Wednesday Night Bible Study
by Nathan Whitley
First Apostolic Church of Knoxville (Knoxville, TN)
Kind: Bible study
Scripture: 1 Peter 1:10-16, Hebrews 11:1, Exodus 12:11, Romans 6:11, 1 John 2:1, 1 Peter 3:15

Source: https://acts238.life/repository/sermons/nathan-whitley--wednesday-night-bible-study-4
Published by Acts 2:38 Life from the sermon transcript on that page.
Free to copy and share with attribution.

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Man, it's great to be in the house of the Lord tonight for worship in the word. Anybody come ready to study the word of the Lord tonight? Anybody excited about getting into uh the Bible tonight? Let's go to First Peter chapter number one. And as you are turning there, I want to say what an honor it always is uh to be able to preach and to teach the word of the Lord and to be able to uh do this here on a Wednesday night. And I give honor to Bishop Mcool who I believe is uh the greatest of Bible teachers uh among us. And I'm so thankful for his voice and his influence. This church is built upon the taught word of the Lord that he has labored in for decades and decades. And I give him high honor and pastor Mcool and pastor Anthony and all the leadership of the great saints of God that are here uh tonight. First Peter chapter number one. A few weeks ago, maybe been a couple months ago, I did a couple of lessons from First Peter and I had the opportunity to teach on First Peter in Indiana uh just a few weeks ago and I want to share some more of that with you and hopefully I'll have my notes uh available uh by by November and so uh you just pray that I can get that done. So, First Peter chapter number one, and we're going to begin reading in verse number 10. We're going to go all the way down to verse number 16. 1 Peter chapter number one, beginning at verse number 10, Peter writes, "Of which salvation the prophets have inquired and searched diligently, who prophesied of the grace that should come unto you." Searching what? or what manner of time the spirit of Christ which was in them did signify when it testified beforehand the sufferings of Christ and the glory that would follow unto whom it was revealed that they were not serving themselves but unto us they did minister the things which are now reported unto you by them that have preached the gospel unto you with the Holy Ghost sent down from heaven which things the angels desire to look into. Now look at verse number 13. And you know I like to highlight certain words and this is an important word here and that is this first word in verse 13 wherefor. Okay, wherefore or therefore or so. Okay, it is the the conclusion of what he just said. Here's what to do because of this. Wherefore, gird up the loins of your mind. to be sober and hope to the end for the grace that is to be brought unto you at the revelation of Jesus Christ as obedient children, not fashioning yourselves according to the former lusts in your ignorance, 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." I want to teach tonight, and this is my my title or my topic, five imperatives of salvation. Five imperatives of salvation. Let's pray again. Father, we thank you for your word. It's a lamp unto our feet and a light unto our path. Lord, I pray that you would bring into my remembrance all things that you have taught me from your word. And I pray that you would help me to minister the things of God with clarity and understanding. But importantly, God, that your anointing would help me. Lord, I pray that you would open up the hearts and the minds of your people tonight. And pray that we would leave here changed and conformed into your image. In Jesus name we pray. And everyone said, "Amen." >> Amen. Five imperatives of salvation. Let's go back and maybe you weren't here or maybe you have forgotten, but I won't delay and get lost in the weeds, but let's give some context uh to to the letter overall so we know why he's saying what he's saying. Uh if you remember, Peter addresses in the very first verse who he is writing to. These are believers who have been scattered throughout uh Asia Minor, which would be uh modernday Turkey. Most of them probably predominantly uh gentile Christians. And I'm sure there are uh Jewish Christians as well. But they are facing uh persecution and suffering uh for their faith, for their lifestyle, for their stand. And not only are they experiencing that perhaps in their family, in their community, their neighborhood, wherever they are, they're experiencing this in some way for this new faith, this Christianity. And it's it's not at the point yet if we if we date this letter, it's not necessarily at the point of a empirewide uh persecution of the church. But it is coming when Neero will begin this empirewide persecution of the church. But I believe Peter is referencing in in chapter number four concerning the fiery trial which he sets fire to Rome, blames the Christians and uh empirewide persecution of the church