"The insolent smear me with lies,but with my whole heart I keep your precepts; their heart is unfeeling like fat, but I delight in your law." Psalm 119:69-70
Okay, so the topic is fat. And no I'm not talking about that stuff hanging out in places you really wish it wouldn't and yet at the same time let's see how we relate with that "fat" and then move on to what I really want to talk about. In today's culture there is so much pressure to have the "perfect body", having no fat. (I know your feeling me on this one girls!) We do anything it seems like to get rid of this fat, we work so hard, take supplements, eat right, don't eat at all, spend money on gyms, work out and try to look good before going to the gym we pay for, and we are constantly on that bathroom scale, which we all know is so not accurate. ;] So, we will do just about anything to get rid of this fat right? But what about other "fat" in your life?
"Do not be deceived: Bad company ruins good morals." 1 Corinthians 15:33
So, you may be thinking, "Ashley, what's up with that Psalm and why is it making you freaking out about fat?" Well, it's because we as christians will work very hard to get in shape, but do nothing about the "good friends" in our lives who have hearts of fat!!! That verse is referring to the proud whose hearts are so thick that the Word is unable to penetrate, like the heart of stone. Yet, do we keep non-christians close to us? Think about it this way, if you are trying to lose weight you probably wouldn't hang out with people who do not want to lose weight and eat all the food that is causing the fat right? Then why are we making non-christians our friends when we are striving to delight and obey in the Lord, when they want to mock and denounce Christ?
These people are our mission field, not our best friends. In fact they are our enemies, because they are enemies of God. Psalm 119 goes on to say that these same people "lie in wait to destroy me" (v.95), "put me to shame, because they have wronged me with falsehoods" (v.78) and they have "dug pitfalls for me." (v.85) We are to witness to them and share the gospel with them, nothing more.
When you are around these people are you more tempted to sin....do you sin? I remember when I was first saved I didn't have to many christian friends at my school, so I hung out with people I was friends with before...a lot. This caused me to stumble and stunted my growth so much, but I was afraid of being alone at school. Eventually, I was convicted, God showed me it was more important to delight in his word then to have "friends." So, I ate lunch alone in my car, spent many breaks in my car, and even sat alone in class to be away from sinful conversations. Was it hard? You bet it was! No one likes being alone. But what is more important, God or company? Now, I have such amazing godly friends, who I call my brothers and sisters in Christ, they love me and lift me up, encouraging me to strive after God and admonish me when I sin.
So, I urge you brothers and sisters, to examine your relationships, are you equally yoked? Or are dead oxen keeping you from moving forward and striving after God with all your heart and all your soul?
8 comments:
Ashley, are you saying all non-Christians are sinful? Try to be open minded to people in your life that might not have the same beliefs as you. Some of the people you call fat may actually have a lot to teach you, or even need your help. We should be loving and kind to all people of all religions.
Anonymous,
Some things don't always come across the way you intend when others disagree with what you believe. I post this blog as a way of encouraging my fellow brothers and sister in Christ, through much prayer and study of God's word. I am not saying all-christians are sinful, I'm saying we all are, so does the bible in Psalm 14: 2-3 "The LORD looks down from heaven on the sons of men to see if there are any who understand, any who seek God. All have turned aside, they have together become corrupt; there is no one who does good, not even one." This is also repeated in Romans. I am not saying to hate others, Christ himself said to love those who hate you and pray for those who persecute you. How am I to love them? By sharing the amazing news of the Gospel, that Christ came and died for our sins. Through that death we can be forgiven and obey and love God and have salvation from the punishment of our sins that Christ took on. In this blog I am trying to convey that we should not be associated in activities or conversations that we know don't glorify God, i.e bad company corrupts good character. Hope this clarifies. :]
First off, I am completely offended by this post. Not only are you saying that we should not be friends with non-christians, but that they are our enemies!
I'm sorry, but i think you are very wrong. Part of being a christian is being IN the world but not OF the world.
How are we to impact the world for the glory of His perfect name if we constantly remain in our precious holy huddle?
