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"The Holy Spirit Changes From The Inside Out, Not From The Outside In"

Picture this: Farmers on a quest to produce the biggest, reddest, and most luscious-looking strawberries through cross breeding and genetic modification. The result? Success! The growers engineered huge, red strawberries that delight the eyes – but not the mouth. In the process of focusing so much on the looks of strawberries, they sacrificed the flavor and sweetness. In many cases, the genetic information that naturally produced the flavor and sugars in strawberries is lost.

This is somewhat analogous to a dilemma in Christian circles. The emphasis of changing behavior rather than changing hearts has robbed Christianity of its sweetness and joy.

In the pursuit to change the sinner’s outward life, “prerequisites for salvation” have been created: e.g. “You must change your ways first and turn from your sins before God will forgive you.”

This has been done by redefining the meaning of such critical terms like “repentance”, which basically means "to be remorseful for one’s actions or words, to have second thoughts about what we have done and to grieve over it." The word implies sorrow for sin and humility to God.

Remember the publican in 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."
And, remember what Jesus said regarding him in Luke 18:14?:
"I tell you, this man went down to his house justified rather than the other: for every one that exalteth himself shall be abased; and he that humbleth himself shall be exalted."

Now, Christians have redefined “repent” as, “to turn away from sin and turn to God” or “to change one’s ways.” This emphasis on outward change, before God’s inner transformation of our heart, perverts biblical Christianity into a legalistic religion, in which we must first “get well” before the Great Physician will accept us. We must first “clean up our lives” before Christ will apply His blood to our hearts. It requires us to behave like born-again children of God while we’re still unregenerate children of wrath. We must get rid of the symptoms of sin, before the disease of sin is cured. In truth, however, God accepts us as we are and changes us from within.

Another theologically important word that has been redefined is “faith”. We just cannot trust God to do His miraculous work in the hearts of sinners. We think we must intervene and remind sinners that “It’s not enough to believe with your heart”. Or we tell them that, “faith in Christ means obeying Him and doing His will”. But, the Book of Romans says clearly that we cannot obey Christ, or do his will, until God inwardly transforms us and empowers and renews us by His Holy Spirit. We cannot change our ways until God changes our hearts:

"For they that are after the flesh do mind the things of the flesh; but they that are after the Spirit the things of the Spirit.
For to be carnally minded is death; but to be spiritually minded is life and peace.
Because the carnal mind is enmity against God: for it is not subject to the law of God, neither indeed can be.
So then they that are in the flesh cannot please God.
But ye are not in the flesh, but in the Spirit, if so be that the Spirit of God dwell in you. Now if any man have not the Spirit of Christ, he is none of his." (Romans 8:5-9)

It is only by our faith in what Jesus has done for us, embracing His finished work on the cross, that this salvation and change of heart is brought about by God’s Holy Spirit.

Question: Have you tried and failed to keep the Ten Commandments, the Golden Rule, or measure up to your perception of God’s standards? We all have at some point, and found it to be impossible.

God's standard is perfection:
"Be ye therefore perfect, even as your Father which is in heaven is perfect." (Matthew 5:48)
But Jesus assures us:
"Blessed are the poor in spirit: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven."
(Matthew 5:3)

If you’re a “spiritual wreck”, if you are empty and dead inside, then Jesus is telling you He has something to give you free of charge – the Kingdom
of Heaven! (God does not put a price tag on His love.)

The Lord says: "I will heal their backsliding, I will love them freely: for mine anger is turned away from him." (Hosea 14:4)

Charged to Christ’s account, but free to us, God offers to forgive us, make us righteous, and transform our hearts by the power of the Holy
Spirit.

You cannot earn this. You cannot add to this. It’s all you need and all God requires.

"Jesus answered and said unto them, This is the work of God, that ye believe on him whom he hath sent." (John 6:29)

Biblical Christianity is the work of God, not the work of man.