The Process of
Change
Romans 12:2
January 6, 2013
AM
Pastor Craig
Ledbetter
I.
Introduction (Romans 12:2)
A.
What does “Ready to
Change” mean?
1.
Ready, prepared,
trained, psyched, equipped, organized, available, complete, in place, in
position
2.
Ready for whatever
happens in the future – not caught off guard
3.
The opposite would
be: Unprepared, caught off-guard, panicking, ill-equipped, disorganized
B.
It is our church
theme this month
C.
What we will learn
this year, the Lord willing…
1.
What is a Church?
2.
Why is it compared
to a Bride in the Bible?
3.
What should
Christians be ready for?
4.
How shall we become
ready? Training in twelve big areas
D.
This month is about
just being READY to change – wanting to change – to be more and do more than you
and I currently are
1.
Not by being like
the world around us
2.
But by being
transformed
3.
The miraculous
process of being changed
II.
The
Need to Change (Luke 22:31,32)
A.
Take a good look at
how we REALLY are – be honest
B.
Many Things are
Wrong With Us
1.
We were Born wrong –
born sinful (Romans 3:23)
2.
We Have Wicked
Imaginations – it is not right inside our heads ladies and gentlemen
a.
Unnatural fears and
worries
b.
Wicked Images and
actions
c.
Evil surmisings –
constantly judging people and condemning them, yourself
3.
We are proud,
arrogant, not needing God
4.
Headed for an
eternity in a devil’s hell
5.
No wonder Jesus said
that, “We MUST be born again!”
C.
We need to change –
we are like an ugly caterpillar
1.
Only living to eat
2.
Gorging ourselves on
everything that is within reach
D.
Deep down, every
heart should wish to change
1.
Wanting to change -
willing to be changed - yielded to the work of God in our lives as he breaks us
and changes us - converts us
2.
Wanting to be a
better husband, wife
3.
Free from some
sinful habit
4.
Free from the past,
and failures and depression
5.
Free from anger and
bitterness
6.
Wanting to have a
right mind, a sound mind
E.
Many people are
afraid to change!
F.
Thankfully, We were
DESIGNED to change
1.
Not stay this way!
2.
Just like a
Caterpillar is designed by God to become an absolutely beautiful butterfly
3.
So can we become
what Jesus saved us to be!
G.
But know this, You
CANNOT change yourself (Jer 13:23)! WANTING to change, and WORKING hard at
changing, doesn’t mean it will happen
III.
You Are
Going to have to Trust God’s Process – It’s called, “Conversion” (Luke 22:31,32)
A.
God has everyone in
the process – whether you like it or not
B.
Thankfully, He is
committed to changing you and me (Rom 8:29; Philp 1:6)
IV.
Background (Dan 4:4-9)
A.
We could look at
dozens of examples of people in the Bible that God transformed
1.
Saul of Tarsus to
the great Apostle Paul
2.
Simon, the son of
Jonas, to the great Apostle Peter
3.
Sarai to the great
Sarah, wife of Abraham
4.
Jacob, to
5.
Even Job, from
self-righteous, to the doubly blessed and greatest man of the entire middle east
B.
This morning, we
will look at and learn from King Nebuchadnezzar – pagan king of the Babylonian
Empire
1.
He has a bad
nightmare – he knew it had a meaning
2.
No one could figure
out what the meaning of the dream was, Except Daniel
3.
It was a prophetic
dream about what was coming up in Nebuchadnezzar’s life
4.
A dream about how
God would change this pagan, idolatrous, self-conceited killer of a man, into a
transformed child of God, who loved God, and served Him the rest of his life!
C.
So how did it
happen? How could God do such a thing? And would he do it again in YOUR life,
and the life of your family?
V.
Message
- The Process of Change
A.
The
Stripping Down Part (Dan 4:10-23) – No Pain, No
Gain
1.
To change
Nebuchadnezzar, God had to cut him down to smaller than small
a.
God could not start
with him and just add a few ingredients
b.
He had to strip
everything away, so that he would start over
2.
God took everything
away from Nebuchadnezzar
a.
The empire itself –
its success, height, depth
b.
The wealth – all the
produce, fruit
c.
Even the friends and
people who looked to him for wisdom and comfort
d.
He took them all
away so that he had nobody to look to, to lean on – he was alone
3.
God humbled
Nebuchadnezzar!
a.
What had once been a
great life, was stripped down to poverty and aloneness
b.
Believe me, NO ONE
finds this easy!
4.
All that was left
was a stump – the base of a tree. Something you just sit on
a.
It was NOT a useless
place
b.
It was a way for
Nebuchadnezzar to start over!
5.
Thank God that He
brings us to the place where we CAN start over!
a.
Sometimes, we have
to experience this many times during our lives
b.
Jesus taught that a
seed has to fall to the earth and die before it becomes fruitful and successful
c.
Because THAT is when
we can start to change and be different
d.
Listen to the words
of Jesus. John 12:24 “Verily, verily, I say unto you, Except a corn of wheat
fall into the ground and die, it abideth alone: but if it die, it bringeth forth
much fruit.”
B.
When God
Hems Us In (Dan 4:15)
1.
Then an iron band
was locked around that stump so that it would not grow – it would stop any
sprouts, or growth at all!
2.
Nebuchadnezzar would
have to endure
a.
Being hemmed-in,
hedged-in – blocked from being able to do anything
b.
Being alone – only
with other animals
c.
Harsh weather – no
coming in from the rain, or the storms
3.
God sometimes HAS to
lock us down, block our path
a.
Sometimes in a
hospital bed
b.
Sometimes by the
loss of a job
c.
