Change. Transformation. Revival. These are all words that we aim to realize in our lifetime. No matter who we are, where we are, or what we are doing, we all want to see the world change for the better.
Change and revival can only happen out of necessity, not out of luxury.
Jesus affirmed this principle by saying “it is not the healthy that need the physician, but the sick…(Mark 2:17)”. With that said, how many of us would volunteer to be confined to the hospital bed or doctor's office by choice? None, that is perhaps why change comes at the just the right time, when we need it most. I believe the Gospel and God’s timing work the same way, He knows exactly when to communicate to us at a time when we are most open to receive His grace and message. Many times this is in times of crisis or tough circumstance, but it can also be due to a spiritual complacency or stagnation. Whether we are stuck between a rock and a hard place on our own folly, or due to external factors, I believe change for the better is coming to us if we embrace it.
The Gospel of Christ is all about change and transformation
God’s divine purpose and great work is all about reconciliation, the repairing of relationship between God and man, that invokes a change in our lives and the world around us. Many of us know that change is necessary, but don’t know how to do it. I have heard it said before that “it is easier to start something new than bring something back to life”-and I believe that is why ALL of us must be born again, according to God’s spirit and purpose, so that we can have a new beginning. Sometimes that’s all we need, is just a fresh start, a second chance. This is why God often gave new names to the forefathers of our faith, and why Jesus renamed the fisherman “Simon” to the Apostle Peter.
Along with a new start and a new name, is a new purpose. I am not saying we all need to change our names like the days of old, but I am saying that in order to not go backwards in our transformation, we need a new direction to go in. I remember in my own life feeling like I did it “my way” for 22 years and it left me broken and depressed, perhaps it was time to live according to a new way. The new way of living that I embarked on was to set God’s values and desires higher than my own, and they would take priority in my life before my own wishes. I didn’t get this perfect of course, in fact most of the time I didn’t even get it right. Old habits die hard, which is when I learned that the most important element in transformation is consistency. It is impossible to become proficient at anything if we do not practice, and all practice is just consistent attempts towards improvement. The lifestyle of a Christian is no different, it is simply repeated attempts at trying to live like Jesus. In this endless pursuit of the image of Christ (Rom 8:29), there is grace for us.
Sometimes change can be instantaneous, but for most of us, change takes time. In regards to his success, Michael Jordan said this “I’ve missed more than 9,000 shots in my career.
"I’ve lost almost 300 games. Twenty-six times I’ve been trusted to take the game-winning shot and missed. I’ve failed over and over and over again in my life. And that is why I succeed”.
Who understands this concept more than our Creator? He knows that we will not get it right all the time, not even most of the time, which is why there is grace for us. If we are in Jesus, we are already forgiven. We have grace not so that we can keep missing it, but grace in order to get better and improve-that results in true transformation of our souls. When we have the love of God, and grace to grow, that’s when we see what we really want, change for the better-but only if we are consistent. Consistency is the most important principle of change, because it is easy to become discouraged and run from our mistakes. Jesus exercised this principle through “abiding” in God and the Holy Spirit (the Trinity)-that is to remain consistent in presence. When we abide in Jesus, change for the better is on its way.
I am a big enthusiast of all physical sciences. Physics and biology have always intrigued me ever since I was a boy. I think that is because there is constant visible change. All of life grows, matures, and changes. From a child to an adult, a chemical reaction, or a transfer of energy (momentum). Things start one way, and through an amazing observable process, becomes something totally different. What started as a pile of snow, became an iceberg, or what started as a caterpillar became a butterfly. In the same way, God takes things in our lives intended for evil, and uses them for good. Whether that be evil by our own doing, or things done to us, God can and will use them to bring about change and redemption. In chemistry, these elements are referred to as “catalysts” which are things that accelerate change in a chemical reaction. Many times the catalysts in our lives can include a job loss, a divorce, a regret, a neglect, or a motive. Whatever the case that starts us on the process to seek change, God can use it all!
When there is a change in the middle of a scientific formula, scientists use a placeholder symbol of 𝚫, the Greek letter delta.
So the golden question is now set for an answer…why are we called Iglesia Delta, that is because we are the church of change. Whatever it is that leads you to us, or whatever small voice is telling you to hang around us, whatever the circumstance or reality, God can change it all for the better. Imagine if a child in foster care were to receive a loving home tomorrow, how much would that positively change their life? Imagine if you finally got that apology, or if you finally gave that apology, how much would change for the better? What would the world look like if people had stronger ethics and moral compasses, or if they were more gracious, generous, and forgiving…how incredible would it be to live in a world like that?
All of this is possible and more through the Gospel of Jesus Christ and my life is a testimony to that reality. When Jesus enters the picture, everything has to change and for the better. Some of us can be apprehensive of change, that can be because we are focused on what we would lose rather than what we can gain. The Gospel invokes change in our lives in the areas that we want to lose anyway: bitterness, anger, hate, resentment, selfishness, etc. At the same time, the Gospel of Jesus accelerates the things we are actually seeking to add to our lives: generosity, compassion, goodwill, respect, confidence, etc. The great miracle and mystery of faith is precisely what we have been talking about, how God brings change to places we once thought hopeless through the life, death, and resurrection of His Son Jesus.
Colossians 1:16 says about Jesus, “For in him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things have been created through him and for him”.
The great mystery of faith is that Jesus, as a great artist, has entered his own painting to invoke change for the better. Jesus has inserted himself into His own story, to bring about change in yours.
Jesus was faithful, so that you could be faithful. Jesus was loving, so that you could be loving. He was forgiving, so that you could be forgiving. And that is precisely why we follow Him, not because of what He can do for us, as God is not a genie, we follow Him because of what He ALREADY did for us. He has proven His character and worth 2000 years ago. The battle for your soul and life was won 2000 years ago. The check we are all waiting to cash, the lottery ticket we won, is 2000 years old. Our prize is living life with a God who loves us, and calls us sons and daughters, who now gives us the capacity to become like Him in character through His Holy Spirit.
If it sounds like I am preaching to you, it is because I am! I would argue that this Gospel is perhaps the only thing in the world that is worth preaching, and even more so, shouting from the rooftops! Preaching and starting churches is perhaps the only appropriate response to this message. So much so that Jesus in His famous last words in Matt 28:16-20 said to go make disciples of all nations. When we make disciples, disciples make more disciples, and a gathering of disciples is called a “church”. Iglesia Delta exists to do 3 things: engage people with the Gospel, teach them how to be disciples, and send them to make more disciples. This is why in summation, our church tagline is this: Reach, Teach, Go. So what are you waiting for? Change is here, and we are too, for you!
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