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Description
This tale begins with a caterpillar who once entertained any and every thought which crossed his mind. He was a despairing fellow who showed compassion to others but who, to himself, was unkind. He turned to food for comfort and became sluggish and plump. Those who know him would describe him as “constantly down in the dumps.” As the days shortened, he grew more and more depressed until that glorious day when he met a butterfly’s acquaintance. At first he was envious and despised himself more than ever before in the presence of this majestic monarch with wings of many colors. Then his envy was swallowed up by surprise as the butterfly fluttered over and landed at the caterpillar’s side, and asked inquisitively with a mysterious twinkle in his emerald green eyes “do you remember me?”

The caterpillar pondered the question incredulously. Never before had a butterfly spoken to him, and though he racked his brain, he had no recollection of even having ever seen a butterfly half as beautiful as the one who stood before him. He finally shook his head and mumbled “I’m afraid I don’t…”

The butterfly laughed, a contagious belly laugh. The sound was the sweetest melody ever to grace the caterpillar’s ears and he found himself, for the first time since he was a larvae, chuckling, forgetting his self-pity in the ecstasy of this wonderful moment. “It’s me!” the butterfly replied with a huge smile as if that should explain everything.

“Hey, you!” the caterpillar joked, good naturedly, which was very unlike him. It was as if just being around this splendid creature brought out the best in him, when as far as his history went, there was nothing good in him.

“Common, Cat. It’s Caper. Your childhood best friend.”

Cat’s jaw dropped. “Caper? But we thought… We thought you were dead.” Caper was the only one on earth who could raise Cat’s spirits with just a wink of his eye. His death… or rather what seemed at the time to be death… had sent Cat into a downward spiral from which he thought he’d never recover. “Were you… reincarnated?”

Caper burst out laughing. “What has gotten into you, Cat? You know reincarnation is nonsense made up by men who fear death and refuse to believe in Him who overcame death.”

“But you were in a cocoon… Isn’t that a caterpillar’s tomb?”

“Well, I suppose you could say I did die in that cocoon, but I did not die to life itself, but rather to my old way of life as a caterpillar, and I was born again to this new way of life as a butterfly.”

Cat just stared at him blankly.

Caper tried again. “Remember that time when we were laying on our bellies, munching on the leaves, and looking up at the stars together?”

Cat nodded slowly, “yeah. We were talking about how everything in creation reveals something of the Creator and His purpose for mankind.”

Caper became so enthusiastic he unconsciously began hovering. “Even us! Caterpillars reveal the Creator and His purpose for man in that they die to their old life as caterpillars and are transformed into new creatures –butterflies. They metamorphoō, which is the Greek word used both in “be transformed (metamorphoō) by the renewing of your mind” and “we all, with open face beholding as in a glass the glory of the Lord, are changed (metamorphoō) into the same image from glory to glory, even as by the Spirit of the Lord.” The Creator’s intention for man is that he would be crucified (cocooned, in our case) with Christ, and nevertheless live, yet not as he lived apart from Christ, but as an entirely new creature filled with the hope of glory— Christ Himself. God’s purpose is that man would no longer live by the law of sin and death, but, having died to that, would now live by a new law –the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus.

“So… are you saying that I could become a butterfly?”

“Yes! As soon as I broke through the cocoon and unfolded and strengthened my wings, I began flying around looking for you to tell you so. However, things look so different from the air that I wasn’t able to find you until I asked God for guidance. Flying is a pleasure beyond anything you could even imagine and this is what you were created for, Cat. Are you ready to enter the cocoon and come out a new creature?”

“Yes.”

Caper beamed. “He will tell you just what to do. As for me, I’m off to tell other caterpillars the good news.”

And so, the Creator told Cat just what to do and Cat did just that. After he was transformed into a butterfly, he joined Caper in his quest to tell the other caterpillars how they too could be transformed into butterflies. Now, if I may, I want to tell you today, you who are reading this, that you too can be transformed by the renewing of your mind with God’s Word. You can always rejoice and let the peace of God rule in your heart. You can walk in love, truth, and light. You can become a new creature in Christ. He has shown you in His Word just what to do. May you do just that, and be transformed. Amen.

