Transformative Healing Through Embracing Truth and Love

 

Summary

In today's message, we explored the profound concept of transformation and the necessity of cultivating a love for truth as a foundation for genuine change. This journey begins with an honest confrontation of the truths we often avoid, particularly those about ourselves. We delved into the idea of being "lost," as discussed in Dallas Willard's "Renovation of the Heart," and how this lostness is a condition of the soul that affects every dimension of our personhood—our will, mind, body, and social relationships.

Lostness is not merely about the outcome of ending up in the wrong place, such as hell, but rather a present condition of the soul that leads to such outcomes. It is a state of self-blindness, where we are unaware of our true condition and the need for healing. This condition manifests in our inability to will the good, our minds being filled with regrets and forgets, and our bodies being enslaved by habits and desires. Our social interactions become tainted by deception and ego, leading to fractured relationships.

The path to healing begins with a love for truth and living in the love of God. As we embrace the truth about ourselves and our condition, we open ourselves to the transformative power of God's love. This love is not about removing the guilt or punishment of sin but about healing the divided will, the chaotic mind, and the enslaved body. Jesus came to take away our sins, not just the consequences, but the very condition that causes us to be lost. By placing ourselves in His care, we embark on a journey of healing and transformation, leading to a life of true satisfaction and meaning.

Key Takeaways:

1. Cultivating a Love for Truth: Transformation begins with a love for truth, especially the truths we avoid about ourselves. This love is indispensable for genuine change, as it aligns us with reality and opens us to God's transformative work. [02:58]

2. Understanding Lostness: Being lost is a condition of the soul, not just an outcome. It is a state of self-blindness where we are unaware of our true condition. Recognizing this lostness is the first step towards healing and transformation. [05:27]

3. The Condition of the Soul: Our lostness affects every dimension of our personhood—our will, mind, body, and social relationships. Each aspect is intertwined, leading to a fractured and unsatisfied life. [11:57]

4. Healing Through God's Love: True healing comes from living in the love of God. This love is not about removing the consequences of sin but about healing the very condition that causes us to be lost. [13:30]

5. The Journey of Transformation: Embracing the truth and placing ourselves in God's care leads to a journey of healing and transformation. This journey, though challenging, leads to a life of true satisfaction and meaning. [14:58]

Youtube Chapters:

- [00:00] - Welcome
- [02:58] - Cultivating a Love for Truth
- [03:34] - The Reality of Our Actions
- [04:00] - Exploring Lostness
- [05:11] - Condition vs. Outcome
- [06:07] - Self-Blindness and Lostness
- [07:18] - Dimensions of Lostness
- [08:05] - Regrets and Forgets
- [09:19] - The Mind's Deception
- [10:12] - The Body's Enslavement
- [11:05] - Social Relationships and Ego
- [12:16] - The Human Condition
- [13:16] - Seeking Truth and Love
- [14:13] - Jesus' Healing Work
- [15:30] - Community and Connection

Study Guide

Bible Study Discussion Guide

Bible Reading:

1. Matthew 16:26 - "What good will it be for someone to gain the whole world, yet forfeit their soul? Or what can anyone give in exchange for their soul?"
2. 1 John 3:1-5 - "See what great love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God! And that is what we are! The reason the world does not know us is that it did not know him. Dear friends, now we are children of God, and what we will be has not yet been made known. But we know that when Christ appears, we shall be like him, for we shall see him as he is. All who have this hope in him purify themselves, just as he is pure. But you know that he appeared so that he might take away our sins."

Observation Questions:

1. What does the sermon suggest is the starting point for genuine transformation? [02:58]
2. How does the sermon describe the condition of being "lost"? What are the implications of this condition on different aspects of our personhood? [05:27]
3. According to the sermon, how does the concept of "lostness" differ from its outcome? [05:11]
4. What role does God's love play in the process of healing and transformation, as discussed in the sermon? [13:30]

Interpretation Questions:

1. How does the sermon interpret Jesus' statement about gaining the world but losing one's soul? What does this imply about the nature of true satisfaction and meaning? [12:16]
2. In what ways does the sermon suggest that self-blindness contributes to the condition of being lost? How might this self-blindness manifest in everyday life? [06:07]
3. How does the sermon explain the relationship between truth and transformation? Why is a love for truth essential for genuine change? [02:58]
4. What does the sermon imply about the interconnectedness of the will, mind, body, and social relationships in the context of lostness and healing? [11:57]

