Christian Conversion, Morality, and Patience

Over the past week, we've been looking at morality, and how we can or cannot enforce morality upon others.  My hope throughout has been to demonstrate that Christians take a wrong approach when we seek to simply change people's behaviors, as though doing so makes the Christian all of a sudden.  Instead, issues of morality start deep inside a person, and spring forth from their beliefs.  Hence, if Christians would like to see a more Christian morality in those around us, the proper course of action is not to enforce rules of behavior or morality upon them, but to seek to change their hearts and beliefs, a task which God alone can do.

In fact, God's Word of the Bible makes it clear that only God can do this work, and He does it through His Word which we speak.  In Isaiah, we hear that fairly well-known set of verses in which God declares that He sends forth His Word, and it will accomplish the purpose for which He sends it.  I see two matters at work here that we as Christians find difficult.

First is the reliance upon God's Word and Spirit to do the work of changing a person's heart.  That doesn't seem like an effective way to work.  We start to think that we have to answer people's every question perfectly, even if the Bible doesn't have anything specific to say on the subject of their question.  But in the end, it is simply God's Word and Spirit that changes people.  Our most eloquent and persuasive arguments do nothing to change the heart and beliefs of another.  Only God's Spirit and Word do.

The second thing is that the change of heart and beliefs is not a fast and easy thing.  True, there are some things that are more easily changed than others.  But in the end, when God's Word and His Spirit have worked on a person's heart and changed them to belief in God, that's when a slow process begins, which calls for patience on our part.  There will be struggles and questions that the person will have.  There will most likely not be an instantaneous change in everything.  We have to be willing to be patient, to walk with that person through the questions and struggles that arise as their faith is incorporated into their life.

Have you ever walked the long, slow road with a person whose heart and faith has been changed?  What was it like?  You probably have a lot of wisdom for the rest of us, which we would be wise to heed as God's Word continues to do its work through us.