“Now may the God of peace make you holy in every way, and may your whole spirit and soul and body be kept blameless until that day when our Lord Jesus Christ comes again.” (1 Thessalonians 5:23)
To be holy means to be spiritually clean, and to be wholly holy means to be clean through and through! Sin makes us dirty but the blood of Jesus Christ cleans away our sin. And to the extent that we are clean, to that same extent we are able to help those who haven’t experienced freedom from sin and its consequences.
The reverse also applies, which explains why those who still suffer from the consequences of their sins have a bad effect on those close to them. Hurt people do hurt people — they just can’t help it. If we wish to heal others, we must first ask Jesus to heal us.
Of course, few things in this life are in total opposition. Not many people can truly say claim to be “poles apart” psychologically speaking; most of us live in the ‘temperate zones’ between the two extremes. When the Bible tells us that we are justified, it is saying that we are fully forgiven. That’s it. No add-ons. No ifs or buts. We have believed and so we are saved.
But salvation is not only an event — it is also a process. The Bible calls this process sanctification — a big word that simply means day-by-day change. Change in the way we think. Change in the way we see things. Change in the way we do things. Christians are perfect in God’s sight but less than perfect in the sight of people who know them well. As the old saying goes: “To live above with those we love — oh, that will be glory! But to live below with those we know — that’s another story!”
It’s so important that we allow God’s Spirit to change us day-by-day, because the more we are changed the better we can help others, as we can see from the following:
THE 100% CHRISTIAN ———— THE 100% NEEDY PERSON
1. Is Born Again ——————— 1. Is Unsaved, a Sinner
2. Is Water Baptised ————— 2. Fights Old Life Habits
3. Is Spirit-Filled ——————– 3. Is in a Spiritual Vacuum
4. Prays Constantly —————– 4. Looks for Answers
5. Studies the Bible —————– 5. Has No Foundation
6. Shares Testimony Freely——– 6. Speaks Lifeless Words
7. Fellowships Regularly ———- 7. Is Incredibly Lonely
8. Is Gifted Spiritually ————- 8. Lives a Powerless Life
9. Is Self-Disciplined ————– 9. Lacks Self-discipline
10. Doesn’t Love the World ———-10. Clings to Worldly Things
Allowing 10% for each point, the 100% Christian — changed through and through — is the sum of all 10 points. A rare Christian, indeed! The overall percentage decreases by 10% for each point or virtue missing from his or her life. (I have set the points above in percentages only for the purpose of this exercise.)
The 100% Christian can help the 100% Needy Person, but a believer who is saved but only half changed—has only a 50% chance of helping. Select any 5 points at random to check how much you’ve changed.
Few Needy Persons are 100% needy — most are aware of only one or two needs (10% or 20%). The higher the percentage and the more points in a Christian’s life, the greater his or her or ability to help Needy People. The 10% Christian (1) born again but otherwise unchanged — has only a random, one-in-ten chance.
It follows that the more the Christian is changed, the more successful he or she will be in leading the Needy Person to the Lord and into the maturity in the Christian life that results from change. Keep in mind that it takes time to fully mature.
How many Christians are the full 10% in each of the 10 areas listed? For example: instead of the full 10% in Prayer (4), a Christian may be only 2% and so would have difficulty in helping a Needy Person who is looking for answers but doesn’t know how to pray.
Caution: If you are 80% changed and meet a Needy Person who has only 10% changed, don’t give them your whole 80% but only what they need at the time. For example: a person who is incredibly lonely (7) may need to be received warmly (7) and to experience loving, unconditional acceptance, before being ready to accept Jesus as Saviour and Lord.
Remember that whole people heal people, and hurt people hurt people. The more we Christians allow the Spirit of God to change us, to save us through and through, the more Jesus in us will heal hurt people through us.