January 31, 2024 • 30 mins
As I reminisce about my transformative days in Bible college, particularly during the 'Christianity and Culture' course, it becomes clear that the journey to holiness is as intricate as it is essential. Drawing from that well of knowledge, we set out on Truth Trek, a voyage that scrutinizes the potent role of holiness in a Christian's life. Delving into cultural complexities, from the arts to the political arena, my narration unveils how Christians can navigate society's norms while honoring God. Inspired by the immortal wisdom of Charles Spurgeon, this episode invites you to contemplate a life that not only seeks happiness but reaches for the eternal rewards of a sanctified existence.
Embarking on the second leg of our quest, we confront the snares of sin, which often masquerade as benign facets of entertainment and modern life. Through scriptural wisdom, we uncover the thin line between sanctity and the grey zones that beckon towards sin. Following in the footsteps of Paul and Jesus, we explore how to engage with the world while staying true to our core values. This discussion is your compass, pointing towards maintaining a biblical worldview amidst a world brimming with conflicting ideologies. So, join us as we chart the course for a life of holiness, ensuring we do not lose our bearings in our spiritual voyage.
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Speaker 1 (00:00):
Christian.
Are you ready to pursueholiness?
Stay tuned to this episode ofTruth Trek to learn what that's
all about.
Welcome back to Truth Trek, abusy holiday season.
(00:28):
I've taken a break for most ofJanuary, but here is our first
podcast of the year and I hopethat we will all learn something
about how God has called us tobe holy.
(00:55):
When I was at Bible college,freshmen were required to take a
class called Christianity andCulture.
In this fascinating class, oneis forced to think about how the
Christians should interactwithin their culture.
Through study, discussion anddebate.
We had to wrestle with howChristians decide to interact
with their culture.
Since the students were fromvarious backgrounds, there were
(01:20):
some very different ideas abouthow and what parts of our
culture are okay for a Christian.
We discussed literature, mediamusic, tattoos, ethics, politics
, drinking, swearing and othertopics, some of which produced
some very heated discussions.
And one thing I learned byparticipating in this class is
(01:42):
that even Christians may havesome very different views on
many of these subjects.
This is because students havemany different backgrounds that
they came from.
This class was a greatopportunity to learn how others
develop their ideas aboutacceptable Christian behavior.
In the end, the classchallenged each of us to take a
(02:02):
look at the culture around usthrough a Christian worldview
and show the various viewsChristians take.
On one extreme, there arepeople such as the Amish, who
shun modern society byseparating themselves from it.
On the other extreme areChristians who feel that their
freedom in Christ, incombination with the Great
(02:24):
Commission, allows them and evencompels them to adapt their
faith to the culture in order toreach those around them.
These are like the libertariansof the church.
Today I want to talk about whatit means to be holy, the dangers
of being worldly and how we canbe different from the world yet
(02:46):
still reach worldly people.
As I have walked this roadcalled Christianity, I have
become more and more aware ofthe need for personal holiness.
I love what Spurgeon said aboutthe pursuit of holiness.
If I had my choice of all theblessings I can conceive of, I
would choose perfect conformityto the Lord Jesus or, in one
(03:10):
word, holiness.
My standard, my benchmark forlife should be holiness.
It should be a constant focusof my life as a Christian
husband, father and as a pastor.
Indeed, nothing is as importantto success in all these areas
as a continued pursuit ofholiness.
In the Declaration ofIndependence, we are told that
(03:34):
we have the right to life,liberty and the pursuit of
happiness.
The Christian one who hasaccepted Christ by faith
receives eternal life, christianliberty and eventual perfect
happiness.
Before we get to the point ofour eternal perfect happiness,
however, we need to exercise apursuit of holiness.
(03:55):
Happiness in this life willmean nothing in the end, but
holiness pursued in this lifewill bring great reward in
eternity.
The Bible is filled with thistopic of holiness.
One of the best books I thinkthat I recommend to people is
the Holiness of God by R CSproul.
(04:16):
It's a great source on thistopic.
But let's go to the Bible rightnow and look at a text which is
from Paul's second letter tothe Corinthians, in which he
pleads with them to seekholiness.
I'll be reading from 2Corinthians 6, starting at verse
14 through the first verse ofchapter 7, in which Paul writes
(04:39):
this Continuous Do not beunequally yoked with unbelievers
.
For what partnership hasrighteousness with lawlessness?
For what fellowship has lightwith darkness?
What accord has Christ withbellio?
Or what portion does a believershare with an unbeliever?
What agreement has the templeof God with idols?
(05:01):
For we are the temple of theliving God, as God said, I will
make my dwelling among them andwalk among them, and I will be
their God and they shall be mypeople.
Therefore, go out from theirmidst and be separate from them,
says the Lord, and touch nounclean thing.
Then I will welcome you and Iwill be a father to you and you
(05:25):
shall be sons and daughters tome, says the Lord Almighty.
Since we have these promisesbeloved, let us cleanse
ourselves from every defilementof body and spirit, bringing
holiness to completion in thefear of God.
In this passage, paul isconcerned because the
Corinthians have allowedthemselves to be caught up in
(05:47):
false teachings.
This had a lot to do with thefact that the Corinthians
Christians had not separatedthemselves from the culture
around them.
Paul is asking them to pursueholiness, to rid themselves of
unholy things and get rid of thefalse teachers.
So let's talk about theuniqueness of holiness.
(06:10):
I want to give an overview ofwhat holiness means.