takes place. And so these Christians are facing suffering and they're going to continue facing u suffering persecution for what they believe. and he opens this letter. These uh first few verses of chapter 1 are very dense. It's very dense, very weighty of what he is saying. Very dense theologically, if I could say it that way. He opens up by identifying them as uh exiles or strangers or foreigners. But not only that, but they are um the elect, the chosen exiles. You know, they are chosen of God. He makes sure to let them understand who their uh what their identity is as the people of God. And then the means of that identity is found in the salvation uh that has been provided by God. that is through the fornowledge of God through the sanctification of the spirit and through the sprinkling and the application of the blood of Christ. So we see that immediately and he goes all the way through that we have this inheritance and we have these promises and he he opens this up with the message of message of salvation first because that's the important thing that we get our identity from. If you're going to endure and if you're going to have hope and if you're going to have living hope as Peter would write, then we must have a hope that's rooted in what God has done for us in Christ. If you know that Christ has given his very life for you and that he is raised from the dead, conquering death and sin, then you can have hope that I can endure whatever it is I'm facing or >> could face. Right? It is a hope that gives you endurance. It gives you perseverance. That's what hope is. It gives you something to look to and to look for. And our hope brothers and sisters is rooted in what Christ has done for us in salvation. >> It is not based upon what we have done or who we are. It is what Christ has done for us. >> And that's why he begins this way. He wants these believers and he wants us as readers 2,000 years later that whatever we could face or what we might be facing that we could have hope but that our hope is not flimsy that it's a living hope and I talked about this uh in a previous lesson that there's no such thing as dead hope right that's that that's an oxymoron it's like uh a heavy feather you No, it's a it doesn't work. There's no such thing as dead hope. He said this is a living hope. And this is a hope that goes beyond of well, I hope I make it or I hope this works out. That's not hope. That's wishful thinking. >> Brothers and sisters, WE DON'T BASE OUR LIFE ON WISHFUL THINKING. We must have the assurance to know that if God gave Christ and gave his life for us and conquered death and sin for us, what can he do in us and for us? If he can give his life for us, what else can HE GIVE TO US? WE CAN HAVE HOPE. WELL, I hope I make it. No, no, no, no. That's not the kind of hope that we have. We have a living hope. Yes, >> we talked about that uh a few weeks ago that we have this living hope. We must understand that this hope is rooted in salvation. Yes, it is past. Okay, let me just talk about this for a moment. That our hope is rooted in history. that Christ was a real person who gave his life at Calvary, a real event, and that he really truly rose from the dead. We have a hope in in a historical moment. That is true, right? And that's what Peter says here that this thing is rooted in the past. But not only that is that we experience it here in our present, that our hope is yes in the past, but our hope is also in the present. The writer of Hebrews chapter number 11 says now faith. DON'T OVERLOOK THAT LITTLE WORD now faith. >> It wasn't this. It's not simply a past faith. WE MUST HAVE A NOW FAITH, a present faith, a living faith. >> Now faith is the substance of things hoped for. WHAT DOES THAT MEAN? That it's in the future. It's yet. Yes. Yes. We have promises that have been fulfilled, but there's an already and a not yet. These things have been done, but there's ALSO SOMETHING ELSE TO COME. THAT THIS IS NOT HEAVEN. >> This is not heaven. >> THIS IS NOT WHAT I'M LIVING FOR. THIS WORLD IS NOT WHAT I'M LIVING FOR. I'm not living for this world. I'm not living FOR THIS GOVERNMENT. I'M not living for this economy. I'm not living for these things. I I've got a hope IN SOMETHING IN THE FUTURE. that if this IS ALL THAT WE HAVE, IF THIS IS ALL THAT WE HAVE, IF this is it, WE'RE GOING TO BE MISERABLE. >> That's why the world is miserable because they think this is all that they have. But you and I, brothers and sisters, don't have to wait and look and say, "Well, this is ALL WE'VE GOT." NO, WE'VE got a living hope THAT WHAT WAS DONE IN THE history and then in the past and we can live it now, BUT WE'VE GOT A FUTURE hope of glory. >> Somebody say, "Amen. So, it was always God's plan to save. It's always been God's plan to save. When when you we do people a grave disservice, we say, "I want to learn how to read the Bible. I'm not sure how to read the Bible." Well, begin the New Testament. That's fine advice, but it's kind of like watching