God created man in a way that he needs a wife as a helpmate to match him. But the highest purpose in God's giving a wife to a brother is to give him trouble so that he can be transformed. Many times it is the wife who troubles the husband the most and the husband who troubles the wife the most. God uses this situation to transform the husband and the wife. The wives perfect the husbands, and the husbands perfect the wives. Even our children become helpers to us in the process of transformation. We also need a job in order to live, and our job is used by the Lord to transform us. All of our daily necessities are troubles. People like to have a car, but the car becomes a trouble. People like to have computers, but computers also become a trouble to them. These troubles are ordained by God so that we can be transformed.

In my earlier ministry, I told people that our circumstances and environment are ordained by God for our transformation. But I did not realize as much as I do today. Everything we need becomes a trouble. God ordained these things so that we could be sonized, transformed.

Transformation is a continuation of regeneration. We have been regenerated and we are a new man, but the process does not stop there. The butterfly does not come out of the cocoon overnight. It comes out slowly. Sanctification, renewing, and transformation are all a continuation of regeneration to make us a new man with the divine and human natures. Eventually, 1 John 3 says that when He comes, we will see Him, and at that time we will be the same as He is (v. 2).

God has only one way to go in this whole universe. This is the way of His economy to gain many sons for His expression. The first step God took was His choosing. Ephesians 1 tells us that God's choosing was for His sanctification, for us to be holy (v. 4). God chose us in eternity, predestinating us unto sonship (v. 5). He chose us with an intention to get sons. After His choosing, He came as the Spirit to sanctify us, to separate us, from the heap of common people. The Spirit came to seek us, to enlighten us, to find us, and to get us (Luke 15:8-9). He worked to convict us (John 16:8), causing us to repent and stirring up our heart that we might have the desire to go to God. Then we became believers.

After He sanctified us as the Spirit, He regenerated us. First Peter 1:2 speaks of God's choosing and the Spirit's sanctifying. Then verse 3 says that following His sanctification, He regenerated us through the resurrection of Christ. Regeneration is the step following the Spirit's sanctification. First, God chose us; then God the Spirit came to sanctify us; and sanctification is for sonizing, which begins with the Spirit regenerating us.

For us to study the work of the Spirit on and in the believers is for us to study the real Christian life. Soon after I was regenerated, I wanted to know the real significance of regeneration. It was very difficult to find anyone who taught this. Eventually, I read a book by T. Austin-Sparks which really helped me. In that book he spoke a very precious word. He said that regeneration is to have God's life, as another life, in addition to your human life. This is the proper definition and significance of regeneration. For the Lord to give us a second birth means that He gave us another life, a second life, the divine life.