Our entire lives as Christiansshould be a pursuit of holiness,
and we should never stopevaluating whether or not our
lives are compatible withholiness.
Here are some biblicalunderstandings of holiness.
First off, holiness meansseparation from the world.
(06:34):
God's people are called toholiness, which involves being
distinct from other people.
In the Old Testament, this isseen in the command to separate
from other nations and fromeverything that can compromise
commitment to the Lord.
There were rules about fabricsacrifices, eating, hygiene and
(06:57):
many other specific statutesthat would keep the Israelites
separate from the pagan culturesaround them.
Whenever these rules wereignored and Israel blended their
culture with pagans, eventuallythey would end up worshiping
other gods or blending the faiththey inherited with other
(07:18):
religions.
In the New Testament, believersare called to distance
themselves from the ways andvalues of the world which can be
dishonoring to God anddestructive to obedience to him,
as well as destructive to themission of the Church.
In this passage, paul's concernis that his relationship with
(07:38):
the Corinthians has degraded, inpart because of their embracing
of some false teachers, whichhas led from their neglect of
being separate from the world orthe culture around them.
Not another way.
Their love of the world hascaused them to follow some who
are teaching false doctrines.
(07:58):
Love of the world and theunwillingness to give up the
sinful culture around them hascaused them to put Paul in less
esteem.
He is reminding them of thenumerous commands of the Old
Testament that God's people beseparate from the world.
Next, holiness means being setapart to God.
(08:21):
So apart from the world, butapart to God.
The Hebrew word for holy thatMoses used in Leviticus means
that which is set apart andmarked off, that which is
different.
In the Old Testament, manythings within the temple
garments worn by priests andcelebrations even are called
(08:43):
holy.
They were things or times setaside for God.
These things set apart for Godwere to be used for his glory
and were supposed to be reveredas such.
The celebrations prescribedwere to remind the people of
what God has done and will do.
(09:03):
It was very important to Godthat the people could have
things and events to associatewith him.
Others are holy in that theyare called to be set apart from
the world as God's own people.
In the Old Testament, certaindays and articles are holy
because they are set apart forGod alone.
(09:25):
In Deuteronomy 7.6 it says foryou are a people holy to the
Lord, your God.
The Lord, your God, has chosenyou to be a peoples for his
treasured possession out of allthe peoples who are on the face
of the earth, and the writer ofHebrews connects holiness with
seeing the Lord.
In Hebrews 12.14 it is writtenstrive for peace with everyone
(09:51):
and for the holiness withoutwhich no one will see the Lord.
Next holiness is healthiness.
Our English word holy comesfrom the Old English word haleg,
which means to be whole, to behealthy.
What health is to the body,holiness is to the inner person.
(10:11):
The related word sanctify comesfrom the Latin sanctus, which
means consecrated, sacred orblameless.
We use the word sanctificationto describe the process of
growing to become more likeChrist and holy to describe the
result of that process.
(10:32):
Next holiness is pursuingperfection.
The phrase be holy, for I amholy, appears eight times in the
Old Testament.
The process is calledsanctification.
We continue to move towardsholiness.
Some years back, lexis, theluxury car manufacturer, used
(10:55):
the slogan the relentlesspursuit of perfection.
This slogan was more than justfor commercials, though.
It was to represent thephilosophy of the company, that
Lexis would never settle forresting on the laurels of past
achievements, but wouldcontinually evaluate every
product and process, from thebig picture to the smallest
(11:17):
detail, to see how improvementscould be made.
Lexis is now recognized as oneof the top luxury automakers.
It seems that their relentlesspursuit of perfection has been
paying off.
It could be said that for theChristian, sanctification is the
relentless pursuit ofperfection or the relentless
(11:38):
pursuit of holiness.
Part of our blessed hope isthat when we die or are raptured
, the process will be completeand we will be perfect.
But for now, our pursuit ofholiness and allowing God to
work in us in the sanctificationprocess should involve
relentless devotion to God.
Holiness means being so in tunewith God that we view
(12:02):
everything with a biblicalworldview.
From Deuteronomy, chapter 6,verses 5 through 9, we find this
you shall love the Lord, yourGod, with all your heart and
with all your soul and with allyour might.
And these words that I commandyou today shall be on your heart
.
You shall teach them diligentlyto your children and shall talk
(12:25):
of them when you sit in yourhouse and when you walk by the
way, and when you lie down andwhen you rise.
You shall bind them as a signon your hand and they shall be
as frontlets between your eyes.
You shall write them on thedoorposts of your house and on
your gates.
Are God's words in our hearts?
(12:45):
Do we repeat them to ourchildren?
Do we talk about them when wesit down, when we walk or drive,
when we lie down and get up?
Verse 8 says to let them be asymbol on our forehead.
This means we're to seeeverything in life through the
word of God.
Do we do that, or do we see itthrough the latest popular book,
(13:08):
tv show, movie, sports orpolitics?
I used to be quite obsessedwith politics and I still have a
tendency to get caught up in it, and I would view people
through my views on politicseither for me or against me,
rather than seeing people as Godsees them, either saved or
unsaved.
(13:28):
Do we write the words of God onour doorposts and our gates, or
are our homes occupied by lessthan godly programs on our TVs
or posters of our latestcultural obsession?
When someone challenges us toconsider whether something in
our lives is holy or worthwhilefor a Christian, do we use words
(13:52):
like legalistic, dogmatic,fundamentalist or doctrinal
purist as a weapon in order toshut them down?
Calling people by those termsis in vogue in many churches,
which we see the results of whenmainline denominations have
allowed openly sinful people tobecome clergy.
