When Holiness Becomes Obvious

Malice and deceit and hypocrisy in the slander, sensuality, loss, drunkenness, rousing drinking parties. Abominable idolatry is an almost a fact of the rattle that was right everything while the world would you rather have to warn Christians to abstain from any kind of all way of living blood as it ever occur to you.

Holy living is not plateglass that duration and how do you perceive those who don't know Christ.

Some Christians act as if unsaved people are to be avoided. They tend to steer clear of them. That's not how God called us to live. God called us to be salt and light in this world there's an unbreakable bond between our private testimony for God and our public reputation before others holiness never stays hidden. God wants our holiness to become obvious in the way that happens is when it's seen. This is wisdom for the heart with Steve and Dave Stevens calling this lesson when holiness becomes. I was upset this but people over the years as her stories about her for a while, but I thought it was a well one pastor tried to get this across to this congregation and this particular list of sin is that it backfired. He was personally convinced it was a sin to drink and eat anything made out of chocolate. Everyone is yours.

I did arrive at his last, but he decided to give a visual demonstration that would add that punch that emphasis to his Sunday sermon in his aggregation a lesson. And never forget so as to begin a sermon he placed four worms in four separate jars. The first worm was put into a jar of alcohol second worm was put into a jar filled with cigarette smoke third worms put into a jar of chocolate syrup and fourth worm was put into a jar filled with rich, clean soil, then the preacher you know wax eloquent any friction when these vices and at the conclusion of the sermon you quite a dramatic flourish.

He showed congregation by placing those jars back up on the pulpit. The dramatic results worm in the alcohol did one cigarette smoke did worm and chocolate syrup did the side of her smiling fourth worm in the good clean soil alive so the minister asked his congregation when I learned from this demonstration little woman in the back raised her hand quickly and said as long as you drink, smoke, any plenty of chocolate you'll never have more to get the point pretty well but when you ransack the Scriptures to find traces evidence is clues explicit statements about holiness you discover. It really is in a list of boxes you check off you can check off those three boxes and have a wicked hard, you discover that holy living is as much about saying yes. As it is saying no. If you open your Bibles back to first Peter in chapter 2 I want a diving today at the point of how he effectively defines holiness. This is been a steam that serves sort of the book and in this discussion and what is do is give us what I just sort of describes three elements, but even the first on divan. The first element in holy living relates to who you are relates to who you are that you skip this and you will head down a joyless path of despair and performance which you notice I begin this at verse 11 where we pick up our study. First Peter chapter 2 verse 11 beloved, I urge you, as aliens and strangers to abstain from fleshly loss. Therefore, Peter describes you and me three different ways and I want you to notice the back circle breakfast terms, but the first one is beloved.

This is who they are to God.

Beloved that you're with us. Our last study.

Describe the church for these wonderful term taken from the nation Israel applied to the church. You also are this holy nation. This chosen race or this royal priesthood, you are this people of God's peculiar treasures. He he wants to display you many because I tell you what sort of people, but now you are. You were you are neither mercy and now you are and what better way. That is sort of move on from there. By choosing a word to describe the church in every vigil believer, but through this use of this word. Beloved, the term is wrapped around the word agape by the way you are. This chosen decision. This faithful, netted people you're not aware, you're not fancy.

He is in fact all this is puppy love.

This is a commitment forever. Beloved is this title for blogs Jesus Christ Ellis and Peter Riley starts here because it happened to be the foundational principle and beyond that the incentives and in the joy that causes us to want to respond with holy we are Hezbollah will pursue holiness because God hates us we don't pursue Owen as a God will love us, we pursue a life of holiness from the perspective of wonder and amazement and joy would say you are my start there. Peter is urging us also is encouraging those he additionally calls other terms notice aliens and strangers. That's also who we are to forgive it to.

It refers to people living in a place that is there home through home of origin. We refer to them today is resident aliens lot of discussion going on about those people right there are many here today like that.

Maybe you're here, you know you got a work visa you're over here to get your PhD from NC State award dues if you couldn't get any NC state when you're here studying. Once you finish that degree and stay with me quicker.

You're going it's a long-term stay but you really belong to another country.

In the meantime, you're an alien you're a resident alien.

You're a long-term visitor. Now the other words he uses here is in your text is the word stranger. It's similar work just a little different nuance refers to someone who was staying briefly. They come over from another country and or just give us stay ever so briefly, you've done that definition strict or you've traveled, and you go to this country and you're not going to be there long in fact are not going to adapt to anything that doesn't mean you don't care about the neighborhood doesn't mean don't care about the culture doesn't mean that that you you really are interested in doing anything with those around. There's another aspect of this and other passages. Obviously one of the we talked about in this study as it you're an ambassador. You have been assigned to this post, this Embassy post, where you represent in your world. The interests in the character and nature message of the King of your country is some evil so I will forget the world and not to be isolated not care that others get to wait down Sosa peters describing the balance here in this holy pursuit.

