Metamorphosis is an event that happens in certain aspects of biological life that entails a journey of change from one form into another form, but not just an external, physical change only, but a complete change of form and nature. The word itself, metamorphosis, denotes a change of mind and nature which is necessary in order to operate and function in the new form that takes place. In this chapter of our study on this phenomenon of transformation, we will be focusing upon the inner workings of such a change, rather than the more obvious, external changes that take place in such an outworking process. This is especially critical for us that are presently experiencing such internal eruptions of God’s operation of salvation for the whole man. In earlier stages of God’s plan for the ages, the focus of the Body of Christ was upon outward signs of God’s workings within mankind, such as signs and wonders, healings and miracles, including the raising of the dead, the blind seeing, the deaf hearing, etc., etc. In this Age of ages that we are living in, the focus is changing for us who are now sons of God ready to take our place in the participation of the unveiling of Jesus Christ to the masses. In order for this to take place, there must first come about a great and complete change in these sons, so the inner man is seen and heard in a corporate expression of the New Man in Christ. Heavens will pass away with a loud noise, the earth will be broken amidst great disruptions and quakes, elements will melt and old heavens will burn up and be removed. But, that which remains after this great shaking and rearrangement will be eternally rooted in the Christ Nature, unblemished, unspotted and singular in vision and purpose. This is the process and this is the journey upon which we have embarked, and it is not a process for the weak of heart and the uncommitted. As long as we love our life, as long as we are double minded, as long as we are drawn aside by our own carnal lusts, as long as we crave attention and individual fame, as long as we remain competitive and ambitious, as long as we allow jealousy and envy to take place in our heart, as long as we hurt and destroy in God’s holy mountain, as long as we refuse to forgive our enemies, as long as we devour the weak and raid the helpless, as long as we hide the Truth and follow fables and legends, as long as we allow prejudice and dishonor to remain in our lives, as long as we remain the OLD CREATURE, this change cannot and will not happen! We must DIE to the old nature and be transformed by the new nature. We MUST! It is not a wish, or a desire of our heart, it is a necessity and a commandment from our Father. WE MUST BE CHANGED!!

It has been said that a picture is worth a thousand words and in dealing with these issues of change and transformation the scriptures portray a beautiful portrait of restoration and reconciliation by using common examples that we are all familiar with. In the prophetic scripture above, Isaiah uses stereo-types of animals that normally behave according to a specific nature and disposition to show how in the ages to come, there will be a change take place in the hearts of the sons of God that will trumpet the emergence of a new age of harmony and unity within the inner being of these chosen vessels of God. This transformation must be accomplished first in a first-fruit company of sons and then it will be demonstrated and put on open display by God to all men everywhere, who, as beholding in a glass the glory of the Lord, will all be changed into that same image and likeness found in each son of God, fully expressing and manifesting the incorruptible nature of their Master and Lord. This is the appearing of Christ in His saints, and is accomplished by reason of a fiery transformation that has worked an elemental, nuclear changed in the inner most being of each son. By son, I mean to differentiate this chosen vessel of God from the servant realm, which is a realm of "whosoever will", but the true sons ar those that are apprehended by God, not asked and invited to participate in such a metamorphosis of character and nature, but these sons of destiny are actually harpooned and dragged to such an occasion! They have no other recourse! Once the Lord has seized them, there is no turning back and to assure there is no chance of such a returning to where they have been snatched from, all of their former paths are burned up by the operation of the spirit of God. Doors that were wide open to them are slammed shut in their face. Loved ones turn their back on these appointed messengers, their reputations are dragged through the mud, ministerial positions are revoked, the phone stops ringing, they are cut off from all former associations and they become isolated and confined, without friend or foe, left with only One Hope, to trust in only one True Friend, to hear only One True Voice, rely on only One Source, stand on only One Foundation, live for only One Cause, serve only One Master, Jesus Christ, the Author and the Finisher of their faith! Great Day of God Almighty! For such a time and occasion have these sons been prepared from before the foundations of the earth and every one will lose their head and be found in Christ, lost and swallowed up into His wondrous Nature, Named with that Name, Anointed with that Anointing, called with that Calling. The world has never seen such a company of sons that have ladi their lives down and sworn allegiance to their King and Lord, the Captain of their salvation. They can’t be bought and they can’t be schmoozed by the religious Whore of Babylon, her voice does not fall upon their ears, for their hearts are circumcised and their minds are renewed. This is the great Transformation that we are walking into today and I do pray for us all, that we will not fear this great experience, but that we may embrace it and cling to that Purpose that has called us from this world of care into such a private and intimate chamber of birth and renewal.

