There’s something satisfying about watching before-and-after videos. We love to see overgrown backyards get trimmed and mowed, or the outdated kitchen get a much-needed facelift. With the help of video, long stretches of time condense into seconds or minutes. In a way, a time-lapse transformation illustrates both the quick and slow ways we change as Christians.
When we’re saved, we are justified before God and instantly transform from death to life and from darkness to light (Eph. 2:4-5, Eph. 5:8, Col 1:13). If we are ‘in Christ,’ we are made entirely new (2 Cor. 5:17). This is the miracle of our salvation. We call our right-standing before God justification. While justification puts us in a position of being made right with God, sanctification is our ongoing ‘becoming’ that happens over time. Day by day, as we spend time with him in his Word, confessing our sin, and seeking to obey him, we become more like him.
So, how do we transform as Christians? What changes happen in us quickly, and what changes happen over time? Here are 20 verses to start your study.
20 Bible Verses About Transformation
- Ezekiel 36:26 (ESV)
And I will give you a new heart, and a new spirit I will put within you. And I will remove the heart of stone from your flesh and give you a heart of flesh. - Matthew 5:16 (ESV)
In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven. - John 3:1-3 (ESV)
Now there was a man of the Pharisees named Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews. This man came to Jesus by night and said to him, “Rabbi, we know that you are a teacher come from God, for no one can do these signs that you do unless God is with him.” Jesus answered him, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born again he cannot see the kingdom of God.” - John 3:16 (ESV)
For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. - Acts 1:8 (ESV)
But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth. - Acts 3:19 (ESV)
Repent therefore, and turn back, that your sins may be blotted out. - Romans 12:1 (ESV)
I appeal to you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship. - Romans 12:2 (ESV)
Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect. - 2 Corinthians 3:18 (ESV)
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 5:17 (ESV)
Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come. - Galatians 2:20 (ESV)
I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me. And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me. - Galatians 5:22-23 (ESV)
But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control. Against such things there is no law. - Ephesians 2:4-5 (ESV)
But God, being rich in mercy…even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ—by grace you have been saved. - Ephesians 4:22-24 (ESV)
To put off your old self, which belongs to your former manner of life and is corrupt through deceitful desires, and to be renewed in the spirit of your minds, and to put on the new self, created after the likeness of God in true righteousness and holiness. - Philippians 1:6 (ESV)
And I am sure of this, that he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ. - Colossians 3:5 (ESV)
Put to death therefore what is earthly in you: sexual immorality, impurity, passion, evil desire, and covetousness, which is idolatry. - Colossians 3:9-10 (ESV)
Do not lie to one another, seeing that you have put off the old self with its practices and have put on the new self, which is being renewed in knowledge after the image of its creator. - Titus 3:5 (ESV)
He saved us, not because of works done by us in righteousness, but according to his own mercy, by the washing of regeneration and renewal of the Holy Spirit. - James 1:22-25 (ESV)
But be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves. For if anyone is a hearer of the word and not a doer, he is like a man who looks intently at his natural face in a mirror. For he looks at himself and goes away and at once forgets what he was like. But the one who looks into the perfect law, the law of liberty, and perseveres, being no hearer who forgets but a doer who acts, he will be blessed in his doing. - 1 John 1:9 (ESV)
If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.
The Messy Middle
One of the shortcomings of before-and-after videos is that they give the impression that the stuff in the messy middle isn’t really that messy. We may mistakenly dive into our home improvement projects with unrealistic expectations about what it takes to complete them. But it’s in the messy middle, when the cameras aren’t rolling, where true transformation takes place. That’s where we learn how to overcome obstacles, gain new skills, and persevere until the project is finished. This is also true for the Christian’s life.
As new creations in Christ, we are instantly transformed. But in the messy middle—that space between when we’re saved, and when we’re with the Lord, is where transformation is constantly taking place. Sometimes we see great progress, and other times it’s one tiny degree—either way, we’re being transformed (2 Cor. 3:18).
And someday, the full glory of our ‘after’ state will be revealed. We will be with the Lord, and we will see him, and by his grace, we will be like him (1 John 3:2). This is good news! You’re not who you were, but you’re not yet all he wants you to be.
Keep growing in Christ. Your ‘after’ awaits!
Cara
Related Posts:
- 20 Bible Verses About Becoming Like Christ
- 20 Bible Verses on Spending Time with God
- 20 Bible Verses For When You Feel Like Giving Up
- Put on the Whole Armor of God
P.S. Spending time in God’s Word is one of the primary tools we use to become more like Christ. This is the theme of my book The Pursuit of Holy Leisure: Enjoying God in Everyday Places. I invite you to check it out and discover how to transform your quiet times from a mindset of duty to delight!