Being around Christianity, Christians my entire life you hear, see and experience a lot of different things. Some good, some bad; some miraculous and some questionable, somethings maybe even flat out wrong!! But that is the human side of pursuing God. One thought or question that circulates in and out of my experiences with others is the question of ‘what is God doing?” or “Can God do something new??” While this question is rhetorical, knowing that God can do, and is capable at any level to produce any result he desires, at any time that He determines. Maybe the question should be “will you allow God to make the necessary changes around you, to produce the changes He desires to make in you??” There are a few people that I have met in my life that seem to flow easily from change to change. But most people do not, and most fights even the notion of change. And religious/spiritual change can receive the greatest resistance.
CHANGE: to make different in some particular; to make radically different; to give a different position, course, or direction to; to replace with another; to make a shift from one to another; to undergo a modification; to put fresh clothes or covering
Misunderstanding about the need for change: Especially from those who strongly believe the current way of doing things works well…and has been done this way for twenty years!
Fear of the unknown: One of the most common reasons for resistance is fear of the unknown.
Connected to the old way: all those emotional connections to those who taught you the old way
Not being consulted: If people can be part of the change there is less resistance.
Poor communication: It’s self-evident isn’t it? When it comes to change there’s no such thing as too much communication
Changes to routines: When we talk about comfort zones, we're referring to routines. We love them. They make us secure.
Benefits and rewards: When the benefits and rewards for making the change are not seen as adequate for the trouble involved
The previous seven reasons are given for a resistance to change come from a business model study. All of these came from employee feedback and all carry some level of severity and concern, and when cooperation makes changes, these all need to be carefully considered. The same goes for a Church or fellowship. But on a more personal level, when God is asking you to change a behavior, character flaw, spiritual direction, He many times must navigate these same concerns that a company president or Pastor must navigate.
Spiritual change brings the chance to be misunderstood, the fear of the unknown, severing connections to the old way, changes to your routine, etc. But if you think about it, change has always been God’s way. When Noah built the Ark and preached God’s judgment, the people called him “crazy.” When Moses lead the people out of Egypt, they cried “God has brought us out here to die!!” When Daniel refused to denounce Jehovah, he was labeled rebellious. When Jesus became a man and performed miracles the religious people cried blasphemy. And at Pentecost when the Holy Spirit fell, the skeptics said, “They were drunk with wine.”
Acts 2:1-13 says “When the day of Pentecost came, they were all together in one place. Suddenly a sound like the blowing of a violent wind came from heaven and filled the whole house where they were sitting. They saw what seemed to be tongues of fire that separated and came to rest on each of them. All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit enabled them. Now there were staying in Jerusalem God-fearing Jews from every nation under heaven. When they heard this sound, a crowd came together in bewilderment, because each one heard their language being spoken.
Utterly amazed, they asked: “Aren’t all these who are speaking Galileans? Then how is it that each of us hears them in our native language? Parthians, Medes, and Elamites; residents of Mesopotamia, Judea and Cappadocia, Pontus and Asia, Phrygia and Pamphylia, Egypt and the parts of Libya near Cyrene; visitors from Rome (both Jews and converts to Judaism); Cretans and Arabs—we hear them declaring the wonders of God in our tongues!" Amazed and perplexed, they asked one another, “What does this mean?” Some, however, made fun of them and said, “They have had too much wine.”
The late 1800s and early 1900s brought men like Watchman Nee, A W Tozer, Jessie Smith, Billy Sunday, Smith Wigglesworth, Dwight L Moody, and John Wesley… and with these men came revival. When this revival came, the foundation of the teaching was: salvation, water baptism, the infilling of the Holy Spirit, and the second coming of Christ. Sounds strangely familiar to the teachings in the early church in Acts. For those Christians who are willing to accept the move of the Spirit, I believe they will walk in the anointing and power that was exhibited routinely in the early church. Unfortunately, the majority of Christian’s never moving beyond their initial salvation experience with God. When John Wesley began to preach “sanctification” many denominations didn’t even budge, but began to belittle him, mainly upset that he was exposing their “mediocrity.” Their attitude was “we have it all”, “we are comfortable in our routine.” And this attitude is why we see so little real change, whether it be corporately or personally in the Church world today.
