BE NOT CONFORMED TO THIS WORLD
"I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service. And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind , that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God." (Romans 12:1, 2). St. Paul issues a solemn exhortation to the church in Rome in this twelfth chapter of Romans. He warns them not to be conformed to this world, but instead, to be transformed by the renewing of their minds. The Greek word that is translated "conformed" in this passage means to conform oneself to, or fashion oneself after, another's pattern. I have often thought of this conforming to the world as meaning that we should not copy the evil practices of the world. The lusts of the flesh, the lusts of the eye, and the pride of life are clearly "of the world" and to be avoided; but there is so