A reflection on Romans 12:2
I am not a pastor, nor a biblical scholar. I have not taken any fancy classes on reading the bible, I am just pursuing God and sharing a few thoughts with you as I get to know him more deeply.
“Do not be conformed to this age, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind so that you may discern what is the good, pleasing and perfect will of God” -Romans 12:2 CSB
When I first read this verse, I liked it. The verse had a rhythm to it and sounded really complete and succinct. My initial thoughts were mostly centered around the latter half of the verse. I want to be pleasing to God. I want to know exactly what is good. I want to pursue Him. During the first few read throughs I seemed to miss Paul’s instructions on how to actually get there.
So how do we become transformed? According to the verse we “do not be conformed to this age (world in other versions)” but what does that actually mean? Ellicotts Commentary explains conformed as “outward conformity or disguise”. To be conformed is to hide your identity in Christ from the world. It is an attempt to disguise yourself amongst the world. In the same commentary, Ellicott talks about “this age” or “this world” as meaning the world at the time of Christ’s coming, it was the present moment that surrounded these Christians that Paul is writing to. It was a world that didn’t acknowledge the Savior. A world without the amazing grace, love and mercy shown through Christ’s life, death, and resurrection. It was a hopeless world.
As Christian’s we are called to be set apart in a fallen world. We were not meant to blend in, Paul tells us we will and should stand out from this world. The results of us stepping out and not conforming is an inward transformation. If we fully believed in the gospel and the story of the Bible, our entire being would be transformed, nothing would look the same (MacLaren’s Exposition). Benson’s commentary explains it as “We would be regenerated and created anew”. The word created really stuck with me. If we fully surrendered to Jesus and believed with all of our hearts, we would be entirely recreated by God.
We are called to be different. We are asked to recognize the fallen world as it is and choose to not hide ourselves in their world. We are called to be in Christ. Through this, we will be created new. Our entire being and self will change because that is how radical believing in the blood of Christ is. The story of the Bible should change every fiber of your being down to your deepest most secret thoughts. This is how we will know and pursue the perfect will of God because it will fully take over our hearts.