Did Jesus only hang out with the "christians" during his day? by that i mean the Pharisees. NO! Jesus was friends with Mary Magdalene, whom he cast 7 demons out of (Luke 8:2). Jesus was friends with Zacchaeus, the tax collector (Luke 19:5-6).
you sound just like the people who were disgusted with Jesus for being kind to a tax collector. they grumbled and said, "he [Jesus] has gone in to be the guest of a man who is a sinner" (Luke 19:7).
The Holy Spirit gives us strength and wisdom, so that we can be in the presence of those who are living in sin so that we may be a light to them and show them a different way, show them life.
Remember Ashley, "God opposes the proud, but gives grace to the humble" — James 4:6
one last thing, you say "We are to witness to them and share the gospel with them, nothing more."
how do you expect to "witness" to anyone if you have no relationship with them at all. they don't trust you or respect you. they're not your friend. why would they want to listen to anything you have to say, let alone let you convince them to change their beliefs?
Luke 19:8-10 But Zacchaeus stood up and said to the Lord, "Look, Lord! Here and now I give half of my possessions to the poor, and if I have cheated anybody out of anything, I will pay back four times the amount." (looks like repentance to me) Jesus said to him, "Today salvation has come to this house, because this man, too, is a son of Abraham. For the Son of Man came to seek and to save what was lost."
Mary Magdalene also became a follower of Christ.
Jesus went to his house with a purpose; Jesus left heaven with a purpose, to bring salvation to a lost world. We need to have the mindset of Christ when dealing with the lost.
When I am friendly with unsaved people at work or school, am I befriending them with a higher goal in mind? Do I desire to be a light in a dark world? Am I praying for them, inviting them to church and showing them what a real Christian is by my example? Many times the answers to these questions are no! If I am able to be this kind of example I have found unbelievers to quickly become disinterested in a close friendship, why, because people like to be around people who share in their interests, wants or desires. My presence is usually a drag because as a Christian I am not interested in many things this world has to offer. I don’t wear the same clothes (skimpy and revealing) so; I am no fun to shop with. I take every thought captive to the obedience of Christ (2 Cor 10:5) so, I am unwilling to just go with the flow. I am mindful of the words that come out of my mouth (Eph 4:29) so, typical worldly conversations are not an option.
Often we befriend the world and then we become so much like them that our lives and conduct have little effect. In fact they usually are the ones who end up affecting us. The bible warns us not to love the world or the things in the world (1 John 2:15)
Brittany, I agree with the fact that Christians should not isolate themselves. I believe we should embrace the world with the same goal and purpose as Christ. The question is, what is the purpose of many believers today? Are we true examples of Christ or are we just like the world? I will never shun the lost or unsaved but unfortunately, they will most likely want nothing to do with me, unless they are in need of a savior. John 15:18-19 warns believers not to expect the world to love you, “If the world hates you, keep in mind that it hated me first. If you belonged to the world, it would love you as its own. As it is, you do not belong to the world, but I have chosen you out of the world. That is why the world hates you.
2 Cor 6:14 says “Do not be yoked together with unbelievers. For what do righteousness and wickedness have in common? Or what fellowship can light have with darkness?” I believe the key word here is yoked, a bond or harness that held people or animals together. We love unbelievers, we pray for them and sometimes have fellowship with them but they should never be our confidantes or closest friends because as stated before, bad company corrupts good character.
Brittany,
You do not know me and where my heart lies. My hearts intention was not what you had mentioned, if you would like to get to know where I'm at and who I am, I'd love to get together sometime. Until then, I am praying for your missions trip and God bless!
I agree to an extent with Brittany. Jesus spent time with tax collectors and prostitutes. We are to be the light of the world. If you get a bunch of light bulbs and stick them in one room you end up with a single room full of light. We are called to be the light in dark places, not add light to an already bright room. Also, it is incredibly hard to share the gospel with people you are not friends with. No one likes to be someones "project". I know this because I have been there. It is far more impactful to actually befriend someone and walk with them in their journey toward Christ than to share the gospel and run because they may contaminate you with sin. Remember, Jesus loves you, He loved you while you were in sin and He loves you now. You must now go and love others the same. Love the sinner not the sin.
There is now a more extended study of this blog on my page if you are interested. :]
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