Tag: Yes Lord

OK, super sleuths, let’s see if we can detect a repeated theme here . . .

“Yes, Lord.”¹ Two blind men, when Jesus asked if they believed He could heal them.
“Yes, Lord.”² Martha, when Jesus asked if she believed Him to be eternal life.
“Yes, Lord.”³ Peter, when Jesus asked if he loved Him.
“Yes, Lord.”⁴ Ananias, when Jesus called to him in a vision.

Notice the pattern? Of course, we do.

Over the past several weeks, our study of transformation has focused on God’s active role in the process: He is the changer, we are the changed. Notice the active and passive voices in these transformation related Bible verses:

“Those God foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son”⁵
“We all . . . looking as in a mirror at the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image.”⁶
“May the God of peace . . . work in us what is pleasing to him.”⁷

Again, in each case, God is the actor and we are the acted upon. This is a great thing, for He is doing in us what we could never do ourselves, even if we were so inclined. Does this mean we have no role in our transformation process? Not at all. Our role can be summarized this way: “Yes, Lord.” “Yes, Lord, I trust in your promises,” and “Yes, Lord, I obey your command, I submit to Your lordship.”

Our “yes” is a choice we make not only daily, but moment by moment. Our “Yes” comes from knowing God loves us, which liberates and inspires us to overflow His love to others. Our “yes” is our rest—the peace of trusting God and the joy of doing what He has leads us to do. And most amazingly, even our active role—our “yes”—is from God, for “It is God who works in you, both to will and to work for his good pleasure.”⁸

Over the next few posts, we will delve into our active role in our transformation, our response to God’s initiative in us. We begin here: embracing the liberating joy of “Yes, Lord.”

“Yes, Lord, walking in the way of your laws, we wait for you; your name and renown are the desire of our hearts.” (Isaiah 26:8 NIV) May the lives you are transforming bring you glory. In Christ we pray. Amen.

¹ Matthew 9:28 NIV
² John 11:27 NIV
³ John 21:15-16 NIV
⁴ Acts 9:10
⁵ Romans 8:29 NIV
⁶ 2 Corinthians 3:18 NASB
⁷ Hebrews 13:20-21 NIV
⁸ Philippians 2:13 ESV, emphasis added