If you take a look around you, wherever you are, you will notice that our lives our filled with conformity. Most things plastic have been shaped according to a mold. I have some figurines on my desk that weren’t hand-carved but no-doubt formed from a mold of an original. Artwork on walls often is not original but a print of the original. I’ve even seen woodworking shows where a carpenter uses a mold, clamps, and steam, over time, to bend an otherwise solid piece of wood into a usable shape for a piece of furniture. Yes, we are surrounded by conformity.
What’s more, the societies in which we live bear the marks of conformity. Societal norms work their way into our thoughts, emotions, and actions. Whether we know it or not, we are constantly being pressured to align ourselves with the patterns of this world. Some of these patterns are innocent, inconsequential, or maybe even good; others are evil and destructive. The Bible speaks to the latter set in no uncertain terms.
Both Peter and Paul instructed their readers not to be conformed—Paul, “to this age” (Rom. 12:2); Peter, “to the desires of your former ignorance” (1 Pet. 1:14). These references are one in the same, for Christians have received the knowledge of God in Jesus and have been called to be different like Jesus (we have been given the Holy Spirit to ensure this result). Keep reading
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