Biblical Holiness

BIBLICAL HOLINESS by George Crumbly

I Peter 1: 13-16

4/24/2005 Sunday AM

Sheridan, Arkansas

INTRO:

The bible tells us in Ephesians 5:27; “That He might present it to Himself a glorious church, not having spot, or wrinkle, or any such thing; but rather it should be holy and without blemish.”

Paul is talking about the kind of church the Lord is looking for, a church that is WITHOUT spot, wrinkle or blemish. A church WITHOUT any Moral Flaw.

I don’t know how to stress the importance that it is not going to be hard to miss heaven. I’m not saying that it is going to be hard to make it to heaven, but I don’t think it is going to be a “drop in the bucket” as many folks think.

(Please don’t misunderstand me-I’m not saying it is going to be hard or too hard to make it to heaven)

I do believe though, we are going to have to get up each & every day with the attitude that we are going to make it thru this day victorious-REGARDLESS of what is thrown our way or what comes our way.

I personally think too much of the church today is “lollygagging’” around thinking they have got it made regardless of what they are doing or how they are living, they think they got it made. We need to get SERIOUS about going to heaven.

I Peter 1: verses 13-16

Peter is exhorting the church to set our hopes on an INWARD RESOLUTION. A personal relationship, a personal discipline and outward conduct. Salvation is a personal relationship with Jesus Christ.

Products of salvation are: HOPE, HOLINESS, REVERENCE, and LOVE.

I was out at Hot Springs Arkansas a while back listening to a Holiness revival, the evangelist was stressing Holiness. There were a number of folks that showed up in support of this revival because they were interested in Holiness.

Holiness is not some goal we reach or a plateau we reach it is a LIFESTYLE we live. I thank God that on September 5, 1983 I was saved in a Holiness church during a Holiness revival. There are many churches out there that are not Holiness. Holiness is not set to any certain denomination. When I was in the Nazarene church I used to tell folks that we did not have a monopoly on Holiness-but Holiness should have a monopoly on us.

Wesley taught Biblical Holiness. The most important ingredient in Holiness is the Holy Spirit. The Holiness church believes in the POWER of the Holy Spirit.

(A good preacher friend of mine used to say: “It’s not how high you can jump but how straight you walk when you hit the ground.”)

WE believe in the Filling-Cleansing-Abiding POWER of the Holy Spirit. Just because someone say’s they are Holy doesn’t make them Holy.

Today I want to share with you 2 things I believe must happen in order for us to be Holy. You see Holy means: “To be set apart.” Another words you’ve got to BE DIFFERENT. ACT DIFFERENT. LOOK DIFFERENT. TALK DIFFERENT. THINK DIFFERENT. When the Lord saved me in 1983 I changed INSTANTANEOUS. Right then & there. Johnny on the spot. I walked out of that church that night differently than I walked in. Yet as I grew I wanted a deeper relationship with the Lord. I wanted everything that God had for me.

(How many of us on payday are satisfied with most of our pay? How about tax refund, are you ok with most of the refund? When you purchase something you want EVERYTHING you got coming back in change?)

Then why is the church so satisfied with most of what God wants you to have? We should want EVERYTHING God has for us!! The Lord filled me with His Spirit & EMPOWERED me to live like He wants me to live.

2 Things I believe we must do in order to be Holy:

I. TURN FROM SIN:

This isn’t complicated. You cannot be Holy and live in sin. You see we’ve seen first hand what sin will do to your life.

(I’ve pastored people that were living in sin-you could sit back & see sin destroying their lives, their children’s lives) Look at what Paul tells the Corinth church

II Corinthians 6: 14- 7:1

People today condone sin. They think because it is their kids’ living in sin it’s not as bad. I had a lady one time that had a son living with a woman; they talked about how God blessed her son (when he was having health problems). I heard later on she was tickled when he rededicated his life back to the Lord, yet………he continued to live with this woman in sin.

God DOES NOT BLESS SIN. Wake up. People accuse you of Judging others, they use the woman caught in adultery, when Jesus told her accusers for those without sin to cast the first stone. Yet they do not read on where Jesus also told the woman to QUIT SINNING. Get out of the sin business.