Don’t get wrapped up in the system. Sounds like something a conspiracy theorist would say, doesn’t it? But what does it mean? And would a conspiracy theorist have a point to some degree?
I’ve heard a lot of conspiracy theories on different things. I would even admit that I lean in that direction myself. However, some conspiracy theories are just plain crazy. I’m not really interested in hearing about theories saying we didn’t really land on the moon in 1969. Or, theories about what happens at area 51. There are some things, however, where it’s important what we believe. And it’s important that we are believing something that’s in line with the truth. My personal feeling is that there are two kinds of people. There are those who believe conspiracy theories because they want to believe they’re true. Then there are those who are willing to believe conspiracy theories because they just want to know the truth. I would place myself in the latter category. And whether they qualify as conspiracy theories, I guess, is a matter of debate.
But we don’t even have to be talking about conspiracy theories here. I hate to call it cynicism, suggesting that we only become jaded as we become older. But we do generally gain, what I would call, a healthy degree of cynicism. We learn as we get older not to just believe everything we hear from anywhere. We have to learn to test whether what we’re hearing makes sense. And that goes for anything we hear no matter the supposed credibility of the source.
The reason I bring up the topic is this—we can easily find ourselves being influenced by the world around us, whether overtly or covertly. We can fall in to patterns of thinking and beliefs that aren’t true based on what someone else says, or even a group of people are saying. A person can experience a degree of “brainwashing” and not even realize it’s happening. And I hesitate to even call it that. This doesn’t even have to happen as a result of a group of people conspiring together to perpetrate a conspiracy. It can easily happen just due to the fact that we, as people, tend to fall into the same patterns of thinking without realizing it. There’s a great value in being a free and independent thinker.
And that’s not to say that we go around suspicious of everything and everyone. That often results in people moving into the mountains, without electricity, and completely separating themselves from society—living “off the grid” as they say. That is what I would call an unhealthy response. I guess what I would advocate is someone who is fully engaged with people and society, but also is not afraid to go against the grain. They appreciate other people and what they have to offer, but aren’t so concerned about what other people think that they fall into patterns of thinking that aren’t good or healthy.
There’s a reality that we all face as Christians. That is the fact that we are living in a realm here that is foreign to us. And when we start to get into trouble is when we forget that reality. If this world seems foreign to you, there’s a reason for it.
AV John 15:19: “If ye were of the world, the world would love his own: but because ye are not of the world, but I have chosen you out of the world, therefore the world hateth you.” There’s a degree to which a Christian stands out in this world. It’s a different way of living. Jesus stated this so that we would not think it strange when we experience friction from other people. We are like salmon swimming upstream—going against the flow. And that’s not always going to be easy. We need to be prepared for difficulty and resistance.
AV John 17:16: “They are not of the world, even as I am not of the world.” Jesus modeled for us perfectly the reality that we are in the world but not of the world. This is displayed in the way Jesus fully engaged with people when he was here on this earth. He cared about people, and not just any people, but he took time for the least of the least. Yet He never fell prey to acting or thinking in patterns like the people He engaged. He was here to show them how to live—an agent of change. This is the example he set for us.
AV 2 Corinthians 6:17: “Wherefore come out from among them, and be ye separate, saith the Lord, and touch not the unclean [thing]; and I will receive you,” Not falling prey to this world system also involves our behavior being distinct from the world in which we live. It’s distinctly different, and it should be. Many of these things involve us not acting in ways that are contrary to God and His word. Primarily this means not living in a worldly manner, but living a clean life.
AV 1 John 4:1: “Beloved, believe not every spirit, but try the spirits whether they are of God: because many false prophets are gone out into the world.” The Bible also talks to us about things we believe within the realm of Christianity. Sometimes we can be in the midst of what we believe is a Christian environment, only to realize that we’re being led astray by thoughts and patterns that aren’t right. That’s why the Word directs us to examine these things. We need to gain a sense of whether the environment we’re in is in line with God and His word.
Ultimately, not becoming of this world means not falling into this world’s pattern of thinking. AV Romans 12:2 “And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what [is] that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God.” We need to think differently. When we think differently, we’ll act differently. That’s why this verse begins by stating that we keep ourselves from conforming to this world by renewing our minds. And we renew our minds by thinking in line with what’s in the Word. This is how we begin to establish God’s good, acceptable, and perfect will in our lives.
AV John 15:19: “If ye were of the world, the world would love his own: but because ye are not of the world, but I have chosen you out of the world, therefore the world hateth you.”
AV John 17:16: “They are not of the world, even as I am not of the world.”
AV 2 Corinthians 6:17: “Wherefore come out from among them, and be ye separate, saith the Lord, and touch not the unclean [thing]; and I will receive you,”
AV 1 John 4:1: “Beloved, believe not every spirit, but try the spirits whether they are of God: because many false prophets are gone out into the world.”
Romans 12:2 “And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what [is] that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God.”