What must be done in order for change to happen? It must be realized that there is a problem or deficiency somewhere that needs to be fixed. People buy old homes every year with the purpose of improving them to a state of value that is far greater than what they originally paid for it, and it often begins with some kind of an assessment of the building. They will closely inspect the home for any deterioration and corruption, and they will work on changing those issues so that they are no longer a problem. The roof may leak, so they will hire a crew to replace all of the shingles on the roof. The plumbing pipes may leak, so they may have the entire plumbing system completely removed and replaced with a brand new one. They will go through each area of the house and replace anything that needs it so that by the time that they are done the home will be perfectly suitable to live in once again. But it all starts with the acknowledgement that some things need to be changed.
Change is good, because it removes the old, and replaces it with the new. After a while the oil in the engine of your car will become very dirty and will not work as effectively as it should, so a good thing to do is go and regularly get that oil changed out, removing the old and bad oil and replacing it with the new. But that change is not going to ever happen unless you make that decision to have it done.
As sinners without Christ, everyone must eventually come to the recognition that they have a problem, and that their problem is their sins. It is those sins that prevent someone from reaching a place of peace with God, so to fix this those sins must be confessed to and turned away from.
Luke 18:13 And the publican, standing afar off, would not lift up so much as his eyes unto heaven, but smote upon his breast, saying, God be merciful to me a sinner.
Unless you acknowledge your sins and shortcomings, how can you be absolved from them? How can you overcome sin if you are not first willing to admit it? This publican in Luke 18 was willing, and he came before the Lord in his prayers ready to go through that change.
The path to perfection in the sight of the Lord does not happen overnight, but it needs to start somewhere if you are going to eventually get to that point.
Mark 9:17-24 And one of the multitude answered and said, Master, I have brought unto thee my son, which hath a dumb spirit;
And wheresoever he taketh him, he teareth him: and he foameth, and gnasheth with his teeth, and pineth away: and I spake to thy disciples that they should cast him out; and they could not.
He answereth him, and saith, O faithless generation, how long shall I be with you? how long shall I suffer you? bring him unto me.
And they brought him unto him: and when he saw him, straightway the spirit tare him; and he fell on the ground, and wallowed foaming.
And he asked his father, How long is it ago since this came unto him? And he said, Of a child.
And ofttimes it hath cast him into the fire, and into the waters, to destroy him: but if thou canst do any thing, have compassion on us, and help us.
Jesus said unto him, If thou canst believe, all things are possible to him that believeth.
And straightway the father of the child cried out, and said with tears, Lord, I believe; help thou mine unbelief.
This man realized that he needed to have more faith, and he readily admitted it. That was an area in which he needed some work, similar to how when Peter had begun to walk on the sea to go to Jesus but began to sink, Peter needed to have more faith at that moment. He began to doubt, and that was when he started to sink.
If there is any single thing that will stop someone from admitting their faults it is pride, because pride is a high or inordinate opinion of one’s self worth or merit. The feeling that one is better than someone else. But, in the sight of God, everyone is a sinner, and there is no one greater than another. This is the admission that everyone must come to understand, and when we can do this then we can begin to start over, tear out the old, and start building the new.
In Christ
Andrew
Teufer Lake King James Bible Church 