How Different Are We?

As Christians, how are we different?  I was driving to the post office to drop off some mail that the guys in Puebla asked me to drop for them, and I passed a person in a car that I thought I recognized.  Big shades, big hair, expected vibe from the target age group, etc., etc..  I am not 100% it was the girl I thought it was, but I had a thought that might be worth considering none-the-less.  As Christians, how are we different than the world?  Surely there is little chance of getting a good read on someone while passing them in oncoming traffic, but upon thorough evaluation, how will we be found to be different from the culture and mass of other people around us, who are indeed lost and animated by the spirit of the age?  Do we like the same things, follow the same things, say the same things, and need the same things?  Obviously, our humanity is something we share with the living, and also those who have gone before us.  Even so, it seems to me that in too many ways, our human impulses act as our primary guides.  But is this how the scriptures teach us to live?

If you are risen with Christ, seek those things that are above (from heaven), and not the things of this age.  Do this because your life is hidden – who you really are is being concealed during this age – with Christ in God.  When Christ, who (Himself) is your life, is revealed, you (who you really are) will be revealed with Him.  (see Colossians 3:1 thru verse 4.) Until then, your life will not make sense or reconcile from a human point of view.

Here comes another question!  If your life makes sense and reconciles from a human point of view, are you following Christ or the spirit of the age?

We can be certain that not all of what appears to be foolishness in our lives is the Lord’s influence.  Some of it is yet, indeed, foolishness.  However, we should not be discouraged by this fact, as God is not surprised by it.  And at the same time, we should be growing closer to the Lord, pursuing Him more and more as we grow in grace.  In this way our human folly will be replaced by the eternal substance He imparts to us.  Spiritual things cannot be reconciled by the natural mind.

Romans 8:5 thru verse 14

These scriptures help us to see things the way they really are, and not as they appear in this world.  We must commit ourselves to seeing as the Lord sees, and departing from the deception that is all around us.  I want to ask you to consider these things before the Lord, and ask for His help to see them, as they are, and as they should be.  Commit yourself in this season to become the difference that Christ in you promises to be.

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