Re:Verse passage – Ephesians 4:17-24 (day two)
Paul’s encouragement to ‘renew the spirit of your mind’ gives us the sense of movement and growth. Earlier in the passage he speaks about how we were formerly, and how we are to put those ways of thinking and acting behind us. There seems, however, to be more required. If we are to renew, we shouldn’t be static. There is no indication this was a once and done scenario as in; you were made new and that’s that. No, this seems to indicate a continuous process. It is the spiritual concept of sanctification. We should not be who we were before Christ, but even more than that, we shouldn’t be who we were yesterday. This should be our desire. If we are aren’t growing in our faith, what are we doing? If care isn’t given we fall into complacency when we should be seeking renewal.
Well said, Aaron- this is indeed our hope! I love how the amplified version states 2 Corinthians 3:18 – “And we all, continually seeing as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are progressively being transformed into his image, from one degree of glory to even more glory, which comes from the Lord, the Spirit.”