uh the last movie in a trilogy first. You missed the first two. Uh now for you spiritual people um who don't watch those things it's like reading uh the return of the king in the uh Lord of the Rings trilogy first okay you spiritual people who like to read you know uh and so it's like when you miss the first two you don't understand why the significance of the return of the king in the third volume is important well if you if you if you tell people to start reading in the New Testament you're reading the last third you're missing the first twothirds of what God has done that everything that was written a four time was written for our instruction. These things were written for our examples that we through patience and perseverance might have hope. So everything Paul would say in Galatians that the the law or the Old Testament was our school master pointing us or leading us to Christ. Well, we read the Old Testament through the lens of Jesus Christ. And so if you say, "Well, I just start in the New Testament." Well, I want you to understand you're you're missing twothirds. You're missing the first two volumes. you're missing the you're missing everything that's pointing to what's being happening right here in the New Testament. And that's what Peter says here. He is saying that our salvation is rooted in history. But not only that, that Jesus uh gave his life at Calvary and shed his blood at Calvary and rose from the dead three days later. That's important. But I want YOU TO UNDERSTAND THAT THESE THINGS ARE FOUND IN THE PROPHETS. THAT THE prophets were preaching and prophesying and telling of these things way back in the Old Testament. And he says that here. These things, these things that you have experienced, brothers and sisters, have been prophesied centuries before. Now, why would that be important to people WHO ARE FACING SUFFERING? WHY would these why would he why would he want to give them a quick history lesson in verses 10 and through 12 if they're facing suffering and persecution? Because they could ask questions like this. If I am suffering for my faith, is it really worth it? If I'm suffering, if I'm being persecuted, if I'm being arrested, if I'm being beaten, if I'm losing friends and relationships and families are are are are exiling me, is this really worth it? Is it worth this? All of this loss? Is it really worth all of this sacrifice? AND IF WE'RE NOT CAREFUL, we could say the same thing. Is it really worth it? Is it really worth the sacrifice? Should I really live this way? Is it really ALL DOES IT TAKE ALL OF THIS? IS THIS THE POINT? WHAT IS THE POINT OF ALL OF THIS? And Peter says, "These things that you have just experienced and you HAVE EXPERIENCED, THE PROPHETS PROPHESIED about and they longed They long to see. Look what he says here. Of which salvation verse in the prophets have inquired, searched diligently, who prophesied of the grace that should come unto you. You see, he he makes that personal. You, the prophets, inquired, searched diligently. You are experiencing that searching what or what manner of time the The word of Christ which was in them did signify when it testified beforehand the sufferings of Christ and the glory that should follow unto whom it was revealed. Now look at this that they were not serving themselves but serving you. So brothers and sisters in Asia Minor who are facing suffering and persecution, the prophets who prophesied of the coming of Christ, the work of Christ and the glories that would follow, the resurrection and the glory that would come were not serving themselves, brothers and sisters. They were in fact serving you. THAT SHOULD GIVE YOU HOPE. WHY? BECAUSE THEY DID NOT EXPERIENCE WHAT YOU HAVE. >> YOU SEE THE SPIRIT OF CHRIST, NOTICE THAT HE SAYS THIS, THAT THE SPIRIT OF CHRIST WAS IN THEM TELLING THEM WHAT TO SAY, but you have received what they were looking for. >> They have not EXPERIENCED WHAT YOU HAVE EXPERIENCED. My God have mercy. SO THEY SEARCHED, THEY INQUIRED DILIGENTLY LIKE A DETECTIVE. They were looking. They were waiting. They were searching for it. WAITING FOR IT. LONGING FOR IT. BROTHERS AND SISTERS, THIS SHOULD GIVE YOU HOPE BECAUSE YOU ARE EXPERIENCING WHAT ISAIAH AND JEREMIAH AND EZEKIEL WERE PROPHESYING AND LOOKING FOR. YOU ARE EXPERIENCING. AND IF THEY DIDN'T MAKE IT AND THEY PERSEVERED, HOW MUCH MORE SHOULD WE, THE BELIEVERS WHO HAVE THE HOLY GHOST, WHO HAVE EXPERIENCED, ARE YOU HEARING ME TONIGHT? Our salvation is rooted in the Old Testament. >> Everything pointed forward to what Christ would do in the It starts in Genesis and IT WORKS ALL THE WAY THROUGH TO REVELATION THAT WHAT JESUS CHRIST WAS DOING FOR US WAS prophesied in the past. He says that the angels long to look into this. They're long. Angels or long prophets and patriarchs, priests did not experience it. They wanted to but they did not. And angels are looking desire to look in it. Why? Two things. Why do angels desire to look into what we have? Number one, they do not