Jesus answered, “I am telling you the truth: no one can see the Kingdom of God without being born again.” [John 3:3 (GNT)]
So get rid of your old self, which made you live as you used to—the old self that was being destroyed by its deceitful desires. Your hearts and minds must be made completely new, and you must put on the new self, which is created in God’s likeness and reveals itself in the true life that is upright and holy. [Ephesians 4:22-24 (GNT)]
Real estate ads can be somewhat misleading. “Needs TLC” usually means structural damage; a “handy-man special” requires rehabbing and money; “waterfront” probably has a basement that floods; “cozy” means really small and “intimate” is even smaller than cozy. “Tear-down,” however, means just that; while the property may have value, the house isn’t worth renovating. In our southwest Florida community, it is not unusual to see advertisements for homes with an asking price in the seven digit territory (none of which need TLC, handymen, have flooded basements, are cozy or intimate.) Since it’s difficult to believe there’s anything needing improvement in such expensive houses, the shocker is that some of those homes are listed as tear-downs. That hefty asking price is for the privilege of tearing down the existing structure and spending several millions more to build another one in its place.
The price God pays for us is greater than millions of dollars—we are purchased with the blood of Christ. When we accept His offer, we turn possession of our lives over to Him to do with as He pleases. We’re not in pristine condition; in fact we don’t even qualify as handy-man specials. As valuable as we are, we’re tear-downs. God won’t just fix up a few things, slap on a new coat of paint or replace the Formica with granite. He doesn’t renovate us by tearing out a little selfishness and replacing it with some brand new generosity or adding a touch of self-control. Rather than patching up bits and pieces, God starts all over again and rebuilds us from the ground up. With those Florida “tear-downs”, the previous owner doesn’t get to stop the bulldozer from razing the old building or offer advice on renovations. Why, I wonder, do we hesitate to give God full rein on our rebuild when we accept His offer of salvation?
The only similarity a tear-down house shares with the new one is its address in an exclusive neighborhood. When the Holy Spirit moves into us, however, we continue to look the same on the outside but we’re totally transformed on the inside. Although the carpenters, painters and tile men eventually finish their work and leave those houses, God is never quite done with us. His Holy Spirit remains to continue transforming our lives for the rest of our days.
Anyone who is joined to Christ is a new being; the old is gone, the new has come. [2 Corinthians 5:17 (GNT)]
I have been put to death with Christ on his cross, so that it is no longer I who live, but it is Christ who lives in me. This life that I live now, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave his life for me. I refuse to reject the grace of God. [Galatians 2:19b-21 (GNT)]
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“Biology!? Math!? English! AAHH!” groans Nancy in a recent one of Guy Gilchrist’s comics. “I shouldn’t have to memorize anything I can Google!!” she protests with a frown. Oh, I feel your pain, Nancy; indeed, I do! Were it not for my Bible’s concordance and Google, I’d be hard put to include Bible verses in my devotions. I can manage to remember the gist of many verses but don’t ask me for chapter or verse and you’d better not quote me because my words won’t be exact. If quizzed on Scripture, I definitely would need an open book test and, like Nancy, would much prefer having access to Google.
When I was a little girl, although I was allowed to roam freely throughout much of my residential neighborhood, I was not permitted to go as far as the business section several blocks west. I had some playmates, however, who were allowed more freedom. One day, in defiance of my mother, I walked to the grocery store with them. Once there, they dared me to steal a candy bar, something they apparently did frequently and successfully. As young as I was, I knew shop-lifting was wrong but the chocolate bar looked so delicious that I took the bait. Even though I saw the trap being set, I stepped right into it and stole the candy! On the walk back down our street, I ate the chocolate and, as I recall, it didn’t taste nearly as good as I thought it would. When I returned home, guilt-ridden and ashamed, I told my mother what I had done. She marched me right back to that store where I paid for the stolen candy bar with my weekly allowance.
Walking through the farmer’s market in a nearby town, I was surprised to look over and see a bright red banner saying “Prayer Station.” Curious, I walked over and introduced myself. Manning the station were two members of a small local church. People are there every Saturday morning, summer and winter, fair weather or foul, giving friendly greetings to passers-by. If someone stops, they offer a listening ear and prayers, if so desired. Prayer stations like theirs actually started in 2001 when Youth with a Mission (YWAM) established them around New York City following the September 11th attacks.
Like all children, my grands are growing up and new challenges face them every day. The eldest is now driving and old enough to date. Come fall, she’ll be looking at colleges, two others will start junior high school, one enters kindergarten and the youngest is off to nursery school. Where did the time go?
