Your Spiritual Transformation Is Necessary

Reverend Leo H. McCrary II

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Introduction

In my sermon – What Gives You Purpose – I preached about how we Christians ought to be driven to imitate Christ in our lives.  When I began preaching this series of sermons – Life, Living, and Purpose – I had been considering the lives of the apostles.  The majority of the apostles were lowly fishermen when Jesus found them, but by the end of their lives, they had transformed into servants of God’s kingdom.

The month of August used to be a rather somber month for me, considering my dad died in this month all those years ago.  I often think of him and smile nowadays because I watched him over the years transform.  I am watching many of my elders today transform, and it brings me to think of myself, along with all of you, and consider our transformation.  

Whether you realize it or not, life is all about transformation.  The question is whether or not we are transforming for good.  So, to continue to speak to the importance of a Christian’s transformation, I want to share John 3:1-6 with all of you.

A Much-Needed Lesson from Nicodemus

There is a much-needed lesson to learn from Nicodemus, a Pharisee, who had come to Jesus and greeted Him by calling Him ‘Rabbi’.  

The Pharisees were a group of men who were zealous for God, His law, and, in their beliefs, for living holy and righteously.  The gospels often depict the Pharisees as being incredibly adversarial towards Christ, while also being overbearing in their zeal towards others.  In their zeal, the Pharisees were prideful and self-righteous in their way.

Yet, with all of that being said, Nicodemus came to Jesus and called Him ‘Rabbi’.  To address one as Rabbi was to address one as a wise spiritual leader, or master teacher.  

While many of us will harp on Nicodemus coming to Jesus under the cover of night, let us not look beyond the fact that a Pharisee came to Jesus out of humility with honor, dignity, and respect.  Proverbs 1:5 tells us that the wise will hear and increase learning, and one who is of understanding will attain wise counsel.  

A man of Nicodemus’ religious stature, humbly coming to Jesus, speaks at great volumes to me.  You see, you can be incredibly wise, but at your wisest, there are still questions you have no answer for.  It is better to humble yourself and ask questions than to carry about as one who thinks he/she knows everything and will disregard wise counsel.  Proverbs 1:7 reminds us that only fools despise wise instruction.

Jesus Answers

Now, you may be thinking to yourself:  What was it that brought Nicodemus to Jesus?  Let us notice that in John 3:3, before Nicodemus could ask a question, Jesus had already begun to answer what was troubling him.  Jesus answering Nicodemus’ question before he could even ask teaches us another lesson.

God knows what troubles us; He knows the questions we have in mind.  When Jesus taught the apostles how to pray, He told them that the Father knows the things we have need of before we even ask (Matt. 6:8).

Now, the thought of God knowing our needs before we ask raises this question for some:  Why do we need to pray to God if He already knows our needs?

Let me ask you this question:  Do you believe in the Lord?  If you proclaim to believe in God, I want you to understand that coming to the Lord is a show of faith.  Faith is putting one’s belief into action; coming to the Lord is a show of humility, dependence, and trust.

Let me remind you that Jesus said that those who ask will receive, and those who seek will find.  If one doesn’t ask of the Lord, why should they expect to receive from Him (Jas. 4:3)?  If one doesn’t seek, why should they expect to ffind and understand?  

Inaction is not faith.  Refusing to go to God because you think you shouldn’t have to is certainly not faith.  We certainly have need to go to God, and when we do, He knows our need and already has an answer for us.  This is an incredibly important lesson to learn. 

All-Important Answers About Life

Let’s now dive into the meat of my message for today, focusing on transformation. In Jesus’ answer to Nicodemus, we can see what had brought him to the Lord, and I believe it should also bring you to God.  

Jesus had answered him, “Most assuredly, I say to you, unless one is born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.”

Now, I believe Nicodemus had come to Jesus because he had outgrown the world and daily life, and had his eyes on the kingdom of God.  For as bad as many of us may think the Pharisees were, unlike the other religious leaders, they believed in heaven, the heavenly beings, and resurrection.

I believe Nicodemus sought more out ot life; he wanted his life to lead to something greater.  How many of us feel the same way?

Now, though he was likely zealous for God’s law, the implication is that Nicodemus believed that more was needed to inherit the kingdom, as if he was falling short of God’s glory.  How many of us feel that we fall short of God’s glory though we do our best to live obediently?

Some of us may feel that we fall short of the kingdom because Christ has taken away the veil of sin, and the kingdom of God causes us to feel inadequate.  This happens when one is measuring themselves, with all of their sins, against that which is holy and righteous.  If you’re like Nicodemus, then you ought to be driven to grow beyond your sins – to be better than what caused you to stumble.