Sometimes with no
one understanding what you are going through
d.
Loss of your
friends, and even family!
e.
WE want the
blessings of God and safety
f.
What GOD wants is a
change – for us to be transformed into the likeness of His dear Son!
4.
Just remember, to
trust the Lord
a.
That you really are
NOT alone – the Potter is there
b.
And trust HE is hard
at work on you and in you, moulding, fashioning a new you
5.
So, We actually
change, when we can do nothing ourselves – kind of a contradiction, but it is
GOD’S way!
C.
Learning to
Wait and Stay (Dan 4:25)
1.
God humbled
Nebuchadnezzar, and let him just sit for 7 years – 7 long years
a.
This was no
overnight religious experience he would go through
b.
No! It was going to
take time for Nebuchadnezzar to break!
1)
As did Moses – 40
years by the way before God could even get Moses to talk to Him
2)
As did Saul of
Tarsus – went away for 3 years alone from everyone after getting saved
2.
Application to the
listener:
a.
Don’t run, or try
and get out of the forging process
b.
If you run away from
the pain and the troubles, God will have to start the whole process all over
again
c.
If you run ahead of
God, or, If you try and do things your own way, you run the risk of staying the
same old way you are right now
d.
Do you not realise
that…
1)
The best marriages
aren’t the ones that are 2 and 3 years old, but the ones that are 20 and 30
years old, by God’s grace!
2)
The wisest people
are rarely young – most have some time under their belt
3)
The sweetest friends
are those that have stayed with you
3.
We all have need of
patience while we are in the fire, in the trial, under pressure, and when we are
at a loss!
4.
We CHANGE, when we
are made to wait and stay where God has put us
5.
Where does God have
YOU? Right now? Better stay until God has finished teaching you something;
finished humbling you; finished changing you!
D.
Change is
Always a Work on the Heart (Dan 4:16)
1.
THAT is where the
work must occur first (Luke 1:17)
a.
We work so much on
our: Appearances, Abilities, and our Actions
b.
God ALWAYS is at
work on our hearts!
c.
Luke 1:17 – “And
he (John the Baptist) shall go before [Jesus] in the spirit and power of Elias,
to turn the hearts of the fathers to the children, and the disobedient to
the wisdom of the just; to make ready a people prepared for the Lord.”
2.
Watch how God
changes Nebuchadnezzar’s heart
a.
God set out first to
change Nebuchadnezzar’s heart into that of a beast – the worst it could be
b.
So that
Nebuchadnezzar would see just how wicked his heart really was
1)
Have you even felt
provoked to where you say and do something you thought you would never say or
do?
2)
THAT was God
revealing the kind of heart that you really have
3)
Or, the kind of
heart that you are becoming, if you don’t ask God to fix it
c.
And so that He could
change that same, most wicked heart into the best kind of heart – a new heart!
3.
We change when our
heart is made different
E.
It is Also
a Work on the Mind (Dan 4:25)
1.
This is not
something that Nebuchadnezzar needed to “feel”
2.
But to KNOW, and
believe with all his being
3.
God wanted
Nebuchadnezzar to KNOW Him
a.
To know what HE is
like
b.
To know just how
powerful HE is
c.
And yet how
merciful, and how forgiving
d.
To know HIS will
e.
To know His mind
f.
People study
amoebas, virus’ and rocks. They study planets and stars and entire galaxies.
They learn Math and Chemistry, and Physics and architecture…
g.
But “I” delight in
studying the Creator of all those things! I get to know HIM!
4.
Most people freak
out when troubles come – they either hyper-analyze, or switch-off and don’t
learn anything! Never really learn anything that God is trying to show them!
5.
God wants us to
learn about HIM through the process of change!
6.
Change happens when
we think differently. Knowing God helps you think differently!
F.
The Goal of
the Work, is Repentance (4:27)
1.
Daniel pleads with
Nebuchadnezzar to REPENT
a.
To humble himself,
break his rebellion and stubbornness, by himself
b.
To change his mind
on his own, and to be sorry for his own wickedness
c.
Before God has to do
it
2.
Sadly, he didn’t
change his mind, or his attitude – rarely do people quickly repent
3.
It would have been
so much easier for God to change Nebuchadnezzar, because God can only change a
broken man
4.
Repentance is where
God can step in and…
a.
Save a lost man
b.
Heal a broken
marriage
c.
Cleanse a wicked
imagination
d.
Deliver a person
from the bondage of some grievous sin
e.
Transform a
stubborn, hell bound pagan into a Bible believing Christian!
5.
How hard is it for
YOU to repent? Don’t worry about anyone else… how hard is YOUR heart?
VI.
Conclusion
A.
This was A Miracle –
No Other Process Works to Change Us
1.
People and religions
and philosophies
a.
Can make us feel
better
b.
Can make us act
better – behaviour modification
2.
But none can
actually MAKE us better – cannot change our heart or imagination. And none can
change our destiny
3.
Only God Can produce
the Miracle of a Changed man, a Changed Woman, a Changed Teenager!
B.
God Changed
Nebuchadnezzar by a painful process
1.
It Humbled Him
2.
It Taught Him – who
God was and what He can do
3.
It Actually
Converted Him (4:34-37)
a.
(2 Corinthians 5:17)
- “Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are
passed away; behold, all things are become new”
4.
It Bettered Him –
didn’t just restore him back as king, but as a godly, God fearing king
5.
It Used Him for the
Glory of God (4:37)
C.
God seeks to do the
same in every individual, every church
D.
Are we ready for
such a process?
E.
Are we ready for
such a change?
F.
Just trust that the
Lord is committed to changing us – that is our goal for 2013