Gospel-Centered Mentoring Patiently Seeks True Transformation
#8 in the Gospel-Centered Mentoring Series
Some Christian leaders fear that Christian mentoring attempts to manipulate Christians into maturity with God’s law, like pasting paper apples on a tree in June because you want fruit now, instead of waiting until the tree’s own apples to ripen naturally in the Fall. In fact, some are so nervous about accidentally becoming less than gospel-centered that they nearly avoid using God’s law to convict and guide God’s people. Truly, information is not the same as transformation. God’s law provides more information than we know what to do with, but the law itself does nothing to change us for the good (Romans 3:19,20; 7:7-25). It may turn us into hopeless failures or arrogant Pharisees, but it cannot transform us into wholehearted Christians. Unfortunately, many Christian mentoring, coaching, and discipleship programs primarily pursue obedience without properly emphasizing the critical role of the gospel in long-term transformation. Such an approach can lead mentees into ditches of despair or dangerous heights of arrogance but not to true transformation in Christ.
True Transformation Only Arises from the Gospel
So, what generates true transformation in Christ? Paul writes, “And we all, who with unveiled faces contemplate the Lord’s glory, are being transformed into his image with ever-increasing glory, which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit” (2 Corinthians 3:18). It is not obedience that transforms us into Christ’s image; but as we contemplate the Lord’s glorious gospel,[1] we are transformed into Christ’s image. This does not imply that maturing Christians will never grow in their obedience to God. It simply means that true transformation only arises from the gospel, not from our obedience. True transformation is identified by the belief that we need more grace every day. So, the goal of gospel-centered mentoring is not primarily moral transformation or social transformation, but heart transformation—from a heart that relies upon itself or other false gods, to a heart that rests fully in Christ.
Then, as we contemplate the Lord’s glory, we are transformed into Christ’s image, reflecting him in the different realms of our lives. The more that we grow in humble confidence as a child of God, filled with the peace, hope, and lasting joy that come from the gospel, the more our spirit wants to do what Jesus calls us to do.
Additionally, even though we certainly grow in our obedience to God as we mature in grace, outward obedience is not a reliable gauge of spiritual maturity. “There is no empirical gauge by which to measure the impact of this growth on our behavior” (Mattes, p 149). It is possible for someone to look very obedient and yet have a weak faith or no true faith in Jesus, as the example of the Pharisees warns us. It is also possible that those with true faith in Christ don’t always look as “holy” as we might expect them to.
Thus, Gospel-centered mentors confidently trust in their hearts what they know very well in their minds, that:
The gospel alone converted our mentees by the power of the Holy Spirit so they possess forgiveness of sins, new life, and eternal salvation right now; and
The gospel alone transforms our mentees so they can rest more fully in Christ and reflect him more faithfully (Colossians 3:1-10; 2 Corinthians 3:17; 5:17).
True Transformation Takes Time
Even with a mentor regularly helping a mentee, true gospel transformation takes time. The process of becoming wholehearted is usually a lifelong hike through hills and valleys, not a downhill sprint with the wind at our backs. It’s like two short parables Jesus told together in Matthew 13:31-33:
“The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed, which a man took and planted in his field. Though it is the smallest of all seeds, yet when it grows, it is the largest of garden plants and becomes a tree, so that the birds come and perch in its branches.” He told them still another parable: “The kingdom of heaven is like yeast that a woman took and mixed into about sixty pounds of flour until it worked all through the dough.”
When a seed germinates in the dark soil, the farmer doesn’t see any major growth for a long time; when a baker folds yeast into the dough, she must wait patiently for the dough to rise. But the seed and the yeast are quietly working to produce something healthy and tasty in the future.
Likewise, gospel-centered mentors recognize that because gospel transformation takes place deep in the soil of a mentee’s soul, it may not be evident for a long time; so, they avoid gauging a mentee’s maturity based on outward obedience and vocational performance. They do not shame mentees or manipulate them into obedience. They do not allow the pace of a mentee’s gospel transformation to frustrate them because gospel-centered mentors are confident that the Farmer is faithful and that the seed he planted is good. They know that “at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up” (Galatians 6:9). Gospel-centered mentors are confident that God “is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine” in the lives of their mentees (Ephesians 3:20).
Next: Gospel-Centered Mentoring Applies Law and Gospel Properly
[1]Note the how the Lord’s glory is described: v. 6 “the new covenant”; v. 8 “of the Spirit”; v. 9 “brings righteousness” vs. condemnation; v. 11 “that which lasts”.