Title: Make me holy
Contents
2009.12.6 Sermon on Sunday morning worship
John 17:16-17 ‘16. They are not of the world, just as I am not of the world, 17. Sanctify them in the truth, for your word is truth.' - Amen.
It is also called the gospel commandment that the person of the saints should be holy, because the saints' holy life is not a means of gaining salvation, but the existential life of the saints is worked through holiness.
Holy, the Hebrew word kodesh (vd<q) means to cut off, set apart, and separate the unclean. When it is offered to God, the earth is called a holy place, and objects are called holy things. It is expressed as the Bible, sacrament, holy day, temple, sacrament, etc.
We would like to share the grace of God with the theme of the words, <Please sanctify me> in the text.
1. The essence of holiness is non-secular
Holiness is God's personal attribute, but it is also the will that God desires for the saints. Isaiah 6:3 “They called to one another, saying, Holy, holy, holy, Lord of hosts, full of his glory…”
Text John 17:16 “They are not of the world, just as I am not of the world.”
Anything (political, economic, social, cultural) with worldly value is profane, and when it is worthy of God, it is said to be holy. It is a compound word of the Greek word for saints (a{gio"), holiness is a negative word, gas, land, and world. It means non-secular. Therefore, according to the values of the people of the world, I perceive, move, plan If you do, you must know that you are not in a holy state. Just as water and oil are separated, the lifestyle of the saints must be separated from the worldly in general. Even the expressions of words and actions must be different.
2. You must be holy to enjoy grace
The most common sermons on how to live a good life these days are probably positive thinking and positive thinking. Ordinarily, believers mistakenly believe that such a positive change of thinking will bring blessings. Then, the Bible should have taught us that positive thinking is the gospel, but it is not.
John 15:1-2 '1. I am the true vine, and my father is a farmer. 2. Every branch attached to me that does not bear fruit, the Father removes it, and every branch that bears fruit he purifies so that it may bear more fruit.
Here, the word cleansing and the word holiness have the same meaning. It means that you must be clean and renew to give you good fruit. Some people secretly pray with the promise that they will live a holy life if they receive blessings. In order to receive God's grace, you must first empty the vessel to receive grace.
(Easy Bible) Leviticus 20:7 ‘Be my holy people. I am holy, so be holy too. I am the LORD your God.” 1 Peter 1:15 “But be holy in all your conduct, as is the Holy One who called you.”
1) The heart must be holy first
I have to change my mind, but it's very difficult. It is very difficult to change the embodied spirit by the accumulation of nature and worldly experiences. In a nutshell, would it have been said, Proverbs 16:32, ‘…He who rules his heart is better than he who takes a city’?
You can't just let it go because it's hard to change your mind. If left unattended, at some point it will ruin your health and business. Even so, I try to change my heart. Hebrews 12:8 says that he will discipline them because they are true children.
People have such thoughts in their minds before putting them into action. It is said that before Judas Iscariot sold Jesus, Satan had given him an idea to sell him.
John 13:2 “The devil had already put into the heart of Judas Iscariot the son of Simon the idea to sell Jesus.”
The religious dignity of the Jews was supreme when the Lord was on earth. But the spirit was deceitful and evil. So they were punished.
2) You must change your behavior
Words and deeds mark a person's character. If you do not change your mind well, you must be careful with your words and actions and take care of yourself.
Matthew 15:18-19 ‘18. 19. Out of the heart come evil thoughts, murder, adultery, fornication, theft, false testimony, and slander.”
When Jacob the deceiver prays for repentance to die by the river Jabbok, and he meets his brother, he says something he had never said before. In Genesis 33, the word grace is used five times in a row. He thanked and humbly said that everything was done by the grace of the Lord.
3) Environmental factors must be changed
Because where a person lives and stays has a great influence on his spiritual state, it is necessary to sanctify the environmental factor in his pattern of life. There is a saying, “Mengmo three thousand jigyo” (孟母三遷之敎).
(When Mencius lived near the cemetery when he was young, Mencius mimicked a burial, so Mencius's mother moved the house to near Shizhen, but this time she pretended to sell things. moved three times to teach my son)
In the Old Testament era, Israel looked and lived toward the temple, with the tabernacle in the center and the temple as its center. This shows that we should live centered on God. Psalm 84:10 “A day in your courts is better than a thousand elsewhere; it is better to be a gatekeeper in the temple of my God than to dwell in the tents of the wicked.” You have to consider the environmental factors around you. It is beneficial and blessed to change jobs or schedules that do not live up to the word.
Christianity these days is trying to prove it by living a positive and bright life. But biblically, it emphasizes an attitude of holy living. The unchanging truth of the Bible commands us to be holy and promises to receive grace when we become holy. I pray that you and I will be blessed with unclean thoughts and life.