Misfits and Followers of Jesus

In the annual Christmas special “Rudolph The Red-Nosed Reindeer,” Hermey the Elf, who wants to be a dentist, and Rudolph, with a glowing nose, sing a song about being “misfits.”
The tune explores the dilemma of living in a world they don’t fit in.
Christians are labeled as aliens and strangers in the New Testament. There is a sense that once you turn your heart over to pleasing Jesus as the number one priority, a lot of people are not going to understand. This is no reason to not fulfill the invitation that Jesus has given us to follow Him.
There are times when you will find yourself in a position where you can’t straddle the fence and play both sides of an issue. Sooner or later, a moment will come when you must make a stand over what you truly believe in, and who you will courageously stand with.
If God is for you, who could be against you?
Honestly, those against you are a group of people who want nothing to do with the Almighty, but that is not the gist of that Bible verse. The crux of the matter is that when you stand up for God’s truth, His presence gives you everything you need to stand firm in your faith, no matter what the surrounding crowd may be pressuring you to do.
The Bible tells us the story of a young man, Daniel, and his three friends, Hananiah, Mishael and Azariah, who found themselves to be strangers in a foreign environment. Contrary to the pictures shown growing up in Sunday School and religious movies on television, these young men were kids, around the ages of 15 or 16.
They were minding their own business when the Babylonian Army marched in and took this quartet, along with other Israelites as refugees, and relocated them to a new home. While King Nebuchadnezzar could change their address, he could not compromise their convictions.
All four of these heroes stood their ground for God, regardless of what the enemy threw at them. The foreign officials tried to intimidate them into changing their diet, worship style and daily decisions, but came up empty. Whenever it came time to choose the world’s ways over God’s word, there was no hesitation.
It was obedience to the Lord, despite what society threatened them with. Is it the same with us?
We live in a day where our government is doing its best to remove God from the daily equation. Political correctness holds down any strong commitment to the truth.
The Bible doesn’t teach that God has given us advice, but He has given us His statutes and principles, so we may not lose our moral compass in the midst of the voices that call us to wreck what we claim to believe. This is why knowing the real deal guards against us being deceived by the counterfeits. Will we become spiritually unhealthy by gorging on the culture’s fast food that is convenient and everywhere?
Will we bow at the altar of idolatry because we are afraid to not fit in? Will we surrender our rights as believers because we are threatened by a ruling body, which doesn’t champion the fact that we have the same freedoms to faith that our forefathers guaranteed when this great country was created?
The negatives pour in when no one is willing to be positive. No one can make you do something that you don’t want to do. Rather than abandoning the way that God has called us to walk, maybe, it is time we rediscover our chutzpah and take a stand for the light in the middle of the night.
I gave my life to Jesus in 1975, and ever since, I have always sensed the call to go against the flow. Just because all the lemmings are leaping over the cliff, because they are following the wrong leader, doesn’t mean that my choice has been confiscated.
It was also in the Old Testament when God’s people had to choose who they were going to serve. If you try to live life by walking in the middle of the road, the chances of getting run over are strong. I want to get it right, so I’m not left behind when God is looking for those who will surrender their lives to remain true to the call.
Daniel believed that his steady diet of fruit and vegetables was ordained by God. When he got to Babylon, Nebuchadnezzar orchestrated what he wanted his boys to be eating.
Make no mistake, the king’s menu was delicious. The Babylonian boys were allowed to eat and drink the rich, delicious foods and wine that were offered in abundance to them. However, there was a problem for those who dedicated themselves to a kosher diet.
Daniel was one of those people. The Babylonian people did not worship Jehovah. They worshiped idols gods, who are not gods at all.
They had celebrations and worshiped their gods in ways that did not please the Lord. Sometimes, they offered meat as a gift to their gods, and then after that exercise, they would devour the food. Sometimes, they would pour wine on their gift to their gods, and then proceed to drink the rest of the wine to the point of getting drunk.
When Daniel saw the food that the king was giving them to eat, he knew in his heart and soul that he could not eat that food. I mean, Daniel could have eaten it and used the excuse that he was no longer in Israel so all bets were off, but he wanted to obey God.
Daniel wanted to stay true, and only eat the foods that God said he could eat. The Babylonians ate meat from pigs, and Jewish people were expected to pass on the pork. Daniel put his reputation and safety on the line by not allowing himself to be coerced by those who had different standards.
God blessed Daniel and protected him through the trials and tribulations that followed because he chose to live his faith. I believe that more individuals would be attracted to the Lord if we began to behave with our lives what we claim to believe in our creeds.
In numerous places, Christians are being persecuted daily because they choose to live for Jesus despite what others say. I pray that we may do the same.
While prison and death aren’t yet a threat for American believers, I have a notion that it is going to get harder, as followers of Jesus refuse to lose their dedication to the Savior. I pray that Christians stay true to their convictions in the coming days.
The last action we need to do is strong-arm each other into doing something because everybody else is doing it. If God is number one, then it doesn’t matter what anybody else may say.
We need to let our light shine before others, so they may see the brightness of the Savior through us. If ever this world needed the spark that faith ignites, it is now. That will be impossible to experience if we are too ashamed and afraid to let others know what we believe.
Maybe, today is a great day to let somebody around you know that you love the Lord. Maybe, today is a great day to show that person the difference that loving the Lord makes. Maybe, today is a great day to let Jesus take the wheel, so that He may take you on an extraordinary adventure.
If you don’t let the Lord down, He will always lift you up, despite what everybody else chooses to do.
ED. NOTE: The author is the senior pastor of The Lighthouse Church, 1248 Route 9 South, Court House.