I remember when I visited Israel a year or so ago and saw all these different cultures in one place. We visited many different places of worship. One thing I learned: there are many ways ‘culturally’ that people worship Jesus. The expression of worship is larger than my American cultured viewpoint. It was amazing and humbling all at the same time.
Pentecost was one of the feasts that drew many to Jerusalem to worship the Lord. When reading Acts 2, recognize that the streets of Jerusalem would have been filled with people during this time, people from all over! We read in Verse 10, “both Jews and proselytes” (A proselyte was a person who covered to Judaism from another religion and/or was not Jewish).
“And there were dwelling in Jerusalem Jews, devout men, from every nation under heaven.” Acts 2:5
Then we continue to read...
“And how is it that we hear, each in our own language in which we were born? Parthians and Medes and Elamites, those dwelling in Mesopotamia, Judea and Cappadocia, Pontus and Asia, Phrygia and Pamphylia, Egypt and the parts of Libya adjoining Cyrene, visitors from Rome, both Jews and proselytes, Cretans and Arabs—we hear them speaking in our own tongues the wonderful works of God.”” Acts 2:8-11
The people who had committed to the Lord were born (and raised up) in these different areas and were introduced to different cultural mindsets, to say the least. Some were even born in those areas, yet they were all there with one accord here.
We are all influenced, to some extent, by the culture of our day in how we do things. I am sure this was the same with all these different people coming together. Yet the driver of their lives was not the culture of their day, it was their commitment to the Lord.
What is the driver of your life? Do you allow the culture of the day or your commitment to Christ to dictate your life?
We all offer different perspectives to offer because of our socioeconomic status, age (generational), or our ethnicity... this is not what I mean. The culture of today is in opposition to the culture of the Bible. The world today has a different way of doing things, which can seriously prohibit the purity of our worship towards a holy God. Even our denominational background can create division in our heart, and we lose out in true unity in Christ.
So, what is more of an influence in your life? Spend some time with the Father today and ask Him to help you to see where there maybe be some things influencing you more than He is. Then give those things to Him and allow Him to be your main influence. Watch as you do this, your heart will grow in love, unity, and worship.
- To Know Jesus. To Live on Mission.