Theology Thursday 01 - NOTW

Very often in my life I’ve been told that I have to be “in the world but not of the world.” It’s a phrase that comes out of Jesus’ prayer for his disciples in John 17 where he says that his disciples are not of the world. This is a phrase that is very popular among evangelical Christians; it describes how we are supposed to live in this world but not get caught up in all the trappings of this world. Reflecting on it now, however, I realize that I have had a very limited understanding of what this concept means and what Jesus meant in his prayer.

Based upon sermons I’ve heard and sermons I’ve given, I always thought this concept simply meant that we weren’t supposed to do bad things and that people were supposed to see us avoiding those bad things. Take the example of partying. As a Jesus follower it’s possible to be at a party where people are getting drunk but not drink; therefore being in the world but not of the world. But if that’s all we understand about this concept, then we’re really missing out on what it means to follow Jesus and have our lives transformed while living in this world. We discussed this concept at our college Bible study and with their help, my understanding of both parts, in the world and of the world, were expanded.

Jesus prays for his disciples and says that they are not of the world. I have always thought that this really just applied to our actions, to the things we do. As followers of Jesus our actions should be different from those of people in this world. I thought it simply meant that we shouldn’t be getting drunk, that we shouldn’t be having sex and we shouldn’t be listening to all that rock and roll music. And while I firmly believe we shouldn’t get drunk, shouldn’t have sex outside of marriage and should avoid some of today’s music (mostly because it’s not very good), that’s a very shallow view of what it means to not be of the world. The concept of not being of the world needs to apply to our inner life as well, our thoughts and our motives.

It’s very easy to live a life which looks not of the world but to hold motives and thoughts which are very much of the world. We can easily avoid sex, drunkenness and drugs while still holding onto things like pride, greed, envy and materialism. Those inner things of the world are deeply rooted in our lives as we’re told by our western culture that the individual is king or queen and gaining as many material possessions is the highest priority. We need to honestly evaluate our inner lives and identify the motives and thoughts which are of the world and do what is necessary to make them not of the world.

Jesus also exemplified what it means to be in the world. I always thought it meant that I should be a shining light, just living differently, being the salt of the earth. It is definitely good and worthy to be salt and light, to be an example, but there is so much more to being in the world than just living as an example of Jesus. Being in the world means engaging the world, not just being present, but actually doing something in the world. Jesus wasn’t just here on Earth, he did something; he not only set the example for how we should live but he served people and helped those in need.

I really thought that being in the world meant that I was just supposed to be a shining light living my life. I hoped, and still do, that people would look at me and see that I choose to live my life differently. Jesus even says in Matthew 5 that we should live our lives differently and, when people see our different lives, they’ll praise our father in heaven. But just standing and being a light isn’t active enough, it doesn’t engage the world like Jesus engaged the world. No one who is starving in Africa is ever going to say, “Look at that Scott Higa. He is setting an example and being a light in this world. He is shining so brightly that I’m not even hungry anymore.” That’s not going to happen. To be in the world means that we are present and engaged with this world, doing what we can to redeem it.

If we’re followers of Jesus we need to be in the world but not of the world; it’s a good concept. But it needs to go beyond the shallow understanding that we don’t do bad things and we make sure people see us not doing bad things. We need to examine our inner thoughts and motives, as well as our actions, and make sure those aren’t of the world. And we need to not just be a light on a hill, we need to take that light and engage the world, really be present within it.

How are your thoughts and motives of the world? What are you doing to really be in the world?