The Most Extreme Makeovers

The Most Extreme Makeovers

Pastor Greg Tabor

Ridgeway A/G

1/16/05

Introduction

How many of you have ever watched one of these shows on TV that show an extreme makeover of a person or a house? The end results of surgery or reconstruction are astonishing. Might I suggest this morning that the dramatic overhauls these individuals or their living spaces undergo is nothing in comparison to the dramatic changes that must take place for Paradise to be regained?

This morning I want to look at three makeovers that God performs. And regardless as to what you’ve seen on television, these are the most extreme makeovers.

1. A Spiritual Makeover

Let’s look at the before and after pictures of a Spiritual Makeover.

Before.

The Bible tells us we are made in the image of God. While we cannot fully know all that entails, it seems to me that it would entail the ability to know God and have relationship with Him. Some people who have been burned or mangled from an accident understand what it means to have their physical image distorted. But in Genesis 3 something worse happened to mankind. The image of God was distorted and marred.

“Adam and Eve brought upon themselves, then, the personal consequences of sin (see Gen. 3:16-19). In addition, the entire human race was infected by sin. Ever after, children brought into the world would be naturally blighted by the inclination to sin. This disease of the human nature, upon a child’s reaching the age of moral responsibility, inevitably issues in personal acts of sinning, for which the individual falls under the wrath of God. The effect of Adam’s sin, then, innocence was lost, the divine image in humankind was distorted weakened, people became enslaved to sin (see Rom. 6), and discord and death entered the world.” (Menzies, William W. Bible Doctrines: A Pentecostal Perspective. Logion Press: Springfield, MO. 1993. p.89)

Mankind found itself in a big mess. Paul wrote the church in Colosse reminding them of who they were prior to conversion:

Read: Colossians 1:21 NIV

Read: Romans 1:18-32 and Romans 3:9-20

We need an extreme makeover. Spiritually speaking, a person without Christ is spiritually dead. He/she is numb to the things of God.

Read: 1 Corinthians 2:14 NIV

Jesus described the need for a radical change when talking with a man named Nicodemus.

Read: John 3:1-6.

Being ‘born again’ is essentially that. Not in the physical womb, but rather spiritually. Man needs a spiritual transformation. We call this regeneration.

After.

Acts 20:21 NIV says, “turn to God in repentance and have faith in our Lord Jesus.” Repentance is sorrow for your sins and turning from them, while faith is believing Jesus is who He says He is and did what He said He did. His work on the cross is sufficient for your sins. It is at this point that you get a spiritual makeover and you become like the following verse:

Read: 2 Corinthians 5:17 NIV

You don’t just get a little makeup powdered on you, you get a completely new heart. The Bible calls you a “new creation.” And listen to this verse:

Read: Colossians 1:22 NIV

The people that get on these makeover shows are hoping to get rid of all their blemishes. Christ takes away your blemishes in a way that plastic surgery could never do. Isn’t that what you want to be, “without blemish”?

I want to encourage you this morning. If you have not been ‘born again,’ then there is no better time than the present. The conviction you feel on your heart is the Holy Spirit convicting you of your sins. Without God drawing us to Christ we could never come to Him, because of our spiritual insensitivity. God is merciful in that He comes to us first. Won’t you make the next step?

2. A Physical Makeover

Have you ever wanted to change something about your physical appearance? Most of the time women say they want to lose weight. If you’ve ever tuned in to one of the reality shows that feature extreme makeovers, you see people who are looking for a changed life as a result of major physical changes they are fixing to undergo. Well, the physical makeover we are going to talk about this morning is not something you can attain at Curves, a local Spa, or at the hands of a plastic surgeon. Unlike current makeovers, this one is the most extreme one you’ll ever get, and it is currently something you will have to wait for, possibly until after you’re dead. Well how can a dead person have a makeover done on them, I mean what about the decay and the eventual turning to dust of the body, isn’t it a little late then?!

The Package Deal.

The first thing we need to establish is that your bodies will be resurrected. You needn’t worry about whether your current body gets aged and dies. Our bodies being raised from the dead is part of a package deal Christ finished on the cross. In fact Paul wrote the Roman church and said: