in this setting that Jesus sits down to test the results of his training and presence upon those he will leave behind to carry forth God’s will. “Who do people here say that I am?” Asks Jesus. This is a safe question, for there has been all kinds of speculation and research as people tried to figure out who this Jesus was. They may have tried to understand Jewish history to make sense of this “Messiah” and so they came up with answers like John the Baptist, Elijah and even Jeremiah and the prophets. But as important as renewing the minds of these Pagan’s was…Jesus knew that it was the disciples who needed to be TRANSFORMED in order to be transforming. And so the question get’s personal and unnerving. “But who do YOU say that I am?” Asks Jesus.

Imagine that moment. The tension in the air, the desire to please Jesus, yet the fear of getting it wrong. Afterall, his teachings; his miracles; his vision and power in their midst was so overwhelming. It was like the waves on the sea…tossing them here and there in understanding and clarity. Their minds must have been realing.

It’s funny, isn’t it, how sometimes the Holy Spirit speaks up when we least expect it? I remember well the day driving in our car from the cities back to Hutchinson, where we lived until 1982, when Dale asked me a question. He said, “Deb, if you could do anything you dreamed of without any worry about cost or the time and energy it would take, what would you really like to do?” And without skipping a beat, I said, “I would go to seminary and study to be a pastor!” Where that came from…I don’t know! It was a thought that must have been percolating inside…yet I had never spoken it to myself, much less Dale! But from that moment on, I began a transforming journey into ministry that couldn’t be denied, even though it took seven years to complete my training.

Perhaps it was like that for Peter too! Out of his mouth flew the words: “You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God.” And Jesus confirmed that it was NOT Peter’s flesh or blood that had revealed this truth, the God the Father himself! And then curiously, Jesus calls Peter the ROCK upon which he will build his church. Does that mean that Peter is better or more dynamic than the other disciples? That only on the basis of this man’s faith could God build His church? I don’t think so. For Peter, like all of us was flawed and in need of renewal of mind and transformation. What I DO think it means is that God’s Holy Spirit is unstoppable! Nothing…even the gates of HELL..or the depths of DARKNESS, can stop the transforming renewal that our Living God has unleashed. The Keys to the kingdom have the power to bind our minds in the knowledge of sin, and “loose” our spirit to a renewal and transforming reality.

So what does that tell us today…and what can we carry into tomorrow? Perhaps simply that we are all like Henry; Peter and Paul….in need of the renewing of our minds. And the one…the only one who can do that transformation within us and our world is JESUS.

Amen.