“Be Ye Holy”
“Follow the Directions”
By
District Elder M.L. Maughmer, Jr.
Scriptures: - Leviticus 11:44-45, 1st Peter 1:15-16, Deuteronomy 12:28, Hebrews 12:14.
Lev. 11:44-45 – “For I [am] the LORD your God: ye shall therefore sanctify yourselves, and ye shall be holy; for I [am] holy: neither shall ye defile yourselves with any manner of creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth. For I am the Lord that bringeth you up out of the land of Egypt to be your God ye shall therefore be ye holy for I am holy.
1st Pet 1:15-16 – “But as he which hath called you is holy, so be ye holy in all manner of conversation. Because it is written, Be ye holy for I am holy.
Deut. 12:28 – “Observe and hear all these words which I command thee, that it may go well with thee, and with thy children after thee forever, when thou doest that which is good and right in the sight of the Lord thy God”.
Heb. 12:14 – “Follow peace with all men, and holiness without which no man shall see the Lord”.
OPENING: - It’s a sad, sad shame and an utter disgrace unto the Lord, but we have preachers now days talking about I don’t want to offend people so I’m only going to preach positive thinking, prosperous motivating, and seeker friendly messages, because I want people to have a friendly atmosphere in the church. I say get that hell out of here, the Bible says in Matthew 11:12 “And from the days of John the Baptist until now the kingdom of heaven suffereth violence, and the violent take it by force”. Preacher’s must follow the directions, the Bible says 2 Tim 4 “I charge thee therefore before God and the Lord Jesus Christ who shall judge the quick and the dead at his appearing and his kingdom; Preach the word, be instant in season out of season, reprove, rebuke, exhort with all long suffering and doctrine. For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine, but after their own lust shall they heap to themselves teachers having itchy ears and they shall turn away their ears from the truth and shall be turned unto fables. But watch thou in all things endure afflictions, do the work of an evangelist, make full proof of thy ministry.”
The Word of God is truly awesome. It is a book that never gets out of date. It is a book that is full of everything you could possibly imagine. History is in this book. Prophecy is in this book. Poetry is in this book. Law is in this book. The Greatest Love Story ever is in this book. Romance is in this book. Murder is in this book. Lust and Seduction is in this book. Self help programs, mysteries, and everything else is in this book. It has been on the best sellers list for hundreds of years. Every time you read it you get something new out of it. It is a mirror to the soul of man and truly a love letter from God himself.
Truly the Psalmist said it best when he said in Psalms 119:105 “Thy word is a lamp unto my feet and a light unto my path”. Not only that but he goes on to say in verse 106 “I have sworn, and I will perform it, that I will keep thy righteous judgments”. In other words I will follow the directions.
There is a song that we learned in VBS years ago (Sunday school teachers I want you to teach it to our children soon).
The words are The B.I.B.L.E. yes that’s the book for me.
I stand alone on the Word of God The B.I.B.L.E.
The B.I.B.L.E. I’ll take it along with me, I’ll read and pray and then obey the B.I.B.L.E..
By F.A.I.T.H. I’m S.A.V.E.D. I’ll stand alone on the word of God the B.I.B.L.E.
The B.L.O.O. D. that Jesus shed for me
Cleansed me from sin I belong to him the B.L.O.O.D.
I stand alone on the word of God the B.I.B.L.E.
(Show PPT) There’s a saying that the word Bible can be used as an acronym for Basic Instructions Before Leaving Earth. We are strangers passing through this land. We are trying to get to heaven and in order to get there we must follow the directions in order to prepare us so we can go there.
God was dealing with me on this message and literally just blowing my mind as He was revealing His Rhema word to me. It is amazing the simplicity of what He is and was saying. Yet people find it hard to understand the word of God. I understand that this is because of several reasons.
1. 2nd Cor. 4:3-4 says But if our gospel be hid, it is hid to them that are lost: In whom the god of this world hath blinded the minds of them which believe not, lest the light of the glorious gospel of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine unto them. The devil has blinded the eyes of the people because he doesn’t want them to follow the directions.
