As I sit here this morning and write it is completely dark outside. When I walked into the room I could see outside by the moonlight, but as soon as I turned on the light inside the room, everything outside looked darker. There was complete separation and the brighter the light inside, the darker it seemed outside. I immediately thought of the verses in II Corinthians 6:14-17. It speaks of two spiritual worlds, the righteous and the unrighteous. Paul said they are light and dark, and the two should not mix.
II Corinthians 6:14-17 “Be ye not unequally yoked together with unbelievers: for what fellowship hath righteousness with unrighteousness? and what communion hath light with darkness? And what concord hath Christ with Belial? or what part hath he that believeth with an infidel? And what agreement hath the temple of God with idols? for ye are the temple of the living God; as God hath said, I will dwell in them, and walk in them; and I will be their God, and they shall be my people.”
Once a person is saved, and they have accepted Jesus as their Lord and Master, they no longer are controlled by Satan. Their desires change and their allegiance changes. The closer they get to Jesus, the less they have in common with those who are unsaved. Paul uses five words in the above verses to show the incompatibility between the saved and lost.
First, he talks about “fellowship.” I once heard a preacher say, “fellowship is two people in the same ship,” they are rowing toward the same goal. They are in the water, but it is not getting them wet. The word fellowship literally means partnership. Righteousness cannot have spiritual ties with unrighteousness. This does not mean we cannot associate with the lost, that would go against other scripture where we are told to witness to them and love them. We may have a lot in common with them. We may like the same food, work at the same place, and even enjoy cheering for the same team, but when it comes to the spiritual world there are no grounds to form a partnership.
Second, the word “communion” is used. “What communion hath light with darkness?” This literally means what do light and darkness have in common? Jesus said in John 8:12, I am the light of the world and those that follow him will not walk in darkness. In I John 1:5, John proclaims, “God is light, and in him is no darkness at all.” Darkness is used in scripture to denote those without God. In John 3:19, John states that men loved darkness because their deeds were evil. Darkness in scripture is used to denote evil and the ruler of this evil is Satan. He is the opposite of anything righteous and holy. As a believer, my spiritual life has nothing in common with someone who is not saved. I have had several friends that were not saved. We worked together, shared activities together, and went to some of the same places, but even though we enjoyed the surface things together the controlling factor in me was the opposite of theirs. They knew about God and even talked the language of a “churchgoer,” but they did not have a relationship with Jesus. They had a religion! We had a lot in common in the middle of who we were, but our starting and finishing points for our decisions were the opposite. However, I am thrilled to say many of them are saved today! Now we have true communion.
Third, Paul uses the word “concord.” Not a word we use in our everyday language. It means “to sing together in harmony” or a “symphony.” “What concord hath Christ with Belial?” Paul asks the question in this verse, what harmony is there between Jesus and Belial, known as the Devil? There is no harmony between these two. To be in harmony you must agree. If Christ is not in agreement with Belial (Satan), and we know he is not, then believers are not in harmony with unbelievers. If you have ever heard anyone trying to sing harmony with someone, but they just couldn’t hit the right notes, you’ll get the picture. It sounds awful! It’s like they are on two different songs, two different worlds. That’s how it is in the spiritual world between believers and unbelievers. If you are saved you will not be happy running with unbelievers. You may have fun, but the deep-abiding happiness that Jesus brings will not reign in this relationship.
Fourth, is the word “part.” This word means participation. Paul is asking what participation can a believer have with an infidel, an unsaved person. In the spiritual world, we cannot participate together because we do not have the same master. I cannot participate in some of the things my unsaved friends do. Anything, TV programs, movies, music, etc, that are immoral are not to be part of a Christian’s life.
Fifth, he uses the word “agreement.” “What agreement hath the temple of God with idols?” The word agreement means well-minded. Paul states in I Corinthians 3:16, that we are the temple of God because the Spirit of God dwells within us. So how can our bodies have the same desires and goals as the temple of idols?
I Corinthians 3:16 “Know ye not that ye are the temple of God, and that the Spirit of God dwelleth in you?”
My husband and I worked with teens for 17 years in Richmond, VA. This was one of the biblical principles we taught over and over because many had very close friendships with those who were unsaved. The problem! Many sought advice from friends who had no desire to please God. Therefore, they could not give them correct spiritual advice. When a Christian young person wanted to do something their parents didn’t permit, they would complain to the unsaved person. This would usually end up with the unsaved helping the saved to disobey. The unsaved person’s attitude was “just don’t get caught.” If your friends don’t have the same basis for their beliefs that you do, you’re going to come up with different answers to your problems. Answers that are self-centered, not God-centered. We need to love those that are not saved, but understand we are as different from them as light is from the darkness.
Excellent