Separate/Separation…
…to divide, as with an egg (splitting the yolk from the white) or laundry (keeping the light-colored clothes from the darks).
…a social system designed to keep groups apart; i.e., segregation justified by equality of services and facilities.
…a political and legal wall between two institutions ensuring the independent administration of each, as with church and state.
…(plural) as in components of a woman’s wardrobe…spring and summer tops and shorts, winter blazers and slacks.
…in some marriages, a time of living apart often preceded by separate accounts, separate vacations, filing separately, and separate beds.
The idea of separation may conjure fearful and heart-tugging images. It may simply have a more practical application. Perhaps it reminds us of injustice. We live in an inclusive society that encourages—no, demands—that no one be set apart to be labeled different. Separation divides and sets distinction. It just seems wrong.
But there is nothing wrong with separation as established by God. On the very first day of creation God’s Spirit hovered over the earth, moving back and forth across dark waters. God looked into the darkness and summoned forth light. Imagine that. Out of darkness, He created light. It was good—very good—so God separated light from darkness. He gave the earth time of prolonged darkness followed by time of prolonged light and named them accordingly: night and day (Genesis 1:1 – 5).
Creating light and separating it from the darkness gave the formless earth its first structure. Day filled the earth with the light necessary for the growth of plants and animals. It illumined the workspace given to man as he named and cared for the creatures. When night fell, man’s work was done. He and the rest of the earth relaxed and refreshed in the darkness. But only because the light and the dark were separated.
Separation is part of God’s order for the perfect functioning of His creation. He intricately designed and crafted this world to operate to His specifications, with boundaries around each created thing. These boundaries provide limits so all things function efficiently and completely, according to their purpose.
God separates to keep people or things distinct, pure, and dedicated to Him. He set the Israelites apart from the other nations to be His people. He asks His people today to separate from the world around them. The common catch-phrase is “we are in the world, not of the world.” We live here, work here, play here. But we do not belong to the world. We are God’s children. Our home is with our Father. While we live here, however, we are to distinguish ourselves from the evil and corruption that has tainted this world.
Though light is separated from dark and dark from light, there are times when the two mingle. Night overtakes day at sunset, and day breaks through night at sunrise. Day and night are divided by shadowy times of indiscernible spectrum.
And this is true for God’s people as well. Though we are to distinguish ourselves, it is in our lifestyles—loving one another, forgiving trespasses, expectant in hope for promised return of our Savior—that we separate from the world. We are not to withdraw and hibernate with our “own kind.” We are to live as lights in the darkness, drawing out the lost and guiding the wounded. We may look the same as everyone around us, but it is a bearing, a demeanor, that sets us apart.
How difficult is it to be thankful for separations? Isolating yourself from friends, family, or co-workers may sound depressing. A willingness to be the different, odd one can be daunting. Regardless, can you give God thanks for creating the separations around you? Can you thank Him for setting you apart to belong to Him and not the world? Can you celebrate your distinction as a child of God?
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