Real Change: The Act of Laying It Down

I am fascinated with change — with transformation; I am uncertain about the reason for this fascination. I am just fascinated. When my students and I study and dialogue about a novel, one major thread that runs through our discussions is this business about static vs. dynamic characters. Static characters in literature or film are one dimensional at best; they are the same throughout the story, while dynamic characters go through definitive changes. Perhaps it is the process, although not always a pleasant one for the characters, that enthralls me. Your guess is as good as mine.

I suppose it is important to state that change can be beneficial or it can be destructive. So I want to emphasize that I am talking about good change. One character in the Bible who is striking to me and who goes through a change for the better is Judah, the son of Jacob (a former grifter —manipulator, and con artist who goes through an amazing transformation himself). In Genesis chapter 37, we find that Judah is the mastermind behind selling his brother, Joseph into slavery, “Come let’s sell him to the Ishmaelites” (37:27). By Chapter 38, he’s sleeping with his daughter-in-law, Tamar, which results in the pregnancy of twins. Judah is a certified mess.

But something happens to Judah throughout the years. The Bible is not explicit in terms of the Judah’s metamorphosis, but by Chapter 44, Judah is willing to trade his freedom for that of his younger brother’s, Benjamin. Is Judah’s change due to being around his father, Jacob, whose life was so dramatically changed by God that his transformation influenced the very character of his sons? Is it the fact that Judah had traveled down some difficult roads? Learned some hard lessons as a result? Was it maturation? Maybe it was all the above. What we do know is that the crimes of Judah’s past – jealousy, hatred, and thoughtlessness are replaced by selflessness, humility, and ultimately, sacrifice. It is no coincidence that his gracious act foreshadows that of his descendant's, none other than Jesus Christ.

What about our transformation? What about the change that God seeks in us as His kids? As I’m typing this, I am reminded of a conversation that I had with the Lord as I drove to work one glorious fall day. The school where I teach is located in the country. It’s nothing to see cattle blocking the road as you speed (God help!) in order to get to work on time. As I was driving, I looked up to admire the beautiful reds, oranges, and golds that seemed to hover like a canopy. I expressed to God how beautiful I thought the leaves were, and He so gently responded, “Yes, but they’re dying. And as you die to yourself, I see it as beautiful.”

So perhaps this is really the key to Judah’s transformation — day-by-day, little-by-little, year-by-year he learned to die (thanks, Terri) —to lay it all down on the altar of God. During life’s difficult seasons, he laid it all down. In the daily processes of life, when nothing was really going on, he laid it all down. When he felt like it and when he didn’t feel like it, down it went. Eventually, God's ways became Judah's ways. In the process, in a time when he could have remained silent and reverted to his former behavior, Judah was willing to lay it all down for the freedom of his own brother, because laying it down is what he'd been practicing all those years. That’s true character transformation. When we get to that place, God cheers with delight and says, “That’s so beautiful!” That’s real change – that’s something you can really believe in.
-Kimberly Rae Ross