Reblogged from servehiminthewaiting.com
Separation
by Rayola Kelley
Separation
by Rayola Kelley
We have been on a
journey to discover what it will mean to survive the end days. This is
the last article in this series. We can look at the great challenges
before us and conclude that we are facing some exciting times, but are
we ready for the possible challenges that could shake our worlds? As
believers, we need to keep in mind that to spiritually survive involves
preparing the inner man to stand in trials and testings, with the intent
of walking out the Christian life in an appropriate way. Therefore, the
real culprit that we must face will not always come from the outside,
but from within our own personal camps.
When we
consider what it means to survive, we think in terms of managing to
survive the odds of something that would normally be considered
impossible to endure. If we come out on the other side of such a
situation, we figure we have survived it, and now belong to that unique
club of survivors that serve as shining beacons of hope. However, in the
kingdom of God, the concept of survival is a bit different. It is not a
matter of coming out on top of an impossible matter; rather, the real
issue is who will come out on top in our lives.
I have often
shared with others that the world is a big classroom, and life the main
teacher. In America, before the invasion of Communistic indoctrination
in our schools, academia was designed to prepare students for a
different life outside of their controlled or confined worlds of family,
friends, and education.
Likewise, when it
comes to spiritual survival, the world serves as a classroom that is
meant to prepare and challenge us in light of a new existence.
Eventually, we will even graduate from this classroom to embrace a
completely different way of living. As we consider the idea of the
world, we will discover that much of what it stands for is vanity, and
its goal is to tantalize the fleshly appetites to pursue its deadly
fruit and temporary glory. However, it brings a viable contrast to us
when it comes to what constitutes life.
When it comes to
the harsh reality of life being our teacher, it clearly stipulates that
all is a cruel joke unless there is something beyond the activities of
the present world. This was brought home by the tragic shootings that
have recently taken place in Oregon and Connecticut. The tragedy will be
blamed on guns, but the real culprit rests with society that has taken
God and morality out of the equation. What you end up with is a society
that will run a muck in a world of fanaticism which will prove lawless,
indifferent, militant, and insane.
It is for this
reason that so much of the world’s activities seem senseless. It becomes
clearer each new day that life proves to be an astute teacher. Its
shrewdness can cause people to become utter skeptics if they do not
understand its ultimate goal. However, it will teach open, receptive
students that their very existence does not make sense unless there is a
God who has a purpose, plan, and design for their lives. In order for
each of us to secure real purpose for our being, we must come to terms
with God. In order to benefit from His plan, we must come to a place of
agreement with Him. And, to discover our place in His kingdom, we must
come to a place of total separation from what was in order to discover
what can be.
According to the
Bible, transformation of the inner man is a necessity while reformation
of the outer man is a means to whitewash tombs that contain the dead
bones of the old ways and of man’s religious best. The reason is the old
must die so that the new can live. The “old” will defile the new, and
the “new” will render the old ineffective. The Bible clearly brings this
principle out in the parable in Matthew 9:16-17 and the example
found in Haggai 2:11-14.
Clearly, when it
comes to the matters of holiness, saints cannot make what is considered
to be “common”, “profane”, and what is “unclean” acceptable to God. That
which is considered profane by God will be judged and consumed by His
holy fire. The reason for this is because holiness is a state. If you
expose and touch the unclean, it will make you unclean in your state.
Since God is holy, His Church must be holy as well. The members of His
Body must come out and separate from that which is unholy, in order to
separate themselves to that which is holy. This is the only way to
ensure the integrity of their inward state. Click here To Read Further
