I started a new teaching series this past Sunday titled Changeology. Yes, I made up a word – pastors are good at that. We mumble and say it came from the Greek word hmmphgubmout and people believe us. Any way the first sermon was on change yor life and here is the gist of my message.

God wants to change you. If you’re already a Christian, God is changing you. God is at work. That’s the good news – that He’s not done with you yet. And if you’re not a Christian – if you’re checking this whole thing out – here’s the good news for you: You don’t have to change and get your act together before God begins to change you.

Mark 1:14-15 After John was put in prison, Jesus went into Galilee, proclaiming the good news of God. “The time has come,” he said. “The kingdom of God is near. Repent and believe the good news!”

There is a word in the Bible that many people are afraid of and it is the word repent. It is used 53 times in the NT. It is the Greek word metanoia. In the English we have defined repent as to change one’s mind, but when this word was used in the NT it meant much more than changing your mind. It meant we were to have a radical change, to change your way of life, to hate sin and love God.

In the Greek, metanoia carries much more meaning than does this word “repent” in English. A common American English understanding of “repent” means to express regret. Some understand it as a turning, but this is often symbolic not actual. For the most part the change which is understood to happen in repentance is a rational one. But the original understanding of metanoia denotes more than changing our mind. It was understood as changing of one’s whole way of life and agenda for living.

Changing is much more than saying that you will do better next time. That is not enough. There needs to be a complete total transformation of your life.

A lot of people think they’re not good enough to be a Christian. None of us are. You don’t have to get your act together first. You come to God just like you are and He begins the change process. The promise is in 2 Corinthians 5:17 Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come! Circle “old life” and “new life”. This old life is gone. The old life is referring to life without relationship with Jesus Christ. It’s our old spiritual nature.

How does God change us? How does the change process happen? Have you ever thought about how the change takes place?

MAIN IDEA: CHANGE IS A JOURNEY.

God changing us is a process. It’s not an event. It’s a journey, not an overnight sensation. Philippians 1:6 “And I am sure that God who began the good work within you will continue His work until it is finally finished on that day when Christ Jesus comes back again.” That is salvation. If you have a relationship with God, you’ve said yes to Jesus Christ, you’ve said, “Come into my life, forgive me of my sins,” Boom! It began. That relationship began.

The good news of the point of it being a journey is this: No, we’re not there yet. You are a work in progress. God’s not done with you yet. If you’re married that’s even better news. Some of you look at your spouse and think, “If this is as good as it gets, we’re in trouble.” But I tell you it’s not as good as it gets. We’re changing all the time. I’ve been a Christian for over 30 years. I haven’t arrived. What I tell people is, I’m one week ahead of you. That’s it! I’ve read to the end of the book and know who wins and I know God’s plan for me. I’m one week ahead of you. We’re all part of this journey, this roadmap to change that we’re talking about here starts with the understanding that it’s a journey.

Bridge Church is committed to you getting where you need to be spiritually. That is why we have small groups, we have a process we call the Life Development Process of some classes that help you on your spiritual journey.

HOW CAN I KNOW IF MY LIFE IS CHANGING?

If you’re a Christian, God has worked in your life whether you think so or not. You may be slamming on the brakes, buried under a pile of roadblocks but God is working in your life. “We don’t look ahead and see how far we have to go. We look back and see how far we’ve come.” When you look into the window of your soul, the mirror of your soul, can you see that God’s doing some changing. He is. Some of the reasons that you don’t think He is is because you’re not looking. You haven’t paused. You’re not reflecting. You haven’t stopped and looked at your life.

There are six billion people on this big round ball we call earth and God is doing something in my life, transforming me and changing me because He loves me. That was awesome!

A test that I use all the time, my measuring stick, is Galatians 5 “When the Holy Spirit controls our lives, He will produce this kind of fruit in us love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control.”

Your thoughts Change Romans 12:2

Your speech Changes Ephesians 4:29

Your desires Change Romans 12:9

HERE IS THE KEY: YOU CAN’T CHANGE YOURSELF

Quit trying to play God! No matter how hard you try, what you do or who you are, any spiritual change you institute on your own will not last. Real change happens when we repent and have a total life transformation by inviting God to take up residence in your life.

God changes us from the inside out, not the outside in. He can choose to change however he sees fit. It is up to him, not us. We have to be willing to allow him to work in our lives changing our thoughts, our speech, our desires.

Acts 26:20 I preached first to those in Damascus, then in Jerusalem and throughout all Judea, and also to the Gentiles, that all must repent of their sins and turn to God—and prove they have changed by the good things they do.