Part 1 …. Holy Verses Religious……. April 18, 2021You shall be holy, for I am holy. 1 Peter1:19 ESV

You shall be holy, for I am holy. 1 Peter1:19 ESV

As followers of God, we are called to be holy. A question regarding this call would be- what

does it mean to be holy? To answer this question look at the second half of the verse... for I am

holy. God is holy and perfect... without spot or blemish; and so in essence, we are commanded

to present ourselves as perfect. In reality we know this would be impossible. We are sinful by

nature, so how can something unholy be made holy? Answer.... By the blood of Jesus. For in

Him all the fullness of God was pleased to dwell, and through him to reconcile to himself all

things, whether on earth or in heaven, MAKING PEACE BY THE BLOOD OF HIS CROSS.

And you, once were alienated and hostile in mind, doing evil deeds, he has now reconciled in

his body of flesh by his death, in order to PRESENT YOU HOLY AND BLAMELESS AND

ABOVE REPROACH BEFORE HIM. Colossians 1:19-20 ESV. The true work to make you

and I holy was completed by Jesus on the cross. With this truth we also must remember who we

are in Christ who has called us to believe and follow him. With such a calling comes the

responsibility to live holy just as God has commanded. Here are some important steps when

following Christ in this holy calling.

Prepare The Mind:

Preparing your minds for action, and being sober minded, set you hope fully on the grace that

will be brought to you at the revelation of Jesus Christ. 1 Peter 1:13 ESV

A person needs to be proactive in the mind preparing in taking the necessary actions for holy

living. This is as I have taught before... living on purpose for God. This is not acting religious,

but living intentionally for God and giving evidence of His presence in your life. Remember you

are the temple of the Holy Spirit. Do you not know that your body is a temple the Holy Spirit

within you, whom you have from God? You are not your own, for you were bought with a

price. So glorify God in your body. 1 Corinthians 6:19-20 ESV It is the presence of the Holy

Spirit which makes you holy— not any actions you have done. A sober minded person is one

who does not have their minds clouded with worldly thoughts, but thinks clearly enough to

know their hope is in Christ alone and with thanksgiving they eagerly wait for his return.

Be Obedient:

As obedient children, do not be conformed to the passions of your formal ignorance. 1 Peter

1: 14 ESV

As a child of God, do not misbehave as one who does not know Christ nor as you may have

conducted yourself before you knew Christ as Lord in your life. The truly obedient child does

not act obediently only when he thinks someone is watching, but the truly obedient child is

obedient even when no one is watching. It is the desire of his heart to live in a way that would

be pleasing to the authority over him. This desire is the response of love he experienced from

God, and he responds with love in return ..... Godly obedience is motivated by love not religion.

Part 1 .... Holy Verses Religious....... April 18, 2021

Imitate:

But as he who called you is holy, you also be holy in all your conduct. 1Peter 1: 15 ESV

What is on the inside of a person will be reflected on the outside life by actions and speech.

(Luke 6:43-45) The believer’s life is described as a walk and for good reason, for we are

journeying home to be with God. (Colossians 1:10... 2:6 1 Thessalonians 2:12.... 1 John

2:5-6 ) When studying the Bible, a person will come to understand that GOD IS HOLY. It is

amazing that the one so holy has given us the gospel to spread to the world. One of the means of

spreading this gospel is to live holy in our walk and to give evidence of this gospel. Another

way of saying this is, “We need to walk the talk.” As it is written, How beautiful are the feet of

those who preach the good news! Romans 10:15 ESV

Application:

To apply this teaching one must have experienced the new birth by being, as Jesus

described,.... born again. Truly, truly, I say to you unless one is BORN AGAIN he cannot see

the kingdom of God. John 3:3 ESV This is not referring to a physical birth, but a spiritual

birth. (John 3:6). This new birth brings life where there was death. This verse describes the

passing away of the old life of sin to walk in the birth of the Spirit in your life. It is at this point

the spiritual journey in your life walk with God begins, and you have become holy, because God,

by the Holy Spirit, lives in you.

If you are already a believer then I encourage you to walk worthy in the manner of life which

God has called you as described in Colossians 1:10 ... Walk in a manner worthy of the Lord,

fully pleasing to him. The goal of a believer should be a life described as .... In him we live

and move and have our being. Acts 17:28 ESV. Being holy is not the result of something you

do, it is the result of what God has done in you. Another encouragement I wish to give you is to

live as Romans 12:1-2... I appeal to you therefore, brothers, by the mercy of God, to present

your bodies as a living sacrifice, Holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship.

Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your and, that by

testing you may decree what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect. (ESV)

Because of His Grace ~ Pastor David