WEDNESDAY
Yesterday I left us saying that we need to look at the alternatives to the gospel in order to grasp the truly irresistible good news in the gospel as it pertains to life change. So, what are our options for life change apart from the gospel?
- Self-help
- Expecting others to change you
This attempt at transformation has numerous forms but they equally miss the point and often feel like you’re forcing yourself to be something that you’re not. This will work for a time but in the end this approach always comes up short and often leaves you in a worse place than you were before (i.e., me giving up lifting legs altogether after witnessing Pat’s effortless leaping ability).
The most common form of this is found in the leadership material today. If you’re looking for content on how to be a better leader or a better person there are so many podcasts and books available you won’t know where to start. Atomic Habits, 12 Rules for Life, 7 Habits of Highly Effective People just to name a few. These books are full of great wisdom and truth. They are, however, just more laws (12 Rules for life, Habits is just a more marketable term for “rules for yourself”). As we’ve already discovered in this series, “the letter kills, but the Spirit gives life.” (2 Cor. 3:6)
In the Christian world we fall prey to the pursuit of transformation through self-help all the time. Contrary to the entire message of the Bible, we think that more laws (maybe if we call them habits they’ll work), more rules, more boundaries, more accountability will lead to life change. This often results in legalism towards oneself and others. No wonder there are so many frustrated Christians out there! If you’re one of them, commit yourself, not to a life of discipline first (discipline is important but not of first importance), but to a life of abiding in Christ, knowing God, and walking in step with the Spirit. Don’t substitute a life lived in the Spirit for a life of more laws and rules. More on this in the coming days.
The other alternative that I see commonly today is expecting another person to “fix you.” When we recognize our own failures to change we will often reach out for help from a counselor, therapist, pastor or friend, perhaps. This is a great first step! However, the person seeking help often expects power that the other person never possesses. They seem to expect that just by taking the step of reaching out for help, they will be changed. This isn’t how it works. Any good counselor will tell you that they cannot change you. They cannot make you change.
We also do this with medicine. Many people are looking for a substance (whether a prescription or a legal or illegal drug) that will change them. Medication can be incredibly helpful in helping us counter maladies, but it can never change the heart.
To be clear, these things that I mentioned are super important. The New Testament is full of moral imperatives (rules) guiding us in how we ought to live. My life has been greatly enriched by seeing a counselor and reading good leadership content. However, they must be kept in their place. Rules, the rules found in self-help books, are helpful aids to walking in step with the Spirit. They are not in and of themselves walking in step with the Spirit. Wise advice from a counselor or therapist can help you learn to abide in Christ but they cannot abide in Christ for you. You cannot make yourself new. Other people cannot make you new. Only God, in our identification with Christ through the indwelling of the Holy Spirit, can make us new.
Reflection
Have you expected too much of yourself or others or substances to produce life change in you? Have you expected them to do what only God can do?