Hi everyone, I hope you are all fine by God’s grace. As a continuation of our post of yesterday on bad company, today we are answering a question that some of us have asked to ourselves.
Let’s suppose you read the last post on bad companies, and you’ve realized something you suspected long ago; that x or y friend of yours is a bad company to you. Now you want to know whether you can change them and bring them to Christ (if they’ve never known Him), or bring them back to Christ (in case they have backslidden).
First let’s answer the question. Can you change someone?
– NO.
Can God change someone?
-YES
I guess lots of people will argue with me about this, but you can’t change anybody; only God can change them.
Why do I say so? I say so because the type of change we are talking about, a radical conversion and transformation deep from the heart is only possible if God intervenes.
Proverbs 21:1 KJV
The king’s heart is in the hand of the Lord , as the rivers of water: He turneth it whithersoever he will.
God Almighty is The Only One who holds people’s hearts and who can create a conversion in them.
Only God can change the heart of that person you want to convert and make him/her able to serve Him.
Ezekiel 36:25-27 KJV
Then will I sprinkle clean water upon you, and ye shall be clean: from all your filthiness, and from all your idols, will I cleanse you. [26] A new heart also will I give you, and a new spirit will I put within you: and I will take away the stony heart out of your flesh, and I will give you an heart of flesh. [27] And I will put my spirit within you, and cause you to walk in my statutes, and ye shall keep my judgments, and do them .
Certainly, it has now been made very clear that it is not by our power, our strength, our own wisdom and our own knowledge that others are changed/converted/transformed, but by The Holy Spirit of God, by His grace and His intervention. As such we can pursue this post by talking about what we can do to contribute to the conversion of someone.
2 Thessalonians 3:14-15 KJV
And if any man obey not our word by this epistle, note that man, and have no company with him, that he may be ashamed. [15] Yet count him not as an enemy, but admonish him as a brother.
Galatians 6:1 NIV
Brothers and sisters, if someone is caught in a sin, you who live by the Spirit should restore that person gently. But watch yourselves, or you also may be tempted.
As Christians, it is our responsibility to help our brothers and sisters come back to Christ. The first way to help them, is to pray for them, that God may touch their hearts, next, speak to them. It is also our responsibility to preach the Gospel.
Nevertheless, when you notice that it’s “too much for you” and that you can’t spend time with the person any longer without he/she drawing you into sin, then take reasonable distances and leave more competent people (pastors, priests, clergy, etc) take care of their restoration.
Finally, none should forget that he/she is not perfect. Thus, before planning on helping anyone to change, let’s examine our lives in order to change first. Before judging others, let’s first judge ourselves and surrender our lives to God for Him to transform us.
Matthew 7:4 NIV
How can you say to your brother, ‘Let me take the speck out of your eye,’ when all the time there is a plank in your own eye?
Prayer
Eternal Lord, thank You for helping me realize today that You are The One who touches our hearts and changes us. Please Lord make a change in my heart, and in the hearts of my friends, that we may be better Christians and better friends to each other. Thank You Lord in Jesus Christ’s Name. Amen.
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Thanks for reading.
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