I opened Romans 12 just for the pleasure of reading, and for listening.

My first stop was verse 1 – living sacrifice; not a dead one, a living one. JESUS loves life. He wants us to do the same. It’s only reasonable.  🙂

Romans 12 (TLV) 12:1 I urge you therefore, brothers and sisters, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice—holy, acceptable to God—which is your spiritual service.   source 

Next stop. Verse 2 and we may hang out here till the end of this post.

Romans 12 (TLV) 12: ² Do not be conformed to this world but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, so that you may discern what is the will of God—what is good and acceptable and perfect. source

Accepting the call of verse 1 makes verse 2 imperative.  Do NOT be conformed to this world.

How is the world? It won’t take prolonged exposure to media sources to answer that question with many adjectives.  So I’ll pick one.

Sameness.

Actually sameness is a noun but it seems descriptive enough here for my purposes.

The world is clamoring, rioting and when it deems expedient, subliminally training us that we are all the same; even attempting to blur the lines of rudimentary sexuality.  Another push is the demand that we must laud all the world’s belief systems, all the world’s values (or lack thereof) with equal dignity and respect.

If all this is too convoluted for you; here’s my summary: if the world is insisting it is right, in all probability it’s wrong. We have one safe place to go to gauge everything.  The Word of GOD interrupted by the HOLY SPIRIT of GOD.

Continuing with verse 2. Do NOT be conformed BUT be TRANSFORMED.
How? By the renewing of your mind with the MIND OF CHRIST not the thinkers of this world.  Click HERE for Text.

Matthew 24:24 (NKJV) ²⁴ For false christs and false prophets will rise and show great signs and wonders to deceive, if possible, even the elect.  source

Let me be blunt, the growing trend I see in Christendom is I would rather see you go to hell than for me to hurt your feelings.  This violates verse 1 and verse 2.

Verse 3 – Haven’t gotten there yet.  🙂

Pursuing Him  ΑΩ

Extra Reading: HERE and HERE