Lesson 3: Separation
The Ark speaks…What’s our environment? The Ark points out our current world. The Ark encourages us: SEPARATION from it. We should have courage to stand for God’s truth of what we believe, like Noah did in his time. In real life situation, it’s true that it’s hard to speak up Jesus in public. It always bears consequences we don’t want to bear or pay the cost we don’t want to pay. Jesus knows the pressure. That’s why He encourages His followers: ”Whoever acknowledges Me before others, I will also acknowledge before My Father in heaven.” (Matthew 10:32). Jesus said if you stand for Me on earth and I’ll stand for you in heaven. But how about if I don’t? The next verse says: “But whoever disowns Me before others, I will disown before My Father in heaven.” (Matthew 10:32). Jesus said if you deny Me here on earth and I’ll deny you in heaven. That’s fair. This brings me to recall a similar saying: If you honour God, God honours you.
We are living in the world continually bombarded by popular worldviews day after day after day. We need to know our environment. I recall a classic book written by Richard Foster in eighties of last century named Money, Sex and Power. It described the world popularity and how Christians respond them by adopting biblical principles. It is amazing that even until now the world popularity is similar to forty years ago. What’s our environment? There are three most popularity.
Materialism – it says people worship things. Those who have more things win. Those who have more money success. Those who have more resources are powerful. Cash is king etc. What the Bible says? “For we brought nothing into the world, and we can take nothing out of it.” (1 Timothy 6:7). God says: Don’t be foolish. What we have today is borrowed from God. He lends these things to us today and when we have gone one day in future, He will lend them to other people. We are not truly own them. We just borrow them from God for use for some years. Don’t think what we have now will last forever. All these things are not ours. But this materialistic view is what the world upholds.
Hedonism – we always hear lots of people say: “What most important in life is happy.” The whole life goal is fun, pleasure and comfortable. I seek for what I feel is good and then I’ll do it and no one have right to forbid me. There is no right or wrong. As long as I feel good is good. This brings us to recap what the Noah’s time was when “the sons of God saw that the daughters of humans were beautiful, and they married any of them they chose.” (Genesis 6:2). Obviously, it was about sex. There is pleasure in sin. Today we live in is a sex saturated society. Sex is flooding everywhere in the world through various channels physically and electronically. And sex is one area. There are other areas seeking pleasure such as drugs, alcohol, games…etc. Whereas king Solomon, who was the most wise and wealthy man in history, and I guess he has already “enjoyed” things we people wish to, advise his following generations, “You’re addicted to thrills? What an empty life! The pursuit of pleasure is never satisfied.” (Proverb 21:17, Message). If life only seeking for pleasure eventually is empty! It’s a wrong direction. Seeking pleasure by all means like Noah’s time is sin. And sin is fun. Enjoy sin without tomorrow needs to pay off. The cost of it could be our soul.
Individualism – if Materialism says money is king, Hedonism says pleasure is king and then Individualism says I am king. Echoing with Richard Foster’s book saying about power. The essence of individualism is self-worshipping. By using all resources and by all means, serve my own self is the ultimate purpose. Do good to my own. It doesn’t matter whether it’s right or wrong. There is no rule. I am the rule. No one can tell me what to do. As far as I like it, I’ll do it and I’ll take it. What God says? He says, “It is selfish and stupid to think only of yourself.” (Proverbs 18:1, CEV). What’s the essence of Christianity? Be humble before God, confess and self-denial. When I was a teen, Rev. Billy Graham happened come and preached in a stadium in Hong Kong. A large crowd of people more than 30,000 overthrew the stadium, I heard what he said which I would never forget in my life. He said, “If you wanted to enter into God’s kingdom. Em…you know what? The door of God’s kingdom is so low that you cannot go in straight swagger…you need to bend down yourself…or you need to bow down…or kneel down yourself or even you need to crawl into it.” Be humble before God. My dear friends, discard our pride and arrogance. Put aside our self-centredness. I know it’s counter-culture. But it’s the way we enter into the Kingdom of God. Separate from the world and come to God through Jesus Christ. Just as Noah and his family, separated from the world popularity and walk toward God through The Ark. May The Lord grant you a clear mind and strength and courage to stand for Jesus in your environment.