How do we live separate from the world but still reach out to unbelievers?

1 Corinthians 5:9-11When I wrote to you before, I told you not to associate with people who indulge in sexual sin. But I wasn’t talking about unbelievers who indulge in sexual sin, or are greedy, or cheat people, or worship idols. You would have to leave this world to avoid people like that. I meant that you are not to associate with anyone who claims to be a believer yet indulges in sexual sin, or is greedy, or worships idols, or is abusive, or is a drunkard, or cheats people. Don’t even eat with such people.

Living in isolation from unbelievers is impractical and undesirable. God loved the world and sent his son into it to express that love. We, as representatives of Jesus, must do the same. We need to be strong enough in our faith to influence others, not the other way around. In these verses, Paul was warning believers to stay away from those who claim to be believers but are not different from the rest of the world. They are the most likely to cause us to compromise our faith.

Mark 2:15-17Later, Levi invited Jesus and his disciples to his home as dinner guests, along with many tax collectors and other disreputable sinners. (There were many people of this kind among Jesus’ followers.) But when the teachers of religious law who were Pharisees saw him eating with tax collectors and other sinners, they asked his disciples, “Why does he eat with such scum?” When Jesus heard this, he told them, “Healthy people don’t need a doctor—sick people do. I have come to call not those who think they are righteous, but those who know they are sinners.”

Jesus modeled his association with unbelievers for us. We should show love to unbelievers, witness to unbelievers, and be winsome to unbelievers. We are to reach out to unbelievers in order to invite them into a relationship with God.

John 15:18-19“If the world hates you, remember that it hated me first. The world would love you as one of its own if you belonged to it, but you are no longer part of the world. I chose you to come out of the world, so it hates you.”

John 17:14-16“I have given them your word. And the world hates them because they do not belong to the world, just as I do not belong to the world. I’m not asking you to take them out of the world, but to keep them safe from the evil one. They do not belong to this world any more than I do.”

Philippians 3:20We are citizens of heaven, where the Lord Jesus Christ lives. And we are eagerly waiting for him to return as our Savior.

Titus 2:14He gave his life to free us from every kind of sin, to cleanse us, and to make us his very own people, totally committed to doing good deeds.

James 4:4, 7Don’t you realize that friendship with the world makes you an enemy of God? I say it again: If you want to be a friend of the world, you make yourself an enemy of God. . . . So humble yourselves before God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.

Jesus knew that his citizenship was not of this world, but he loved earth’s citizens. Through his life, death, and resurrection, he helps earth’s citizens become heaven’s citizens.

Romans 12:1-2So, dear brothers and sisters, I plead with you to give your bodies to God because of all he has done for you. Let them be a living and holy sacrifice—the kind he will find acceptable. This is truly the way to worship him. Don’t copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. Then you will learn to know God’s will for you, which is good and pleasing and perfect.

Galatians 2:20My old self has been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me. So I live in this earthly body by trusting in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.

Galatians 5:16So I say, let the Holy Spirit guide your lives. Then you won’t be doing what your sinful nature craves.

Titus 2:11-12The grace of God has been revealed, bringing salvation to all people. And we are instructed to turn from godless living and sinful pleasures. We should live in this evil world with wisdom, righteousness, and devotion to God,

1 Peter 1:14So you must live as God’s obedient children. Don’t slip back into your old ways of living to satisfy your own desires. You didn’t know any better then.

1 Peter 2:9You are not like that, for you are a chosen people. You are royal priests, a holy nation, God’s very own possession. As a result, you can show others the goodness of God, for he called you out of the darkness into his wonderful light.

1 Peter 4:4Of course, your former friends are surprised when you no longer plunge into the flood of wild and destructive things they do. So they slander you.

1 John 5:19We know that we are children of God and that the world around us is under the control of the evil one.

As we live for a short time in the world, obeying God through the power of his Spirit, we can positively influence others for Jesus Christ.