Set Apart to be Different

“This occurred because the people of Israel had sinned against the LORD their God, who had brought them up out of the land of Egypt” (2 Kings 17:7)

These words come as an explanation of why Israel was defeated and deported by the Assyrians. For generations, God had been patiently waiting for Israel to turn from her wicked ways to follow God. But anyone who has ever read through 1 and 2 Kings knows that obedient, good kings were few.

Listen to how the bible describes the primary sin of Israel:

• “They worshipped other gods and walked in the customs of the nations whom the LORD drove out before the people of Israel” (2 Kings 17:7-8)
• “There they made offerings on all the high places, as the nations did whom the LORD carried away before them” (2 Kings 17:11)
• “They followed the nations that were around them” (2 Kings 17:15)

Did you see the pattern?

God chose Israel and set them apart to be different than all the other nations on earth. But in time, Israel became indistinguishable from other nations because instead of following and obeying God, they walked and followed what the other nations.

Little Church and Lakewoodgrace, God placed us in Lakewood and the neighboring cities so that God can bless the nations through his church. The church is a blessing when she is different, set apart from the other nations. It is a travesty when the church begins to model and mimic the culture she is in. For when the church conforms to the image of this world, instead of God changing the world through the church, the world has changed God’s church to its own image.

The church is God’s instrument to change the world. That’s the job – to change the world, not to become acclimated to the world.

So what is the solution? The answers are found in the Bible. Get into God’s word. We’ve all got the time. Spend 10-15 minutes a day in God’s word.

If you’ve never read the Bible before, go to http://www.youversion.com and find a devotional you can sign up for.

If you are new to the Bible, start with the Gospel according to John, Mark.

Be a blessing! Help God change the world.