Not conformed, but transformed

I’ve mentioned that creating tension is a means for gaining interest in the classroom. For Romans 12:2-3, the verses comprising the next step in this lesson “Love in Worship”, John Piper creates tension in the following text:

“How does the command not to be conformed to this world relate to Paul’s statement in 1 Corinthians 9:22, “I have become all things to all people, that by all means I might save some”? How is becoming all things to all people not conforming to the world? Or how does the command not to conform to the world, that is, to be counter-cultural, relate to Paul’s words in 1 Corinthians 10:32-33? “Give no offense to Jews or to Greeks or to the church of God, just as I try to please everyone in everything I do, not seeking my own advantage, but that of many, that they may be saved.” How does not being conformed to the world fit with not giving offense to the world? You can’t always do both. How does not being conformed to the world fit with pleasing everyone for the sake of salvation?”

Use Piper’s article as a basis for discussing Romans 12:2-3. The idea of ‘transformation’ can be illustrated with the caterpillar/butterfly example, the transformer toy example, or by the character Scully from the popular X-Files show of a few years ago. Scully started the series as an antagonistic, spying skeptic on partner Mulder, but by the end of the series, she was a full-fledged believer in the X-Files. Although the illustration is offbeat it does illustrate the idea Paul had in mind that transformation is a repeated process of changing one’s mind to see matters from a Godly perspective.