(14:13):
If someone calls you out onsomething in your life that is
less than holy, how will youreact?
Maybe they are being legalistic, but chances are good they love
you and want to see you blessed.
Holiness is not easily defined,but it is something the
Christian needs to pursue.
The pursuit of holiness iscalled sanctification.
(14:35):
We need to constantly evaluateit and realize that the greatest
blessing we could have isperfect holiness.
Let's talk now about the dangersof worldliness.
Worldliness can be attractive.
The world around us offers manypleasures.
Sometimes our pursuit ofholiness is in conflict with
(14:58):
things we like to do.
Starting with the first sin,satan has tried to make God look
like a stick in the mud.
Who wants to restrict theamount of fun we can have?
Sin has a deceptive allure thatwe need to be prepared to resist
.
Throughout scripture we seeexamples of giving in to
temptation, perhaps mostfamously with the man after
(15:19):
God's own heart, david, whosefamily paid dearly for his sin.
Sadly, worldliness draws manyChristians away from the
potential they have in Christ.
You probably remember theterrible tragedy at the movie
theater in Aurora, colorado.
It seems the tragedy hasfollowed the Batman franchise
(15:40):
from the death of Heath Ledger,who played the Joker, and to
that tragedy in the theater.
But what behavior should weexpect in our world when the
theme of many movies isperversion, anarchy and violence
for its own sake?
I was reading Warren Wearsby'sBe Holy, which is a commentary
on Leviticus, and this quotestruck me.
(16:02):
He said this the very sins thatGod condemns murder, deceit,
immorality, violence, greed andblasphemy are the very things
that entertain the masses,whether it's on television or in
movies or books.
Take the violence and vice outof entertainment and many people
won't pay to see it".
(16:23):
Sin has its attraction and theconsequences are serious.
If we seek to be like Christ,then we need to resist viewing
sinful behavior as entertainment.
Next, worldliness makes usenemies of God, as James wrote
in chapter 4, verse 4.
(16:43):
He said this you adulterouspeople, do you not know that
friendship with the world isenmity with God?
Therefore, whoever wishes to bea friend of the world makes
himself an enemy of God.
Just so you know.
Enmity means a deep-rootedhatred.
In 1 John 2, 15-17, john writesDo not love the world or the
(17:10):
things of the world.
If anyone loves the world, thelove of the Father is not in him
, for all that is in the worldthe desires of the flesh and the
desires of the eye and thepride of life is not from the
Father but is from the world.
And the world is passing awaywith all its desires.
But whoever does the will ofGod abides forever.
(17:31):
In Romans 8, paul writes thatthe mind is set on the flesh,
and that is enmity against God.
Next, how can a holy peoplereach an unholy world?
The questions will then arise.
If we are going to pursueholiness by rejecting a lot of
(17:51):
worldly stuff, then how can wereach the world?
Didn't Jesus hang out withsinners?
Didn't Paul say to be allthings to all people?
I've often heard Christians,including myself, use these
arguments in an attempt tojustify certain activities.
They say Jesus ate with sinnersor Paul was all things to all
(18:14):
men.
Therefore, to reach mycoworkers, I need to attend
their parties or I need to watchthe popular shows so I can
connect with non-Christians.
My response to these could be amessage in itself, but let me
briefly answer these.
Yes, jesus sat down withsinners, but Jesus was fully man
and fully God.
Being fully God, he was alreadyholy.
(18:36):
He didn't go through asanctification process.
He always was perfect.
And Jesus led a devotional life.
He spent many hours alone inprayer, he had a small group
that he met with daily and heknew Scripture and how to apply
it.
If you want to be like Jesus,to reach your coworkers or
(18:57):
others, remember His devotionallife.
Emulate those qualities ofJesus before you go into enemy
territory.
Was Paul being all things toall people?
Yes, in the sense that Paul wastalking about being able to
present the Gospel in manycreative ways in order to reach
various groups.
(19:18):
I can hardly imagine Paul sayingwe need to better connect with
the Roman masses.
Let's go to the Colosseum andwatch the Gladiators or
Christians being thrown to thelions.
That way we can see what makesthem tick and we can be able to
relate to them better.
Paul was a very educated manbut went out of his way to
present the Gospel inunderstandable ways.
(19:41):
This means adopting languagestyles and understanding
worldviews to make the Gospelmake sense to others.
But Paul didn't compromise hisvalues.
His mission involved sacrifice,not indulgence.
He didn't mimic the behavior ofpagans but worked to find ways
to relate the Gospel to them.
(20:01):
If we want to reach people likeJesus and like Paul did, then
we need to try to be like themPaul and Jesus as much as
possible, not as much like theworld as possible.
Now there are three zones I'mgoing to classify all behavior
in.
There's the sin zone, or theworldiness zone, the gray zone
(20:26):
and the holiness zone.
I will assume that Christianswill agree that we should stay
out of the sin zone.
So I'll focus on the gray zoneand the safe zone, or the
holiness zone.
The gray zone well, there aremany specific sins mentioned in
the Bible, leaving us no doubtthat we must avoid them.
(20:48):
There are a number of areas thatare less clear.
Paul tells us that we have somefreedom in Christ.
If we say holiness is over hereand worldliness is over there,
there is sometimes an area inbetween that's not clearly
defined by Scripture.
Many Christians will move intothat gray area, feeling they can
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use their freedom.
Those things that are notclearly sin can seem to fall in
a sort of demilitarized zone.
The danger is that we have anenemy that doesn't fight fair.