We don't avoid the world we don't run from the world we don't hide from the world we engage the world we allow Jesus Christ and as his ambassadors to transform the world through the gospel. We delivered to the people in our world.

I can be real practical you're telling who are you inviting out to the tossing. What about that classmate of yours that never seems to have any friends so he lied about coughing up a Krispy Kreme Donna that's the initiative here actually on assignment appointed by God to peddle that one is who you are. I like the words of one author who said who is it that God is brought into the traffic pattern of your life is a reason, so the incentive to pursue holy life includes an awareness that we are temporary residence were briefly passing through, but we are on assignment and underneath undergirding what whatever we do is this incredible thought that we are his beloved. Not only is there the foundational element holy living, which is who we are. The second one has to do with what we avoid verse 11 beloved urges aliens and strangers to abstain from fleshly loss of her staying means to hold oneself back and it has to do with again another balancing act between dependence on the Holy Spirit and doing due diligence withholding yourself from stop that pulls you into the hundreds that will sweep you back to the old way of living, and it implies an idea of tension, something difficult. In fact, the tennis indicates that it's ongoing is not in practical terms, to live a holy life as believers includes both total dependence and then you have a text like this.

It says by the way, what are you withholding in your life.

From what are you abstain.

Let me let me applied even more directly. This is in a comprehensive list, but I am proud my feet up and it's sort of okay.

There are some books and magazines that he ought to be saying no to the nursing television programs and movies that you should be saying no to their there are some video games you shouldn't play. There are some places that shouldn't there are some relationships you should be discouraging and sedimentary nursing sites that you that you should see the things you're using with your time that my backstop is just a waste of time on a broader scale. Peters are describe some of the formerly living up in verse one we looked at in previous studies. He talks about putting away malice and deceit and hypocrisy in the and slander over chapter 4 he talks about these believers not going back to that they once pursued. He describes them as sensuality, loss, drunkenness, carousing, drinking parties, abominable idolatry is and don't miss the fact of the rattle that list companies writing the correct writing the Christian anything why world would Peter Iraq to warn Christians to abstain from any kind of old way of living blood is it ever occur to you, then, that holy living is not legal. Ask then a declaration of have you ever anybody tell you that's a common language. We really got a light way too serious war, well that's how Peter described it would be universal 11 little park abstain from fleshly loss which way what are against your soul, that immaterial spiritual part of you that reflect your mind, your character, your will, your passions, your emotions, the real you find that face you weren't here today really sure flash is that you are with your soul magic get this. What that means is you are who are with you.

Imagine as far as Peter is concerned here that your greatest enemy, the holy living just so happens to be you. Your flash is constantly battling against your soul. You face a temptation and use the side I'm gonna resist that in your flesh says are crazy.

You don't resist the temptation that temptation might go away.

The battle was taking place inside.

I had the privilege of growing up under a biblically oriented father who would say this weight loss for Boise probably said it a thousand times a week. We got it and it comes back to mind when I read the text like this where he would say, boys. The last person you need to trust is yourself. You're the problem we deal really put this evangelist Pastor from the 1800s. He said it this way. One of his meetings. I have more trouble with DL Moody than with any other man I know. In other words, your flash represents a a master military campaign it is determined to find you and check you and counter you every step of the way gain ground in holy living and also means that your Christian experience with any one particular issue is not one that taken care of that. It is an ongoing master campaign that you engage in every single day constant warfare is not bad by going to easy Jesus when you can safely hang the armor told you where I got another Puritan right of the 17th century to keep a holy government that is controlled over thy thoughts to have all things lies straight and orderly in the heart is constant work, the keeping of the heart is a work that is never done until life is ended. There is listen this there is no time in the life of a Christian, which will allow an intermission in this work, John Bunyan, the author of Pilgrim's progress who wrote a lesser number called a holy war.

He was attempting to illustrate what Peter is encouraging and urging us onward to understand not to lightning up at the Waco to the street and in his book, he personifies the soul `calls it man soul L Mansell Antonini typified the city of Mansell as having five days and those five gates are the five sentences irrigated. I gave the nose gate Field gate and mouthing and Bunyan wrote that the enemy of man's soul whose name is. Sin personifies sin will come on a daily basis to attack man's soul at one of those five days. Sometimes all five. Some days he writes in a whisper through the irrigated summer learning message. Other days, sin will paint some alluring portraits of the eye gate to interesting to note in his book man's soul that man's soul could never be damaged or defeated by outside attacks.

The only way soon could gain a victory is if one of the five sentences open their gate. Paul wrote to the issue when he wrote to the Roman believers Roma 613 stop presenting the members of your body to send to Peter doesn't make it really all that complicated.