Description
This tale begins with a caterpillar who once entertained any and every thought which crossed his mind. He was a despairing fellow who showed compassion to others but who, to himself, was unkind. He turned to food for comfort and became sluggish and plump. Those who know him would describe him as “constantly down in the dumps.” As the days shortened, he grew more and more depressed until that glorious day when he met a butterfly’s acquaintance. At first he was envious and despised himself more than ever before in the presence of this majestic monarch with wings of many colors. Then his envy was swallowed up by surprise as the butterfly fluttered over and landed at the caterpillar’s side, and asked inquisitively with a mysterious twinkle in his emerald green eyes “do you remember me?”

The caterpillar pondered the question incredulously. Never before had a butterfly spoken to him, and though he racked his brain, he had no recollection of even having ever seen a butterfly half as beautiful as the one who stood before him. He finally shook his head and mumbled “I’m afraid I don’t…”

The butterfly laughed, a contagious belly laugh. The sound was the sweetest melody ever to grace the caterpillar’s ears and he found himself, for the first time since he was a larvae, chuckling, forgetting his self-pity in the ecstasy of this wonderful moment. “It’s me!” the butterfly replied with a huge smile as if that should explain everything.

“Hey, you!” the caterpillar joked, good naturedly, which was very unlike him. It was as if just being around this splendid creature brought out the best in him, when as far as his history went, there was nothing good in him.

“Common, Cat. It’s Caper. Your childhood best friend.”

Cat’s jaw dropped. “Caper? But we thought… We thought you were dead.” Caper was the only one on earth who could raise Cat’s spirits with just a wink of his eye. His death… or rather what seemed at the time to be death… had sent Cat into a downward spiral from which he thought he’d never recover. “Were you… reincarnated?”

Caper burst out laughing. “What has gotten into you, Cat? You know reincarnation is nonsense made up by men who fear death and refuse to believe in Him who overcame death.”

“But you were in a cocoon… Isn’t that a caterpillar’s tomb?”

“Well, I suppose you could say I did die in that cocoon, but I did not die to life itself, but rather to my old way of life as a caterpillar, and I was born again to this new way of life as a butterfly.”

Cat just stared at him blankly.

Caper tried again. “Remember that time when we were laying on our bellies, munching on the leaves, and looking up at the stars together?”

Cat nodded slowly, “yeah. We were talking about how everything in creation reveals something of the Creator and His purpose for mankind.”

Caper became so enthusiastic he unconsciously began hovering. “Even us! Caterpillars reveal the Creator and His purpose for man in that they die to their old life as caterpillars and are transformed into new creatures –butterflies. They metamorphoō, which is the Greek word used both in “be transformed (metamorphoō) by the renewing of your mind” and “we all, with open face beholding as in a glass the glory of the Lord, are changed (metamorphoō) into the same image from glory to glory, even as by the Spirit of the Lord.” The Creator’s intention for man is that he would be crucified (cocooned, in our case) with Christ, and nevertheless live, yet not as he lived apart from Christ, but as an entirely new creature filled with the hope of glory— Christ Himself. God’s purpose is that man would no longer live by the law of sin and death, but, having died to that, would now live by a new law –the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus.

“So… are you saying that I could become a butterfly?”

“Yes! As soon as I broke through the cocoon and unfolded and strengthened my wings, I began flying around looking for you to tell you so. However, things look so different from the air that I wasn’t able to find you until I asked God for guidance. Flying is a pleasure beyond anything you could even imagine and this is what you were created for, Cat. Are you ready to enter the cocoon and come out a new creature?”

“Yes.”

Caper beamed. “He will tell you just what to do. As for me, I’m off to tell other caterpillars the good news.”

And so, the Creator told Cat just what to do and Cat did just that. After he was transformed into a butterfly, he joined Caper in his quest to tell the other caterpillars how they too could be transformed into butterflies. Now, if I may, I want to tell you today, you who are reading this, that you too can be transformed by the renewing of your mind with God’s Word. You can always rejoice and let the peace of God rule in your heart. You can walk in love, truth, and light. You can become a new creature in Christ. He has shown you in His Word just what to do. May you do just that, and be transformed. Amen.