This is a Day where God is breaking the cycle of death and corruption. This is why we have been birthed in such a time, to break the mold of Adam and to allow the reality of the Christ-Life to take place in mankind. Mankind has been encased in a hard shell of limited, carnal life, hopelessly locked into that state and condition. We know that One has broken that prison door and has made a way for us to boldly enter into that New Life. But, it is not enough for only that One to enter into this eternal life, but the will of the Father is for that inheritance to be hand delivered to all mankind. It has been the choice of God to accomplish this transfer of the riches of Christ to all men through a company of sons that have been embossed with the Name and Authority of Jesus Christ, Ambassadors of His glory, Stewards of His storehouse. When the scriptures declare that we are being changed into His image, it literally means His image is being embossed upon us, which is so much more that just a change of mind, or belief in God, but necessitates a shift of our substance, a literal change of our form. Embossment happens when an object is remolded, such as a designer might emboss their logo upon a sheet of metal, where the metal itself takes on the shape of the logo, an icon of that company, and permanently alters the surface of the metal through heat and pressure. So it is, we as the chosen people of God’s purpose are being put to the heat and made pliable and changeable, and we are then being pressed into the image, the form and expression, of Christ, which makes us In-Christed, bringing to pass the scriptural declaration, "As He is, so are we in this world!" If you have seen me, you have seen Him, for He has embossed His expression upon me, and I am hid in Christ. What a grand time to be walking in God!

Each animal described by Isaiah in the key scriptures above needs no introduction and we do not have to go to the dictionary to find out about these creatures, as they have all acted out their roles in such purity of nature that the reader can immediately discern that this is a description of an unbelievable change of behavior in creatures that have been historically locked into their specific behavior patterns. What the prophet describes here is characters that are behaving entirely uncharacteristically! But, let us not just pass over this astounding scenario without gleaning some very significant information that will be immensely relevant and helpful to us in understanding what the spirit of God is performing in our own transformation as "new creatures" in Christ Jesus.

Throughout the history of man, certain creatures in our world have retained an image that is instantly recognizable as either predator or victim and Isaiah uses this ancient imagery to show how God plans to change those ingrained traits into a new state of behavior and identity. However, it is extremely important for us to understand that the actual change that takes place in these stereotypical role models has to do more with the predator than the victim aspect of these distinct animal types.

The WOLF may be the greatest stereotype of a predator known to mankind. The name itself has become a staple in our language for something vicious and cruel, predatory and violent, slinky and cunning. A man is said to be "wolfish" if he is behaving unsavory toward the opposite sex, slinking about to prey upon naïve women susceptible to his predatory goals. Many of us grew up as children reading of Little Red Riding Hood and her dealings with a cunning wolf dressed up as her Grandmother, going to great lengths to get the little girl close enough to gobble her up. Horror stories of humans that turn into werewolves have always been popular in our modern day, conjuring up images of a fearsome creature that curdles the blood because of the legendary ferocity of the creature itself. Carnivorous and living in packs, the wolf is famous for its cunning ability to hunt and steal its kill from other herds of animals that cannot protect themselves against the sharp teeth and pure strength of the beast. Wolves will find a flock of sheep and pick out the weakest or youngest lamb and isolate it from the rest of the flock, then falling upon and tearing it to pieces, feasting upon the helpless creature with a hunger that has made the wolf legendary. In spite of all of the urban legend surrounding this mysterious animal, there are those that have studied the life of the wolf in the wild that will tell a different story than is commonly known about this animal. A loving parent, playful and loyal to the family, which paints a picture of this predator that is in stark contrast to the image of a bloodthirsty killer. The truth is, all creatures of the wild are truly WILD, but man has a tendency to try to "humanize" all animals and as a result, there are many seemingly opposing opinions about such creatures as the wolf and other predators. The domestication of the dog and other animals has attributed to mankind’s skewed outlook on nature and its residents. We think WOLVES should behave more like Lassie and stop all of that maiming and killing of such innocent creatures as the gentle and meek LAMB. But, the WOLF is doing nothing wrong, he is simply acting out his role that he has been created into, a predator that must eat meat in order to stay alive, and the simple truth is, the poor animal cannot go shopping at Krogers to pick that meat up in the meat department, already killed, butchered and packaged out of the sight of impressionable humans and then take it home to devour it. The WOLF will have to run down it’s prey, grab it and wrestle it to the ground and then try to kill it by tearing it’s throat out, all so it can eat the meat on the bone, so to speak.

