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Different is the New Normal
- David Brown
- Nov 11, 2009
Passage: Romans 12:1-2
The world we live in… changes.
Culture changes. Fashion changes. Music changes. Art changes. Technology changes. Language changes. Lifestyles change. Customs change. Rules of Etiquette change. Methods change. Established norms and accepted standards change.
The color black became the hot fashion statement a few years ago.
Then…one season they said, “Brown is the new Black!”
- Then, “Pink is the new black”
- “Stripes are the new solids”
- “Jeans are the new dress slacks”
Then…
- “40 is the new 30”
- “50 is the new 40”
- “
- “Traditional is the new Contemporary”
Different is the New Normal
Christians are to be “in the world but not of it”.
They are called to be different.
Their New
Non-Conformity is the new Spirituality.
Non-Typical is the New Typical.
Unusual is the New Usual.
Unique is the New Chic.
Romans 12:1-2
Verse 2 The Message
Don’t become so well adjusted to your culture that you fit into it without even thinking. Instead, fix your attention on God. You’ll be changed from the inside out. Readily recognize what God wants from you and quickly respond to it. Unlike the culture around you, always dragging you down to its level of immaturity, God brings the best out of you…
Verse 2 New Living Bible
Don’t copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think.
Verse 2 Contemporary English Version
Don’t be like the people of this world, but let God change the way you think. Then you will know how to do everything that is good and pleasing to him.
Verse
Do not be conformed to this world (this age), [fashioned after and adapted to its external, superficial customs], but be transformed (changed) by the [entire] renewal of your mind [by its new ideals and its new attitude],
Verse 2 Phillips Translation
Don’t let the world around you squeeze you into its own mold, but let God re-mold your minds from within, so that you may prove in practice that the plan of God for you is good,
Christianity is the New Rebellion!
It’s a rebellion against rebellion.
The Hippies of the 60’s and 70’s were rebels against the “establishment”.
New Agers rebel against what they call “organized and traditional religion for a New Spirituality…They claim to be “spiritual but not necessarily religious”.
Whether it’s hippies, new agers, Goths, Gangsters or the Reorganized Church of Latter Day Saints with multiple wives…they’re not really being different…they’re being the same as each other!
The Contemporary English Version said, “Don’t be like the people of this world”!
We are called to rebel against the world’s mold, model, method and mentality!
How do the people of this world respond to life’s issues?
- They hide
- They lash out
- They escape
- They quit
God wants us to NOT CONFORM to the world around us…
But be TRANSFORMED by the renewing of our mind within us!
God wants us to Conquer, Win and Overcome!
By learning how and what to think…we learn how to live…how to act…how to respond and react.
We learn how to rebel against rebellion.
We learn how to be us.
We learn how to be real.
We learn how to be Who we are, how to do What we do, and how to do it like no one else can do it.
God wants us to be different from the world…
But also… uniquely different from one another!
You need to be You.
I need to be Me.
We all need to learn how to be like Jesus! And that’s very different.
But it’s the normal life that God wants us to live.
Different is the New