2. 1st Cor.1:27 says “But God hath chosen the foolish things of the world to confound the wise; and God hath chosen the weak things of the world to confound the things which are mighty” it is so easy to understand that man is confused by it. If we would just take the word for what it says and stop trying to make it say something else everything will be alright.
3. Gal.6:3 says “For if a man think himself to be something, when he is nothing, he deceiveth himself”. People are running around saying I am my own person I don’t need God. They are deceived and because of this refuse to follow the directions.
Today I come before you with a very simple message. Unless God deems necessary to change it in the middle of my preaching there are not going to be any Hebrew or Greek words that need to be translated. There’s not going to be a need to try to figure the Hermeneutics or Harmolitics of this message. This message is simple it’s just follow the directions.
Have you ever had to do something or go some place you never did before, but you had the directions. I remember once someone gave my wife this mixture of stuff for something called friendship bread. When she first got it she never had made it before, I remember saying to her well is it hard and she said all I have to do is follow these directions as long as I do what the directions say do we will have friendship bread in a few days. She had to follow these directions or else there would be no friendship bread.
Follow the Directions
Before the technological explosion of video games and computers we as children either went outside to play or we played what is called board games. Some of the games we played outside were:
RED ROVER – the premises of this game was 2 lines of people would face each other. You would then say red rover, red rover I dare ______ over. _______ would run and try to break through the line if they did they got to go back to their line, but if they failed to breakthrough they became part of the other line. The game was over when the majority of the people were on one of the lines.
RED LIGHT/GREEN LIGHT – the premises of this game was to be the first person to reach the goal. Someone would stand at one point everyone else would be aways back. The person would say green light every one would begin to run toward the person who was the light. When they said red light everyone had to stop. The first person to reach the goal was the winner.
HIDE – N – SEEK – the premises of this game is someone would be it they would cover their eyes and count to 100 by 5, while they were counting you would go and hide, then say ready or not here I come and try to seek you out. While they were looking for the ones that hid, you would try to run back to the safe zone, if you made it good, but if the person that was it and looking for you touched you before they made it to the safe zone then you would become it.
I hated that game because I was always a chubby kid and couldn’t run fast so when I became it I was it all day long.
(Show PPT) Some of the board games we would play were games live Clue, Monopoly, Trouble, Sorry, Life, Twister, and Perfection. These are Milton Bradley games and most of us are familiar with them. Rather you played these games or not there is one thing all these games have in common and that is they all have directions.
However, there is a game that I know we all are familiar with and no doubt have played it at some time and that is the game called “Simon Says”. This is a very simple game all you had to do is do whatever Simon said do. If you failed to do what Simon said or did something other than what Simon said do then you were put out of the game. You lost and had to sit there and watch everyone else continue to play the game. The reason you lost and are now on the outside of the game looking in at everyone else is because you failed to follow the direction.
(Show PPT) Later they came out with an electronic version of this game simply called Simon. The premises is still the same, it told you to push the buttons in a certain order, if you did that then you could win the game, but if you did it in any other order it would buzz and say game over simply because you failed to follow the direction.
Directions are very important. In games they tell you what must be done in order to be victorious.
Directions tell you how to get to where you want to go.
Directions tell you how to correctly do that which needs to be done.
Have you ever tried to put something together without reading the directions. When you are finished it may look like the picture, but there are still pieces and parts lying on the floor. It doesn’t work properly, its unsafe Eventhough it looks like the picture. It’s not able to stand the test and handle the pressure it was designed to handle simply because you failed to follow the directions. If it was something that needed to be inspected it would not pass inspection because you failed to follow the directions.
Well we find in our text today some very simple directions. If you follow these directions they will take you to where you want to go. They will cause you to victorious. If you follow these directions not only will you be a winner, but you’ll be more than a conqueror.
In Lev 11:44 the Bible says For I am the Lord your God – WATCH THIS – He established His identity. In other words this isn’t Simon neither is this game, I am the Lord your God and I say.
therefore sanctify yourself – the word sanctify means to set apart from. In other words don’t be part of the crowd. Don’t get caught up in the game. Don’t blend in. The Bible puts it this way be not entangled in the affairs of this world. Be different.
and ye shall be holy for I am holy – Let me stop here for a while – ye shall be holy – the word “YE” is personal it is used now exclusively in ecclesiastical language or in other words CHURCH TALK to mean you and no one else. See you push this off on someone else it’s personal.
