The Irreversible Transformation of all Followers of Jesus Christ

The centuries-old debate on God’s election vs. free will is a fascinating topic.  Christians have had strong feelings about this.  It is somewhat like the chicken and the egg; which one came first?  A closely related discussion centers around the eternal security of the believer.  Is one who was saved always saved?  Can they lose their salvation, and essentially become an unbeliever again? 

I discovered several years ago one key word related to this topic which settles the debate for me.  I observed passage after passage that describe the many irreversible changes that take place when a person becomes a Christian and is saved.  There are several I wish to discuss: their hearts change, they have been given a new identity, they begin the process of becoming more like Jesus, and their eternal destiny is locked in. Let me begin to unpack these things.

Regeneration

I have observed that the first of many irreversible changes that take place in a Christian’s life begins before they come to faith and become a Christian.  (This obviously points to God’s work of election.)  Without the supernatural regeneration that takes place in a person’s heart by the Holy Spirit, they cannot even see the kingdom of God, nor can they respond to the gospel. (See John 1:13, 3:3.)

This radical change in a person’s heart, which essentially quickens a spiritually dead person and brings them to life in order to see the gospel clearly enough to be able to choose to follow Jesus Christ is not dependent on their actions.  It is the precursor before any action can even take place.

According to The Dictionary of Christian Spirituality, regeneration is the work that God does to every believer at the very moment of faith in Jesus Christ through the Holy Spirit.  They become a totally new creation, able to “commune intimately with God . . . outfitted with a new disposition that strives to respond rightly to him . . . one marked by faith, hope, and love.”

I think it is fairly easy to understand that once a person has been regenerated, there is no going back.

Identity

Once we are enabled to come to Him by faith, repent, and submit to Jesus as Lord, God gives us a new identity.  Scripture uses various word pictures to describe our transfer from one place to another.  The Apostle Paul states in Eph. 2, verses 1 and 5 that we were dead in our sins, but God made us alive.  (See also Col. 2:13.)  Dead people cannot do a whole lot.  That is why God must bring us to new life.

Other passages talk about being brought from the kingdom of darkness to the kingdom of light.  The sovereign God of the universe who transferred us into His kingdom will never reverse this condition. The prophet Isaiah gives us a glimpse into God’s tenacity when it comes to His people: “No one can deliver out of my hand. When I act, who can reverse it?” (Isa. 43:13).

In John 10:3 and following, Jesus distinguishes between those who are His sheep and those who are not.  There are two categories; there is no middle ground.  You are either His sheep or you are not.  Jesus’ sheep listen to His voice; He calls them by name and leads them (v. 3).  His sheep follow Him (v. 4).  Jesus said that He knows His sheep and His sheep know Him (v. 14).  (See also John 10:27.)

There are many other passages that describe our new status in union with Christ.  Let me summarize:

• “Yet to all who received him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God.” (John 1:12)
• “If anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come.” (2 Cor. 5:17)
• “You are all sons of God through faith in Christ Jesus.” (Gal. 3:26)
• “Because you are sons, God sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, the Spirit who calls out, ‘Abba, Father.’  So, you are no longer a slave, but a son; and since you are a son, God has made you also an heir.” (Gal. 4:6-7)
• God has qualified us to share in the inheritance of the saints; he has rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into Jesus’ kingdom; in Him we have redemption, the forgiveness of our sins. (Col. 1:12-14)

As we understand the definition of all these terms, it should be fairly clear that these changes in our condition cannot be reversed.  We were adopted to be children of God.  That is a permanent thing.  God qualified us by grace; we can’t disqualify ourselves.  God rescued us.  He doesn’t unrescue.

The hymn “Amazing Grace” biblically proclaims that we once were lost, but now we are found; we were blind, but now we see.  We are declared to be righteous in God’s sight.  Our sins are forgiven.  Do you think we in our limited human frailty by our actions can undo all that God has done for us? 

David Needham, in his book Birthright: Christian, Do You Know Who You Are? states: “God tells us we are alive in a way we have never been alive before, possessing a birthright we never possessed before. . . If you have received the Savior, you simply are not the same person you were before.”

