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| Volume 25 Number 10 October 2023 |
Page 13 |
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| Volume 25 Number 10 October 2023 |
Page 13 |
Sojourners and Pilgrims
Roger Wright
“Beloved, I beg you as sojourners and pilgrims, abstain from fleshly lusts which war against the soul, having your conduct honorable among the Gentiles, that when they speak against you as evildoers, they may, by your good works which they observe, glorify God in the day of visitation” (1 Peter 2:11-12 NKJV). Every true Christian faces the challenge of living in the world but not being of the world. The Christian does not belong in many of the places where the sinful world abounds. A trip to downtown Nashville with all the bars, night clubs, strip clubs, party vehicles, gay pride events, etc. is not where we belong. Yet, the world thinks that we are the weird ones when we don’t join in.
We were born here, but we don’t belong here anymore. We live here, but we are citizens of a heavenly place. We work here, but our duty is to the One who reigns above. We will die here (unless the Lord comes back first), but our eternal dwelling has streets of gold.
We are called to live by a higher standard, a heavenly calling. We are not to give ourselves over to the darkness of the sinful world but “that you may become blameless and harmless, children of God without fault in the midst of a crooked and perverse generation, among whom you shine as lights in the world” (Philippians 2:15). We are the salt of the earth, but if we stop making a difference, we are of no use and fit only to be cast out ourselves (Matthew 5:13).
Christians must live with integrity. We must abstain from the “fleshly lusts which war against the soul.” Just because all the world pursues something doesn’t make it right. In fact, if “everybody’s doing it…” it is probably wrong; “You shall not follow a crowd to do evil…” (Exodus 23:2). We must conduct ourselves in an honorable way at all times, doing what brings honor to Christ Jesus our Lord and honor to the worthy name that we bear – Christian.
If we live as we should, we will probably be criticized, hated and falsely accused (2 Timothy 3:12). However, if we persistently live honestly, honorably and with integrity, the accusations will be proven wrong by our consistent Christ-like attitude, speech and behavior (1 Peter 3:15-16). Remember, people hated Jesus, too, and He warned us about this (John 15:18). Our goal is to be pleasing to our Heavenly Father, knowing that we will be proven true in the end. After all, we are sojourners and pilgrims. A great reward in a better home awaits us (Hebrews 11:13-16)!
