Ephesians 4:21-24: “Since you have heard about Jesus and have learned the truth that comes from him, throw off your old sinful nature and your former way of life, which is corrupted by lust and deception. Instead, let the Spirit renew your thoughts and attitudes. Put on your new nature, created to be like God—truly righteous and holy.”
Oh, what joy to become new again! We all know that the work of salvation is nothing that we do but is only by His grace. But the life of a Christian doesn’t stop there. We are to be transformed into the likeness of Christ. In verse 24 of the passage above, it says we are to “put on [our] new nature.” That means we are to take action.
Throughout Scripture, we learn that we are to continue to change to become more like Jesus. We are called to be active in the process of our transformation.
Ephesians 4:3 tells us to “make every effort to keep yourselves united in the Spirit, binding yourselves together with peace.” And again, in Hebrews 12:14, we are to “work at living in peace with everyone, and work at living a holy life, for those who are not holy will not see the Lord.” Our relationship with others matters to God. We need to actively pursue peace with others. In doing so, we are transformed.
In 2 Timothy 3:15, it says to “work hard so you can present yourself to God and receive approval. Be a good worker.” God cares about our work life as it also affects our spiritual life.
Even in times of rest, we are called to actively pursue it. Hebrews 4:11 says “so let’s do our best to enter that rest.” We need to plan our Sabbath rest times and make them happen.
And while we are waiting for the Lord’s return, we are instructed in 2 Peter 3:14 to “make every effort to be found living peaceful lives that are pure and blameless in His sight.”
Our salvation is free! We don’t have to work for it; however, we do have to work at our transformation. We are called to become more and more like Jesus. What are you doing to heed His call?