STAND OUT: DON’T FIT IN
By Bishop Mike Okonkwo
Wednesday 11th December 2024
“Who also hath made us able ministers of the new testament; not of the letter, but of the spirit: for the letter killeth, but the spirit giveth life.” 2 Corinthians 6:17 (KJV)
When Christians want to fit in, they allow society, environment and peers to define them. People mock their faith, and they accept it. Such believers are going nowhere. Do you want to end like them? Unbelievers are supposed to be looking at you as their examples. Why must you fall for their influence? Until you understand that you are not supposed to fit into the mould that the world has built for you, you will remain in obscurity. You are the real deal in Christ. You are the game changer. They are not your example; instead, you are their example.
Check the scriptures; Jesus never fitted into His environment; instead, the environment adapted to him. He was a game changer; they asked Him what manner of man is this that even the wind and the storms obey Him? They observed the kind of authority with which He spoke. He did not speak like the scribes and Pharisees; His words are different and carry power because He understood what the Father had made him and chose to walk in it. Many believers have garaged themselves by allowing society to define them. Some want to be on the fence, one leg in church and one in the world. You must choose to be different.
Jephthah was born out of an unholy wedlock and was later thrown out of his father’s house, yet he chose to stand out in the land of Tob. He carved a niche for himself, and those who sent him away came looking for him.
Orpah is not remembered today because she decided to fit in and blend with her environment. But Ruth decided to stand out and not be like other people. Rahab, the professional prostitute, decided that she wouldn’t end up as a prostitute. She may have started badly, but she would not end badly. Today, both Ruth and Rahab are in the lineage of Jesus Christ.
Further Reading: Ephesians 2:1-10
Daily Bible Reading: Morning- Hosea 5-8; Evening- Revelation 2