Adjustable

 

2 Corinthians 3:18, But we all, with open face beholding as in a glass the glory of the Lord, are changed into the same image from glory to glory, even as by the Spirit of the Lord.

It is correct to be able to adjust, make changes, grow, and experience transformation. It is a supreme tragedy when we are stubborn and immovable in many matters that impact our lives and that of others. It behooves us to cultivate the habit of flexibility…to become deeply adjustable where it counts.

Moses’ face had to be veiled after he had finished speaking with the people, but we can have an unveiled face. We can keep our face unveiled by confessing and forsaking sin, by being completely honest with God and ourselves. As a veteran missionary to India once said, we must “drop the veils of sin, of make-believe, all play-acting, all putting up of unreal fronts, all attempts at compromises, all halfway measures, all Yes and No.”^[1]

Certainly, every reasonable heart will agree with these sentiments. However, we are prone to cling to what we already know or perceive instead of being explorers.

This glory [2Cor. 3:18] is the experience of salvation available in the New Covenant and mediated by the Spirit who leads Christians from justification through sanctification to glorification. As believers manifest the fruit of the Spirit (Gal. 5:22–23), they are progressively being transformed (the same word Paul used in Rom. 12:2) into His likeness. Christlikeness is the goal of the Christian walk (Eph. 4:23–24; Col. 3:10). No wonder Paul said the New is far superior to the Old!^[2]

It was Dolly Parton who famously said, “We cannot direct the wind, but we can adjust the sails.” The reference clearly places a premium on being able to flex and be adjustable where you can and when it counts. Concerning cultural differences and variations, Paul said, For though I be free from all men, yet have I made myself servant unto all, that I might gain the more.  

He had the freedom to make himself a servant! Now he gives this very familiar testimony of his own ministry.

And unto the Jews I became as a Jew, that I might gain the Jews; to them that are under the law, as under the law, that I might gain them that are under the law; To them that are without law, as without law, (being not without law to God, but under the law to Christ,) that I might gain them that are without law. To the weak became I as weak, that I might gain the weak: I am made all things to all men, that I might by all means save some. And this I do for the gospel’s sake, that I might be partaker thereof with you.^[3] (1Cor. 9:19-23)

These verses should never be used to justify a sacrifice of scriptural principle. They merely describe a readiness to accommodate to the customs and habits of the people in order to win a hearing for the good news of salvation.^[4]

Furthermore, being adjustable involves adapting to changes in our spiritual, physical, professional, and social environments. In other words, we become adept in balancing conflicting needs, or requirements challenged by obstacles in our situations. We learn to prioritize more effectively….

The word translated changed [2Cor. 3:18] is the same word translated transfigured in the accounts of our Lord’s transfiguration (Matt. 17; Mark 9). It describes a change on the outside that comes from the inside. Our English word metamorphosis is a transliteration of this Greek word. Metamorphosis describes the process that changes an insect from a larva into a pupa and then into a mature insect. The changes come from within.^[5]

Sometimes when the wind is going against us it's more advantageous to stop fighting it and take on a new course of action that entails following the wind. Adjusting our sails does not mean that we won't reach the destination or that we have given up on the goal. It simply means we've taken an alternate route to get to where we’re going. An alternative may provide more capacity, a less congested pathway, and quicker advances to a downstream location. Such bypasses…detours are often the key to meaningful discoveries; they epitomize flexibility.

When sailors cry, “Anchors aweigh!” they are declaring there are no anchors on the sea floor. They are all clear and the boat is ready for departure. Certainly, the time is upon us all to be more flexible, adaptable, and adjustable spiritually, politically, professionally, emotionally, and perhaps socially. So, for genuine growth, happiness, peace, and contentment—change, “Anchors aweigh”. Really, the choice is yours and the ball is in your court.

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^[1] William MacDonald, Believer’s Bible Commentary: Old and New Testaments, ed. Arthur Farstad (Nashville: Thomas Nelson, 1995), 1831.

^[2] David K. Lowery, “2 Corinthians,” in The Bible Knowledge Commentary: An Exposition of the Scriptures, ed. J. F. Walvoord and R. B. Zuck, vol. 2 (Wheaton, IL: Victor Books, 1985), 562.

^[3] J. Vernon McGee, Thru the Bible Commentary, electronic ed., vol. 5 (Nashville: Thomas Nelson, 1997), 42–43.

^[4] William MacDonald, Believer’s Bible Commentary: Old and New Testaments, ed. Arthur Farstad (Nashville: Thomas Nelson, 1995), 1778.

^[5] Warren W. Wiersbe, The Bible Exposition Commentary, vol. 1 (Wheaton, IL: Victor Books, 1996), 640.