This zone is foggy and a personcould easily get lost and
stumble into enemy territorybefore they've even realized it.
(21:30):
This zone is the confusion zone,because once in it, the
Christian can become disorientedand no longer see things
clearly.
This seems to be the problemPaul is addressing with the
Corinthians.
They went from the gray zone tothe worldly zone and this
resulted in many of themadopting false teachings.
(21:51):
This is always the danger inthe gray zone we get confused in
the fog and we no longer seethe world through a biblical
worldview, but instead see theBible through worldly eyes that
no longer see clearly.
When our eyes are no longeradjusted by the perfect lens of
God's Word, because we havespent more time looking at Him
(22:14):
through our experiences ratherthan seeing our experiences
through Him, we will staggeraround like blind people and we
will fall into peril.
And then there's the safe zone.
Ephesians 5, 3, and 4 says this.
But among you there must not beeven a hint of sexual
(22:34):
immorality or any kind ofimpurity or of greed, because
these are improper for God'sholy people.
Or should there be obscenity,foolish talk or coarse joking,
which are out of place?
But rather thanksgiving, ratherthan hang out in the confusion
(22:56):
zone, we should always be tryingto stay in the holiness zone.
That's the safe zone.
What is our safe zone?
Well, it can be found inprayers, devotions, small groups
, listening to preaching,worship and reading the Bible.
We need to spend most of ourtime there.
If you do feel called to gointo worldly places to reach
(23:20):
lost people, then you need to beaware of the danger of not
returning to your safety zone.
Spend as much time as possiblein the safe zone in order to
avoid falling into temptation.
Getting out of this zone toolong is dangerous.
We each need to consider how wecan be more holy.
(23:42):
The reward is great.
Holiness means being separatedfrom the world and separated to
God.
It is healthiness.
We need to continually pursueperfection, knowing that we are
not there yet, but there will bethat day when God makes all
things new.
(24:02):
If we give in to believing thelie of worldliness and follow it
because it looks attractive, wemake ourselves enemies of God.
However, if we decide to makeour holiness of more importance
than happiness, there is greatreward.
We can reach people in theworld without becoming worldly.
(24:23):
To some unbelievers, and evento some believers, our desire
for personal holiness will berepulsive Because they feel
conviction.
To others, they will findattempts to live a holy life
winsome and attractive, and theywill soon be asking for a
reason for the hope that we have.
(24:45):
Remember that holiness is theprimary attribute of God and he
has called us to be holy.
But God also loves, and so wemust love as well.
How do we do it?
Jesus promised the Holy Spiritto help us, to give us power for
service and to help us live aholy life.
(25:06):
It is not on our own power thatwe will be holy.
The Holy Spirit needs to beallowed to work in our lives,
and when he does, we can beconfident that we will be able
to do that which we are calledto do.
The relentless pursuit ofholiness means we start each day
with a realization that we arenot still perfected, and we can
(25:31):
ask the Holy Spirit to be activein our lives and guide us in
our path.
Now, I mentioned at thebeginning that many discussions
happen about whether certainthings are allowed for the
Christian.
Instead of asking what we areallowed to do, perhaps a better
question would be whether or notsomething brings us closer to
(25:53):
being Christ-like.
When our desires are to becloser to Him and to be like Him
, our desires will change.
Rather than defend our right todo this or that, we will desire
to conform to His standards.
In my life, this has become avery important consideration.
As I have sought to learn whatit means to serve.
(26:16):
I have realized that my ownpursuit of holiness is very
important, and many of the veryactivities I used to defend my
right to do have lost theirappeal, and still others I
probably struggle with as well.
My desires have changed in mypriorities as well, but I can
(26:36):
see the upward trend as God hasworked sanctification in me.
None of us are there yet and wealways have work to do.
Remember that holiness isseparation to God.
The reason to separateourselves is so that we become
like Him.
But if we are separatingourselves for separation's sake,
(27:00):
we will end up being legalisticand, like the Pharisees, we
could forget the reason why wefollow standards in the first
place.
Pharisees made rules more andmore stringent and added to the
law, not to become more holy,but for their own purposes.
But reacting to extremelegalism with Christian
(27:21):
libertarianism is no better.
We need to evaluate our actionsand whether they are holy, not
because we want to look good oreven feel good, but because we
want to become like Christ.
And then we want to honor Himwith our lives and make Him
glorified through us, whichshould be the driving force
(27:42):
behind our pursuit for holiness.
1 Peter 1, 14-16 says asobedient children, do not be
conformed to the passions ofyour former ignorance, but as he
who has called you as holy, youalso be holy in all your
conduct.
As it is written, you shall beholy, for I am holy.
(28:05):
Regarding holiness, we are notignorant, for the whole of the
scripture commands that we livein holiness.
The challenge to the CorinthianChurch is to be holy in order
to avoid falling for falseteachings.
The challenge for us today isto find a way to separate
(28:25):
ourselves from the world and toGod, so that we also may not be
swayed by those who would tickleour ears and turn us down the
wrong path, and that we mayreach the world his way, not
ours.
Holiness comes from a desire toserve God and a desire to be
(28:45):
like him.
May God speak into each one ofour lives and may he give us a
desire for holiness, and may theHoly Spirit enable us in our
pursuit.
(29:08):
It's good to be back doing theTruth Trek podcast once again
with you, and I know this was aheavy message, so may I leave
you with this doxology fromRomans, chapter 16, verses 25 to
27.
