Experience God's transforming power

When I was in seminary back in the '80s, the fad sweeping the evangelical world was called "the church growth movement." Innovative, "seeker sensitive" churches were started. Seminaries offered advanced degrees on the subject. Books and conferences galore touted "church growth." Even in Southern Baptist life there was a plethora of schemes and dreams to teach pastors that if you do "x" often enough and get "y" to notice, then "z" will join your church.

The head of the church, the Lord Jesus Christ is not against all types of innovation. But he never views his church as an entertainment venue, a marketing enterprise or a pyramid scheme. He views his church as the visible expression of the kingdom of God on earth. And Jesus knows and has revealed to us that true growth does not take place because of innovation. True growth takes place because of transformation. Great transformation can come through the power of God.

Read the parable of the leaven from Matthew 13:33-35.

The Parable of Transformation

"The kingdom of heaven" is the usual subject of Jesus' parables. Some of them, like the parable of the soils and the parable of the wheat and tares, create the question, "Are you in the kingdom of heaven?" Others, like this one, ask, "Is the kingdom of heaven in you?" The kingdom of heaven, or the kingdom of God, exists wherever and in whomever Jesus Christ is Lord.

"Leaven," "flour" and the process of baking bread was a staple in the first century. It is still quite relevant to the twenty-first century. I'm sure there were many times when Jesus witnessed Mary making bread for their family. I'm sure most of us today have witnessed homemade bread or perhaps a cake rising in the oven. It is that little bit of leaven that works its way through the dough to make the bread grow into something bigger and better.

Now leaven is often used as a symbol for sin in scripture. But this is not exclusively the case. Parables provide their own context and should be interpreted independently of other texts. For example, the "birds" in the parable of the soils were bad; but, in the next parable of the mustard seed they are good. "Lion" is a symbol used in scripture for both the Lord and the devil, depending on the context. Always remember that a text without a context is a pretext.

Plainly speaking, leaven is a little piece of fermented dough that can make a whole big batch of flour rise and grow. Leaven transforms the flour into something bigger and better.

Spiritually speaking, the leaven represents the secret ingredient of the kingdom of God. It is a seemingly small, almost unnoticed but powerful agent that can make anyone and anything bigger and better.

True growth comes by great transformation, and great transformation is wrought by the power of God.

The Power of Transformation

Well, what exactly is this leaven? What is this seemingly small and unnoticeable ingredient that can cause true growth by great transformation? What is God's transforming power?

God's transforming power is God himself. The leaven is the power and the persons of the triune God. By the power of sovereign grace, God the father loves, chooses and puts people on a path whereby they will encounter the true and living God. By the power of saving love, God the son died on the cross to redeem sinners and impute into them the righteousness God requires. By the power of spiritual rebirth, God the spirit comes with conviction and regeneration, with faith and repentance, into the heart and mind of a man, making him a child of God and a citizen of the kingdom. When God gets into your life, you are transformed into a bigger and better person.

God's transforming power is God's word. The leaven is the Bible whose inspired words get into a mind and eventually take over the entire body. It may start with one verse, say John 3:16. It grows to give understanding of the gospel of John, then the other gospels, then the New Testament, then the Old Testament, until eventually one's whole life is consumed and controlled by the precepts and principles of the word of God. The transformation continues. When God's word gets into your life, you are transformed into a bigger and better person.

God's transforming power is God's child, the Christian. Just as Christianity started with one man and now numbers billions, so can one Christian spread God's transforming power to many, many others. One sold out, truly growing Christian can transform a Sunday School class, a youth group, a prayer meeting, perhaps even a whole church. I know a group of sold out, truly transformed Christians can change a church from business as usual to a bastion of biblical worship, meaningful ministry and genuine evangelism. When God gets bigger and better in our lives, God's kingdom will get bigger and better by adding the lives of other people.

The transformation will transform the transformed, and the cycle will continue until Christ comes again. That's true growth. True growth comes by great transformation, and great transformation is wrought by the power of God.

Have you experienced God's transforming power? Are you leavened our unleavened bread? Are you in the kingdom of God; or, more importantly, is the kingdom of God in you?

The spiritual transformation of a Christian does not come by the latest book, conference or DVD. God's transforming power is found in quiet times of scripture and prayer, meditation and determination, a life governed not by the whims of man but the word of God.

Let God into your life through faith in Jesus Christ. Let your constant hunger be filled with careful study of the word of God. Let your time spent in your church count for true kingdom purposes. A new day will come. Growth will come. For true growth comes by great transformation, and great transformation is wrought by the power of God.