Near Freeport, Maine is the headquarters of the DeLorme Map Company. In the lobby there is a huge globe completely made up of satellite images of the entire earth. They call the globe "Eartha", which sort of sounds like a feminine goddess to me! It is the largest rotating and revolving globe in the world, measuring 42 feet in diameter and comprised of 140 gigabytes of information.
I wonder about something and have yet to find the answer. Globes and maps depict the northern hemisphere as up and the southern hemisphere as down. Is this only the case from our conventional perspective or is there an objective reason this is so? Is there an up and down out in space?
I think Acts 17.6 is a powerful expression of the world's perspective on the mighty impact the early church had on the earth. It is specifically referring to the ministry of the Apostle Paul and those who traveled with him as they proclaimed the message of Christ in Thessalonica. Apparently their reputation had preceded them. Their message was so absolutely transforming that it was said to "have turned the world upside down."
Indeed, wherever the true message of Jesus goes, it has a transforming impact. This impact will be on individuals, families, communities and entire cultures. It's important to realize that the transformation is upside down from the world's perspective but right side up according to God's created design! That's why it is so important that we, as followers of Christ, spend time reading, studying, memorizing and obeying God's owner's manual, the Bible.
This morning I recall a moment when a fellow believer shared with me a spiritual concept based on Romans 12:2. "Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind." That was many years ago. The process of breaking conformity to the world and transforming into spiritual conformity to Christ continues in my life through the renewing of my mind. There have been some setbacks along the way but God continues the process and I am assured that God will carry it on to completion until the day He appears.
"Lord, open our eyes to just how upside down the world is and transform us in Christ to being right side up according to your created design. Amen."
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