So, where is the sin in that? Well, in the world of the predator and the prey, there is absolutely no sin to it at all! God has made it so. Animals must act like animals, some will act as predators and have even been given the tools to be a predator by having a physical form that lends itself to the activity and nature of a predator, i.e. – long, sharp teeth, powerful jaws, strong muscles, etc. Indeed, it seems to me that the physical form of the predator is actually dictated by the nature that is contained within that form, rather than the form dictating the nature it contains. In fact, I believe that this is a fundamental principle involving all things in our universe, namely, the form or external shape of things are dictated by the internal nature and function of those things. If we accept such a premise, then we can see how the natural and the spiritual are both locked into their separate forms, by reason of the distinct and respective nature of those two dimensions. As predator and prey are uniquely entwined with one another, yet directly opposed to one another, so the natural is inherently connected to the spiritual, but directly opposed to one another in their form and function. As I have written, the actual change that takes place in Isaiah’s prophecy has more to do with the predators listed than the prey that are listed. So it is that in the overall transformation that is to take place in all of God’s creation, the focus of that change is on the natural elements, not on the spiritual. As the WOLF takes on the attributes of the LAMB, even so the natural, corruptible creation will take on the attributes of the spiritual substance of God Almighty!

Although this is all in order in the present course of things, as seen in the balance of nature between the hunter and the hunted, we are now reaching into a new dimension and time in God when the partitions that have separated the natural and the spiritual are being rent and a great compounding of these distinct and independent elements are being joined together to form a new thing in God, a new heaven and a new earth. Isaiah’s prophecy declares that there is coming an age when the order of the earth is going to change, which will be especially noticeable in the change of nature and genetic dispositions in the elements contained within the old earth. Personally, I do not believe that God throws the old earth and the old heaven away and creates brand new ones. I believe the old earth and the old heavens pass away by reason of a process of transformation, which brings out the new earth and the new heavens from within the old ones! This is not speaking of the literal planets themselves passing away, but it is speaking of us! Our old earthy self must pass away, become void and without form, so the new form of the new earth can be raised upon us. The old man is buried in Christ, and the New Man is that which rises from our being, swallowing up the corruptible form into the incorruptible form of Christ. Of course, when Isaiah writes of the wolf and the lamb, the lion and the calf, the child and the asp, he is not writing about those natural creatures themselves, but he is using those creatures as types and examples of the distinct difference between our own being, both divine and human, both ravenous and gentle, both wolfish and lamblike. Eventually, the predator must no longer lust after the prey, and the prey must not fear the predator, as love takes its awesome place in the center of all things. Love is the missing key in the disarrangement of the present world. As God starts to bring true, divine arrangement back into His creation, LOVE will be the driving force behind that rearrangement. There is, in all of God’s creation, a hidden and untapped element of pure LOVE that is yet to be experienced by the ancient order of a fallen world. Yes, we have experienced a measure of love in our lives, and that has lifted us up from the earth in a special way, but there is a LOVE that is in us that cannot be measured or comprehended. It is an instinctual LOVE, not conscious or emotional, but innate in our being, by reason of our beginnings in the image and likeness of God Himself, who IS LOVE. This LOVE is not spoken by mere words, as so many do today, mouthing the words, "I love you", which cheapens the kind of LOVE I am writing about. This LOVE cannot be spoken from the mouth of man, it is beyond expression of language, but its expression is a creative force that will bring us through our imminent transformation. This unspeakable, unknowable LOVE is the force and vitality behind the process of metamorphosis and it is a force that cannot fail, nor will it fall short of its intended, finished work.

