Permission - The Path to Transformation

• What’s the first step in transformation?

  • Where are we right now:

    • We were united with Death.

    • Christ repurposed Death for union with God—a God who doesn’t abandon us but meets us in our wounds.

  • So, what’s the first step in transformation from Death to Life?

• The Mystery of Permission

  • Revelation 3.

    • Why would God need to knock?

      • There is a mystery of divine partnership in union with God.

      • He will not force His way in but waits for permission.

    • But this text isn’t written to non-Christians—but to Christians.

      • The spiritual realm is permission based.

      • Even Christians can refuse Jesus entry into their room.

• The Union of Permission and Choice

  • Permission is infused with choice, and every cholce we mKe we become someone dllTerent.

  • So, who are you becoming?

• You Become What You Eat

  • Revelation 3:20 connections permission with another sacred act: eating

  • You are what you eat

    • Why? Because eating is granting permission - a choice of transformation

    • The Lord's Supper ( Matthew 26:26-28)

• Conclusion

  • We must empty ourselves of ourselves daily (Luke 9:23)

  • The first step of transformation is granting permission for Christ to enter - daily.

Discussion Questions for Video 6:

• Think about what you have done today. How are these choices shaping who you are?

• How is transformation a daily choice we make?

• What are good questions to ash ourselves or other people to reveal permissions we are granting?

• What “permissions” is our culture more prone to?

• What are things we participate in that affects us for better or for worse (e.g., sports teams, malls, rotary clubs, jobs, etc.)?

• What “permissions” should we grant to begin transformation in our lives?

• Are there parts of your life that you let God into, but others that you don ’t? How can you let God into every single aspect of your life?

• If what we “dwell on” we become, what do you spend the most time thinking about (e.g., your job, not being like your mom, etc.)?

• Is daily union with Christ an active or passive action? What does that look like in our daily life?

• Do you sometimes feel like you must earn God’s love? Or earn your salvation?

• How can the church use its everyday choices to further its transformation into becoming the church that God calls us to be?

• Do you think the reason that confession and repentance is so hard for us is that we haven’t fully grasped the concept that the spiritual world works through permission and that we have to grant God permission to transform us?

• How does the notion that God gives each person the unwavering permission to know, love, and pursue Him change our perception of His beautiful glory?

• What are some daily choices we can make to ensure we are granting permission for the Lord to enter us?

• Who are you becoming?