Passion For Jesus Ministries

The Beholding/Becoming Principle

We in the Church in America find ourselves in a crisis situation. We are living, for the most part, as orphans when in fact we are sons of God. Is there something that we can do, simply because we choose to, to alievate this condition? Yes, there is. Let's look at it.

This could possibly be the most life-changing message you have ever heard... 

What is the goal of the Christian life? While we are still here on the earth, what are we supposed to be doing, what is it that we are to become? Vital questions for the times in which we live. Are we to just "endure" until Jesus comes, or is there more to the Christian life? Are we to spend out time, money and resources on the fulfillment of our physical needs and desires, or is there something more? Too many today have the attitude expressed by the old farmer who prayed, "Lord, bless me, my wife, our son and his wife, us four and no more!"

No, I believe there is more to life than just getting all we can and canning all we get. We need to be like the men of Issachar, "...who had understanding of the times, to know what Israel (the people of God) ought to do...(1 Chronicles 12:32).

In Romans 8:29, we learn from the Holy Spirit, through the ministry of the Apostle Paul, what the ultimate goal of the Christian is (as predetermined by God).

For those whom he foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, in order that he might be the firstborn among many brothers. (Romans 8:29)

That's great to know, isn't it? But how exactly does one go about being conformed to the image of the uncreated, eternal Son of God? How does a human being, in the 21st century, become like the Christ?

Look at what Jesus said in John 15:5:

I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing. (John 15:5)

Jesus was saying the same thing as Paul. We are to abide in Him, allow Him to abide in us, and as a result of that abiding, we will bear much eternal fruit, in both our lives and ministries. And He goes on to say that without that abiding, we can bear no fruit that has eternal worth. Beloved, God has called us into a life of encounter with the glorious Man, Christ Jesus. But how do we get there from here?

Understanding the tension of our responsibility and God’s activity

It is imperative that we who live in this timeframe of human history understand what God desires and requires from us in terms of personal devotion. What does He require?

2 Cor 3:18  But we all, with unveiled face, beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory, just as by the Spirit of the Lord.(NKJ)

What does He promise if we step up to the plate and start swining (that is called obedience...)? He God promises us that if we obey Him, that He will release divine activity in our heart.

Eph 3:16 that according to the riches of his glory he may grant you to be strengthened with power through his Spirit in your inner being, 

God can grant us a release of divine activity in our inner being that results in our being strengthened by the power of God's Holy Spirit. 

Take a look at these words of Paul:

"But we all, with unveiled face, beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory, just as by the Spirit of the Lord" (2 Cor. 3:18 NKJ).

And these words from the Apsotle John:

Beloved, we are God’s children now, and what we will be has not yet appeared; but we know that when he appears we shall be like him, because we shall see him as he is. (1 John 3:2)

This is referred to as the Beholding/Becoming Principle. Years ago, the Lord revealed this truth to my heart and it absolutely transformed my Christian walk and experience in a way like nothing else has. As I have shared this truth with those the Lord has allowed me to minister to over the years, I have seen unbelievable results in the lives of those who have listened and applied it to their lives.

This Beholding/Becoming Principle gives us in capsule form, the spiritual track to run on that is necessary to reach that ultimate goal, as predestined by God, to be "conformed to the image of His Son," or to "abide in Christ".

This Beholding/Becoming Principle, this abiding in Christ, can be one of the most important truths you ever hear. A bold statement, but a true one!

First let's take a look for a few moments at our text in 2 Corinthians 3:18.

This passage is not an easy one, but since it reveals such important insights into the goal of the Christian life, it is well worth taking the time and effort to carefully consider what it says.

For example, we first observe that...]

THE CHRISTIAN LIFE IS ONE OF TRANSFORMATION

The Christian life has two foundational dynamics as its basis. The first, is the initial  encounter with God (from the human perspective).  This is a much simplified account of what happens when we are born again.  We are wooed by the Spirit of God, we respond and say yes to Jesus, we are then justified and sanctified (this is called being born again or being born from above). This is a major transformation in one's life. But it is not the end, it is just the beginning, it is a entering into the door, if you will, of a new life. It is the goal, it's the starting place.

