“Join with others in following my
example, brothers, and take note of those who live according to the pattern we
gave you. For, as I have often told you before and now say again even with
tears, many live as enemies of the cross of Christ. Their destiny is
destruction, their god is their stomach, and their glory is in their shame.
Their mind is on earthly things. But our citizenship is in heaven. And we
eagerly await a Savior from there, the Lord Jesus Christ, who, by the power
that enables him to bring everything under his control, will transform our
lowly bodies so they will be like his glorious body. Therefore, my brothers,
you whom I love and long for, my joy and crown, that is how you should stand
firm in the Lord, dear friends!”
The new school year is upon us!
Whether we go to school or not, every day we encounter many people living as
enemies of the cross of Christ. Though they may seem to have their life
altogether, and everything seems to be work for their good—popularity among
peers, money, good looks, a good job, grades in school, etc.—we know that such
a path only leads to destruction. Their god is their stomach. Their mind is
focused on what would make them happy, what they want, what will bring them
pleasure. None of the things they strive to achieve will ever bring them
lasting joy, but yet they still seek to fill their stomachs with temporary
pleasures. What glory they think they have found is empty, meaningless, because
they find glory in the shame of their sin. The man with a pretty girlfriend may
pride himself on always having a pretty girlfriend, but he treats them as disposable,
leaving broken hearts behind him. A young woman may pride herself on being a
part of the “popular” girls a school, but the burned friendships she left
behind loved her more than her “friends” do now. Where those who are enemies of
the cross live with their mind on earthly things, our minds should be firmly
fixed on the things of God. Let us stand firm this year in the Lord, looking
not to the enemies of the cross as an example, but to others following the
Lord.
