I am pretty confident that most people who have been in the church for any length of time have heard this verse. If it wasn't heard, then it was most likely read. Romans is a fairly well traveled piece of scripture. I myself have been reading Romans and I have been in many studies where we went through Romans. I have had this verse on my mind a lot lately. I've been pulling it apart when I can in order to do this blog post actually.
"Do not conform to the pattern of this world," Paul writes. Granted, he did not take the time to bold or underline the "Do not," but I took the liberty of that for him. I feel like this is a step that a lot of us miss in our walk with Christ. I know I have, at times, started to conform. Merriam -Webster has quite a few definitions for the word, conform. Here are a few:
Conform: To be similar to or the same as something.
To obey or agree with something.
To do what other people do or to behave in a way that is accepted by most people
When used as an intransitive verb: To be similar or identical to
To be obedient or compliant.
To act in accordance with prevailing standards or customs.
Chances are that you as a reader know all of these definitions anyway. I found it interesting that this word was used because as far as I can see, there are a lot of meanings to it. Paul is issuing this as a warning to the church in Rome. He is telling them not to conform to the customs of the people around them.
Makes me wonder how well they did with that.
I think I could make a compelling case to say that most Christians, myself included, do conform to the patterns of this world a bit. I feel like, at times, we can fit right in with society. Our tendency to not love those around us can be just as prevalent as society's tendency to do the same. Selfishness can come up in us as well. I know it comes up with me sometimes. Some days, my dependence on my Maker can be as much as a nonbelievers dependence on theirs. Praying for my enemies? Yeah right, my schedule is too full.
It is during these times in my life that I need to stop and pray or something. I am a work in progress though, much like my brothers and sisters are. God is not done with me yet and works in me to this day. In fact, Paul brings it up in the second half of that sentence.
Did you notice what he said to do instead of conforming to the patterns of this world?
"Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind."
I love that idea. My mind is being renewed even as I type this. I just love that because, in all honesty, my mind can get so full of the junk that is in this society. Media is full of it. Magazine covers, book covers, movies and so much more. It is everywhere. Here's the deal though. I have found that at times I have tried to get back what was renewed. Sometimes not even consciously.
For those of you who know me, you've most likely seen my car. For those of you who have not seen my car, the dent is pictured below.
This dent is the result of an accident I had with my car. It's not really as bad as it could have been but it is bad enough that people notice it. This is how people have started to notice that it is indeed me in my car.
I hope to get it fixed someday but I'm not sure when that will happen. Imagine, if I got it fixed. In this case, that would mean putting a new fender on my car. Let's say that I get it fixed and within a week of getting it fixed, I go back to the guy who fixed it, requesting that he puts my old fender back on my car.
First of all, that makes no sense right? Why on earth would I do that? It's insane. No one wants a broken fender on their car.
Second of all, the guy has most likely gotten rid of it in that week, so I am out of luck.
I feel like that is a good illustration of what we do when we want those parts back. Those parts of us that we had before. Stop asking for a broken fender. Start living with a renewed mind and renewed self. The self that Jesus died for. He died to bring His kingdom to earth and we are a part of His kingdom on earth. But even the court jester can't truly be a part of that kingdom when they're asking for the old parts of their mind back. The reason I say that is because of the third part of this verse, which is the most important one.
"Then you will be able to test and approve what God's will is - his good, pleasing and perfect will."
I would say that this is almost self explanatory. Through the renewing of the mind, Christians are able to test if something is God's will. That is because through the renewing, Godly thoughts become prevalent. Through Godly thoughts and thoughts of things above, we can "test and approve God's will."
I know this is a lot to think over but don't let it bog you down. I am saying this as a person that has been there and sometimes continues to be there too. My challenge is to myself as well.
Stop asking for the broken fender.
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