Fit In
Good Morning,
Many years ago, a state superintendent of schools said to a Baptist church regarding their Christian school, “We are preparing our children for the next generation, where your Christian school kids will not fit in.” The pastor replied, “We are preparing our children for the coming Kingdom of Jesus Christ where your children will not fit in.” You can guess how that conversation ended.
Believers do not fit in when they walk with God and honor His Word. One illustration of this is in the book of Ezra. While the Jews began to rebuild Jerusalem, the critics wrote letters, hired counselors, and slandered them.
Ezra 4:12 “… the Jews which came up from thee to us are come unto Jerusalem, building the rebellious and the bad city…”
vs. 15 “…this city is a rebellious city, and hurtful unto kings and provinces…”
Daniel was seen refusing to eat the king’s food and when he prayed in spite of laws against prayer. Again, we see a “misfit” group of people when Daniel’s friends would not bow and worship the image the king had built. Do we think there were no other Jews around? There were thousands of Jews, but only some determined to stand.
Remember when Mordecai refused to bow to Haman? For once, countless Jews around Haman became thoroughly angered because he wrote letters to kill all the Jews in the kingdom. One Jew, Mordecai, would not bow to the vile leader.
An endless number of Christians have not chosen to stand against the world – they made their choice to “fit in;” but there have also been great heroes of the faith who said, “No!” to the world.
Esther 3:8 “And Haman said unto king Ahasuerus, There is a certain people scattered abroad and dispersed among the people in all the provinces of thy kingdom; and their laws are diverse from all people; neither keep they the king's laws: therefore it is not for the king's profit to suffer them.”
Notice the accusation of the evil Haman, “Their laws are diverse.” That is a true statement – the people of God have always been different. The lie that the Jews did not keep the king’s laws was untrue; they were (as God’s people have always been) law-abiding until the laws of man cross the laws of God. The faithful Christian will be the best of citizens, but the faithful Christian will also stand against the laws that violate the law of God.
Do not fret when you are different; Peter said we are “strangers and pilgrims.” Throughout time, some believers have said, “I follow Christ and His Word, not this vile world.” We do not need to try to fit in, neither did Jesus.
Pasto