If you are like me, at times you probably find yourself chasing after worldly possessions.  When I do, it greatly increases my stress and anxiety.  I am blessed   to have a wife, a church, and a pastor who remind me to turn to Jesus.  When I am earnestly seeking Jesus, the things of this world become less important.

If we are not careful, we will also find ourselves following the ways of this world.  Do not let that happen.  God’s unchanging holy word, the Bible, has dozens of verses that warn against conforming to or loving the world.  In the verse from Isaiah above, the “woe” pronounces a judgement to come on the moral inversion of turning known evils into daily norms.  In John’s Gospel, there are numerous accounts where Jesus warns against the dangers of this world and contrasts it to himself and His kingdom.  John 16:33 “…In this world you will have trouble.  But take heart.  I have overcome the world.”  Jesus makes it very clear in John 14:6 when he states, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life.  No one comes to the Father except through me…”. He points out that since Christians don’t belong to the world, the world will hate them and persecute them.  (John 15).  This does not mean we should keep quiet and hide ourselves away.  Quite the opposite.  We are to take a stand for God’s truth.  Put on the armor of God and introduce others, in a calm and loving manner, to the saving grace of Jesus Christ.  We serve a God of love, but He also despises sin.  We are to be in the world, without being changed by it.

Let others see Jesus in you.  In that way you will become the change for good that you want to see in the world.  You may also experience God’s peace, and a drop in your stress level.

Dr. B