Unrivalled: Christ the Ultimate InfluencerSýnishorn

Day 1: Set Apart by Our Faith and Love

“Enough with your holier-than-thou beliefs!”

Have you personally received such a remark before? In today’s increasingly secular world, being holy might rub some people the wrong way. They may perceive believers as part of an exclusive and superior group who are “all there” and “already know it all.” Some of us may have also unknowingly fallen into this trap at times, secretly priding ourselves for our righteous acts and judging others for being less holy.

Furthermore, living in an era of hyper-competition, we face daily pressures to outperform one another in a bid to distinguish ourselves. We may even carry this competitiveness into the church, where we strive to show that we are more serving or faithful to God than those around us. We may flaunt our good works and disguise them as deeds motivated by a desire for God’s glory.

But being holy or “set apart” by God differs from acting on our human desire to “stand out.” When Paul wrote to the church in Colossae, he addressed the believers as God’s holy people and thanked them for their faithful acceptance of the Gospel. Having heard the gospel, they changed their lives and showed love for others, demonstrating their faith through actions. The evidence of being holy, or set apart, is a life of love built upon faith in Christ. What ultimately drives this faith and love? It is based on the hope proclaimed in the gospel (v5): the promise of heaven and our resurrection.

The believers in Colossae identified as God’s holy people through their faith and love for each other. What about us? When others look at our lives, will they see the transformative impact of the Gospel through our sincere love and unwavering faith in Christ? Or will they see us as nothing more than another interest group that looks down on others whom we deem not as good as us? What, then, are the truths from the Gospel that we need to grasp as a church to truly live as God’s holy people? May our distinctiveness from the world be a fruit of the Gospel in our lives rather than an external show of our “right” behaviour to appear different from the world.

Prayer Points

• Pray for our own hearts that we will continue to allow the Lord to do a deep transforming work in our hearts and lives.
• Ask the Lord to give us the courage to submit to His purification fire so that revival may be birthed in us this year.
• Pray for the love of Jesus to burn brightly once again in our hearts and translate into sincere good deeds and loving, faithful service unto others.