Now to him who is able tostrengthen you according to my
gospel and the preaching ofJesus Christ, according to the
(29:29):
revelation of the mystery thatwas kept secret for long ages
but has now been disclosed and,through the prophetic writings,
has been made known to allnations, according to the
command of the eternal God tobring about the obedience of
faith To the only wise God.
Be glory forevermore throughJesus Christ Amen.
(29:54):
Thanks for listening to TruthTrek and if you like the podcast
and you think this may behelpful to someone else, please
share it and leave us a ratingand a like or something on the
podcast platforms, and we sureappreciate that.
Thank you very much and we'llsee you next time on Truth Trek.
Christian.
Are you ready to pursueholiness?
Stay tuned to this episode ofTruth Trek to learn what that's
all about.
Welcome back to Truth Trek, abusy holiday season.
(00:28):
I've taken a break for most ofJanuary, but here is our first
podcast of the year and I hopethat we will all learn something
about how God has called us tobe holy.
(00:55):
When I was at Bible college,freshmen were required to take a
class called Christianity andCulture.
In this fascinating class, oneis forced to think about how the
Christians should interactwithin their culture.
Through study, discussion anddebate.
We had to wrestle with howChristians decide to interact
with their culture.
Since the students were fromvarious backgrounds, there were
(01:20):
some very different ideas abouthow and what parts of our
culture are okay for a Christian.
We discussed literature, mediamusic, tattoos, ethics, politics
, drinking, swearing and othertopics, some of which produced
some very heated discussions.
And one thing I learned byparticipating in this class is
(01:42):
that even Christians may havesome very different views on
many of these subjects.
This is because students havemany different backgrounds that
they came from.
This class was a greatopportunity to learn how others
develop their ideas aboutacceptable Christian behavior.
In the end, the classchallenged each of us to take a
(02:02):
look at the culture around usthrough a Christian worldview
and show the various viewsChristians take.
On one extreme, there arepeople such as the Amish, who
shun modern society byseparating themselves from it.
On the other extreme areChristians who feel that their
freedom in Christ, incombination with the Great
(02:24):
Commission, allows them and evencompels them to adapt their
faith to the culture in order toreach those around them.
These are like the libertariansof the church.
Today I want to talk about whatit means to be holy, the dangers
of being worldly and how we canbe different from the world yet
(02:46):
still reach worldly people.
As I have walked this roadcalled Christianity, I have
become more and more aware ofthe need for personal holiness.
I love what Spurgeon said aboutthe pursuit of holiness.
If I had my choice of all theblessings I can conceive of, I
would choose perfect conformityto the Lord Jesus or, in one
(03:10):
word, holiness.
My standard, my benchmark forlife should be holiness.
It should be a constant focusof my life as a Christian
husband, father and as a pastor.
Indeed, nothing is as importantto success in all these areas
as a continued pursuit ofholiness.
In the Declaration ofIndependence, we are told that
(03:34):
we have the right to life,liberty and the pursuit of
happiness.
The Christian one who hasaccepted Christ by faith
receives eternal life, christianliberty and eventual perfect
happiness.
Before we get to the point ofour eternal perfect happiness,
however, we need to exercise apursuit of holiness.
(03:55):
Happiness in this life willmean nothing in the end, but
holiness pursued in this lifewill bring great reward in
eternity.
The Bible is filled with thistopic of holiness.
One of the best books I thinkthat I recommend to people is
the Holiness of God by R CSproul.
(04:16):
It's a great source on thistopic.
But let's go to the Bible rightnow and look at a text which is
from Paul's second letter tothe Corinthians, in which he
pleads with them to seekholiness.
I'll be reading from 2Corinthians 6, starting at verse
14 through the first verse ofchapter 7, in which Paul writes
(04:39):
this Continuous Do not beunequally yoked with unbelievers
.
For what partnership hasrighteousness with lawlessness?
For what fellowship has lightwith darkness?
What accord has Christ withbellio?
Or what portion does a believershare with an unbeliever?
What agreement has the templeof God with idols?
(05:01):
For we are the temple of theliving God, as God said, I will
make my dwelling among them andwalk among them, and I will be
their God and they shall be mypeople.
Therefore, go out from theirmidst and be separate from them,
says the Lord, and touch nounclean thing.
Then I will welcome you and Iwill be a father to you and you
(05:25):
shall be sons and daughters tome, says the Lord Almighty.
Since we have these promisesbeloved, let us cleanse
ourselves from every defilementof body and spirit, bringing
holiness to completion in thefear of God.
In this passage, paul isconcerned because the
Corinthians have allowedthemselves to be caught up in
(05:47):
false teachings.
This had a lot to do with thefact that the Corinthians
Christians had not separatedthemselves from the culture
around them.
Paul is asking them to pursueholiness, to rid themselves of
unholy things and get rid of thefalse teachers.
So let's talk about theuniqueness of holiness.
(06:10):
I want to give an overview ofwhat holiness means.
Our entire lives as Christiansshould be a pursuit of holiness,
and we should never stopevaluating whether or not our
lives are compatible withholiness.
Here are some biblicalunderstandings of holiness.
First off, holiness meansseparation from the world.
(06:34):
God's people are called toholiness, which involves being
distinct from other people.
In the Old Testament, this isseen in the command to separate
from other nations and fromeverything that can compromise
commitment to the Lord.
There were rules about fabricsacrifices, eating, hygiene and
(06:57):
many other specific statutesthat would keep the Israelites
separate from the pagan culturesaround them.
