To be set apart.

1 Peter 1:14-15 As obedient children, do not conform to the evil desires you had when you lived in ignorance. But just as he who called you is holy, so be holy in all you do; for it is written "Be holy, because I am holy"

Holiness. It means to be set apart for the service of God. It means that what is called for holiness should not be used for the profane.

Romans 12:2 Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God's will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will.

How many times do we justify our actions with the words "it is ok, because I can handle it" A violent movie? No problem, I can filter out the bad stuff. A song that glorifies the flesh? It doesn't have any effect on me.

As followers of Jesus Christ we are called out of darkness and into the light (1 peter 2:9)

As we decide to follow Christ, we must embrace the truth found in 2 Cor 5:17 where it is written "Therefore, if anyone is in Christ they are a new creation. The old is gone and the new has come.

So, when we turn to follow Christ, there is a necessary change that must occur in our lives. The old must go. The new must come. Romans 6:11 We must consider ourselves dead to sin but alive to God in Jesus Christ.

In our culture, it seems that we genuinely want to come to Christ, but we tend to also want to take as much of the world with us as possible. Even though we are called to to no longer conform. We do not need to see evil to renounce it. We do not need to look the world to save it.

When we do this, we are living in error. The moment we try and please both the Spirit and the flesh, the flesh wins. The Bible teaches us that a little yeast will work its way through the whole batch of dough. Such it is with the world. We can't live a little for the world and a little for Jesus, scripture also teaches that we cannot serve two masters, we will love one, while we hate the other.

By the grace of God, we are not only being called away from the world, but it is equally a call to something. It is an invitation to draw nearer to Christ. As we remove ourselves from the patterns of the world through Christ living in us, we draw nearer to the Father. As we do this, we begin to live by the spirit, to keep in step with the spirit!

So, what does it look like, to be set apart for use by God? It could look like me turning off facebook and spending more time in prayer, interceding for believers persecuted for following Christ. It could mean applying the word of God as a filter to what media I allow myself to partake in. It may mean fasting from media altogether, from watching sports (ouch), from eating out all the time and giving that money away instead. It should mean praying that the Holy Spirit will guide you in what the Lord wants you to do.

Remember relying on God is a daily choice, a daily struggle. If we truly want to live by the spirit, and put to death our flesh, our sinful nature, then we must be disciplined in mind, and in spirit to do this.

We can do all things through Christ who gives us strength.

Phillipians 4:13