At times, the world condemns believers for mingling with the worldly, sinners, and largely the lost. Still, we must press on and remain relevant towards culture and society we are working in. After all, this is precisely what Jesus’ ministry on earth was about – finding a hurt to heal it, finding a need and meeting it.
Believe it or not, His modus operandi is largely to mingle with the unclean, i.e. tax collectors, prostitutes, etc, dine with them and interact with them, help them and love them. Only after that, he begins to preach with great effectiveness (Luke 5:30).
Of course, as with the modern times, Pharisees and even John the Baptist were extremely alarmed and found it too controversial to bear (Ma 11:3). But Jesus aptly responded, “I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners, to repentance” (Luke 5:32).
So truly, going out to minister in the marketplace like Daniel is not easy; “Behold, I send you out as sheep in the midst of wolves” (Ma 10:16). Be like Daniel, hold fast to clean ‘food’ (Dan 1:12) or values and go out into the world and make a difference for the Kingdom of God.
One example is Sun Ho, my pastor’s wife. She managed to bring the cross over to the entertainment industry, made an impact wherever she goes with her music. Through her (chinese) music, she is able to reach out to people in depression, giving them a hope and sharing with them her great friend who too brought her out of depression – Jesus, hopefully leading them to Christ. With her royalties, she managed to thus far build 4 schools in mainland China, in an attempt to provide a decent environment in which rural children could study, without distraction of cold or water, darkness or danger, demonstrating practical love. Despite fierce criticism from the press in her homeland, she continues to strongly strive to do what she does best, and for God.
Another example, the founder of 77th Street, uses her business to provide jobs in countries around the region. It was said that the business provided so many jobs in Indonesia that she was given land which can be used to build churches. What a great way to extend the Kingdom of God!
So really, as with what Jesus commanded in the great commission, “Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptising them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the ends of the age” (Ma 28:19).
Posted by iphoting 
