Radical Conversion
Radical conversion is a life turned wholly to God and heavenly things, with a unification of personality and a turning about of the whole life.
A.W. Tozer emphasizes the necessity of radical conversion, asserting that true conversion leads to a unified life directed towards God and eternal matters. He acknowledges the internal struggles believers face, as described in Romans, but insists that the direction of one's life must be firmly established towards God. Tozer critiques the trend of emotional conversions that lack a full commitment to Christ, warning that such experiences can be more detrimental than beneficial. He highlights the importance of a complete turning to God, rather than settling for a half-hearted faith that offers little in the way of true spiritual fulfillment. Ultimately, Tozer calls for a return to a more profound and transformative understanding of conversion that fully aligns with God's will.
Text
Let a man but become, as the early Methodists would have said, soundly converted, and certain things will begin to happen in his life. He will experience a wonderful unification of personality and a turning about of the whole life toward God and heavenly things. Though he will undoubtedly suffer from the inward struggle described in the seventh chapter of Romans, yet his direction will be established beyond any doubt and his face will remain turned toward the City of God. That word direction should have more emphasis these days, for the most important thing about a life is its direction.
David hardly said anything more significant than this: I have set the Lord always before me: because he is at my right hand, I shall not be moved. And the Hebrews' writer summed it all up in one sentence, Looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith. An emotional conversion which stops short of Christ-orientation is inadequate for life and death, and, unless new help comes from some quarter, it may easily be worse than no religious experience at all. And just this would appear to be the source of our bad orientation.
The original experience of conversion was not sufficiently radical to turn the life wholly to God and things eternal. Then when religious leaders found that they had on their hands half-converted persons who wanted to be saved but would not turn fully to God, they tried to meet the situation by providing a twilight-zone religion which did not demand too much and which did offer something. Better have them halfway in, they reasoned, than all the way out. We know now how bad that reasoning was.
Sermon Outline
- The Nature of Radical Conversion
- The Importance of Direction
- The Problem of Inadequate Conversion
- The Need for Radical Conversion
- The original experience of conversion was not radical enough
- A twilight-zone religion is not a solution
Key Quotes
“That word direction should have more emphasis these days, for the most important thing about a life is its direction.” — A.W. Tozer
“I have set the Lord always before me: because he is at my right hand, I shall not be moved.” — A.W. Tozer
“Looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith.” — A.W. Tozer
Application Points
- A life turned wholly to God and heavenly things is the most important thing in life.
- Christ-orientation is essential for establishing direction in life.
- A twilight-zone religion is not a true solution, but rather a compromise that may lead to spiritual stagnation.