After we have undergone this major spiritual event, we must continue on in a journey that is marked by ongoing transformation. Walking with God does not lead up to a massive event in which we "arrive," it is rather a series of ongoing events that make up a journey of walking with God. As John Wimber, the founder of the Vineyard movement, used to say, "The journey IS the destination!" So, as we travel on this journey, we start by being transformed, but we don't stop there, we continue being transformed as we walk with God.    

"WE ALL...ARE BEING TRANSFORMED..."

The word "transformed" comes from the Greek word metamorphoo {met-am-or-fo'-o} which means "to change into another form, to transform, totransfigure". Our English word "metamorphosis" is derived from this word, which we use to describe the process of a caterpillar changing into a butterfly.

A Biblical example of this metamorphosis, this transformation, can be found in the earthly ministry of the Lord Jesus Christ in the Gospel of Matthew chapter 17, verses 1-2.

1 And after six days Jesus took with him Peter and James, and John his brother, and led them up a high mountain by themselves. 2 And he was transfigured before them, and his face shone like the sun, and his clothes became white as light (Matthew 17:1-2).

The Holy Spirit records in the text for us these words, He was "transfigured (underwent metamorphosis) before them."  He goes on to say that His face "shone like the sun" and His clothes "became white as light". What a light show, eh?

Jesus, as a flesh and blood man, was engulfed in spiritual power, by the Holy Spirit that rested upon His physical body, and as a result He was so transformed, changed, that His body responded in an "unnatural" manner (humanly speaking) and His face shone like the sun, and His clothes became white as light.

Remember, everything that occured in the life of the Lord Jesus, was for an example for us (with the exception of the vicarious death He suffered in our place). Jesus lived 33 years on the earth as a man. He was fully God, but He didn't speak one word as God (John 14:10), He didn't perform one miracle as God (John 5:19), He did everything as a man anointed by the Spirit of God (Luke 4:18-19). 

The reason this is so important to understand is that Jesus was, among other things, our example. If He said one word, healed one body, performed one miracle, or changed one life as God, then we could be impressed, we could be awed, but we couldn't be challenged to follow His example. Why? Because we are not uniquely sons of God, like Jesus was, we are adopted sons, solely on the basis of Jesus' atoning sacrifice.

But because He didn't do any of His wonderful works as the Son of God, but instead did them as the Son of Man, under the anointing of the Holy Spirit, the same anointing that is available to all the sons of God, then we can be, and should be, challenged to follow His example as a man to do the works He did and even greater works than He did (Mt. 5:16; Jn. 14:12).

But we are not to only follow Jesus' example in regards to the works that He did, we are also to follow His example in being transformed as well. I fact, if we aren't living a life of transformation, we will not be living a life "doing the stuff" as He did. We, as Christians, as followers of Jesus, like Jesus, are to undergo a continuous transformation.

For instance, we read in Romans 2:1-2:

1 I appeal to you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship. 2 Do not be conformed to this world, but be TRANSFORMED by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect. (Romans 12:1-2)

Paul, under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, encourages believers to present our bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is our spritual worship. But, Paul, how does one do that? One way is by not conforming to the world. Okay, but how do we not be conformed to the world? Paul's answer? By being transformed, by undergoing continual, on purpose spiritual metamorphosis. And, according to Paul, if we undergo that continual, on purpose, just because we want too , spiritual metamorphosis, then we can actually come to the place where we can then "discern the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect."

Paul, writing to the whole Church through out redemptive history, says that we "all" are to be transformed, to undergo spiritual metamorphosis. Also, note that the transformation is something we have a part in. It doesn't just drop onto our spiritual laps like ripe apples off of a tree. It is something we have to choose to do and to pursue.

Now, back to our text in 2 Cor. 3:18, notice again, that Paul says, "we all".  This spiritual transformation, this spiritual metamorphosis, is not for a select "chosen few", it is for ALL Christians!

"...TRANSFORMED INTO THE SAME IMAGE..."

Okay, so it is clear that we are to be transformed. What is the purpose, the goal of this transformation that Paul so emphatically encourages us to pursue? Paul makes it clear, the object of this transformation, the purpose of this spiritual transformation is so that we can become like Christ! Remember what Paul said in Romans 8:29; that this transformation is part of God's predetermined plan for all of those who are in Christ.

