The Transformation of the Untransformable
by Christopher Hendrix
While driving the other day, traffic came to almost a halt. Cars slowly crawled as everyone in the lane had to slam on their brakes. We made our way in a slow line like ants marching one after another until I finally discovered the cause of the halt. A car on the other side of the road had lost control and went into the ditch. No one was hurt, and all seemed to be okay. However, people were slowing down for no reason other than to look at what happened. In Texas, we call these rubberneckers. In Italy, perhaps we should call them rubberneckeros. In Texas, we have a name for this because it also happens quite often there. I’m willing to guess this phenomenon occurs worldwide. Why? Because by nature, we are curious when something crashes or goes awry.
Listen to Pastor Chris' sermon on 2 Corinthians 3:12-18
Right now, we have a lot of rubberneckeros in America witnessing the crash of secularism, a belief system that advocates for a society free from religious influence. The failure of the secular experiment has exploded in our faces with the illogical of equating abortion to a woman’s right, the push to normalize unnatural relationships between the same-genders, giving the nod to transgenders and affirming their self-deceived states, and the destruction of femininity and masculinity. And these are just some of the things on the surface that have come up. The deeper you dig, the more you find the anti-Christ thoughts of Marxism, the innumerable lies that are winked at, and the idolatry of the state that stands against the Triune God. Secularism has crashed.
Many are watching this right now and taking notice of it. Some respond by doubling down on the secularist agenda. “Instead of a single dose of the poison, let’s take a double dose to cure us,” they imply. Others act passively and want to let the runaway train keep on running. Still, others seek to implement right-wing policies apart from Christ. This may set the car back on the road, but only to veer off at another point further down. A Christless governance will always end in destruction, no matter what side of the legislative body one sits. Still, some seek to implement a type of Christendom that sees a Christian government govern a non-Christian people. The goal isn’t necessarily to proclaim the gospel to the people but to rule in such a way as to make the nation Christian based on the government, and everyone else must submit to Christian beliefs. This is called Sacralism. Some refer to this as Christian Nationalism, but this is a twisted and extreme form of Christian Nationalism.
The Christian worldview can’t support any of these solutions. Our response isn’t passivity, but it doesn’t start with the political sphere either. The solution will undoubtedly affect the political sphere, but it isn’t the first move. What we need coming out of the failed secularistic state is transformation, not alteration. Transformation occurs from the very heart. It happens from the inside to the outside. Alteration is just exchanging one Christless regime for another. This transformation begins and ends with the New Covenant, a theological truth that refers to the relationship between God and humanity. 2 Corinthians 3:12–18 describes the beauty of the New Covenant’s work. It highlights the power of this transformation. Christ established the New Covenant. His life, death, burial, and resurrection inaugurated the New Covenant and brought salvation to every nation. The veil over hardened hearts is lifted as the Spirit applies the atoning work of Christ to souls.
As people are brought into salvation, they are gradually transformed from the inside out. As each Christian continues to behold Christ and look to Him, the Spirit changes them more and more into the image of Christ. The Spirit of God in the New Covenant truly transforms lives. The inner heart of the person molds into the likeness of Christ. The character of a person changes into the picture of Christ. The thoughts and attitudes of a person shift to Christ’s likeness. Then, outwardly, the fruit of the Spirit bears forth. The actions, decisions, and works of a person imitate Christ. This is true transformation.
America is in dire need of transformation. The Christian’s response is not to sit back and watch, but to actively proclaim this need, the solution to the need, and the way forward. We do this with the people God has placed in our lives. We do this in the political sphere and our government. We do this within our jobs, schools, social groups, and playdates. The answer to the failed secular experiment is not another human scheme; it’s the hope of Jesus Christ. When hearts turn to the Lord, and the majority of the people in the states and nation hunger for righteousness, America will be ready for laws and governance that will rule righteously and according to God’s design. The answer to secularism’s crash is not despair but the Gospel of Jesus Christ for every person.