The WOLF cannot stop acting wolfish simply by trying to teach it a new philosophy of "lamb-life", or by sending it to "lamb school". Neither can you beat the WOLF to try to rid it of its wolfish behavior. You can punish it, chain it up, starve it, rebuke it, threaten it, and more, but at the end of the day, you will still have a WOLF on your hands with an inherent wolfish nature. You can even try to dress it up like a lamb, covering it with wool and hiding its fearsome visage, but all you will end up with is a WOLF in lamb’s clothing. The only thing that can change the WOLF is the LOVE that is expressed through the true LAMB nature. Once the WOLF experiences this LOVE of the LAMB, it will no longer be subject to the wolfish nature, but LOVE will have its way in the WOLF and the hunger will be no more. Of course, I am not writing about some animal, dear one of God, I am writing about you! Oh yes! Our WOLF will no longer snarl and bite within us, neither will our wolfish desires run rampant over us, but our LAMB will win over our WOLF with that inexpressible power of TRUE LOVE, which even now is wooing our beast and causing us to cry HOLY! Again, let me be clear on this point, our WOLF is not to be cowered and beaten down into a submissive posture that is forced upon it by reprimand, as this would only assuage our wolfish nature for a period of time, which would rise up again at some point in time, when we would least expect it. Oh no, dear one of God, this transformation is not to have a subjected WOLF at our feet, but it is a transformation that will truly change the desire and heart of the WOLF, causing this wolfish beast to fall head over heals in love with the LAMB, embracing the LAMB, protecting the LAMB, thinking as the LAMB thinks, loving as the LAMB loves. What a wonder Isaiah writes about, a WOLF that is not wolfish, freely dwelling with the LAMB, not chained down in the presence of the LAMB, not confined and drooling with desire to tear the LAMB’s throat out and devour it, but at peace and contentment with the LAMB. Wonder of wonders! Isaiah goes on in his prophetic imagery, speaking of the leopard lying down with the kid, and the calf and the young lion and the fatling being together, without any tearing of flesh or violent intentions on the behalf of the converted predators, but all at peace and oneness. Then, wonder of wonders, he speaks of a child leading this parade of love and peace, which is only fitting that in the presence of such transformation within the ranks of the beastly natures represented by the prophet, that Innocence Personified should lead it in an open display of the power and authority of TRUE LOVE. Yes, dear ones of God, our Child will lead this parade of LOVE victorious through our own being, as a testimony and witness of God’s overwhelming LOVE and NATURE at work in our house, investing all things with its outworking principle of transformation. Praise His holy Name!

The prophecy of Isaiah continues to unfold the length and height and depth and width of this transformation as he continues to portray the predator endued with the same mind and heart of the prey. The cow and the bear shall feed, not on each other, but on common food. Then, to even further the scope of this marvelous transformation, he declares that their offspring will lie down together. How glorious it is to see that the change that is pictured in this prophecy extends even to the offspring, showing to us that the very roots of the seed of corruption have been plucked up and will no longer bear fruit in the following generations. Again, this is not some kind of behavior modification program instituted here, but it is a change at the nuclear level of the bear, and reaches into their following generations. Ancient and historical creatures that have been locked into a role of predator and prey, are now living in a new order of life, at ease with one another. Then, even more detail about the extent of this transformation, as Isaiah declares that the lion will eat straw like the ox. Mind boggling! The lion is famous for his carnivorous appetite, gouging huge hunks of flesh from his prey, gorging himself upon the prey’s flesh until he can eat no more, and then lazily stretching out on soft grass and sleeping it off, purring with a deep rumbling contentment of satisfaction. This is the picture we have grown up with concerning this majestic creature, but now, according to this prophecy, the lion is no longer a flesh devouring beast, but he has now developed a great fondness for straw! Now, it is a fact that the body and form of the lion is not suited for eating straw, with the massive jaws and large teeth and sharp claws being suited more for rending the flesh and breaking the bones of the prey he used to hunt. But, here now is the huge creature, contented to chew cud like the ox, having exchanged his violent mannerisms for the docile appetites of his former prey, which illustrates even further where the focus of the transformation is centered upon, the predator and not the prey.

Now, if you were a curious sort of person, you might be thinking, "I wonder why the Lord has chosen to change the inner nature of such creatures, but not their outer form and shape, leaving them with the same physical attributes that are still associated with their former appetites and behaviors." I am glad you asked that question. It has always been my opinion that in the ages to come, as we continue to experience our transformation through the process of metamorphosis, we will eventually be "like HIM". However, it is my opinion that we will always have our testimony of being redeemed man, and not created angel. By this I mean, that we will give glory to God throughout eternity, and how else are we to give glory to our Father but by bearing upon us the mark of our great salvation and redemption, which is namely, our humanity. I am not a Being Of Light, or a GOD that had no sin, I am a Redeemed Man, a God-man and for that reason I will always stand as a witness to the power of God’s LOVE, that took such a creature and renewed it, transforming it by His own hand, into a wondrous and illustrative portrait of God’s creative nature. Looking at the prophecy of Isaiah, please tell me, who do you think truly glorifies God and illustrates His grace and transforming LOVE? Is it the lamb, or the calf, or the kid, or the child? No, dear one of God, the truly glorifying creatures of this prophecy are the wolf that is no longer wolfish, the lion that is no longer a flesh-eater, the leopard that is no longer a predator, these are the images that cause one to sit up and take notice, for these are the ones that are living contrary to their former innate instincts, and God saw fit to have them keep their outer shell of who they once were, so we can stand up and cheer God for His curious and wondrous redemptive power! Even so, we are set to be God’s glory throughout the ages and on to eternity, by reason of our redemption and salvation through the vivifying power of the Christ-Life that has been bestowed so freely upon such lowly creatures as us. For this reason, Christ is personified as the Lion of Judah, and the Lamb of God. He is the Lion with the heart of the Lamb, a Priest-King, a spiritual warrior with a sword and a heart of compassion. Sounds incompatible in our world, but in His world, these are all elements and personalities that flow out of the unity of LOVE. Love that will not let us go, will not let us stay bound, will not let us stay unchanged, but is always working for our good, for us and not against us, making war against all the elements of corruption that would keep us locked into our role of prey or predator, love that believes for us when we cannot believe for ourselves. This is the Compound Man, the Pattern of the New Creature, a Specie of God-man that will cause all heaven to wonder at such a thing.