suffer. Angels do not suffer. But who does? We do. He says angels. You see what he's saying here to people who are facing persecution. He is saying that angels want what you have. Why would they want this? Because you've got the next thing. They cannot sin either. And if they cannot suffer and they cannot sin, that means they also cannot experience the savior. Ah, God have mercy. And so they are longing to look into what you and I have. Why? Because you're suffering FOR HIM. BUT ALSO THIS, you have a salvation that the ANGELS CANNOT EVER EXPERIENCE. WHY? BECAUSE HE DID NOT COME TO SAVE AND RESCUE ANGELS. HE CAME TO SAVE AND RESCUE SINNERS. MY GOD. THAT'S WHAT WE ARE EXPERIENCING HERE TONIGHT. AND I'M EXCITED ABOUT IT. WHY? BECAUSE IF HE DID THAT FOR ME, I CAN MAKE IT ANOTHER DAY. IF HE CAN DO THAT, Come on. YOU CAN MAKE IT. YOU CAN MAKE IT THROUGH that sickness. You can make it through that pain. You can make it through THAT GRIEF. YOU CAN MAKE IT THROUGH THAT SORROW. WHY? BECAUSE ANGELS LONG TO look into it. He did not come to He did not come to redeem angels. He come to redeem sinners. My God. That should give you some hope. That should give you some hope. Angels, prophets, patriarchs, priests desired these things. looked into these things and you brothers and sisters, not just Peter's audience, but we here 2,000 years later have it. That's why we That's why we've heard it two times, three times, four times tonight. That's why we just can't come in in here and just be silent. >> That's why we just can't come in here and just go through the motions. Why? Because I'm I I should be excited that Jesus saved me. >> That that Jeremiah didn't GET THIS. THAT ISAIAH didn't get this, DAVID DIDN'T GET THIS, BUT I'VE GOT THIS. >> CAN YOU IMAGINE THAT? I'VE GOT WHAT DAVID DIDN'T HAVE, AND I'VE GOT WHAT SAMUEL DIDN'T HAVE, AND I'VE GOT THAT'S WHY I CAN'T COME IN HERE AND JUST SIT AROUND AND LOOK AROUND and worry about who's seeing me and who's NOT SEEING ME. I'M HERE TO ENTERTAIN HIS PRESENCE. >> I WISH somebody get loud for Jesus tonight. WE'VE GOT WHAT ANGELS ARE DESIRING. Somebody say >> amen. >> That's why we must not, as the writer of Hebrews says, neglect so great a salvation. This is a great salvation. This is a great salvation. We should be excited about this. Should fuel our witness. It should fuel our testimony. We talked about that a few weeks ago. Now, look at this verse 13. Now, we just went through the why, okay? The why of salvation or the how of salvation. Now, we're going to look at the why. How do we live this? How do we live this? Now, this is just me overthinking. If people are suffering for their faith and he opens up with what God has done in Christ for us, why would he immediately move to conduct? You think about that for a second. Why? If he's talking about these spiritual realities, these spiritual promises, he goes, "Therefore," or "Wherefore," give me that one, "G up the loins of your mind, be sober, or be sober minded and hope to the end for the grace that is to be brought unto you at the revelation of Jesus Christ as obedient children, not fashioning yourselves according to the former lust in your ignorance. But as he which hath called you is holy, so be ye holy in all manner of conversation. He goes from spiritual realities to practical living. See that? HERE'S THE SPIRITUAL REALITY that Christ has purchased us. He's redeemed us. And now here's how you're to live. But I'm facing persecution. Here's how you are to live. BUT I'M SUFFERING FROM MY FAITH. Here's how you live. We just because we experience salvation spiritually does not mean we are divorced from living in the reality of our flesh. >> Some have said this, they're so heavenly minded, they're of no earthly good. >> Now, first of all, Leonard Rael said this. I've known I don't know of any person that way. But we get the idea, right? We think we've got this dualism. HERE'S MY SPIRITUAL life and here's my real life. Let me put it in 2026 terms. Here's my Sunday life and here's my Monday life. I like chapter 1 1 through 12. Give me all of that. That makes me shout. That makes me run. That makes me sing. Then he goes, "Wherefore, here's how you behave." We cannot separate our salvation from our everyday life. >> Thank you. >> It's not just simply, well, here's I'm I'm facing persecution and suffering for my faith. I'LL JUST THROW IN THE TOWEL. I'll just speak in tongues through all of this OR I'LL JUST PRAY MY WAY THROUGH THIS. AND THAT'S IMPORTANT. BUT LET ME UNDERSTAND, YOU DO HAVE TO GO TO WORK ON MONDAY. >> YOU DO HAVE TO be a, as we heard tonight, a human being. You see, angels long to look into what we have. But brothers and sisters, WE ARE NOT TRYING TO be angels. He does not give us angel wings as soon as we get the Holy Ghost. Instead, we get work boots. >> Instead, we get a lifestyle change. Are you hearing me? >> Five imperatives he gives us. Here's you've been saved. Therefore, or wherefore, everything Peter is about to write is the