These Necessary Things - Life Change Series

Necessary Things:

1. To maintain a moral responsibility to ourselves.

The moral standard was very low in that day. Most of the believers were saved out of pagan worship, and much sexual deviance. Priestesses were nothing but prostitutes, orgies were commonplace…even in worship! “If it feels good do it”, “satisfy yourself.”

Now the Jerusalem Council says to these new believers, abstain from fornication, live a clean, pure, moral life that’s brand new to you.

We live in a day, once again, of very loose morals, and all of us, inc. our new converts, have to be totally re-taught because we’ve been brainwashed by the world that anything goes and it’s no big deal…it’s commonly accepted today that you’ll take a test drive before you buy!

Ill.—I read an article that quoted hotel managers saying the number of unmarried couples checking in together has skyrocketed and is off the charts. Even if the manager doesn’t approve of it, they can’t turn down the business because it’s such a large part of their business.

Folks, years ago that was considered a shame, and tho’ it’s always happened at some level, they at least had the decency to lie about it and check in as Mr. and Mrs. Smith. But now they don’t even try to cover it up…it’s commonly accepted! Now that’s the culture in which we live today!

But God says to you and I,

2 Cor. 6:17

Wherefore come out from among them, and be ye separate…

We’re to live by a different standard/march to the beat of a different drum.

Those new believers could have continued on in their sexual practices and still fit in in their world, but they needed to know that was displeasing to God, and they needed to maintain a different moral mandate.

Profanity:

Many of you are immersed in it in your workplace/school…it’s so common that many don’t even know they do it anymore! Even young girls today say things that would make a sailor blush.

I’m not ashamed to say that I’m still offended by that. Freedom of speech was never intended to include morally offensive speech!

Ill.—restaurants ask you when you enter, “smoking or non?” I think they should add a whole new category: “cussing or non!”…and have a section where they let everyone just sit and swear at each other! They should let us who don’t want to hear it sit in a different section.

I don’t want my kids hearing that…but here’s the principle of a higher standard: “I don’t want to hear that either!”

In 1999 a new invention came out that filters profanity from TV and movies, the TVGuardian…we got it and liked it so much we “bought the company!” Seriously, I became a representative and sold over a hundred of them…some of you here have it in your home. I commend you for that.

It was touted as something to help keep your kids from hearing such things…but I recommend it to adults who don’t want to just accept any old thing into their home!

When we get saved we have a moral responsibility to clean up our lives, and that includes our mouths! Some of you may have been saved for some time but you haven’t notified your mouth…it’s time!