The word “SHALL” is a verb (action word). It doesn’t lay dormant, but it is alive. It is used to express a command, regulations, or directives. It expresses what is MANDATORY. So we understand now that this is a command that is mandatory. There’s no if’s ands, or buts about it, God said it and that’s it that is the directions.
The word “BE” also is a verb (action word). When we look at this part of this verse “YE SHALL BE” it declares or commands what we must do. If we fail to do it, if we fail to follow the directions then you have to suffer the consequences. Just like in Simon says if you fail to follow the directions then you are out of the game. Only failing to follow these directions have an eternal consequence in the Lake of Fire.
WATCH THIS:- HOLY – the word Holy is an adjective, it describes an attribute of God. To be holy is not to be bound by the world nor the things of the world. It is to be pure in actions, thoughts, and desires. Being holy is having the mind of Christ. Having the mind of Christ is agreeing with God’s judgment – loving what He loves, hating what He hates, and measuring everything in the world by the standard of His Word. Being holy is shunning every sin and keeping every commandment. Being holy is having ones mind toward God and the heart felt desire to do His will “BE YE HOLY”
Then He goes on to say “neither shall you defile yourselves with any manner of creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth”. So many times we try to say oh that’s for the Jews because they were only allowed to eat certain things, but let’s look at this closer.
(Show PPT) The word “Defile :- means to make unclean or impure, to corrupt the purity or perfection of, to violate the chastity of, to deflower, debase, to make physically unclean especially with something unpleasant or contaminating, to violate the sanctity of, to dishonor”. Someone might say I’m grown preacher you can’t tell me what to do it’s my body and I’ll do what ever I want to do. But you fail to follow the directions, the Bible says in 1st Cor. 6:19-20 “What know ye not that your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost which is in you, which ye have of God and ye are not your own. For ye are bought with a price; therefore glorify God (not self) in your body and in your spirit which are God’s”.
In other words don’t defile yourself and dishonor God with the filth of this world. Young ladies don’t defile your body and dishonor God listening to some jive talking brother talking about “Baby the Bible says the bed is undefiled”. There’s more to that scripture, the first part of that says marriage is honorable. The devil is a lie and that ain’t nothing more then what Luther would say “Creep, Creep, Creep, Creep” and the Bible said that creepeth upon the earth leave it alone – BE YE HOLY & FOLLOW THE DIRECTIONS. Man, Woman Boy and Girl God commanded that we be HOLY for holiness without no man shall see the Lord – You got to follow the directions.
for I am the Lord that bringeth you up out of the land of Egypt – WATCH THIS:- Egypt was the place the Children of Israel were literally held in bondage. It was a natural place in which they were oppressed and held in captivity. Today Egypt in your and my life is the place of bondage that has captivated our mind.
What are you talking about preacher. If you are bound by drugs, alcohol, cigarettes, illicit sexual activity, pornography, the love of money or anything that is contrary to the word of God it is because the devil has placed a stronghold on your mind.
(Show PPT) A STRONGHOLD:- is a mind set that is impregnated with helplessness, hopelessness, anxiety, depression, and loneliness that causes you to except as unchangeable something in your life eventhough it goes contrary to the will and word of God. – therefore your Egypt.
Jesus died on Calvary’s cross so you and I don’t have to be bound.
1st Peter 1:15 says “so be holy in all manner of conversation” – understand that this is more then the way you talk, but it encompasses every facet of your life, your talk, your walk, your dress, the places you go, the things you do, the stuff you watch, the things you listen to – God said be ye Holy – Follow the directions.
The Bible says in Deut.12:28 “Observe and hear all these words which I command thee, that it may go well with thee and with thy children after thee forever, when thou doest that which is good and right in the sight of the Lord thy God”. Simply put He said follow the directions.