Application Questions:

1. Reflect on a truth about yourself that you have been avoiding. How can you begin to confront this truth in a loving and constructive way? [02:58]
2. Consider an area of your life where you feel "lost." What steps can you take to seek healing and transformation in this area? [05:27]
3. How can you cultivate a deeper love for truth in your daily life? What practical actions can you take to align yourself more closely with reality? [02:58]
4. In what ways can you actively live in the love of God this week? How might this impact your journey of healing and transformation? [13:30]
5. Identify a habit or desire that currently enslaves you. What specific steps can you take to break free from this enslavement and align your will with God's will? [10:12]
6. Think about a relationship in your life that is affected by deception or ego. How can you work towards healing and restoring this relationship? [11:05]
7. Reflect on the journey of transformation described in the sermon. What is one specific area of your life where you desire true satisfaction and meaning? How can you place yourself in God's care to pursue this transformation? [14:58]

Devotional

Day 1: Embracing Truth for Transformation
Transformation begins with a love for truth, especially the truths we avoid about ourselves. This love is indispensable for genuine change, as it aligns us with reality and opens us to God's transformative work. When we cultivate a love for truth, we are not merely seeking facts but are opening our hearts to the deeper realities of our existence. This involves confronting uncomfortable truths about our own shortcomings and areas where we fall short of God's ideal. By doing so, we allow God's light to shine into the darkest corners of our lives, bringing healing and transformation. [02:58]

"Therefore, having put away falsehood, let each one of you speak the truth with his neighbor, for we are members one of another." (Ephesians 4:25, ESV)

Reflection: What is one truth about yourself that you have been avoiding? How can you begin to confront this truth with God's help today?


Day 2: Recognizing the Condition of Lostness
Being lost is a condition of the soul, not just an outcome. It is a state of self-blindness where we are unaware of our true condition. Recognizing this lostness is the first step towards healing and transformation. This lostness affects every dimension of our personhood—our will, mind, body, and social relationships. It manifests in our inability to will the good, our minds being filled with regrets and forgets, and our bodies being enslaved by habits and desires. Our social interactions become tainted by deception and ego, leading to fractured relationships. [05:27]

"For the Son of Man came to seek and to save the lost." (Luke 19:10, ESV)

Reflection: In what areas of your life do you feel "lost"? How can you invite God to help you see and address these areas?


Day 3: The Interconnectedness of Our Being
Our lostness affects every dimension of our personhood—our will, mind, body, and social relationships. Each aspect is intertwined, leading to a fractured and unsatisfied life. When one part of our being is out of alignment with God's truth, it impacts the whole. Our will may struggle to choose the good, our minds may be clouded with confusion, our bodies may be driven by unhealthy desires, and our relationships may suffer from a lack of authenticity. Recognizing this interconnectedness is crucial for holistic healing and transformation. [11:57]

"May the God of peace himself sanctify you completely, and may your whole spirit and soul and body be kept blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ." (1 Thessalonians 5:23, ESV)

Reflection: How do you see the interconnectedness of your will, mind, body, and relationships in your life? What steps can you take to bring these areas into alignment with God's truth?


Day 4: Healing Through God's Love
True healing comes from living in the love of God. This love is not about removing the consequences of sin but about healing the very condition that causes us to be lost. God's love is transformative, offering us a new way of being that is rooted in truth and grace. As we embrace this love, we find that it has the power to heal our divided will, calm our chaotic minds, and free our enslaved bodies. It also restores our relationships, allowing us to connect with others in genuine and meaningful ways. [13:30]

"But God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us." (Romans 5:8, ESV)

Reflection: How can you more fully embrace God's love in your daily life? What changes might this bring to your will, mind, body, and relationships?


Day 5: The Journey of Transformation
Embracing the truth and placing ourselves in God's care leads to a journey of healing and transformation. This journey, though challenging, leads to a life of true satisfaction and meaning. It requires us to continually seek truth, confront our lostness, and open ourselves to God's love. As we do so, we find that we are not alone on this journey. God walks with us, guiding us towards wholeness and fulfillment. This journey is not about perfection but about progress, as we become more aligned with God's purposes for our lives. [14:58]

"And we all, with unveiled face, beholding the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from one degree of glory to another. For this comes from the Lord who is the Spirit." (2 Corinthians 3:18, ESV)

Reflection: What is one step you can take today to place yourself more fully in God's care on your journey of transformation? How can you remain open to His guidance and love?