Sanctification

God not only sees us differently in Christ, He also begins to change us from the inside out.  We are declared to be holy in His sight (justified).  We then are made to be holy in experience (sanctified).

As a baseline of understanding, I want to make it clear that believers participate in this sanctification process.  It is a partnership.  We can either accelerate or impede our progress by the frequency, duration, and consistency in our practicing of various spiritual disciplines over time.  However, make no mistake.  This supernatural process of becoming more like Christ is started in us by grace through faith and continues by grace through faith.  It is empowered by God’s Holy Spirit who works in us.

• God prunes us to make us more fruitful; we need to abide in Him (John 15:2-5)
• Our bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit; we received the Spirit from God (1 Cor. 6:19)
• God makes us stand firm in Christ; “He anointed us, set his seal of ownership on us, and put His Holy Spirit in our hearts as a deposit, guaranteeing what is to come” (2 Cor. 1:21-22)
• God began a good work in us; He will carry it on to completion until Christ returns (Phil. 1:6.)
• We have taken off our old self and have put on the new self which is being renewed (Col. 3:10)
• God has given us everything we need for life and godliness (2 Peter 1:3-4)

The main point here is grasping that God only gives His Holy Spirit to His children.  Once given, this gift, which enables Christians to live the Christian life and become like Christ, will not be taken away.

Eternal destiny

What I have laid out so far is that God works in our hearts and minds prior to the moment of salvation to enable us to believe, repent, and submit to the Lordship of Jesus Christ.  From that point forward, our identify is radically different than it was before we became a Christian.  God sees us differently and we are different in many ways.  We begin a lifelong process of becoming more like Christ.  As we walk by faith in the power of the Holy Spirit, our lifestyle confirms that we are new creatures in Christ.  

As Christians look to the future, the Bible reminds us that our eternal destiny is sure:

• “I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish” (John 10:28)
• There is an established order to key salvation events in a believer’s experience, beginning with God’s foreknowledge, to being predestined to be conformed to the image of His Son, to being called, justified, and eventually glorified (Rom. 8:29-30)
• “In His great mercy he has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, and into an inheritance that can never perish, spoil, or fade – kept in heaven for you, who through faith are shielded by God’s power until the coming of the salvation that is ready to be revealed in the last time.” (1 Peter 1:3-5)
• “God has given us eternal life, and this life is in his Son.  He who has the Son has life; he who does not have the Son of God does not have life.” (1 John 5:11-12)

What I am hoping to drive home into the hearts and minds of those reading this article is that with regards to our salvation, God did it all!  We did nothing to deserve our being able to see Him clearly enough to repent and believe.  We did nothing to be transferred from death to life and darkness to light.  If we did nothing to earn our salvation, then there is nothing that we can do to undo what God did.

I trust that these deep truths will cause you to praise God for His indescribable gifts and to rest in Him.

About the author:

Russell E. Gehrlein (Master Sergeant, U.S. Army, Retired) is a Christian, husband of 41 years, father of three, grandfather of five, and author of the book, Immanuel Labor – God’s Presence in our Profession: A Biblical, Theological, and Practical Approach to the Doctrine of Work, published by WestBow Press in February 2018. He is an ordinary man who is passionate about helping ordinary people experience God’s presence and integrate their Christian faith at work. Russ received a B.S. in Mathematics from Colorado State University in 1980 and an M.A. in Biblical Studies from Grand Rapids Theological Seminary in 2015. He is a former junior/senior high school math and science teacher and youth minister. He served 20 years on active duty. Russ works as a Department of the Army civilian at Fort Leonard Wood, Missouri. Since 2015, he has written 170 articles on faith and work topics. Eighty of these have been published over 150 times on several Christian organization’s websites, including: the Center for Faith & Work at LeTourneau University, Institute for Faith, Work & Economics, Coram Deo, Nashville Institute for Faith + Work, Made to Flourish, 4Word Women, and The Gospel Coalition. (See published articles on Linktree.)