Jesus intimated as such in Luke 6:40:

A disciple is not above his teacher, but everyone when he is fully trained will be "like his teacher". (Luke 6:40)

How many of us have sung the old gospel chorus, "To be like Jesus, to be like Jesus, all I ask, to be like Him..." We all want to be like Him, don't we? Our problem has not been that we haven't desired to be like Him, our problem has been the "how" of becoming like Him. If wanting to alone was enough, we would all be there, now wouldn't we?

"...FROM GLORY TO GLORY..."     

This phrase suggests that our transformation is a progressive one. It does not happen all at once, but it occurs gradually, over time. As Paul said, we are "being transformed" (present tense), not "we have been transformed" (past tense). Spiritual transformation therefore involves a growth process.

We expect those who have been Christians for a time to have made only some progress in their Christian walk, don't we? But we should also expect those who have been Christians a long while to have made even much more progress! Beloved, the Christian life is not to be static, but a dynamic process in which changes are continuously taking place, resulting in a person becoming more and more like their Bridegroom, Judge and King, Jesus Christ!

The Holy Spirit further confirms this through the pen of King Solomon,

But the path of the righteous is like the light of dawn, which shines brighter and brighter until full day. (Proverbs 4:18)

If, and when, spiritual transformation does not take place, resulting in a greater conformity to the nature of Jesus, then something is wrong, and it may be a failure to appreciate and utilize our second point gleaned from this passage.

TRANSFORMATION COMES BY BEHOLDING

I alluded earlier to the analogy of a ripe apple falling off of a tree onto our spiritual laps. This is truly the expectation of many believers today. It is usually expressed something like this, "I want to be like Jesus, and I believe and trust that God will change whatever needs to be changed in my heart and life to bring me to the place that I am more like Him!" Sounds good, doesn't it? The problem is that statement is the exact opposite of the way that the transformation actually takes place.

"WITH UNVEILED FACE, BEHOLDING AS IN A MIRROR..."

We must examine the context of Paul's words to appreciate his point. Earlier in the chapter Paul had alluded to how Moses, out of necessity, put a veil on his face when speaking to the people of God (2 Cor. 3:13). Paul was referring back to what had occured in Exodus 34:29-35

29 When Moses came down from Mount Sinai, with the two tablets of the testimony in his hand as he came down from the mountain, Moses did not know that the skin of his face shone because he had been talking with God. 30 Aaron and all the people of Israel saw Moses, and behold, the skin of his face shone, and they were afraid to come near him. 31 But Moses called to them, and Aaron and all the leaders of the congregation returned to him, and Moses talked with them. 32 Afterward all the people of Israel came near, and he commanded them all that the Lord had spoken with him in Mount Sinai. 33 And when Moses had finished speaking with them, he put a veil over his face. 34 Whenever Moses went in before the Lord to speak with him, he would remove the veil, until he came out. And when he came out and told the people of Israel what he was commanded, 35 the people of Israel would see the face of Moses, that the skin of Moses’ face was shining. And Moses would put the veil over his face again, until he went in to speak with him. (Exodus 34:29-35)

When Moses went to Mount Sinai to receive the Ten Commandments from the Lord, being in the Manifest Presence of God (beholding His glory) resulted in his face shining brightly. In like manner our transformation takes place as we "behold..."

It is important that we understand that for this beholding to be the most effective, we must behold with an "unveiled face". The Israelites were "unable" to behold any of the glory that shone from Moses' face because his face was veiled. We, under the New Covenant, are "able" to look upon the Lord's glory without any impediment, without a veil.

But having said that, many believers today still come before the Lord with a "veiled face". Sometimes it is the veil of ignorance of who the Lord is; sometimes it is ignorance of who the Lord is in us; sometimes it is ignorance of who we are in Him; sometimes it is a veil of shame that comes as a result of not rightly recognizing how God beholds us, especially in times when we are struggling with sin or with our own inherant weakness(es).

These "veils", cause us to come before the Lord in a "veiled" way, or in a manner where we don't receive the "benefit" that the Lord has for us. For instance, we are in a worship service. The people of God are around us, anointed worship music is being played and sung. But because we have one or more of the veils I mentioned, we aren't "connecting". Oh we may be tapping our toes to the music, or we may be mouthing the words, but our minds and hearts are a million miles away. Am I the only one who has ever been there?

