the world: all in, all out, or what?

Balance is huge. Whole books are written about the benefits of work/home balance, eating balance, values balance, physical balance...but in the believer’s life, biblical balance is often the most uncomfortable place to be. Because it may not look like we think it should, or agree with our personal bent, opinions, and desires. And we see this in our interaction with the unbelieving world around us. Are we not most comfortable out of balance when it comes to the world? Either all-in or all-out?

I see the all-in swing a lot in my generation. We tend to be very comfortable life-styling just like the world. I think that many of us have genuine motives for this: we're seeking a platform for the Gospel. The problem is, our Bible says, “be not conformed to this world.” And that has to mean something. If we look, act, and think just like the unbelieving world around us, we’ve swung too far on the pendulum. We're out of balance biblically. 

Then there’s the ‘all out’ group on the opposite side. They build high walls around their lives to keep the world from seeping in. They limit any meaningful interaction with the world, finding creative ways to meet their needs without that interaction. And yet, the Bible says, “let your light so shine before men that they may see…” And if we avoid life in this world, that’s not going to happen. We’ve swung too far on the pendulum. We are out of balance biblically.

These are rudimentary observations and arguments. I understand that. But I think we all feel the pull to one side or the other. And Christ gives us the perfect example in Matthew 9 of what a balanced life should look like. 

Christ understood who the lost were.

Watch closely, and you’ll see Christ doesn’t really seek to make them comfortable around Him. Nor is He frantically pointing out what He has in common with them, or matching their lifestyle so they notice and take Him seriously. Why? Matthew tells us. Christ understands that the lost are sick. He’s using that word picture to describe their lack of belief in Him as the Messiah. And the sick have one desperate need: to be healed. Their condition trumps everything. Making myself look like a physically sick person does nothing to help them or my message. But offering a clear way to heal is the most powerful, loving act possible. 

Christ surrounds Himself with the lost.

He’s covered with the lost in the Gospel accounts. They’re dripping off of Him. In Matthew 9, the worst of them recline elbow to elbow with Him. Christ eats with them, walks with them, talks with them for hours on end...He goes into their homes. He helps them, their families, and friends in tangible ways. He goes out of His way to intersect their lives. And it doesn’t matter if it’s 5,000 or 1: He bursts on the scene of this world bent on seeking them out.

Christ surrounds Himself with the lost to change them.

He’s not just playing at it, or salving His conscience by it. He surrounds Himself with the lost because He’s after a fundamental change. To take them from sick to whole. From darkness to light. From bondage to freedom. From sure death to everlasting life. He’s there to reveal who He is, and to call them to belief in that. They must believe He’s the Physician, the Light, the Deliverer. The Life. The Way. The Truth. No man is able to come to the Father without placing his belief in that. Christ is after a change in the very fabric of our faith. 

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So what will this balance be like in our everyday life? Don’t you think it's going to look differently for you than for me sometimes? That thought excites me! But following these truths is never going to press me into the world’s mold. In fact, the more I seek to obey these truths, the more I will be molded into something quite spectacular: the form of my Savior Jesus Christ, who sought me out and saved me while I was yet dead in my sins and without hope in this world.

Beth