ICS Daily Devotions
We Are Not Of This World
Romans 12:2 2 And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God.
The Holy Spirit spoke through Paul and asked us not to be conformed or fashioned to this world, where fashion literally means schemed together with. In the J.B Philips Translation, it is not letting the world around you squeeze you into its mold but let God remold your minds from within. The world is referring to cosmos or world order. Since Adam sinned, it is a satanically arranged and controlled world order. The Bible tells us that we are of God but the whole world lies under the sway of the wicked one. Knowingly or unknowingly, the world is pulling us, pressurizing us and trying to squeeze us into its mold and derail us from our Christian faith, values and principles so that we would feel discouraged and drop out of the Christian walk with God.
Ephesians 6:12-13 “We are not contending against flesh and blood, but against the principalities, against the powers, against the world rulers of this present darkness, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places. Therefore, take the whole armor of God that you may be able to withstand in the evil day and having done all, to stand”.
Satan and all his hosts have one main target, our faith and confidence in God. Satan and his host would want to sift your faith. Because as John says, “This is the victory that overcomes the world, our faith.” It is our faith in God that will help us overcome the world that tries to squeeze or fashion us into conforming with its ways and system. If Satan can destroy that, he has all he wants. Therefore, what is involved in keeping the faith if it is like resembled to a race and a fight?
Jesus is the way, the truth and the life. Nobody comes to the Father except through Him. God is the source of our provision and a good Heavenly Father. As Christians, we ought to put God first above all else. We are to love our spouse and watch over our marriage covenant as Christ loves the church. “Whom God has joined together let no man put asunder”. We are to be honest, not lie, steal nor bear false witness against another. Most importantly, we belong to Christ and live our lives for Him.
John 15:19 “If you were of the world, the world would love its own. Yet because you are not of the world, but I chose you out of the world, therefore the world hates you.“
Jesus said we are in the world but not of the world. The world molds our thinking very subtly by inputting values in us through the media. If you grew up in a non-Christian family and was the first one to receive Christ into your life, having to share with your family your conversion with your family and explain to them your conviction that you do not eat food offered to idols may be your first fight of faith.
Heb 13:4 Marriage is honorable among all, and the bed undefiled; but fornicators and adulterers God will judge.
One distinctive area of the faith struggle is also marriage. We believe as Christians that sex should be consummated within marriage and that the marriage bed is sacred. However, the fight of faith in a young person’s life today is permeated with the huge infiltration of the liberal thinking saying that it is all right to have sex before marriage, which wrecks the young person’s life and his or her Christian faith. Therefore, it is important to be clear in the aspect of our values and to stand by it by fighting against the molding, the fashioning and the conforming to the world’s standard. There is a tremendous scar, hurt, disillusion, even hatred of self after being betrayed.
If one youth were to have the courage to stand up and say no to sex before marriage, there will be of his or her peers who are under the same pressure waiting to stand up for what is right and have their first breakthrough. Our youths need to be different by willing to fight and stand on their beliefs. And the same challenge concerns all of us who believe onto the name of our wonderful Lord Jesus. Let us not be conformed to this world and live up to God’s standards!
Sermon Series: Finishing Well