Remember, the process of metamorphosis is that of a change brought about by a resident and indwelling nature that influences and dictates the outer form. The outer form is indicative of the inner nature of the creature. We have, in our past life, had two natures at war in our being, the Wolf and the Lamb, the corruptible and the incorruptible. First the natural, then the spiritual, so we have borne the external image of the earthy by reason of an inner nature of the Wolf, but at the core of our being, at a nuclear level, we are first and foremost a lamb! Our true genetic identity is the Lamb, not the Wolf. Our genesis is in the Lamb, and the Wolf is a necessary element of our redemptive course, but it is not our dominant genetic self.

1 Cor 15:46-49
46 Howbeit that was not first which is spiritual, but that which is natural; and afterward that which is spiritual.
47 The first man is of the earth, earthy: the second man is the Lord from heaven.
48 As is the earthy, such are they also that are earthy: and as is the heavenly, such are they also that are heavenly.
49 And as we have borne the image of the earthy, we shall also bear the image of the heavenly. (KJV)

In I Cor. 15:44, Paul declares that there is a natural body and there is a spiritual body. Right now, we are only cognizant of the outer, natural body, which is in essence a chaff-like shell, but inside of that external form, there is a spiritual body, already resident! That is the house that Paul declares in II Cor 5:1-5 that is a heavenly house, which we must clothed with, putting it on over this limited and corruptible flesh and blood body. In this scenario, the flesh and blood body will be no more, and the spiritual, heavenly house that we put on will not stay as it is either, as it is entwined into a new compound with the earthly body, thus a new body, both heaven and earth, but in this union, it is NEITHER! This is the trademark of the New Man, a Man that once was many things, but now He is neither of those, yet all of those combined in a new and more excellent way! For now we are NEITHER male nor female, bond nor free, Greek nor Gentile, but a New Creature.

We are not a simple creature with an amoeba-like existence, one dimensional and singularly important. We, mankind, are a multidimensional, multilevel, multi-tiered being which the great Creator did His best creative work upon. An amalgamation of such opposite elements should by all rights be unable to coexist, but we are also invested with the makeup of our Creator-Father God, which is our saving grace. However, we must now come to the Great Purpose for which we were created, to become a compound of sin and grace, darkness and light, death and life, man and God, through a process of entwinement and tabernacling that will cause the death and poison in us to be canceled out by the Life and Glory of our inherent qualities of God. This is what a compound is, the joining of two or more pure elements which gives each element new and different properties and functions. Compounds are the very prototype of what God has planned for Himself and His creation. Left to himself, man is limited and unable, a pitiful and schizophrenic creature that is constantly at war with the complexities of his makeup. His only hope is to be joined to God and to be transformed by that Divine Life. In any form of compounds, each element remains in its pure self, but by being bonded to other pure elements, such as Hydrogen with Oxygen in the chemical compound of H2O, both elements of hydrogen and oxygen take on new properties than they had before they bonded with one another. Once locked into the chemical mold of being and behaving as gases, now they are bonded into a new chemical form that allows them to behave in a new manner, as liquid and not gas. Wonder of wonders! Can you see how this so clearly symbolizes to us how the joining of the genetic makeup of God with the genetic makeup of man will form a New Man, a New Species of God-man, with new properties and characteristics that neither one had before this glorious marriage of parts? When this marvelous Plan of God is finished there will be a new race of creature with God, which came out from God and returned back into God, now filled with God, Life of His Life, Spirit of His Spirit. This is the great Metamorphosis for mankind, subjected unto vanity, lowered into the realm of the dust life, shut up from his true identity by the law until a time appointed of His Creator-Father, then a Birth and a Life and a Death and a Burial and a Resurrection, out of which came a prototype Son, a King-Priest Order, that for 2 days has been working in the hearts of men, and now at the dawning of the 3^rd Day, there begins to rise a chosen Seed of promise that will bring to this earth realm the Divine Image and Likeness of the One that began it all in Himself!

To Be Continued:

Written by Bob Torango