One of the chief defenders of the Christian faith, the apostle Paul, expressed a similar view of human nature and this world's systems and power structures. He viewed them as characterizing "this present evil age" (Galatians 1:4Who gave himself for our sins, that he might deliver us from this present evil world, according to the will of God and our Father:
See All...). Jesus Christ, interceding for His apostles in His prayer to God the Father on the eve before His death, specifically stated: "I am not praying for the world, but for those you have given Me, for they are yours" (John 17:9I pray for them: I pray not for the world, but for them which thou hast given me; for they are thine.
See All..., New International Version).
A little later in the same prayer Christ said: "... They are not of the world any more than I am of the world. My prayer is not that you take them out of the world but that you protect them from the evil one [Satan the devil]" (verses 14-15, NIV, emphasis added).
Christ's message is clear. True discipleship has little in common with society's structures, which are based on the vagaries of human nature influenced by an unseen evil spirit, Satan (to learn more, please request our free booklet Is There Really a Devil?).
The biblical message to Christ's true followers is to "come out of her My people, lest you share in her sins" (Revelation 18:4And I heard another voice from heaven, saying, Come out of her, my people, that ye be not partakers of her sins, and that ye receive not of her plagues.
See All...; compare 1 John 2:15-17 [15] Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world. If any man love the world, the love of the Father is not in him.
[16] For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world.
[17] And the world passeth away, and the lust thereof: but he that doeth the will of God abideth for ever.
See All...). But where does a person wishing to seek the Creator go from here?
Our responsibility is to ask God for help in changing our lives to meet the standards of the Kingdom of God. Acts 2:37-39 [37] Now when they heard this, they were pricked in their heart, and said unto Peter and to the rest of the apostles, Men and brethren, what shall we do?
[38] Then Peter said unto them, Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost.
[39] For the promise is unto you, and to your children, and to all that are afar off, even as many as the LORD our God shall call.
See All... sums up the actions that we must take: real repentance and water baptism followed by the receiving of God's Holy Spirit.
Our free booklets Transforming Your Life: The Process of Conversion and The Church Jesus Built explain this whole spiritual process in detail and reveal the role of God's Church in it. Jesus Christ said He would build His Church and that it would endure throughout this age of man (Matthew 16:18And I say also unto thee, That thou art Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church; and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it.
See All...). Searching for and becoming an active part of that Church becomes the task of men and women whom God is calling into the knowledge of the truth.
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