Written by Pastor Jack Wellman– G.K. Chesterton
Devotional: Jesus Wants You to Be Peculiar
Usually, people don’t like being called weird or peculiar. We are social creatures, and by definition we like to belong. We don’t like to feel that we are marginalized or we are part of the “out group”.
You have to understand that according to Jesus Christ, the world and its concerns, and the way it normally operates, goes against Christian life. When living in the world, it’s too easy to just fall into our own habits, follow the way of the flesh, and to simply react to life.
Being a Christian involves responding to life not based on how we feel, how other people expect us to feel, or what makes us look good in the eyes of other people, but based on our highest principles. Our highest principles, of course, are based on Jesus Christ.
God called the Israelites to be “peculiar” people. He says that you are my peculiar people. You are these weird,” off”, unusual people, and you are My people. The Bible uses the word “peculiar”, because that is the way the world sees Christianity. Christians are, by definition, supposed to stand apart from the world. We are supposed to live a holy life.
Everything about you must reflect your Christian character. This approach means going against the grain; this approach means being non-conformist towards the world’s concern. You might think, “Well, that verse in the Bible is really all about God talking about the Jews or the Israelites.”
Well, as Christians, we are called to disinheritance. According to the book of Romans, by believing in Jesus Christ, we are grafted into the Israelite bind. We are adopted into God’s holy covenant. Accordingly, we partake in this righteous inheritance.
God Wants You to Be Peculiar
Make no mistake about it. The Christian calling is to be sometimes weird in the world’s eyes. It’s easy to go along, but if it doesn’t match your Christian values, you are given an opportunity to stand out and be peculiar. You have to live out your Christian values. That is a key part of being a real Christian. You really cannot say you have faith if people cannot see faith working in your life.
As the apostle James wrote, faith without works is dead. In other words, faith that doesn’t really work a transformation in how you think, what you say, and how you act, is dead faith. It’s just faith that you profess. It’s just like a label you put on yourself. It’s like a shirt that you put on and you take off. It’s worthless.
Real Christian living means living life with Christian values. Being Christian isn’t just showing up on church one day a week. Everything about you must reflect the Christian character. Your choice of entertainment, your lifestyle, and the way you work. There is no such thing as a compartmentalized Christian. Your ability to live your life according to your highest values determines whether the church can move your world, instead of the other way around.
Christ gave us all a great commission. That’s the final mission that is given to all Christians. We have to do our part. Unfortunately, if our church wants to move with the world and become just like the world, then we are not really fulfilling our end of the great commission.
