"I appeal to you …to present your
bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God… Do not be conformed
to this world, but be transformed….” Romans 12:1-2
The more I spend time in Scripture
and living, the more it has become abundantly clear that the way of the world
does not promote self-sacrifice. The
world, since the fall, has encouraged vanity.
It has persuaded the individual of his or her self-importance and has
fostered a culture self-idolization. With
each generation, this self-centered mentality seems to advance. In today’s
youth culture this philosophy is flourishing. The world today is promoting and
encouraging the worship of self and the abandoning of faith.
The question for each
Christ-follower is this… will they buy into philosophy or will they challenge
it. I have attempted to encourage to the
youth to protest the ways of the world and to live a life of faith even when it
all does not make sense. This is a call
to self-denial. It is a call to abandon
self and to follow God. Just like so
many person spoke of in scripture, each Christian is called to respond with
faith to the world around him or her. It
may seem abnormal, it may go against the grain but we must risk becoming a
social pariah if we are to alter the status quo.
Just as I challenge the
youth of Millen Baptist, I ask each person who reads this to do likewise, to
defy the fallen world, to refuse to conform to its ways. Let each of us display a radical faith and
live a life of self-denial in a world of self-indulgence. So, are you willing?