Change with a Purpose - Martin Wiles

Yes, the old requirement about the priesthood was set aside because it was weak and useless. Hebrews 7:18 NLT

Change isn’t easy for most people, but it’s easier to stomach when it has a purpose.

Gossip had driven the previous pastor to another venue. The church had dwindled to around thirty faithful attendees during the interim period. When the church leaders interviewed a new prospective pastor and invited him to take the helm, he said, “Here’s what I plan to do if I come.”

Change is difficult for any church, but some find it even more challenging. But this congregation knew if they didn’t change, death was just around the corner. They agreed to his goals and called him as their pastor. Soon, attitudes made a radical shift. People were excited about coming and what would happen next, perhaps because the changes had a purpose. The pastor designed the changes to transform a dying church into a living, breathing organism that would make a difference in God’s kingdom.

The writer of Hebrews wrote to people who had inherited a several-thousand-year-old tradition: the Levitical priesthood. Men were selected from the tribe of Levi to tend to the Temple, offer sacrifices for the people, and intercede with God on behalf of the people. Now God—through Jesus Christ—had changed all that. Jesus descended from the tribe of Judah, not Levi. The old system was good for a time, but it wasn’t God’s plan for it to last forever.

Change for the sake of change is difficult for most people. Most love time-honored traditions as well as the same old same old. Life is easier when we have a pattern, a routine. When something happens to uproot the norm, we often react with anger, confusion, depression, or resistance. But we can respond with acceptance.

Rarely does God work the same way during the entirety of our lives. His overarching plan for our life requires many changes along the way. Rather than resisting the changes, when we know they come from God, we should willingly accept, adapt, and conform. He is working out His goal for us and conforming us to the image of His Son. Resisting the changes God initiates can prevent our spiritual growth, put us at odds with others, and keep us from realizing the good rewards He is attempting to give us.

When God sends change, accept it willingly.

Father, help us accept the changes You send that are for our good and Your glory.

Tweetable: Does change unnerve you?  

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