Whenever these rules wereignored and Israel blended their
culture with pagans, eventuallythey would end up worshiping
other gods or blending the faiththey inherited with other
(07:18):
religions.
In the New Testament, believersare called to distance
themselves from the ways andvalues of the world which can be
dishonoring to God anddestructive to obedience to him,
as well as destructive to themission of the Church.
In this passage, paul's concernis that his relationship with
(07:38):
the Corinthians has degraded, inpart because of their embracing
of some false teachers, whichhas led from their neglect of
being separate from the world orthe culture around them.
Not another way.
Their love of the world hascaused them to follow some who
are teaching false doctrines.
(07:58):
Love of the world and theunwillingness to give up the
sinful culture around them hascaused them to put Paul in less
esteem.
He is reminding them of thenumerous commands of the Old
Testament that God's people beseparate from the world.
Next, holiness means being setapart to God.
(08:21):
So apart from the world, butapart to God.
The Hebrew word for holy thatMoses used in Leviticus means
that which is set apart andmarked off, that which is
different.
In the Old Testament, manythings within the temple
garments worn by priests andcelebrations even are called
(08:43):
holy.
They were things or times setaside for God.
These things set apart for Godwere to be used for his glory
and were supposed to be reveredas such.
The celebrations prescribedwere to remind the people of
what God has done and will do.
(09:03):
It was very important to Godthat the people could have
things and events to associatewith him.
Others are holy in that theyare called to be set apart from
the world as God's own people.
In the Old Testament, certaindays and articles are holy
because they are set apart forGod alone.
(09:25):
In Deuteronomy 7.6 it says foryou are a people holy to the
Lord, your God.
The Lord, your God, has chosenyou to be a peoples for his
treasured possession out of allthe peoples who are on the face
of the earth, and the writer ofHebrews connects holiness with
seeing the Lord.
In Hebrews 12.14 it is writtenstrive for peace with everyone
(09:51):
and for the holiness withoutwhich no one will see the Lord.
Next holiness is healthiness.
Our English word holy comesfrom the Old English word haleg,
which means to be whole, to behealthy.
What health is to the body,holiness is to the inner person.
(10:11):
The related word sanctify comesfrom the Latin sanctus, which
means consecrated, sacred orblameless.
We use the word sanctificationto describe the process of
growing to become more likeChrist and holy to describe the
result of that process.
(10:32):
Next holiness is pursuingperfection.
The phrase be holy, for I amholy, appears eight times in the
Old Testament.
The process is calledsanctification.
We continue to move towardsholiness.
Some years back, lexis, theluxury car manufacturer, used
(10:55):
the slogan the relentlesspursuit of perfection.
This slogan was more than justfor commercials, though.
It was to represent thephilosophy of the company, that
Lexis would never settle forresting on the laurels of past
achievements, but wouldcontinually evaluate every
product and process, from thebig picture to the smallest
(11:17):
detail, to see how improvementscould be made.
Lexis is now recognized as oneof the top luxury automakers.
It seems that their relentlesspursuit of perfection has been
paying off.
It could be said that for theChristian, sanctification is the
relentless pursuit ofperfection or the relentless
(11:38):
pursuit of holiness.
Part of our blessed hope isthat when we die or are raptured
, the process will be completeand we will be perfect.
But for now, our pursuit ofholiness and allowing God to
work in us in the sanctificationprocess should involve
relentless devotion to God.
Holiness means being so in tunewith God that we view
(12:02):
everything with a biblicalworldview.
From Deuteronomy, chapter 6,verses 5 through 9, we find this
you shall love the Lord, yourGod, with all your heart and
with all your soul and with allyour might.
And these words that I commandyou today shall be on your heart
.
You shall teach them diligentlyto your children and shall talk
(12:25):
of them when you sit in yourhouse and when you walk by the
way, and when you lie down andwhen you rise.
You shall bind them as a signon your hand and they shall be
as frontlets between your eyes.
You shall write them on thedoorposts of your house and on
your gates.
Are God's words in our hearts?
(12:45):
Do we repeat them to ourchildren?
Do we talk about them when wesit down, when we walk or drive,
when we lie down and get up?
Verse 8 says to let them be asymbol on our forehead.
This means we're to seeeverything in life through the
word of God.
Do we do that, or do we see itthrough the latest popular book,
(13:08):
tv show, movie, sports orpolitics?
I used to be quite obsessedwith politics and I still have a
tendency to get caught up in it, and I would view people
through my views on politicseither for me or against me,
rather than seeing people as Godsees them, either saved or
unsaved.
(13:28):
Do we write the words of God onour doorposts and our gates, or
are our homes occupied by lessthan godly programs on our TVs
or posters of our latestcultural obsession?
When someone challenges us toconsider whether something in
our lives is holy or worthwhilefor a Christian, do we use words
(13:52):
like legalistic, dogmatic,fundamentalist or doctrinal
purist as a weapon in order toshut them down?
Calling people by those termsis in vogue in many churches,
which we see the results of whenmainline denominations have
allowed openly sinful people tobecome clergy.
(14:13):
If someone calls you out onsomething in your life that is
less than holy, how will youreact?
Maybe they are being legalistic, but chances are good they love
you and want to see you blessed.
Holiness is not easily defined,but it is something the
Christian needs to pursue.
The pursuit of holiness iscalled sanctification.
(14:35):
We need to constantly evaluateit and realize that the greatest
blessing we could have isperfect holiness.
Let's talk now about the dangersof worldliness.
Worldliness can be attractive.
The world around us offers manypleasures.
Sometimes our pursuit ofholiness is in conflict with
(14:58):
things we like to do.
