May the mumbling commence!
What should guide our lives? What should be the rudder of our ship? There is no shortage of people and things that clamor for our attention and try to mold our lives. But there is one that should predominate in the molding of Christians. Read from the beginning of Leviticus chapter eighteen:
Then the Lord said to Moses, "Say this to your people, the Israelites: I, the Lord, am your God. So do not act like the people in Egypt, where you used to live, or like the people of Canaan, where I am taking you. You must not imitate their way of life. You must obey all my regulations and be careful to keep my laws, for I, the Lord, am your God. If you obey my laws and regulations, you will find life through them. I am the Lord. (Verses 1-5)
The discussion begins and ends with the unapologetic statement that the Lord is our God. All other arguments are based upon that FACT. It is important not to lose that identity. We are children of God.
So, what guides our lives? Culture is not to guide our lives. Does culture guide our lives? Of course it does. But it should not be the bottom line of our formation as people. Should we move away? We will only encounter another set of problems… and we will bring our personal problems along with us. Running is not the answer.
What is the answer? Obeying all the regulations and laws of the Lord is the answer. Obeying all laws and regulations is a tall order. Thank God we have redemption through Jesus Christ!
I can come to God with my sins. So can you. Come to worship the Lord. Don’t try to prevent other people from coming… people with their own set of sins… sins that are both occasional and habitual. Don’t try to prevent other people from coming to worship the Lord because we each have our own set of sins.
Jesus was clear about his attitude toward those who would make worshiping the Lord difficult for anyone. Jesus cleared the Temple of merchants, who were taking the space of worship for non-Israelites. Read from Mark chapter eleven:
When they arrived back in Jerusalem, Jesus entered the Temple and began to drive out the merchants and their customers. He knocked over the tables of the money changers and the stalls of those selling doves, and he stopped everyone from bringing in merchandise. He taught them, "The Scriptures declare, 'My Temple will be called a place of prayer for all nations,' but you have turned it into a den of thieves." (Verses 15-17)
Come to worship the Lord. It is the Lord who is to be the ultimate shaper of our lives. The One who created us is the One who knows what form we are meant to take.
Let us bow is humble worship of the Lord. Let’s bow and be transformed.
Enough mumbling for now…
Peace Out
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