I believe Nicodemus believed that life was more than what the world presents.  I believe he desired that his life would lead to something greater than sin, which is death (eternal condemnation/destruction).  Do you feel the same?

If you feel the same way as Nicodemus, then Jesus’ answer to him shows us that life is more than just religious routines and traditions.  Jesus’ answer tells us that life is more than what one possesses in riches, worldly wisdom, and power.  Moreover, Jesus’ answer tells us that this physical life is a stepping stone to the spiritual–the eternal ever after.

Jesus teaches that one should cherish this life, first by loving the Lord wholeheartedly and loving each other, yet one shouldn’t treat this life like it’s the end prize!  We must not be one who chooses to lose their soul for a life and world that will pass away.  There is more to this life, and so, let us live for it.

A Necessary Transformation

Let’s note that Jesus told Nebuchadnezzar two times that he must be born again.  John 3:3, Jesus said, “Unless one is born again, he cannot see the kingdom.”  John 3:5, Jesus said, “Unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God.”  “Unless” means a condition must be met, no matter what.

Reality of the Kingdom of God

With Jesus saying unless, there is a reality about the kingdom of God that must not be ignored.  Firstly, the kingdom of God should be your life’s top priority, not anything else.

While many of us use the kingdom of God and the kingdom of heaven synonymously, they’re not always synonymous.  The kingdom of heaven is still to come and will be our eternal dwelling place.  Of the kingdom of God, Jesus said, “The kingdom of God does not come with observation nor will they say, ‘See here!’ or ‘See there!’ For indeed, the kingdom of God is within you (Luke 17:20-21).”

Understand this:  Whether it’s the kingdom within or the kingdom to come, to have part in the blessings of the kingdom, Jesus said that one must be transformed.  You cannot have part in the kingdom if you are not born again.

Born again transformation

Because my heart is set towards the kingdom, I say to all of you again, life is about growth and transformation!  Your time ought to be devoted to the transformation that will help you to inherit the kingdom of God.

To understand the transformation of being born again, Jesus told Nicodemus, “That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit (John 3:6).”  In other words, the transformation is not a physical rebirth; it has absolutely nothing to do with the body.  Being born again is a spiritual transformation.

I will parallel what Jesus said to Nicodemus to what Jesus told Peter when He moved to wash Peter’s feet.  In John 13:6-8, Peter initially refused to let Jesus wash his feet, as he saw Jesus being too great to do such, not realizing that Jesus came to serve.

When Peter refused to let Jesus wash him, Jesus said to him, “If I do not wash you, you have no part with Me.”  

To be born again, your soul must first be washed.  You see, if your soul is not washed by Christ, you won’t receive the kingdom of God, which comes through the inner dwelling of the Holy Spirit.  You see, the Holy Spirit does not make a home in the soul of one that is defiled by sin.   

I want you to keep in mind what Paul told the Corinthians:  You are a temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God (1 Cor. 6:19).

Without the Holy Spirit’s guidance, one cannot make it to the kingdom of heaven.  Keep in mind, the way to the kingdom of heaven is narrow, and a guide that knows the way is needed.  If you think you can inherit the kingdom of heaven without being born again and receiving the Holy Spirit, your self-righteousness will be your destruction (Prov. 14:12).

The fruits of spiritual transformation

With a spiritual transformation, one is sanctified through the washing of Jesus’ shed blood, which atones for the sins of man.  When you are sanctified by Christ, that means that you are set apart from those who have refused to be transformed in their soul.  

Those who refuse Christ, and therefore refuse to be transformed through the Holy Spirit, are seen by God as an unclean thing.  Through the prophet Isaiah, the Lord said that man’s righteousness is like filthy rags, who leafs are faded (Is. 64:6).  God walks through His garden, and faded plants stick out like a sore thumb.

When one is born again in their spirit through the Holy Spirit, one’s perspective ought to change.  Rather than living for the world, one ought to be living for the kingdom.  

Living for earthly riches ought to be put behind you, as the greater prize is first receiving the Holy Spirit so that we may inherit that which is everlasting.  When we can look beyond this physical world and its earthly treasures, we can see that which is of the Lord.  When we can see that which is of the Lord, it will fill us with contentment – great peace and joy.

Peace and joy from being born again is what helps one’s conduct to be that of the kingdom. It is that peace and joy that keeps us from losing ourselves in a day when Satan and the wicked ones want us to be consumed with darkness.  It is that peace and joy that will help us establish the kingdom of God in a world being destroyed by man’s hunger and thirst for greed, violence, and war.

This is the good transformation that I truly believe is needed and will be useful today.  Yes, while our desire is for the kingdom of heaven, we are still here in the present, and so, we must also live for the present.