Starting with the first sin,satan has tried to make God look
like a stick in the mud.
Who wants to restrict theamount of fun we can have?
Sin has a deceptive allure thatwe need to be prepared to resist
.
Throughout scripture we seeexamples of giving in to
temptation, perhaps mostfamously with the man after
(15:19):
God's own heart, david, whosefamily paid dearly for his sin.
Sadly, worldliness draws manyChristians away from the
potential they have in Christ.
You probably remember theterrible tragedy at the movie
theater in Aurora, colorado.
It seems the tragedy hasfollowed the Batman franchise
(15:40):
from the death of Heath Ledger,who played the Joker, and to
that tragedy in the theater.
But what behavior should weexpect in our world when the
theme of many movies isperversion, anarchy and violence
for its own sake?
I was reading Warren Wearsby'sBe Holy, which is a commentary
on Leviticus, and this quotestruck me.
(16:02):
He said this the very sins thatGod condemns murder, deceit,
immorality, violence, greed andblasphemy are the very things
that entertain the masses,whether it's on television or in
movies or books.
Take the violence and vice outof entertainment and many people
won't pay to see it".
(16:23):
Sin has its attraction and theconsequences are serious.
If we seek to be like Christ,then we need to resist viewing
sinful behavior as entertainment.
Next, worldliness makes usenemies of God, as James wrote
in chapter 4, verse 4.
(16:43):
He said this you adulterouspeople, do you not know that
friendship with the world isenmity with God?
Therefore, whoever wishes to bea friend of the world makes
himself an enemy of God.
Just so you know.
Enmity means a deep-rootedhatred.
In 1 John 2, 15-17, john writesDo not love the world or the
(17:10):
things of the world.
If anyone loves the world, thelove of the Father is not in him
, for all that is in the worldthe desires of the flesh and the
desires of the eye and thepride of life is not from the
Father but is from the world.
And the world is passing awaywith all its desires.
But whoever does the will ofGod abides forever.
(17:31):
In Romans 8, paul writes thatthe mind is set on the flesh,
and that is enmity against God.
Next, how can a holy peoplereach an unholy world?
The questions will then arise.
If we are going to pursueholiness by rejecting a lot of
(17:51):
worldly stuff, then how can wereach the world?
Didn't Jesus hang out withsinners?
Didn't Paul say to be allthings to all people?
I've often heard Christians,including myself, use these
arguments in an attempt tojustify certain activities.
They say Jesus ate with sinnersor Paul was all things to all
(18:14):
men.
Therefore, to reach mycoworkers, I need to attend
their parties or I need to watchthe popular shows so I can
connect with non-Christians.
My response to these could be amessage in itself, but let me
briefly answer these.
Yes, jesus sat down withsinners, but Jesus was fully man
and fully God.
Being fully God, he was alreadyholy.
(18:36):
He didn't go through asanctification process.
He always was perfect.
And Jesus led a devotional life.
He spent many hours alone inprayer, he had a small group
that he met with daily and heknew Scripture and how to apply
it.
If you want to be like Jesus,to reach your coworkers or
(18:57):
others, remember His devotionallife.
Emulate those qualities ofJesus before you go into enemy
territory.
Was Paul being all things toall people?
Yes, in the sense that Paul wastalking about being able to
present the Gospel in manycreative ways in order to reach
various groups.
(19:18):
I can hardly imagine Paul sayingwe need to better connect with
the Roman masses.
Let's go to the Colosseum andwatch the Gladiators or
Christians being thrown to thelions.
That way we can see what makesthem tick and we can be able to
relate to them better.
Paul was a very educated manbut went out of his way to
present the Gospel inunderstandable ways.
(19:41):
This means adopting languagestyles and understanding
worldviews to make the Gospelmake sense to others.
But Paul didn't compromise hisvalues.
His mission involved sacrifice,not indulgence.
He didn't mimic the behavior ofpagans but worked to find ways
to relate the Gospel to them.
(20:01):
If we want to reach people likeJesus and like Paul did, then
we need to try to be like themPaul and Jesus as much as
possible, not as much like theworld as possible.
Now there are three zones I'mgoing to classify all behavior
in.
There's the sin zone, or theworldiness zone, the gray zone
(20:26):
and the holiness zone.
I will assume that Christianswill agree that we should stay
out of the sin zone.
So I'll focus on the gray zoneand the safe zone, or the
holiness zone.
The gray zone well, there aremany specific sins mentioned in
the Bible, leaving us no doubtthat we must avoid them.
(20:48):
There are a number of areas thatare less clear.
Paul tells us that we have somefreedom in Christ.
If we say holiness is over hereand worldliness is over there,
there is sometimes an area inbetween that's not clearly
defined by Scripture.
Many Christians will move intothat gray area, feeling they can
(21:09):
use their freedom.
Those things that are notclearly sin can seem to fall in
a sort of demilitarized zone.
The danger is that we have anenemy that doesn't fight fair.
This zone is foggy and a personcould easily get lost and
stumble into enemy territorybefore they've even realized it.
(21:30):
This zone is the confusion zone,because once in it, the
Christian can become disorientedand no longer see things
clearly.
This seems to be the problemPaul is addressing with the
Corinthians.
They went from the gray zone tothe worldly zone and this
resulted in many of themadopting false teachings.
(21:51):
This is always the danger inthe gray zone we get confused in
the fog and we no longer seethe world through a biblical
worldview, but instead see theBible through worldly eyes that
no longer see clearly.