LOGICAL consequence of what he's previously stated. It's important to understand that. Don't overlook that word. Therefore, OR WHEREFORE, YOU ARE TO live a certain way in your world. Number one, let me do this here. Because of this great salvation, we are called to action, imperatives or commands. Number one, g up the loins of your mind. Number two, be sober or be soberminded. Number three, set your hope. Number four, do not be conformed to the world or to your former ignorance or to your former way of living. Number five, be holy. >> Five imperatives he gives us right here as soon as he is shown us the wonders of salvation. Let's look through these. You all right? You do do this. I'll be fast. Number one, g up the loins of your mind. Other translations say something like preparing your minds for action. Now, in the ancient near east, a man would gather the flowing lengths of his robe, pulling them to his hips, then tucking the leftover or the run over into his belt. And he would do this for work or for battle or for quick travel. And so Peter might have in mind the Passover because he's already referenced the sprinkling of blood. So perhaps he has got this the Passover in mind because in the Passover as they would kill the lamb and they would eat the meal uh they were to he says here in Exodus 12:11 and thus shall you eat it with your loins girded your shoes on your feet and your staff in your hand and you shall eat it in haste. In other words be ready. >> So the the the Passover the blood has been applied. Now you're going to eat the meal and you're to have your robe ready. You're to be ready for action. Why? Because you're getting ready to leave. So he's he's he's he maybe perhaps has this in mind here as he's writing about girding up the loins of your mind. So if the loins now the loins are your hips, right? You've got hips. Your hips help you to to navigate, to move, to center you, to pivot your body. You know, it was a big deal a few years ago. talk about your core, get your core strength, right? You get your core strength, all of these things. Why? Because your hips help you to pivot and to move. It gives you strength. It gets you to uh action to to movement. And so if the mind, listen to me now, if the mind is the hips, that's what he's saying. G up the loins of your mind. If your mind are the loins or the hips of your thinking, that means we must be ready. Let me just say this. Right living begins with right thinking. Okay? Right living begins with right thinking. Why does he begin with the mind? Why doesn't he say g up the loins of your heart? That's not what he's saying. G up the loins of your mind. Because the mind is the first thing that can be attacked in your in your person. We're dealing with an epidemic, maybe a pandemic of anxiety, worry, mental illness, all of these things. I'm not taking that lightly. It's a real thing. But I want you to understand that that the mind is under attack. The mind is the battlefield for your heart and your spirit. If you don't get your thinking right, your living is not going to be right. He doesn't start with the heart. He starts with your your brain. You see, us Pentecostals, we like to think that uh I just I'm not trying to be mean or crude or whatever, but we think we just leave your brain in the car when you come into church. We're just going to come in here and shout and run and sing and all that. LISTEN, OUR faith is a thinking faith. >> It's not. Yes, we feel. Yes, it's an experience, but it's also in your brain. Love the Lord. Serve the Lord with your heart, your mind, MY SOUL. MY SPIRIT, THE WHOLE GOD WANTS YOUR WHOLE man from your brain to your feet. Your your mind is so important. And it's important that you not only guard your heart, but you guard your thinking, what you watch. Got a couple amens over here. What you watch, what you listen to, what you scroll through is influencing your thought patterns. He's saying here that our thoughts, our minds HAVE GREAT POWER. HOLINESS, BROTHERS AND SISTERS, DOES NOT BEGIN IN YOUR ATTIRE. >> IT BEGINS in your inner man. You can dress it up and still have stinking thinking. >> YOU CAN DRESS IT UP AND STILL HAVE YOUR brain in the gutter. >> Are you hearing me? >> It begins in the inner man. >> We must have the the loins of OUR MIND GIRDED UP READY. PAUL SAYS, "WE DESTROY ARGUMENTS and every lofty opinion raised against the knowledge of God." How do you do that? You have to have the right knowledge, the right information. AND YOU CANNOT FEEL YOUR WAY THROUGH THAT. You must know your way through that. MY PEOPLE ARE DESTROYED FOR A LACK OF FEELING. THAT'S NOT WHAT he says. My people are destroyed for a lack of knowledge. Knowledge. G up the loins of your mind. What we think upon and meditate upon greatly influences the direction of our lives. Number two, it's connected to this first one. Be sober. Be sober. If girding up the loins of our minds is thinking energetically, being ready for action, then being sober minded is