Archived Daily Manna | Rejoice Fellowship | A mission to release people to rejoice in the world.

Message: Galatians 5 is a springboard that inevitably leads the reader to examine several weighty issues about Christian life. How may a person follow the Bible, while living in the world? It is a troublesome topic, and I don’t have all the answers; but I hope others will join me, or at least sympathize me, in my struggles to come closer to Christ. Head of Christ|Crown of Thorns by Cranach The more closely one tries to follow the Bible, the more difficult it becomes to reconcile one’s beliefs with secular society. The vast majority of Christians try very hard to integrate the Bible with life in the world, but inevitably this results in diluting Biblical values and commands. We end up with churches which neither teach nor follow the Bible as it is written. Christ warned us of this, time and time again. “And ye shall be hated of all men for my name’s sake.” (Luke 21:17, KJV.) “If the world hates you, know that it has hated me before it hated you. If you were of the world, the world would love you as its own; but because you are not of the world, but I chose you out of the world, therefore the world hates you.” (John 15:18-19, ESV.) And we must “hate” the world as it “hates” us. “You adulterous people! Do you not know that friendship with the world is enmity with God? Therefore whoever wishes to be a friend of the world makes himself an enemy of God.” (James 4:4, ESV.) On the other hand, we are enjoined to love and serve the people of the world. First, our fellow Christians: “Beloved, let us love one another, for love is from God, and whoever loves has been born of God and knows God. Anyone who does not love does not know God, because God is love.” (1 John 4:7-8.) Second, those who are not Christians. “And may the Lord make you to increase and excel and overflow in love for one another and for all people, just as we also do for you.” (1 Thess. 3:12, AMP.) Third, our enemies. “But I say unto you, Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you.” (Matthew 5:44, KJV.) purity - hands of Christian family Another aspect of the problem comes when people are exposed to Christ’s message and reject it. We may — in fact, it seems that we must — disassociate ourselves from them. “As you enter the house, give it your greeting. If the house is worthy, give it your blessing of peace. But if it is not worthy, take back your blessing of peace. Whoever does not receive you, nor heed your words, as you go out of that house or that city, shake the dust off your feet.” (Matthew 10:12-15, NASB.) As far as our friends and day-to-day associates are concerned, “Do not be bound together with unbelievers; for what partnership have righteousness and lawlessness, or what fellowship has light with darkness?” (2 Corinthians 6:14, NASB.) Who actually follows the Bible in this regard? Very few. As in so many areas, we do not do what the Bible tells us to do. Most Christians have replaced the Biblical teachings about relationships to non-Christians with the secular humanist value of being “nice”. The values often coincide and so it is easy for one to deceive oneself about it. In the United States, if we are employed outside a church, the Supreme Court coerces employers to hire non-Christians, including pagans and avowed atheists, and most of us choose employment. The Bible never urges us to starve, and Paul told the Thessalonians to “work with their hands.” But, truly, few people limit their non-Christian associations to employment. The Bible has become so watered-down in most Christian minds that we hardly give this, or many other of the hard teachings, more attention than is needed to form a weak excuse for it. “How can I,” one might say, “spread the Gospel unless I go out into the world?” Which is perfectly correct, except that we almost never lead our lives in the world in order to spread the Gospel. In fact, we would be fired, kicked out of school, blackballed from our clubs, and not invited to parties if we actually spent our time spreading the Gospel.