Several years ago, while residing in another town, I carried my car in to a local shop for tire rotation. I had some concerns about the integrity of the shop, so to be sure that my tires were properly rotated, without the knowledge of those performing the job, I placed a small mark on two of the tires so I could tell if they had been moved.

It did not take long for the job to be completed and for me to check out my mark on the tires. Unfortunately, my concern proved to be accurate, and I had not received what was promised. After informing the supervisor of what had happened, he quickly instructed the young man to finish what he was supposed to have done to start with.

I do not know if what happened was out of negligence or mistake, but those tiny marks enabled me to identify a problem and get it corrected. It did not make me any new friends, but I did drive away satisfied that the work had been done as requested--and determined that I would never go there for car service again!

To mark something is to designate or identify it for some special purpose.

In the Old Testament, Ezekiel 9:4 records a statement of the Lord regarding a mark that was to be put on the foreheads of a particular group of people: “Go throughout the city of Jerusalem and put a mark on the foreheads of those who grieve and lament over all the detestable things that are done in it” (NIV).

God had allowed the prophet Ezekiel to see the horrible sins that were taking place in Jerusalem and in the Temple of God that would result in God’s judgment being horribly poured out there. Yet he was also allowed to see that there would be those who would not be put to death by the Babylonians that invaded the city. As Ezekiel 9:6 states, those that were broken-hearted over sin and its consequences would be spared. They were identified with a mark that set them apart from others.

There is much that can be said about Ezekiel’s vision of that day, including much that is difficult to grasp. One of the things, however, that this bit of Scripture should do is to cause us to consider our attitude toward sin in our lives and in our world.

As Christians, we have Christ’s mark of ownership upon our lives through the abiding presence of the Holy Spirit within, enabling us to become increasingly like Christ. As we become more like Him, we will take on His view of sin and become filled with His compassion for people who are affected by sin’s ugly impact. Scripture indicates without question that Christ did not take sin lightly; He was deeply moved as He saw what sin was doing in the lives of people.

We must have an attitude like His.

If we claim to know Christ, yet remain unmoved by the effects of sin in us and among us something is horribly wrong. It should be the intent of all God’s people to ask Him to help us to live up to His mark upon our lives—the mark of passion to become more Christ-like, the mark of compassion for souls in need of Christ’s forgiveness, and the mark of determination to daily abide in His righteousness as we strive to avoid anything that separates us from God.