Feeling Squeezed?
My first Bible was the J.B. Phillips paraphrase of the New Testament. We called it the “cookbook bible” because of its cover that kind of resembled an old Betty Crocker cookbook. This Englishman had an everyman’s touch on phrasing that still resonates with me today, and seems to bring the stories and letters to life. And honestly, reading it takes me back to the early fun, discovery days of my faith journey.
Romans 12:2 is a perfect example of this. Here, after Paul has spent most of his letter to believers in Rome explaining the theology of the gospel, he turns intensely practical, applying truth to life for the remaining chapters. Phillips translates vs.2 like this:
“Don’t let the world squeeze you into its mould….” (note the English spelling of mold)
How often have you, like me, felt the squeeze? In our age of instant gratification and immediate outrage, of influencers and infomercials, don't you feel pushed, herded, manipulated, and bullied into beliefs and actions the crowd has declared correct. But when the text says, “Don’t let…” it implies both the push and our choice to resist. "Don't let" points to difficulties and pressures to comply, but it also tips the hat at your ability to stand and say, "Thanks, but not for me."
Instead, Paul challenges those once lost and now found, formerly alone and now embraced to
“be transformed by the renewing of your mind….”
A renewed mind is the work of the Spirit of God through the scriptures and other believers that forms understandings strong enough to resist the squeeze. The quiet work of a renewed mind sees the world through Jesus' eyes and with the Father's heart. It views people as image-bearers, situations as redeemable, and even death as a passage-way to life. Renewed minds breed worthwhile actions that those around you might not understand, and even resist.
While I can set myself up for the transformation of my mind, the verb is passive. God slowly and surely does the work of change in each of his children, more and more into a working likeness of Jesus. So the verse teaches a spiritual dynamic at play in every believer’s life, where we live both aware and resisting forces to conform as well as following the Spirit wherever he leads.
Look around at the various squeeze points on your thinking and living. Our challenge is to stay current with the world in which we live, at the same time hold fast to the truths that transcend trends. That’s a delicate balancing act, and has always been. Stepping back and evaluating why you think what you think about the numerous facets of life just might reveal which of the two you follow. You see, being “conformed” are outward acts of compliance while being, bit by bit, “transformed” is from the inside moving out. Conformed implies acquiescence. Transformed looks like metamorphosis. Snakes conform to the curves of a branch, while caterpillars emerge…different.
Here's another thought that might rub a bit of a blister. For those of us who grew up in the evangelical heyday of the past decades, "conformed" wasn't just from those out there in the big bad world, but just as certainly from within our ranks: Rules upon rules of proper behavior. Big red binders filled with the keys to the lessons for the principles that would insure your life and marriage were sound and your kids would grow up with straight teeth. So many believers exchanged their freedom in Christ for the promise that a conformed social behavior showed real faith, only later to long for the freedom they lost. Most of the purveyors of this stuff had good intentions, but too often came across like the Music Man singing about the evils "...right here in River City."
Right behavior and clear boundaries are all good and proper, but should flow from a Spirit-transformed heart and not from an artificial list of actions and attitudes. In that spot a Jesus follower stands free to wade into the culture, not with a wagging finger of judgmental disapproval, but with the winsomeness of Jesus who offers rest to the weary and water to the thirsty of heart.
For much of the rest of the letter following Romans 12:1-2, Paul takes this idea of transformation out for a spin. He applies it to spiritual gifting and us being part of something much larger than just us (12:3-8), then does a rapid-fire tour of indicators or targets that look a lot like Jesus (12:9-21). Chapter 13 references a believer's stance with the government, and then Ch.14-15 are about conflict resolution. All of this application finds its source in the person and work of Jesus, who loved us into a new life in which we live without condemnation—either from our inner voice or the critics when we don't choose to conform (outside or inside the church).
So, friend, maybe today, look over the landscape of your life and see if you have been squeezed into a mold that doesn't look much like Jesus. Pray for God to continue his work of transformation on your heart. Take a few minutes and look over the rest of Romans 12 and maybe set some new targets, a few refreshed intentions from your transforming heart as you go about your life.
Music done be good. Period.
...aaand a couple of funnies
An old pastor who was a lifelong teetotaler got the urge to see what the attraction booze had for so many people in his congregation.
He pondered how he could get a drink, but was well known in his town so he traveled some distance to another city. He went to a restaurant and ordered a martini with his dinner.
Just as it was served, in walked the chairman of his deacon board and his wife who made a beeline to the pastor's table.
Gathering himself he said to the couple, "What a fancy place! Just look how they served my olives."
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A lady came to the hospital to visit a friend. She had not been in a hospital for several years and felt uneasy, not knowing about all the new technology.
A technician followed her onto the elevator, wheeling a large, intimidating looking machine with tubes and wires and dials.
"Boy, would I hate to be hooked up to that thing," she said.
"So would I," replied the technician. "It's a floor-cleaning machine."