Living An Uncommon Life

This morning I was reading through the Gospel of Mark and came across this list of things that the Lord said defiled a person.

Mark 7:20-23 NIV:
[20] "He went on: “What comes out of a person is what defiles them. [21] For it is from within, out of a person's heart, that evil thoughts come---sexual immorality, theft, murder, [22] adultery, greed, malice, deceit, lewdness, envy, slander, arrogance and folly. [23] All these evils come from inside and defile a person.”

The Greek word translated defiles is the word Koinoo, and its definition is as follows:   1) to make common A) to make (Levitically) unclean, render unhallowed, defile, profane B) to declare or count unclean.

It is interesting that the real word used here means literally means common, as in just like everyone else.  This is one of the key messages God had for the Jews, they were His people, His nation, called by Him and walking in His favor and Blessing.  They were not like any other nation, and His intention was that should be clear to the rest of the world, by their actions.  He called them to be different, to be set apart for Him.

In the same way we are called to be Holy, which means set apart for God.  The original Hebrew word is Qadash which means: 1) to consecrate, sanctify, prepare, dedicate, be hallowed, be holy, be sanctified, be separate A) to be set apart, be consecrated B) to be hallowed

The idea from God is that His people will act differently from the rest of the people, because of their relationship with Him.  So, my question this morning, is whether others can tell I am Christian by the way I act?  Does the Church stand out in the world because she acts differently?  Can people truly see God's character through us?

That is our call, to be a people set apart, called into relationship with the Lord, affected by that relationship so much that we take on His character(istics).  That is what makes us Holy!  In God there is no sexual immorality, theft, murder, adultery, greed, malice, deceit, lewdness, envy, slander, arrogance or folly, and that is why those characteristics and actions shouldn't exist in us!

We are called to embrace and take on God's character.   We are called to be Christ-like in our daily lives, representing Him to the world.  We are called to be different in the way we treat each other, loving one another as He loved us (John 13:34-35).  All of this comes out of us, out of our heart.  How we act is directly related to what is in our heart and mind.  This is what Jesus is talking about in these passages.

If we are living our life in selfishness, it will be evident to all. If our life and heart is full of these things that Jesus lists here, than we need His help to cleanse our hearts.  Left to our own human desires and actions most of us will embrace a selfish lifestyle in some way or other (meaning our eyes are focused on ourselves).  The Lord invites us to live with our eyes on Him, instead of on ourselves.

Lord, I pray that I might be found, by my actions and life, a follower of You.  I pray that I might rid myself of everything that is common (Koinoo) that I might accurately represent You to the world!