Mark 2:21-22 "No one sews a patch of unshrunk cloth on an old garment. Otherwise, the new piece will pull away from the old, making the tear worse. And no one pours new wine into old wineskins. Otherwise, the wine will burst the skins, and both the wine and the wineskins will be ruined. No, they pour new wine into new wineskins." Many bible scholars believe this passage to be contrasting the Laws of Judaism with the New Covenant that Christ had brought with His crucifixion, and there is no reason to argue that position. But could this also be for the New Testament believers today who are resistant to change, even when the directive is coming straight from God? There is a passage in 1 Cor 14: 37,38 which says If anyone thinks himself to be a prophet or spiritual, let him acknowledge that the things which I write to you are the commandments of the Lord. But if anyone is ignorant, let him be ignorant. Other translations say if one ignores the commands of God, he will also be ignored by God. I find this almost a paradox because this passage comes at the end of the chapter which speaks of exercising the gifts of the Spirit in public worship. We all have a tendency to reject a new idea, or a new revelation of truth because we like the old too much. Like an old, stiff wineskin, our hearts and minds can solidify until we become so inflexible, we can’t accept any change. Jesus speaks as if this could be human nature's greatest frailty. “No one having drunk old wine, immediately desires the new; for He says, “the old is better”. In the physical, it seems a little easier to accept the new, but in spiritual matters, it is a much easier path to return to the familiar. The Lord teaches us that it is a vain thing to attempt to mingle together with the spiritual freedoms that the Holy Spirit brings together with the religious practices that we are most comfortable with. It would be as futile as to piece an old garment with new material, or to put new wine into old wineskins.
Anything new from God must have a place to rest. If the heart or home has not been prepared, made receptive, there is no place for the new guest (fresh spiritual revelation) to reside. If not, the guest finds himself not welcome. There is a passage in Revelation 3 that speaks of just this scenario. Being raised in the church, this passage was often quoted or included in the scriptures that we used to lead someone to Christ. Years later I have come to learn that this passage speaks nothing of salvation but instead speaks to the heart of a believer and how it has been a while since the wineskins have been made ready for the new wine.
Revelation 3:14-22 “And to the angel of the church of the Laodiceans write, These things says the Amen, the Faithful and True Witness, the Beginning of the creation of God: “I know your works, that you are neither cold nor hot. I could wish you were cold or hot. So then, because you are lukewarm and neither cold nor hot, I will vomit you out of My mouth. Because you say, ‘I am rich, have become wealthy, and have need of nothing, and do not know that you are wretched, miserable, poor, blind, and naked, I counsel you to buy from Me gold refined in the fire, that you may be rich; and white garments, that you may be clothed, that the shame of your nakedness may not be revealed; and anoint your eyes with eyesalve, that you may see. As many as I love, I rebuke and chasten. Therefore, be zealous and repent. Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come into him and dine with him, and he with Me. To him who overcomes I will grant to sit with Me on My throne, as I also overcame and sat down with My Father on His throne. “He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.”
There are many things that we can learn from this passage, but four things stick out to me:
One, we must be on guard against being spiritually lukewarm! Christ issued a strong indictment against the church at Laodicea. They knew they were wealthy and probably felt that they were above other churches. They claimed to need nothing without knowing that they needed everything in a spiritual sense. Spiritually, instead of being rich, they were "'wretched and miserable and poor and blind and naked.'" Because of their spiritual blindness, they were neither cold nor hot, but only lukewarm. They did not sense their need for spiritual help. What is your natural response when you drink lukewarm water? You want to spit it out of our mouth! Christ felt this way about the church in Laodicea. Unless they change . . . unless they get on fire . . . unless the passion returns . . . unless they see their spiritual need . . . unless they become fully committed, Christ will spit them out of His mouth. And what do you think His response still is today?
Two, unless we repent, Christ will administer justice to us. The message of God's love for us is powerful. We are saved because of the grace of God. Without God's grace, we could not be saved. We would be forever lost and without a relationship with almighty God. At the same time, we must not overlook the fact that the gospel includes judgment. Speaking about Himself, Jesus said John 5:27, "And He [God] gave Him authority to execute judgment because He is the Son of Man." Christ not only administers life, but He also administers justice. We will receive life or judgment, but nothing in-between. Yes, lukewarmness will lead to judgment. Neutrality as a Christian is not an option.
Three, we must turn to God in repentance, be restored. Although Christ's language is strong, the condition of the Laodiceans was not final. Christ issues them a call to repentance in verses 18-20. The strong language is a stern warning to them to repent and return to their first love. They must overcome complacency and turn with joy to God. Christ challenges the Laodiceans to buy from Him "gold refined by fire.” (New Wine) The church is challenged to cover her nakedness with garments of purity and sincerity. (sanctification) Also, they need an eye-salve to anoint their eyes. Only He can heal and open the eyes of those who are spiritually blind. Remember he is talking to believers in this passage
Four, Christ will discipline us, restore us, and dine with us! Christ demonstrates His love for the Laodiceans with this comment (verse 19): "'Those whom I love, I reprove and discipline; therefore, be zealous and repent.'" His patience and love challenged them to repent and be zealous for the cause of Christ. His discipline is to restore us to full faith and trust in Him. Jesus stands at the door of their hearts and knocks. His love is unparalleled. Even though they have been lukewarm and full of pride, He longs for them to return to a fresh interaction with Him. He invites those who are zealous for fresh wine to dine with Him.
Conclusion: Once again, Christ concludes with the refrain contained in all His letters to the seven churches. He declares (verse 22), "He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.” Christ and the Spirit speak powerfully to the churches and individuals to us today. Jesus stands at the door of our hearts and knocks. “Drink the fresh wine that is being offered when we have an invitation to dine with Him!”
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