Quotes

i want to start with two quotes from my wife just this morning one of them she said that it is impossible to pursue transformation without developing a love for truth if i want to really change it will be indispensable that i cultivate a love for truth because that's reality starting with the truth about me that i most want to not look at which is what we're looking at a lot these days so stay with me through these next couple of messages if you're part of this journey [00:02:45]

and it struck me that this gets to the core of what we're talking about in these days we do what we would not do and we become that which we would not be we don't want to we don't want to do wrong and yet we did so that brings us to this third chapter of dallas willard's book renovation of the heart we're seeking renovation but there's no way to do this without going through the path of sin something that we don't talk about in our day words that have largely lost their power and meaning [00:03:41]

considerable confusion on this topic has resulted from trying to think of being lost in terms of its outcome theologically that outcome is hell a most uncomfortable notion certainly if you are lost in any sense there is little likelihood of you arriving where you want to be but the condition of lostness is not the same as the outcome to which it leads there is a condition of lostness and then there is an outcome that that leads to we are not lost because we're going to wind up in the wrong place we're going to wind up in the wrong place because we are lost [00:05:01]

lostness is a factual condition of the self of the ruined soul you either have it or not just as you have or do not have a certain physical disease that can kill you if you have the condition of lostness you may not know it most likely you won't it's inherently a condition of self-blindness you need treatment nevertheless if you are not to be lost forever and being informed of your condition and what to do about it can help you find relief [00:05:57]

lostness involves each of these dimensions of our personhood so with our wills our wills do not work right we often fail to will what is good i go through life and i could bless everybody that's a part of my life but i don't think to do this or worse yet i actually will that which is wrong or if i do will that which is good i'm not able to bring it about and so uh i will to be a generous person and yet i'm greedy all the time [00:07:06]

if my mind is working right for a flourishing mind i must think thoughts that are true and desire things that are noble and good but i don't and then my mind ends up forgetting that which i my will does not want to remember you might know there was a story several years ago when billy graham was a very old man white house tapes got released and one of them recorded a conversation that he'd had with richard nixon where nixon was very anti-semitic [00:08:11]

and then part of what happens is i learn to use my body to disguise what is going on in my mind in my world because i don't want you to know what i really think what i really want what i really choose dallas willard used to say one of the reasons that we love little children is they have not learned to manage their faces you look at their face and you know what's going on in their thoughts and their feelings and their choices but when we grow up we learn to use our bodies to deceive other people [00:10:20]

and then you put all of this together a splintered will into disordered fractured never satisfied mind fueled by desires that has ego all over it and then a body with appetites where sin has got into habit so i don't even see it i don't even remember and then relationships that are built on that kind of deception and my ego is trying to use you now this is the human condition and that is a lost soul [00:11:36]

so what do we do well we begin by seeking to cultivate a love of truth god would you reveal the truth to me to the extent that i'm able to absorb it and what's required in order to do that first of all is to live in the love of god it's very interesting in first john 3 those wonderful words you might know them where john says think about behold the manner of love god has for us that we should be called the children of god and that is what we are [00:13:16]

he appeared to take away our sins now it doesn't say as people often think he appeared to take away the guilt of our sins or the punishment of our sins or the pain that we would go through if god was really mad at us for our sins no no no if if jesus tried to deliver me from external pain or punishment without healing me from my divided will and my messed up mind and my enslaved habit-driven body and my root doesn't make any difference [00:14:04]

we are learning to place ourselves in his care so that we can be healed this is a tough part of that journey but it leads to something really really good i love you developing a love for truth so good thank you so much michael for that pic and little shout out to someone from our community liz spencer that was the one you were hoping that we would play and so i'm glad that worked out for you [00:14:54]

many of you have been texting in over the last two weeks prayer requests or things that are going on in your life and it has been our great privilege to pray with you to pray for you and so if you want prayer that's available to you you can text us at 855 or you can email us at becomenew.me gmail.com we would love to connect with you there now buckle up because this is our last week of favorites and then after this series we're going to launch into something new with john which we'll tell you about soon see you tomorrow [00:15:51]

Chatbot

  • I'm an AI bot trained specifically on the sermon from Jul 18, 2022. Do you have any questions about it?

Transcript
What was the most surprising thing in this sermon?
Were there any personal stories shared?