thinking clearly. thinking clearly. Cloudy thinking can be caused by lots of things, lots of factors. Too many cloud their thinking with unnecessary chemicals like alcohol and drugs. On the other hand, too many are addicted to doom scrolling on their phones and nundating their brains with garbage causing brain rot. You all right? The mind is a muscle that must be exercised and cared for. Just as much as you care for your body, you need to care for your mind. This is so important. Not just to be thinking energetically, being ready for action, but thinking clearly. So many don't think clearly because they don't stop to think. You hear me? When's the last time you just stopped to think? No music, no TV on, just sit back and think. Instead of texting somebody, posting something, asking chat GPT, why don't you just go Thought about have you ever thought about that? Thought about thinking. How about that? Sometimes you need to think think right. So many you would be so you'd be so surprised that when people come to to a pastor and go, "Hey, can you give me some advice?" And sometimes I just go, "Have you thought about the pros and They're like, "Well, what's that?" Like, "Well, let's think about what could happen if you do this." Well, I haven't thought that far ahead yet. And you're coming to me. You want my brain? How about you got one? Let's go through the pros and the cons. Pros. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Here's the cons. Oh, I didn't think about that. Did you think about it? I'm not trying to be mean. trying to be cruel. I'm not trying to be I'm not trying to do that. But sometimes it'd be it'd be it would behoove us to stop and think. Exercise your brain. Read a book. I don't know what to read. I've got 66 of them. I got 60. I mean, I got short ones. I got long ones. I got easy ones. I got hard ones. I got I got a whole You just read it. Be sober minded. A disciplined mind is a dedicated mind. Paul wrote that we are to be renewed in the spirit of our minds. He wrote to in the Philippians, he wrote to think upon these things, right? Got to think. It's a muscle. Use your brain. You'd be surprised how many people don't use their brains. They use feelings instead. It's going to get you a lot of trouble. Number three, set your hope. Now, we talked about this few few weeks ago. We talked about the kindling of our hope, right? We was a followup to to every man give an answer for the hope. We are hope defenders, right? We are hope defenders. And our hope is a person and that person is Jesus Christ. and and and Peter gives us kindling for our our hope. If you remember that anybody remember that kindling for our hope. I've got these here. I don't have them up on the screen. I forgot to send those again, but it's right here in verses 3 through9. God's great mercy caused us to be born again. God gives us a living hope. God raised Jesus from the dead. God gives us an eternal inheritance that's incorruptible, undefiled, that fades not away. God keeps us and guards us for this heavenly hope. God sovereignly uses tests and trials to prov to prove the genuiness of our faith. All of which will bring praise, glory, and honor to Jesus. I said that kindling of hope could be a prayer. You can use that as a prayer outline. You could use that as a worship outline. And I also said it would be a great way for an evangelistic outline. When somebody asks you for the reason of our hope, go to first Peter chapter number one verses 3-9. That is the kindling for our hope. All of those things he lays out there, that is the reason for our hope. I've been born again. I've got an eternal inheritance. All he goes all the way through those things. If you will do that, if you'll get that in your spirit, that is going to increase your hope. And so what he says here to set your hope, that's what he's going back to. Our hope is not here in this world. I've got a I've got an eternal hope set before me. Right? Why would you want to set your hope if you're facing suffering and persecution, experiencing all these terrible things for your faith? You must have hope that what I am enduring, God is either going to use to prove my faith and make me into his image or I will give my life for the faith and in which there is an eternal reward. And that eternal reward is whether or not you are martyed for it or you just die by natural causes and in your faith. It's the same reward. But I want you to understand that we must set our hope. Go to the next one. Number four. Almost done. Now again imperatives for of our salvation not for our salvation. Meaning these are not things to do to be saved. These are the things that we are working out because we are saved. Does that make sense? Do not be conformed to the world. I want to read just how he says this. He says, "As obedient children, not fashioning yourselves according to the former lust in your ignorance." That gives me a clue that they're Gentiles, that they were ignorant of the law, right? But