The World’s My Assignment, Not My Home

Since the earliest days of Jesus’ ministry, followers of Christ have struggled with a tension: How do we engage with the world? The first disciples thought Jesus was there to overthrow the Roman government. They thought being a Christ’s disciple would come with political power and worldly status. 

But they were wrong. 

Jesus made that clear in John 15: 18-20 when he told them that he had to suffer and that they should also expect to face persecution. But we shouldn’t miss why Jesus says his disciples — and Christians today — should be ready to suffer. 

It’s because we don’t belong to this world. Instead, we’ve been chosen out of this world by Christ. Yet, we still feel tension when we look at Jesus’ life. More than anyone in history, Jesus did good in the world. He healed, fed, and loved the socially outcast and overlooked. 

Being chosen out of the world doesn’t mean being disengaged from it. Jesus explains this in John 17 when he says we are not of this world (John 17:16), yet we are sent into it (John 17:18). Like Him, we are to love and serve the world. We’re supposed to continue on the work Jesus started. 

The question is, what does that look like for us today? How do we live like Christ in our time, our place, our sphere of influence?

First, it means refusing to be like the world. In Romans 12:2, Paul tells us not to be conformed to the patterns of this world. That is just as relevant today as it was then because the world still tries to conform us. 

Conformity means aligning one’s attitudes, beliefs, behaviors, or lifestyle to match those of a particular group, culture, or societal expectation. It is adapting to external pressures rather than standing firm on personal convictions and divine principles.

The Church needs to stop conforming, and it starts with us. That’s why Paul gives his readers a powerful strategy for confronting conformity. He tells them to renew their mind and see how God will transform them. 

A transformed mind makes all the difference. A transformed mind is captivated by the truth of God’s Word and the power of the Holy Spirit and informed by a surrendered heart. It no longer thinks, perceives, or reacts according to worldly patterns but is instead aligned with God’s will and wisdom.

This is what the world needs. This kind of Spirit-transformed mind empowers Christians to influence the world rather than imitate it. This has always been a struggle for Christians. Too often, we think we need to look and act like the world to reach the world. 

But Jesus proved that this isn’t the case. His beautifully different life drew people in. His distinctly godly presence and compassionate actions made people question what was different. 

The same was true of the disciples. In Acts 4:13, the Pharisees were astonished by Peter and John's boldness and wisdom, noting that they had been with Jesus. We need that same kind of close, intimate relationship with God if we’re to influence the world for good. 

So why is it that so many Christians don’t pursue God like He can change everything? Why don’t we immerse ourselves in God’s Word every day, pray for the Holy Spirit’s guidance, guard our thought lives, surround ourselves with Godly influences, and set our minds on things above?

It’s because we live in a world that seeks to conform us in a time that demands compromise and concession. But we cannot—and will not — give in. God is at work, and He’s asking us to join Him. He offers His Holy Spirit to empower us to do what we cannot do on our own. 

That’s why we have hope, and that’s why we can live without being part of it. Remember, Jesus has already overcome the world and achieved victory. We get to live from that freedom and confidence. And that changes everything, especially how we engage the world.