There is to be a difference
Writers note: I feel compelled to tell you from time to time the main purpose of these writings. They are ultimately for my kids, to guide and teach them God’s Word. I want them to view life through the lens of the Bible. I desire for them to have a Biblical worldview. The writings follow along my reading of the Bible each morning, with the themes, the message coming directly from Scripture, not dad’s thoughts, but the Bible. Because of this, the messages can be hard-hitting at times, even crazy to consider. But, the information comes from Scripture. So, please know that if you do stumble upon these writings, ultimately, this is a gift to my family that I am sharing publicly. If it sounds “preachy” or too heavy, it is intended ultimately for them. It is impossible to write about the Bible without heavy messages, by the way. The Bible is not for passive, casual reading. It requires deep thought, consideration. To me, a stillness of the heart and soul to take it in. I know the pace and pressure of the life that my kids lead, that I led, as a teenager. I want to help them get some nuggets, encouragement each morning, ultimately learning the details of the Bible, not just the famous stories. If you do find enjoyment or any value from the writings, I am thankful for that, as this is the reason I share publicly.
And the Lord spoke to Aaron, saying, “Drink no wine or strong drink, you or your sons with you, when you go into the tent of meeting, lest you die. It shall be a statute forever throughout your generations. You are to distinguish between the holy and the common, and between the unclean and the clean, and you are to teach the people of Israel all the statutes that the Lord has spoken to them by Moses.” Leviticus 10:8-10
God gave the statutes, the laws, the procedures for the sacrifices and offerings to Moses. Moses then gave these to Aaron, a leader in the Tabernacle and the people. The Bible points out a few times, that Moses dug in to the work to make sure that everything was being followed exactly as the Lord had commanded. Why? Because people would literally die if the processes at the Tabernacle were not followed exactly, the minutiae, the details mattered. God is holy.
God explained to Aaron that there was to be a difference between the holy and the common. He was not to flippantly, casually work at the Tabernacle. And, he was to teach the people the statutes that he had given to Moses. The people needed to know there was a difference between the holy and unholy. The Israelites were to be a different people.
When you read Leviticus and the work at the Tabernacle, it is extreme. There was a detailed process, with the garments, fires, offerings all being meticulously planned. The whole ceremony was different, a new way to worship. Imagine the outside world looking into the camp of the Israelites. Absolutely, they were witnessing a different way of doing life.
Consider life today. I can’t help but wonder what it would be like if followers of God were required to follow these guidelines. Simply said, it would not happen. We would all be burned up immediately by a holy God. Harsh? It happened to some in the Bible. No way would we follow. Impossible.
Enter God’s grace to humanity. He gave His Son as a gift to us, the perpetual atonement. No longer needed were the complex ceremonies given in the Old Testament for atonement for the people. The blood of Jesus is the ransom, the currency of heaven.
If we have received this gift, just like the Israelites that Moses was leading, there should be a difference in our lives. We should be compelled to follow a God that would give us this gift. The difference should be a natural way of life if we have received God’s grace.
So, practically, what does it look like to live differently? Are we to live in a silo cut off from the world, sitting in a circle singing kumbaya?
Sometimes we may have thoughts that being called to live a different life is some radical lifestyle, only taken on by the “super-religious.” In reality, this couldn’t be further from the truth. Simply moving through life following Jesus with a Biblical worldview will look different. It has to. Otherwise, the words on the pages don’t mean anything, hold no water.
So, practically, what does being different look like? Consider what happened to this guy in the Bible written about by Mark. He was filled with demons, cured by Jesus. He was in torment one moment, healed the next. This exchange between the guy and Jesus exemplifies exactly what being different looks like. After all, if anybody was changed, a different person, this guy was.
As he was getting into the boat, the man who had been possessed with demons begged Jesus that he might be with him. And he did not permit him but said to him, “Go home to your friends and tell them how much the Lord has done for you, and how he has had mercy on you.” And he went away and began to proclaim in the Decapolis how much Jesus had done for him, and everyone marveled. Mark 5:18-20
Catch that? Jesus told the man to simply go home to your friends and tell them what happened, how Jesus had mercy on you. The man recognized the grace, the mercy he had been given, and told others.
This is how to be different. Pretty simple, no kumbaya in a circle.
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