also he's saying now that you're saved, you cannot live like you did before. If the salvation that you claim does not change your lifestyle, you must question your salvation. Make sense? COME AS YOU ARE. Don't leave the way you came. >> That make sense? >> He says, "Since you've been saved, don't be conformed or fashioned to your former lusts." Paul would say it this way in chapter six of Romans. Likewise, reckon ye also yourselves to be dead indeed unto sin. I that old lifestyle, I AM DEAD TO IT. I consider myself dead to sin. Now, let me just stop. We got a few minutes. I got nine minutes, maybe 10. Just say this. When you are saved, I've talked about this before. You got to get this in your spirit because I want to I want to help somebody relieve themselves from condemnation that you can be saved. Listen to me now. Please listen to me. I want to help somebody. You can be saved. You can come in, put your faith in Christ, repent of your sins, get baptized in the name of Jesus, receive the baptism of the Holy Ghost. You can have those things, right? Experience those things. And there are some 99.9% who experience that the next day will still be tempted by their old lifestyle. >> Not me. When I got it, I got the real thing. You're the 0001%. Okay. What happens here at this moment of salvation when you are tempted THE VERY NEXT DAY. YOU COULD BE TEMPTED WHEN YOU GO INTO YOUR CAR AFTER YOU'VE BEEN BAPTIZED. HERE'S WHAT YOU'VE GOT TO UNDERSTAND. THAT I AM POSITIONALLY SAVED, HOLY, a member of the body of Christ. I am in him and he is in me. I am I'm CONSIDERING MYSELF DEAD TO SIN. BUT WHAT REMAINS IN THIS BODY is the pollution of sin. >> If you go to a body of water that's had some sort of uh disaster, an oil leak, or you've seen this, maybe you've seen it on television or maybe you heard about it on the radio. Um, sorry. When they try to CLEAN THAT UP, THERE'S ALWAYS GOING TO BE LEFT over residue of that spill. It's not that they're not trying to get rid of it, but there's some pollution left over. That's where we are. We have been forgiven of our sin, and we are positionally in Christ, but we still have the pollution of sin. And here's what you must do. You must consider yourself dead to sin. >> That I am no longer those things. I'M NO LONGER GOING BACK TO THOSE THINGS. I MIGHT BE TEMPTED BY THOSE THINGS AND I MIGHT EVEN MESS UP AND do that thing again. But I want YOU TO UNDERSTAND JOHN WOULD WRITE THIS. IF YOU DO SIN, IF YOU DO SIN, we have an advocate. >> JESUS CHRIST DIRECT. COME ON, SOMEBODY. THAT JUST BECAUSE YOU'RE TEMPTED DOES NOT mean you're my God, I wish somebody would HEAR ME RIGHT NOW. DOES NOT MEAN YOU'RE AUTOMATICALLY OUT OF THE BODY. WHAT YOU'VE GOT TO DO IS UNDERSTAND THAT NOW THAT I'M IN THE BODY, NOW THAT I'M IN CHRIST AND CHRIST IS IN ME, I CAN GO TO HIM AS MY HEAVENLY FATHER AND SAY, "FORGIVE ME OF MY SIN. FORGIVE ME OF MY LUST. FORGIVE ME of >> trying to help somebody." People deal with that all the time. Am I really saved? Am I really saved? Let me give you a test. If you're really saved, do you hate your old sin? Do you have your affections changed? I didn't want to pray when I was in the world. I didn't want to come to church when I was in the world. But now that I'm in Christ, man, I want to come in here and worship. I want to pray. I want to do that's an affection. That's an indicator that something's changed in your life. >> When I was in the world, I gave in to all my temptations. I smoke. I drank. I did all the things. But now that I'm in Christ, I hate those things. I'm I don't want to do those things. I don't want to go back. That's an indicator that you've had a change in your life. Just trying to help you set your hope. Don't be conformed. Don't be fashioned to your old way of living. Last one here. Five minutes. Perfect. Be ye holy in all manner of conversation. For it is written, go to go to verse 16. But as he which hath called Verse 15, but he that has called you is holy. So God is holy. Now his holiness isn't just about his moral purity. Yes, he is morally pure. He is light. He is pure. He is all of those things. He is holy. But also that he is completely other. What I'm trying to say is that God is completely separate from his creation. He is there is nothing in creation or in the universe that is like God. He is so holy and pure and other that he is so far above us in his creation. This is what he's saying. Because he is holy, you are to be holy. But let me just stop and say this. The standard of our holiness is not the person you're sitting next to tonight. I'm going to say it again. The standard of holiness that we are to attain is not the person in the pew you're sitting with. It's not the person you see on a podcast or somewhere else or what. That's not it. I want to be holy like them. That's that's not that's not the standard. I can't go to that church how they dress. That's this is not the standard. That's low. That's real low. The standard is God. >> And guess what? We