God’s Word tells us we are to be a people set apart. What does that mean? Are we to look different? Act differently? Live in a gated enclave? Perhaps it is something else, altogether.
What does the Word mean?
Truth #1: If we copy the world, we will become like the world.
Manasseh was the son of Solomon, one of the greatest kings in history. Manasseh became king of Judah at 12 years of age. Yet, he seduced the land and all the inhabitants of Jerusalem to do more evil than all the heathen people the Lord had destroyed by the hand of Israel.
2 Chronicles 33:9 tells us Manasseh built idols, carved images, and made groves for the worship of foreign gods. What he did became a stench in God’s nostrils. Manasseh copied the world, and in the process, he became like the world.
What were the results? God had Manasseh bound by the Assyrians until he humbled himself. Repentance was Manasseh’s only way out.
When he turned to God, Manasseh was returned to his kingdom, and he followed God until the end of his days.
Truth #2: God will bring our downfall.
Moab was the son of Lot. He was the nephew of Abraham. The people of Moab were intimately linked with the Israelites, but the people of Moab had become arrogant in their disbelief and sinful ways. Their pride caused them to gloat over the children of Israel.
In Isaiah 16:6-8 the prophet decreed that Moab would one day be brought low. The Assyrians would destroy her orchards of fruit trees, and her people would be carried off as slaves. Moab’s splendor would be despised, and her survivors would be feeble.
When we become like the world, and do not respond to God’s entreaties, he cuts off his power from us, and he brings us to destruction.
Truth #3: We must choose wise leaders.
Israel’s leaders had taken a dark turn. Irresponsible shepherds had led God’s people astray. Her kings, priests, and prophets were filled with greed, corruption, and selfishness. They manipulated the kingdom for personal profit rather than for God’s gain.
Without good leadership, a people can easily get lost. If we choose leaders who do not fear God, then we will fail to follow God.
Ezekiel 34:28 reveals God’s intervention. He says he will put his protecting hand over his people. They will be safe under his care, and no one will have reason to be afraid.
Only God can change the course of a nation. We must let him be our shepherd, and we must be his people.
Truth #4: Our prayers must be from a sincere heart.
If even the ungodly ruler becomes weary when pestered with a repetitive petition, finally giving in to his petitioner, how much more will our God listen to those whom he loves?
However, in Matthew 6:7-8 Jesus tells us not to come before the Father with rote repetition. It is not pestering that God wants. It is a sincere heart, one that speaks from honesty and pain. Jesus tells us that his Father already knows our needs before we kneel before him. All he wants us to do is ask, and he will answer our sincere prayers.
While we may be able to eventually wear God down with repetition, what he wants is our love and sincerity.
When we embrace the world, we become like the world. When we embrace Jesus, we become like him.
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