S152P5 – Our saintly duty: guarding the heart
2 Cor. 6:14-16a
Do not be unequally yoked with unbelievers. For what partnership has righteousness with lawlessness? Or what fellowship has light with darkness? What accord has Christ with Belial? Or what portion does a believer share with an unbeliever? What agreement has the temple of God with idols?
When two oxen share a yoke, they are bound to one another. One cannot move without the other also moving. Neither can work independently, but all of their work is completed as a unit. One thing that is obvious but likely escapes us is that the oxen are doing the same work. They are performing to the same end. They cannot have diverse goals. They are moving together in the same manner and in the same direction. When Jesus speaks of our being yoked to him, this is the picture He paints. It shows us the intimate collaborative work we have with him in advancing the kingdom. It is no wonder we are warned not to join ourselves to unbelievers in this fashion.
We know that we must live in this world even though we are not to be part of the world. We are aliens in a foreign land; this is not our home. Yet, we have no choice but to interact with the world while we are here. After all, we cannot evangelize to lost people without engaging those lost people. However, we must understand that our relationships with the world can go only so far. Many people will think of this concept with regard to marriage, but that is not the only relationship to which this command applies. This also applies to the relationships that would lead to marriage and even to friendships. We cannot expose our hearts in intimate relationship with those who deny the God who lives within us.
The goal of Christ engaging the world was to take those who were his enemies and make them his friends. That transition comes through salvation. There is no other way to enter into a relationship with him. This should give us some critical insight into how we are to manage our relationships with the world. This goes beyond romantic entanglements. To be connected as one oxen is yoked to another is reserved for the Lord and the brethren. We cannot allow our purified hearts to be connected to the world in that way because their hearts are inclined away from God. Father, give us wisdom in our relationships to make sure that we are yoked only to those who are in the body of Christ.