It happens to be a war and for the Christian. It is never a matter of lightning up. It is waking up.

It is guarding the gate and Peter is saying I am urging I am urging you, I'm calling out to you as the beloved of God, who don't belong to this earth. Watch out, it is more than just habitation.

It is war against your soul and there's no intermission so the pursuit of holiness begins with who you are. It includes what you avoid, then turns around positively, the pursuit of holiness thirdly involves how you act in a holy living in just about saying no, it's about saying yes but verse 12 keep your behavior excellent among the Gentile, so that in the thing in which they slander you as evildoers, they may because of your good deeds as they observed glorify God in the day of visitation. This visitation is the movement of God towards them in grace. But what did God use this as well letting go what did God use gain their attention in the first place. What was will to things.

First, notice of beginning verse 12 keep your behavior. Excellent since the first excellent behavior that is the first thing he can get away from work for behavior, but I just has to do with your daily conduct either something special you put on for an hour to eat his who you are dealing isn't so much how you show up on Sunday that the world doesn't even care you're here. It has to do with how you show up on Monday. That's when they get interested in the work for excellence Peter uses is that is a rich and varied artifact, I came across at least six different ways that to translate this word to understand what it means words like beautiful women, so gracious, polite, fine, noble list of the world doesn't have an answer to somebody whose attitude and behavior can only be described when they shop in the classroom or the board room or the lunch room as noble, gracious politeness, fine, beautiful you notice as they observed the unbelievers watch you affect the term Peter uses for observing reversal personal scrutiny, that of an eyewitness there during your traffic pattern you might not know what you might not even think about it and they may not consciously think I'm gonna watch Cindy's whatever you do when you show up, but they just are that one scholar noted the present tense of the participle means that that this is a reference to an intense and prolonged scrutiny even though what happens. By the way feel about his then seem to have their slandering you as unbelievers make their response is a man. No other their slandering, and selling or making much headway behind it all.

Peter saying they they don't have an answer. This is her watching either scrutinizing you your excellent behavior marks secondly noticed good works there also scrutinizes part of the scrutiny they may because of your good deeds as they observed them, glorify God in the day of visitation. That is the day visits them with his grace, opening their eyes the belief to follow all of his close Peter isn't just interested that here in Christians making progress in holy he's interested in impact.

He wants to see the church reaching people with the gospel to you doesn't want us to pursue holiness just pursue holiness.

He wants us to make holiness obvious part of the same way to the Ephesians before we are his workmanship.

We have been crafted composed in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them so so take it outdoors, take it out there.

Don't hide it.

That's what marks you to your world. This is now many times with the church the previous week. It is now many times he checked out whatever boxes you think you want to check off what you doing when you show up. What kind of behavior and work ethic are you marked by good deeds see holiness and is just about me isn't just about the church holiness becomes obvious. It provides that bridge built into that area where we are temporary residence. Our embassy posts so that we can follow those deeds and that behavior with the me tell you who I follow. No wonder the enemy wages war every day to try to keep you and me from building the kind of bridge I was reading recently with us were to pack it up this article were Christian colonists was at the midway airport during the blizzard. He writes an engineer from India was sitting next to me as we talked I found that he was going to not take a bus to another airport because our flight was canceled news guy get his wife who was expecting to drive with her two small children to pick him up in these blizzard conditions. So I told him love you not to pick up a car here in and I want to give you a ride to your home. He then very grateful agreed and as we drove I prayed for an opportunity to deliver the gospel.

I would only have this one opportunity likely in the drive. He eventually asked me why. Why would you be willing to go out of your way for me.

I asked him if anybody ever done something so kind for you to pass kindness along to somebody not as well. Jesus Christ is done something incredibly kind from as we talked I explained the grace of God through Christ. In fact, God's grace when I dropped him off. He thanked me in his last words to me were I going to have to do some about seas. We walk according to the spirit, not according to the flesh. People who are actually inspected your life.

Did you notice how Peter is confident that some of them will become the thing. Much of our behavior is resolved, we can save with that we conclude not only this lesson, but our current series. This is wisdom for the heart with Stephen Devi Stevens been in a series entitled in pursuit of holiness. He's calling today's lesson when holiness becomes obvious if you missed any of the lessons in this series, you can go online and listen again.

You'll find these and all of Stephen's teaching posted@wisdomonline.org you can go there anytime to access these resources free of charge. I also want you to be aware that we've taken all 10 of the messages in this series and bundled them as a set of CDs. If you'd like this resource in your personal Bible resource library. Call us and we can give you details. Our phone number is 86 648 Bible 48664824253. We'd love to hear from you the next time we gather to study God's word together. Stephen will be going to the Old Testament and teaching through the book of Esther. I hope will be with us for that here on wisdom of the heart