Do Not Conform to the Pattern of the World

     Take a moment and think about a few of your favorite TV shows. If you don't watch much television, what about movies? Even your favorite music.

    What did you come up with? Some of my favorite TV shows are The Walking Dead (questionable, I know), Scrubs, and Parenthood. Add your favorites to my list, then answer this: what do all these shows/movies/music have in common?

    There are a couple of answers, but the one I want to focus on today is that they all have a message. Sometimes it's obvious, like in the show "The Resident" they consistently and blatantly call out corruption in the medical industry. Sometimes the dialogue is just commentary on the state of the current medical industry in America. Sometimes it is not so obvious, or even purposefully hidden. Almost every modern TV show has some level of endorsement (or promotion) of the LGBTQ+ agenda (representation, typically in a positive light), sexual freedom (normalized outside of a marriage relationship), and even a distortion of the role of marriage in the family unit.

    Without realizing it, many of us have probably internalized these ideas into the way we think about life and what is right or true. Even though the above things directly conflict with what God says is right and true, those ideas have become so entangled in our minds that it can be hard to figure out what's really true and what's not.

    I'm going to teach you a new word for this post: Extricate. According to Merriam-Webster, to extricate is "to free or remove from an entanglement or difficulty". The idea is disentangling. Imagine you're fishing and you go to use a net to pull the fish you've caught out of the water and into the boat. Only, it turns out to not be a fish, but an eel. I've done this, and it's gross. The eel writhes in the nets and becomes completely entangled, to the point where it's easier to just cut the net than try to get it out. Well, if you want to keep the net, you're going to have extricate the eel from the net. You have to untangle it and remove it from the net.

    So, how do we extricate ourselves from the messages we're receiving from the world? Well, in the example above, the truth is the eel, and the world is the net we're trying to extricate ourselves from. We have to identify the truth (which is found in God's Word) and separate it from the lies of the world.

Romans 12:1-2 - "Therefore, I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God's mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God - this is your true and proper worship. Do not conform to the pattern of this world but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God's will is - his good, pleasing and perfect will."

    Paul, the author of Romans, urges us to offer our bodies as a living sacrifice - that means we surrender everything over to God, including our minds. He says this is true and proper worship. And if we have offered our bodies as a living sacrifice, then we have to stop conforming to the pattern of the world. Conforming means that we change ourselves (our beliefs, our behaviors, etc.) to fit in with the way of the world. Conforming to the patter of the world means we are allowing our beliefs to be molded by the world. And Paul says STOP! STOP doing this! You have received God's mercy! You have been made new in Christ, with a new identity and a new mind! Stop letting it get molded to fit in with the world!

    INSTEAD, let it be transformed and renewed so you can see and follow the will of God. Conforming means you change/mold something to fit in. Transforming means it becomes something else entirely. Rather than twist ourselves to fit in with the world, Paul says we need to be completely changed to be with God. How we go about doing this is simple:

Romans 8:5 - "For those who live according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who live according to the Spirit set their minds on the things of the Spirit."

Colossians 3:1-4 - "If then you have been raised with Christ, seek the things that are above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. Set your minds on things that are above, not on things that are on earth. For you have died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God. When Christ who is your life appears, then you also will appear with him in glory."

Philippians 4:4-9 - "Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, rejoice. Let your reasonableness be known to everyone. The Lord is at hand; do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about such things. What you have learned and received and heard and seen in me – practice these things, and the God of peace will be with you."

    Did you notice a pattern throughout? Paul wrote all of these, and the message is clear: set your minds on the things of God. If you want to have a transformed and renewed mind, you have to set it on the things of God. You have to think about those things, meditate on those things (go read Psalm 1), and live out those things. It all comes to down to focus. The people of the world are going to have their minds set on worldly things: pleasures, gratification, wealth, health, success ,power, etc. That's the pattern of the world, and all their ideas and worldviews are going to center around the pursuit of those things.

    Paul says we are not to conform to that pattern. We have to think differently. Those who are in Christ are called to think like Christ. How do we do that? By setting our minds on the things that are above. By setting our minds on the things of God.

Paul even gives a little summary of the kinds of things we should be setting our minds on. Things that are:

True

Honorable

Just

Pure

Lovely

Commendable

Excellent

Praiseworthy

    All of these are to be understood within the context of the Bible. The Bible is where we find God's established and enduring truth. He sets the standard here, which is why in all things we have to set our minds on Him.

    And Paul doesn't stop at thinking about these things. He says we should practice them. If we know what's true, we should speak it and live by it. If we know what is honorable, we should do it. If we know what is just, we should uphold it. If we know what is pure, we should seek it. If we know what is lovely, we should admire and protect it. If we know what is commendable, we should go and do likewise. If we know what is excellent, we should strive for it in everything we do. If we know what is praiseworthy, or rather, who is praiseworthy, we should should praise Him.

    It's not enough to come to youth group or go to church on a Sunday and hear a message from the Word. It's not even enough to read the Bible at home or in a quiet time. It's not enough to join a Bible study or talk about the Bible in Family groups. If you are reading the Bible, or hearing messages from it, but not living it out as a result, then you've missed the point. God doesn't want you to just have some head knowledge about Him, He wants you to offer your life as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to Him. He wants you to live according to His Word.

    In Romans 12:1-2 Paul gives us the reason why we should have our minds be transformed and renewed: so that we will be able to test and approve what God's will is - His good, pleasing and perfect will. What is the point of knowing God's will if we are not going to follow it. As we take in more and more of the truth of God's Word, it should completely and radically change the way we live and approach the world. As we focus on the things of God, the things that don't match up will become more and more obvious to us.

If you want to extricate yourself from the lies of the world, you need to focus on the truth.

    The world throws its ideas and agendas at you every day through the media, TV, movies, social media, music, and even school curriculum. You are being bombarded on a daily basis with the pattern of the world. The only way to be extricated and safeguard against this bombardment is by setting your mind on the things above. Read the Word of God, focus on the truth, and live by it. Allow God to transform and renew your mind so that you will be able to test and approve what God's will is - His good, pleasing and perfect will.

    A good exercise for you would be to observe the next TV show you watch (or movie, or the next song you listen to, etc.). Ask yourself, "What is this show/movie/song trying to say? And is it true?"

    Sometimes it will be obvious, but most of the time it won't be. Practice discernment - identifying what is true and what is not - and allow God to transform you.

Questions? Post them in the comments below.