Even before the days of social media, we all felt the need to belong. So, for the bible to caution against being like others felt a bit weird. And yet the caution of no conformity is totally in line with Jesus Himself. You may recall that He was so different that the church and temple leaders accused him. They alleged Jesus was an associate of the chief of demons. Can you imagine how that must have made him feel? That is how you will feel when you accede to the caution of no conformity.
You feel totally out of place at all times. It puts greater pressure on you to conform, even compromise. Your mental health is in jeopardy in that situation. Just for context, we are still on the mental health component of our series on divine health. When you don’t conform, you feel like a bat among birds, living upside-down. And unless God helps you, that can serve as a stressor, an item that you should avoid at all costs.
We had observed the danger of stress in an earlier post. It can kill and as you abide by the code of no conformity, you feel like you might die. Severe loneliness is the first sign. I know of ladies of marriageable ages but who refuse to compromise and marry just anybody. Can you imagine the stress under which they function? Marriage is not the only scenario that puts pressure on you to conform to the world.
Narrow Is The Way To Heaven
Partying, drinking, smoking, cheating, lying, and slacking are some others. We could go on and on but you find a list in Galatians 5. 19-20 as follows: adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lewdness. There is idolatry, sorcery, hatred, contentions, jealousies, outbursts of wrath, selfish ambitions, dissensions, and heresies. You also have envy, murders, drunkenness, revelries, etc.
The list looks like what everybody else is doing, so why is God depriving you of so-called fun? That is the question that comes to mind whenever you think that God preaches no conformity. Does He not want you to enjoy your life just like your friends are doing? Well, the answer to that question is in the very next verse. Galatians 5.21 says “those who practice such things will not inherit the kingdom of God.” God designed no conformity for those whose desire is to make heaven – like those of us here.
Now, there is another law for those who want to go to hell. Be like everybody else, conform to the majority, and do what they do. Unfortunately, the majority that you wish to copy is on its way to hell. You see, narrow is the path that leads to heaven and very few find it. But the highway on which everybody else is traveling is very wide and leads to hell. So, as usual, the choice is ours.
Renew Your Mind For No Conformity
Do you want to conform and be like the majority who are heading for hell? Or do you want to practice no conformity and be among the minority going to heaven? It is up to you. God makes it plain that the practice of no conformity is the way that leads to heaven. Mercifully, God does not leave us with the mental stress of not conforming or compromising. He tells us what to do to relieve the stress. “Be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind” is His word to us for dealing with being different.
He knows that we feel lonely; we feel as if God does not love us and does not want us to ‘enjoy’ life. But if we renew our minds, we shall be transformed. That is why you see missionaries leave their countries and come and live among other cultures. And yet they are happy and satisfied. That is because they have been transformed by renewing their minds. And how do you renew your mind? By reading the word of God. That is the only way to enjoy the practice of no conformity
Maranatha!
