Your going to look different

Reflection

Following Jesus is described in scripture not merely as an inward belief but as a visible transformation, one that inevitably makes a person stand out, sometimes uncomfortably, from the crowd around them. Paul urges believers not to be conformed to the pattern of the world but transformed by the renewing of the mind (Romans 12:2), language that assumes genuine faith will produce noticeable difference rather than blending in unnoticed. This does not mean deliberately courting attention or cultivating an unnecessarily odd appearance; it means that priorities, values and behaviour will diverge from surrounding culture wherever that culture departs from what is good and true. Jesus told his followers they were the light of the world and a city on a hill, unable to be hidden (Matthew 5:14). Looking different, in this sense, is not a burden to be endured reluctantly but a natural consequence of taking seriously a set of commitments that many around us do not share.

Questions to sit with

• In what ways has your faith made you noticeably different from those around you?
• Do you find that difference uncomfortable, and why?
• Where might you be blending in when you are actually called to stand apart?

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