all fall short of that holiness. So therefore, everybody, every one of us >> are trying to reach that STANDARD OF HOLINESS THAT WE NEVER WILL REACH. BUT HERE'S THE GOOD news that we in our unrighteousness, Christ took that unrighteousness and gave us his righteousness. SO WHEN WE are saved, he is not looking AT OUR UNRIGHTEOUSNESS. HE IS LOOKING AT HIS OWN RIGHTEOUSNESS. MY GOD HAVE MERCY. So even though I'm not meeting your standard or their standard, YOU'RE NOT MEETING MY STANDARD. WE'RE ALL NOT MEETING THE STANDARD OF GOD'S HOLINESS. BUT HERE'S THE GOOD NEWS THAT CHRIST HAS MADE A WAY FOR US TO BE HOLY. Does that relinquish our need to be holy? Absolutely not. I'm working out my salvation. I'm not working for my salvation. I'm working out my salvation. And all of us start at different places. I wish I could I wish I could be holy like her. Where'd she start? And where did you start? Well, she's been doing it for 30 years and I got started three days ago. She's got a few laps. And guess what? This is not a race where you're trying to beat one another. >> I'm just trying to get to the finish line. You ain't hearing me. Stop measuring yourself against somebody else and start measuring yourself to Christ. And just let me stop and say this with one minute left. Stop measuring other people's holiness to yours because yours is just as short as theirs. >> I don't know why they don't get it. I don't know. ARE THEY COMING? ARE THEY TRYING? ARE THEY RUNNING? Are they on a race? ARE THEY TR COME ON, SOMEBODY. WE'RE ALL TRYING TO GET THERE. WE'RE ALL TRYING TO BE HOLY BECAUSE HE'S HOLY. STAND TO YOUR FEET TONIGHT. >> Five imperatives. Go back to that to that first one there. Five imperatives of our salvation. There's a lot I didn't get to tonight. Why would he say this to people who are going through what they're going through? Because the world is to see our light. And how we live, how we act should be different than those who are persecuting us. hear me? We talk different. We walk different, dress different, we we we we do things differently. Why? Because that's not our standard. Our standard is Christ. And then they are to ask you for the hope that is within you. Chapter 3, verse 15. Why do you live this way? Why do you talk that way? How can you How can you smile with the diagnosis that you've just got? How can you keep going back to that church after all that you've been through? How can you keep serving a God? How? Let me give you the kindling for my hope. I've been born again. >> I mean, I mean, this is go because they're going to ask you, why do you keep If they're not, let me just stop and say this. I'm over. If they're not asking for your hope. You need to check to see how you're living. >> You all right? >> We should be living so differently from the world that somebody stops and asks, "What's the reason for your hope?" Wherefore, g up the loins of your mind. Think, use your mind, be transformed in the spirit of your mind. Be sober. Have clear thinking, levelheaded, balanced thinking, biblical, baptized with the word thinking. Set your hope. This is not my home. I'm passing through. I've got a glory I'm looking for. Do not be conformed to this world. If they're persecuting you, if they're reviling you, why would you want to live like that? If if he brought you out of that, why would you want to go back to it? Therefore, be holy because he is holy. I want to be holy because he is holy. And because of his holiness and because of my sinfulness, because of his holiness, his justice had to be served. And Christ took the judgment for my sin. He paid the price for my sin. Now I must live for him. Would you lift up your hands right now? Father, >> you save us. just simply just bring us out of this world. You don't just simply give us your spirit and give us give us your image so we can just live like the rest of the world. But God, you've done this so we can walk according to your word and precepts and be a light in our world. That everywhere we go, not just on Sundays, but and not just on Wednesdays, but Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, Friday, s everywhere we go, we want to be light. We want to be salt. We want to be hopeful. We want people to see that there's something different about us. And it's not because of something that we've done or because we're good or we're or we're the best. No, God, that you had mercy and grace in our lives. And that the mercy and grace that you gave us, they can experience as well. And I pray Lord this week, let us walk out of here with the authority and dominion of your spirit and your word. But let us be light. Let us be a witness of these things to others everywhere that we go. Bring us back, Lord, at the next appointed hour. And Lord, we pray that you would be ble bless your people this week in Jesus name we pray. And everyone said, "Amen." >> Amen. >> Amen. And now greet those around you and you can be dismissed and we will see you Sunday morning at 10 Amen. Yeah.