Beloved, we must remove the veils. We must "make the connection" - our heart with God's. We musn't miss the quality opportunities that we have to connect with God, to behold His glory with an unveiled face.

We all live such busy lives. So much distraction. We only have such a small time each week to be in the Presence of the Lord corporately. Let's not miss it or squander it. Remove the veils, press in to the opportunity of the moment and encounter the living God.

General Awareness vs Direct Focus

I  want to take a moment to look at the differences between times of a "general awareness" of God and times of "direct focus" on God. Anyone who is born of the Spirit has the Holy Spirit in His life (1 Cor. 12:3; 1 John 4:13). Any all things being equal, every redeemed person has a general awareness of the Lord's Presence in their life. That doesn't mean that they always have a strong sense of the Lord's Presence, but they often have times when they sense His Presence (when reading the Scripture, when praying, or worshiping, etc.)

And even those who may testify that they don't often "feel" His Presence sense Him more than they realize. Just let them commit a flagrant sin or become in some sinful activity that grieves the Spirit and they are accutely aware of His Presence real quick.

But when I say that we are to use 2 Cor. 3:18 as a track to behold the glory of the Lord, I am not referring to that "general awareness" we just discussed. Instead, I mean that we are to have what I call as a time of "direct focus" on the glory of the Lord. A time of direct focus would be those times when we are consciously directing our hearts and minds on the Lord.

When we are doing that, consciously directing our hearts and minds on the glory of the Lord, it results in our consciously positioning ourselves before Him in the Spirit. It is like a correlation to what Moses did physically. He "went" before God, he entered God's Presence, he positioned himself before the Lord in a direct way.

It is like we are posturing ourselves, reaching into God with focused concentration. It is like we are fixing our spiritual gaze into the light of God's Presence. It is a "setting of the mind" on the glory of God.

6 For to set the mind on the flesh is death, but to set the mind ON THE SPIRIT is life and peace. 7 For the mind that is set on the flesh is hostile to God, for it does not submit to God’s law; indeed, it cannot. 8 Those who are in the flesh (those who don't have their minds "set" on the Spirit) cannot please God. (Romans 8:6-8)

Set your minds on things that are above (the glory of God), not on things that are on earth. (Colossians 3:2)

We decide what we set our minds on. And therefore we decide what we are exposing our hearts too. You see, there is a spiritual dynamic that takes place whenever we set our mind on something. Whatever we set our mind on, we open our heart to. If we "set" our mind on God, the things of God, the glory of God, then our heart is opened to the things of the Spirit and we are affected by the Spirit during that time of encounter.

But if we "set" our mind on things other than the glory of God (the flesh, the world or the devil), then to whatever degree we set our mind, we open our heart to behold that thing. And our heart being opened, is directly affected by what it is beholding - It is a law of the Spirit.

If we, as an act of our will, "set" our mind on the glory of God, then we are effectively opening our heart, exposing our heart to the glory of God - we are beholding His glory - and as a result we will be influenced, or transformed by that beholding.

If we, as an act of our will, "set" our mind on something other than the glory of God, then we are effectively opening our heart to whatever we choose to "set" our mind on - we are in the Spirit, beholding whatever we have "set" our mind own - and as a result we will be influenced or transformed by that beholding. That is called the Beholding/Becoming Principle. We will be influenced, transformed by whatever we set our minds on - whether good or evil - the choice is ours!

I have discovered that is absolutely necessary that I consciously choose to set my mind on God's glory, because that is how I expose my spirit to the glory of God, which is the only clearcut path to spiritual transformation. I can choose to bath or bask in God's Presence. I picture it like marinading my spirit in the Spirit of God.

This Beholding/Becoming Principle involves a conscious, deliberate activity of our mind that requires committment, time and energy. You are every hour of every day that you are awake, consciously setting your mind on something. And whatever you are setting your mind on, you are opening and exposing your heart to, whether to something beneficial or detrimental to you temporal and eternal well-being. And if you don't "choose" what you set your mind to, someone else will choose for you!!!  

Continued in Part 2...