While dealing with me on this message God said they’re not following the directions. They are running around like they don’t have a clue, living anyway they want to live. Doing anything they want to do, acting anyway they want to act. Living a sinful life Monday thru Saturday then they want to stumble in the church on Sunday, sing in the choir, dance on the dance team, and try to lead praise service, testifying talking about God is the head of my life. Tell them they lie – they are of their father the devil and the lust of their father they do and the truth is not in them. I require them to be holy for I am holy. Tell them to follow the directions for holiness without no man shall see the Lord.
1st Cor. 6:9-10 says “Know ye not that the unrighteous shall not inherit the kingdom of God? Be not deceived: neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor effeminate, nor abusers of themselves with mankind Nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners, shall inherit the kingdom of God.”. Ye must be HOLY. Holiness without no man shall see the Lord.
Let me take a sidebar here: - Someone might say well preacher I’m not committing adultery, but if you are supposed to be saved then you are spiritually married to Jesus and if you are married to Jesus and try to mess with sin on the side, because you think pastor is not around so it’s o.k. guess what you’re an adulterer. If you place anything before God, family, work, fun, drugs, sex, T.V, radio, video games you’re an idolater. If you’re a man and you switch like a woman or if you a woman and you walk like a man you’re effeminate. WATCH THIS – If you are habitually trying to see just how close you can get to sin guess what you are a spiritual drunkard and these things shall not inherit the kingdom of God.
You must follow the directions.
In the beginning of this message I mentioned some board games by Milton Bradley they were Monopoly, Clue, Trouble, Sorry, Life, Twister, and Perfection.
Sadly many people because they fail to follow the directions are trying to get through Life without a Clue who Jesus is. They play Twister with the Word of God trying to make it something it’s not only to find themselves in Trouble. However, in hell its to late to say Sorry for God requires Perfection.
All these games I have played at some time or another; however, there is one of these games I really never cared to much for and that is the game Clue. It’s a game of mystery and you have to figure out who the killer is in the game by the clues that are given. I never cared much for this game not because it was a hard game to play but because how I learned to play the game. My friends were playing when I walked up they said Mel play the game with us. I asked them how do you play the game. One person said you do it this way, another person said no do this, while yet another person said no that’s all wrong you do this. I didn’t like the game after that.
The reason I didn’t like the game is because how I came to understand the game.
WATCH THIS:- When I played the game clue someone told me what to do, so I played the game based upon what they said. I never for myself read the directions therefore to this day I don’t like the game clue. Since I never read the directions I could never be victorious because they told me what they wanted to tell me about the game or their interpretation of the directions. If I would have read the direction myself things would have been different.
There are many people today running around here with the misconception of who God is and how God operates because they are going on what somebody else told them instead of reading the directions for themselves.
You better not take what somebody else is saying, but better read it for yourself.
We got young people talking about I’m young I got plenty of time, I am just getting out of my childhood, but the Bible says childhood and youth are vanity. All the so called fun you think your having is all vanity. Your not following the direction, it may seem fun now, but it’s all vanity and will put your tail in hell.
We have people saying God won’t send me to hell, but read the direction “holiness without no man shall see the Lord”.
Understand that God must judge sin for he is holy. Sin is unholy when He judge’s sin He’s looking at unholy or unholiness if you’re not holy when He begins to judge then all He sees is unholy and He must punish unholy stuff and cast it into hell. But if your are holy you can escape that punishment that’s why He said in His word Be ye Holy He’s giving you a way of escape. All you have to do is follow the direction. I remember a song we used to sing years ago, it said If you live right heaven belongs to you, If you pray right heaven belongs to you. Treat your neighbor right heaven belongs to you. Holy people heaven belongs to you. You must be holy.
Understand people of God this is not a board game, if you’re not victorious in this there’s not second roll of the dice, there’s no reset button, you don’t get to pass go, collect $200.00, but you go straight to hell. You must follow the direction. Be ye holy for I am holy – for holiness without no man shall see the Lord.
I don’t know about you but I want to make it to heaven. I remember a song we used to sing and it is my prayer and I pray that it is your as well, the words are Oh I want to see Him look upon His face there to sing forever of His saving grace on the street of glory let me lift my voice care are past home at last ever to rejoice. But in order for that to happen you must be holy and follow the directions.
District Elder M.L. Maughmer, Jr.
