Clean as fresh-fallen snow. The debt you had no hope of ever satisfying – paid in full. Chains that had kept you bound – dissolved. Oh the relief! The joy! The freedom! A happy day indeed. And that’s just a small picture of forgiveness.

Some people struggle to experience forgiveness, to embrace that amazing reality into their being. Shame, fear, pride, all kinds of “junk” can make us hold on tight to our destructive self-concept and remain in hiding. Opening your whole self to God’s view and choosing to embrace what He says about you and your past – that’s a big step.

But setting you free from your past is not enough in itself. There’s even better news than forgiveness. The forgiveness aspect of salvation is truly glorious, but it’s only the starting point. Jesus, Paul, and other New Testament writers present a much more radical – and happier – picture of what it means to be a follower of Jesus.

If we stop at forgiveness, we’ve missed the point. So what could possibly be better news than forgiveness?

What’s More Than Forgiveness?

Jesus was and is both scandalously safe and scandalously dangerous. Everyone who came into His presence felt welcomed, drawn to Him, especially those society looked down on. And His very presence also called people to a higher level of being and becoming. He called His followers to leave everything and follow Him (See Luke 14:26-33). He presented an unbelievably high standard of behavior, character, and service. Jesus showed that He is much more interested in your future than your past.

God doesn’t only want to wipe out the sins of your past: He wants to radically transform you! That means changing your body, mind, and soul. It means taking the angry or addicted or fearful or cheating or lustful or selfish heart out of you and turning you into someone who is characterized by kindness, grace, courage, generosity, love, strength, integrity, joy, and hope.

This isn’t just polishing up your outsides; your very nature becomes different. Your brain pathways are rebuilt. You get a new heart! (See Hebrews 10:16) Transformation means changing your very DNA (so to speak), making you different first on the inside, and then on the outside as well.

Paul said it this way: “And we, who with unveiled faces all reflect the Lord’s glory, are being transformed into his likeness with ever-increasing glory, which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit” (2 Cor. 3:18).

Classic Cars, Anyone?

Imagine you’re a classic car buff. One day you find a classic ’57 chevy 2-door hardtop. It’s like you’ve been looking for her for years. But she’s under a tarp in a barn, broken down, paint peeling, metal rusted, parts missing. Yet none of that dissuades you. It’s love at first sight.

You make her your own and trailer her to your garage. But you love her too much to let her remain in the broken-down condition in which you find her. You “forgive” her of her past, but you also immediately set about restoring her to the glory you know she can become.

It may be a long slow process. To the car it may “feel” like her end has finally come. She’s pulled apart, broken down, greased, parts replaced, sanded, polished, and more. But once that arduous process is complete she’s truly glorious, and you can’t wait to show her off. Her chrome reflects the sunlight and the vroom of her motor paves the way before her.

That’s just like how God feels about you.

Your Transformation Process

God loves you extravagantly just the way you are. But He also loves you too much to let you stay that way.

And isn’t that the best possible news? Would you really want to remain as you were when Jesus found you, or as you are today? What if everything in your past was forgiven but you were still you – with all the wounds, heartbreak, addictions, sinful tendencies, broken brain pathways and styles of relating that you’ve always had? What if you lived forever, but stayed this way? Would that really be good news?

Jesus’ presence is what makes real transformation possible. We get so anxious about how long it seems to take and how painful it may feel. We don’t like the pulling apart, greasing, sanding, and polishing. But Jesus has in mind the glorious you that He originally created and that He knows you can become.

And that’s the biggest miracle of all. You cannot make your own transformation happen by trying harder! You can only keep showing up and keep saying yes. That’s it.

• Keep showing up. Hang out in places where God has opportunity to do His work in your heart and life. That’s both with other people and alone with Jesus Himself.
• Keep saying Yes. Say Yes to the next thing the Holy Spirit brings up for you; healing, forgiving others, leaning skills, developing a deeper connection with God. When He brings something up and says “Let’s deal with this,” just say YES.

Oh Happy Day indeed, when Jesus washed my sins away! And I will never forget that day.

But it will be an even Happier Day when my character is transformed to be just like Him, when His purpose is fulfilled through my life, and when I get to be with Him in eternity.

Forgiveness is just the beginning. Transformation is God’s bigger goal for you.

Don’t stop before you experience the whole thing!

Your Turn: Are you hungry for anything more than forgiveness? What kind of change do you see God working in you? Leave a comment below.

Want more? This week’s podcast is a conversation with Dr. Linda Seiler highlighting her story as a transgender person finding real transformation. Listen or watch.

Tweetables: Why not share this post?

• As glorious and freeing as forgiveness is, it’s not enough. There’s more than forgiveness. You don’t want to stay as you are. Jesus doesn’t want that for you either. A process of transformation leads to something so much more glorious!  Tweet that.

Getting to the Matters of the Heart

The wounds, the unhealthy beliefs, the behavior patterns, the internal struggles, the spiritual oppression especially around intimacy, sex, and relationships – we can help with that.

Join us at an upcoming intensive – a beautiful 3-4 day premium experience that can change so much. Bring the hard places of your story into the light, and experience Jesus coming right into the middle of your story with healing, freedom, and transformation.