THREE PRINCIPLES TO CHANGE THE WORLD

Rev. H. S. Vigeveno in his book, Thirteen Men Who Changed the World, asks how the disciples changed the course of history given they had “no financial backing, no elaborate organization, no social pull, no prestige, no churches in which to worship and no committees. They were outnumbered, persecuted, forbidden to preach and finally killed.”

In the prayer recorded in the Gospel of John chapter 17, Jesus spoke three phrases which I believe distinguished the disciples and made them the leaven that changed the world. These three phrases – “… these are in the world” (Vs 11), “… they are not of the world” (Vs 14) and “… I also have sent them into the world” (Vs 18) – appear to represent three principles:

Principle #1
God has called us to be “in the world”. Unlike the Pharisees who separated themselves from all secular association, Jesus taught us to be “in the world” - because God loves the world.

Principle #2
God has called us to be “not of the world”. Unlike the Sadducees who compromised their stand with the secular authority, Jesus taught us not to be conformed to the secular age but to be transformed by the renewing of our mind.

Principle #3
God has called us “into the world”. This is the thought form of the missionary. Unlike the Zealots who sought to overthrow secular power, Jesus taught us to be zealous, not for the world’s power but for the world’s welfare.

The first principle is incarnation; we must be in the world, not separated from it. The second principle is transformation. We must be transformed inside out by the Word and not outside in by the world. The third principle is reformation. We are to live for a missionary purpose.

We are “in the world” by incarnation, we are “not of this world” by transformation and we are “sent into the world” for reformation. 

-- Peter Geizer


#3214