BE YE SEPARATE.

SERIES: HOW TO LIVE THE CHRISTIAN LIFE.

TEXT: 2 CORINTHIANS 6:17-18

A Christian is a person who has been set apart for the purpose of God. When God chose Israel, in the Old Testament, they were not supposed to mix in culture with other nations. Wherever they defied God and mixed with other nations, they ended up worshiping the gods of those other nations and the wrath of God was kindled.

In the world there are two groups of people; those willing to do the will of God and those who do the will of satan. When a Christian mixes with the “world” unless he/she is sent to win them, end up compromising. More about separation:-

SATAN WANTS TO CONFORM THE CHRISTIAN TO THE WORLD.

Romans 12:2 when a person receives Jesus Christ, he/she becomes a new creature-2 Cor. 5:17. However he/she is supposed to grow in the faith progressively to become like our Lord Jesus. The systems in the world are not based on the Bible. The unsaved world is the majority and it has its own devilish systems in information and culture.
A Christian is a person set apart from these systems.
However, after salvation the enemy still pursues the new believer through friends and companions with a purpose to conform him/her back to the world.
1^st John 2:15 tells us not to love the world or the things in the world. The “world” here refers to the things in the culture of those who are not born again.
The Bible here tells us that if anyone loves the world, the love of the father is not in him/her.

FRIENDSHIP WITH THE WORLD-ENMITY WITH GOD-James 4:4.

Whoever wishes to be a friend of the world makes himself/herself an enemy of God. Enmity is animosity, the state of being actively opposed to someone.
The things in the world are fancy and attractive to the eye and to flesh. Not to desire them has to take strong resolute decision. One has to be strong to refuse the attraction-examples are given for us:-
But Daniel purposed in his heart that he would not defile himself with the king’s food-Daniel 1:8
Moses chose to share the oppression of God’s people instead of enjoying the fleeting pleasure of sin-Hebrews 11:25.
Apostle Paul said “all that was profitable to me I count it as dung, that I may gain Christ”-Philippians 3:8.

THERE’S A TIME TO BE SEND TO THE WORLD-Romans 10:14.

It is not all the time that the Holy Spirit sends us to preach to sinners, to the world. There is a particular time when God sends us to preach to them.

CONCLUSION