You must not follow the statutes of the nations I am driving out before you, for they did all these things, and I abhorred them. - Leviticus 20:23
God commanded the Israelites not to follow the statutes (or practices) of the Canaanites once they entered the Promised Land. He was obviously concerned about their purity.
When my wife and I first moved to West Africa (and for most of our time there), we spent a lot of time trying to understand the culture and customs of the various peoples. We learned how to eat, how to greet, and how to not offend with your feet (sorry, that is the preacher in me), among many other things. We even learned how to live like pagans, though I confess we did our best not to apply what we had learned. We figured we had enough trouble with that growing up in America.
No matter where we live, as Christ-followers we must also be careful not to follow the statutes (or practices) of the people around us. Yet, it seems that many of our churches are more influenced by the world than the world is influenced by them. Instead of a church culture that reveals the presence of God's people, it appears that many churches reveal the presence of a popular world system .
If this is the case, then why should those who are looking for something "other worldly" or transcendent, expect to find it with us?
What is popularly called fame is nothing but an empty name and a legacy from paganism. - Desiderius Erasmus
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