2 Corinthians 6:14-18
Don’t become partners with those who reject God. How can you make a partnership out of right and wrong? That’s not partnership; that’s war. Is light best friends with dark? Does Christ go strolling with the Devil? Do trust and mistrust hold hands? Who would think of setting up pagan idols in God’s holy Temple? But that is exactly what we are, each of us a temple in whom God lives. God himself put it this way:
“I’ll live in them, move into them; I’ll be their God and they’ll be my people. So leave the corruption and compromise; leave it for good,” says God. “Don’t link up with those who will pollute you. I want you all for myself. I’ll be a Father to you; you’ll be sons and daughters to me.” The Word of the Master, God.
Scripture quotations from The Message. © 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 2000, 2001, 2002 by Eugene Peterson. Used by permission of NavPress, Colorado Springs, CO. All rights reserved.
Someone once gave my mother-in-law a box of fine chocolates from Scotland. “You must try them!” she insisted to Greg and me. The trouble is…I’m allergic to chocolate. “One little taste can’t hurt!” she suggested. Greg responded…”It might only put her in the ER and not the actual hospital!”
Thankfully, I am not one of those people who can merely inhale the aroma of chocolate or corn (my other allergen) and start to have an anaphylactic reaction. But an accidental sampling of either can sometimes cause a case of hives or give me stomach cramps - or even make areas of my body redden and swell. So I do all I can to avoid these triggers, and I make sure that I take an antihistamine every day.
Paul is explaining to the Corinthians that we can’t have “just a smidge” of our old life. We can’t sample “just a taste” of the life we had without Christ and maintain a healthy, pure and complete relationship with God. You cannot share your heart with God…AND the devil!
If you have found yourself wondering where God is…if you have questioned your relationship with Him in recent days/weeks/months and wondered what happened…search your heart and see where you may be sampling “just a taste” of your life “BC” – before Christ became the Lord of your life. Let your commitment and devotion to your fellowship with God serve as a “daily dose” of protection and care against the devil’s attempts to lure you away.
God is not in the business of sharing with the devil…He wants us all for Himself. When we reciprocate, we will find that He has been with us all along…waiting for us to “come clean” and fully commit to Him. Will this be the day that you renew your efforts? As the adage says, “If you don’t feel close to God…guess who moved!”
©2015 Debbie Robus
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