But if this is true then transformation of character is
impossible, or unlikely at best. 12 step
programs seem to support this idea – once an alcoholic, always an alcoholic
(however in recovery). Most every
addiction is considered a life-long condition or problem. Addicts may not use drugs or chemicals for
decades of time but even then they are still considered “in recovery”. When an addict slips, they call it “relapse”,
and this is even considered a part of the cycle these poor unfortunates go
through.
That got me to thinking, what kind of self-destructive
actions do we see ourselves commit over and over. When we repeat behavior we know to be
self-destructive, is this not the definition of “addiction”. Sometimes we do things we know will hurt
others, and ultimately ourselves, but we do it anyway. No I am not talking about drugs or chemical
abuse. I am talking about bragging,
arrogance, pride. I am talking about
judging others, condemning others, and ridiculing others. I am talking about trying to “help” someone
else get to heaven by making them drop everything they believe, and accepting
everything that we believe, as if we had a complete lock on truth.
There are many ways to screw up your life and the lives of
others. Not everything is drugs, murder,
and theft. A lot of subtle words,
behaviors, and attitudes are enough to mess things up royally, and what is
more, we know it. We know it, when we do
it, before we do it, and after we do it.
Yet we do it anyway – could this be defective character addictive
disorder? If you know you should not do
something and you do it anyway, how do you rationalize it? Stupidity?
Addiction? What?
The really interesting parallel between addictive disorders,
and sins (the embracing of evil) we seem not to be able to stop doing, is the
number of years we persist in doing them.
This is NOT a one-time “oops”.
This is behavior others begin to come to know you by when they know your
weaknesses. If you gossip, trust me,
people know it. You may think it is all
innocent, all fairly quiet, etc.. But in
truth there are those who know full well it is YOU that gossips. They consider it one of your faults. There are those that avoid you because they
know this about you.
The same is true about liars. A liar thinks his deceptions hold forever,
but they do not. Over time facts emerge,
and their lies are revealed, sometimes faster than they imagine. Once this comes to light, most trust is gone. Why?
Because most people think those that lie will do it again and
again. This phenomenon holds for those
who consider themselves the “cream of the crop”; those that consider themselves
smarter, better looking, better educated, better informed. It takes much less time for others to see
these traits in you and peg this weakness.
Then re-consider the idea – people do not change, they just
get older. Why? Well, all these character deficiencies tend
not to be life threatening so we do not treat them with the same urgency as a
drug addiction. Just because I gossip,
my life, wealth, and health are not threatened, so even though I know I should
not, I do. The effects of gossip can be
just as devastating to others as theft, or worse, but those guilty of gossip
rationalize this fact. They do not seek
treatment for the condition.
Liars are thought always to be liars, as history of dealing
with people tends to prove this out.
Suspicion remains high because no one believes this is a one-time
phenomenon. And lies rarely place
personal wealth, or health at immediate risk, so the liar does not seek any
help to fix this condition. They believe
they can simply work harder at it. They
can quit any time they feel like it, even if they seldom ever feel like
quitting.
How many defects could be described this way? Maybe all of them. And if living the Christian life is supposed
to be better, what is the deal with Christians doing every single shortcoming
non-believers do? Should there not be a
difference between believers and not?
How come they look so much alike?
Could this be why non-believers refuse to accept the gospel of Jesus,
because they see no difference between the saved and unsaved? And if the only difference between a believer
and a non-believer after doing self destructive behavior, is the guilt of the
believer, logic would dictate – “why bother”.
The wounds are self inflicted. And the cure is avoided at all costs. Transformation of character is actually
possible. There are alcoholics who have
not touched a drop in years, perhaps none before they ever die. There are those who used to be hooked on
drugs to the point of death, and miraculously did not die, but changed
instead. What is the commonality between
those who are off of chemical addiction – they recognized their condition, it’s
severity, and the need for OUTSIDE intervention to get over it. 12 step programs recognize the need and
existence of a Higher Power.
Believers call that Higher Power – Jesus Christ, the only
son of God. Yet most believers are
comfortable living with every defect, every failure, every weakness of
character they were born with. Instead
of experiencing the transforming power of Jesus, our Creator God, the only
entity in the Universe capable of transforming dust into man, and our worthless
character into something useful; we sit complacent and therefore unaffected. There is no visible difference between
believers and non-believers in general because neither one sees the urgency in
fixing the defects in character that lead to self-destructive behavior.
While we know better, we elect to excuse our conditions rather
than pursue changing them. This comes
from life-long efforts to change ourselves by ourselves. Over time we give up, realizing we stink at
changing ourselves. We come to accept
that people do not really change they just get older. Instead of experiencing the transforming
power of our Creator God, we assume His role for ourselves, and try to do the
work on us. We refuse to surrender, and
instead take the reins in our own hands.
We want to be in control. We want
to fix it. Just give us a minute and
watch. Of course if you do watch someone
trying to treat their own character defects what you see, is just like what you
see when you watch a heroin addict try to fix himself – relapse.
The only real cure comes from outside of ourselves. It comes from the surrender of our will to
our Higher Power. It comes when the God
we serve is allowed by us, to fix us.
When we see our condition, and surrender, NOT work harder at it. Surrender is the gateway to victory, much
like admission of an alcoholic is the first step towards recovery. Giving up, and giving in, may seem
counter-intuitive to real transformation, but this is where the real POWER of
our God is revealed, and where the miracle really occurs.
The difference Jesus brings to your character is not some
temporary abstinence that goes away on a whim.
The changes are real. The
transformation is noticeable. Those who
know you will know you have changed.
They will see it. They will be
curious how it could have ever happened.
And the beauty of the truth will be that you will not know how you
changed, only that you did when you finally surrendered to Christ. This is what the world is waiting for. This will be the marker of a change in our
time. When there is a noticeable
difference in believers and non-believers, those who do not believe will seek
out those who do, to find out how this happened.
The entire process can begin with you. You can change. You can be someone who suffers less, someone
who is free from the pain that evil brings to your life. You can stop the behavior and actions that
lead to your self destruction, by simply putting the work of change into the
only hands capable of carrying it out.
Instead of beating your head against a wall that will not give way, give
it over to the One who knows no walls.
Transformation is the gift of Christ.
It is just like the gift of Salvation, we transform into new creatures,
by the regenerating power of our Creator God, there is no other way …
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