When our eyes are no longeradjusted by the perfect lens of
God's Word, because we havespent more time looking at Him
(22:14):
through our experiences ratherthan seeing our experiences
through Him, we will staggeraround like blind people and we
will fall into peril.
And then there's the safe zone.
Ephesians 5, 3, and 4 says this.
But among you there must not beeven a hint of sexual
(22:34):
immorality or any kind ofimpurity or of greed, because
these are improper for God'sholy people.
Or should there be obscenity,foolish talk or coarse joking,
which are out of place?
But rather thanksgiving, ratherthan hang out in the confusion
(22:56):
zone, we should always be tryingto stay in the holiness zone.
That's the safe zone.
What is our safe zone?
Well, it can be found inprayers, devotions, small groups
, listening to preaching,worship and reading the Bible.
We need to spend most of ourtime there.
If you do feel called to gointo worldly places to reach
(23:20):
lost people, then you need to beaware of the danger of not
returning to your safety zone.
Spend as much time as possiblein the safe zone in order to
avoid falling into temptation.
Getting out of this zone toolong is dangerous.
We each need to consider how wecan be more holy.
(23:42):
The reward is great.
Holiness means being separatedfrom the world and separated to
God.
It is healthiness.
We need to continually pursueperfection, knowing that we are
not there yet, but there will bethat day when God makes all
things new.
(24:02):
If we give in to believing thelie of worldliness and follow it
because it looks attractive, wemake ourselves enemies of God.
However, if we decide to makeour holiness of more importance
than happiness, there is greatreward.
We can reach people in theworld without becoming worldly.
(24:23):
To some unbelievers, and evento some believers, our desire
for personal holiness will berepulsive Because they feel
conviction.
To others, they will findattempts to live a holy life
winsome and attractive, and theywill soon be asking for a
reason for the hope that we have.
(24:45):
Remember that holiness is theprimary attribute of God and he
has called us to be holy.
But God also loves, and so wemust love as well.
How do we do it?
Jesus promised the Holy Spiritto help us, to give us power for
service and to help us live aholy life.
(25:06):
It is not on our own power thatwe will be holy.
The Holy Spirit needs to beallowed to work in our lives,
and when he does, we can beconfident that we will be able
to do that which we are calledto do.
The relentless pursuit ofholiness means we start each day
with a realization that we arenot still perfected, and we can
(25:31):
ask the Holy Spirit to be activein our lives and guide us in
our path.
Now, I mentioned at thebeginning that many discussions
happen about whether certainthings are allowed for the
Christian.
Instead of asking what we areallowed to do, perhaps a better
question would be whether or notsomething brings us closer to
(25:53):
being Christ-like.
When our desires are to becloser to Him and to be like Him
, our desires will change.
Rather than defend our right todo this or that, we will desire
to conform to His standards.
In my life, this has become avery important consideration.
As I have sought to learn whatit means to serve.
(26:16):
I have realized that my ownpursuit of holiness is very
important, and many of the veryactivities I used to defend my
right to do have lost theirappeal, and still others I
probably struggle with as well.
My desires have changed in mypriorities as well, but I can
(26:36):
see the upward trend as God hasworked sanctification in me.
None of us are there yet and wealways have work to do.
Remember that holiness isseparation to God.
The reason to separateourselves is so that we become
like Him.
But if we are separatingourselves for separation's sake,
(27:00):
we will end up being legalisticand, like the Pharisees, we
could forget the reason why wefollow standards in the first
place.
Pharisees made rules more andmore stringent and added to the
law, not to become more holy,but for their own purposes.
But reacting to extremelegalism with Christian
(27:21):
libertarianism is no better.
We need to evaluate our actionsand whether they are holy, not
because we want to look good oreven feel good, but because we
want to become like Christ.
And then we want to honor Himwith our lives and make Him
glorified through us, whichshould be the driving force
(27:42):
behind our pursuit for holiness.
1 Peter 1, 14-16 says asobedient children, do not be
conformed to the passions ofyour former ignorance, but as he
who has called you as holy, youalso be holy in all your
conduct.
As it is written, you shall beholy, for I am holy.
(28:05):
Regarding holiness, we are notignorant, for the whole of the
scripture commands that we livein holiness.
The challenge to the CorinthianChurch is to be holy in order
to avoid falling for falseteachings.
The challenge for us today isto find a way to separate
(28:25):
ourselves from the world and toGod, so that we also may not be
swayed by those who would tickleour ears and turn us down the
wrong path, and that we mayreach the world his way, not
ours.
Holiness comes from a desire toserve God and a desire to be
(28:45):
like him.
May God speak into each one ofour lives and may he give us a
desire for holiness, and may theHoly Spirit enable us in our
pursuit.
(29:08):
It's good to be back doing theTruth Trek podcast once again
with you, and I know this was aheavy message, so may I leave
you with this doxology fromRomans, chapter 16, verses 25 to
27.
Now to him who is able tostrengthen you according to my
gospel and the preaching ofJesus Christ, according to the
(29:29):
revelation of the mystery thatwas kept secret for long ages
but has now been disclosed and,through the prophetic writings,
has been made known to allnations, according to the
command of the eternal God tobring about the obedience of
faith To the only wise God.
Be glory forevermore throughJesus Christ Amen.
(29:54):
Thanks for listening to TruthTrek and if you like the podcast
and you think this may behelpful to someone else, please
share it and leave us a ratingand a like or something on the
podcast platforms, and we sureappreciate that.
Thank you very much and we'llsee you next time on Truth Trek.
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