Life In The Spirit Series, Part 4

We take Galatians 5 and 16 as our launching pad tonight when Paul said that you are to walk in the spirit and you shall not fulfill the lust of the flesh. Four weeks ago we began in this same chapter in verse 25 when he said if if you have been made alive in the spirit that you should walk in the spirit. And now Paul is saying that it is by walking in the spirit that you shall not fulfill the lust of the flesh. And so this is our goal tonight is that through the instruction of Scripture in our understanding and sensitivity towards his spirit that we would live free from the lust of flesh victorious over the power of sin and ourselves. It was privileged to minister in Michigan last year. We spent a weekend with Marvin and Claudette Walker and Brother Walker assisted JT Pugh for several years and I've never met he's past now, but I never had the opportunity to

meet Brother Pugh, but I always felt like he was a man beyond his time. And I asked Brother Walker, I said just talk to me about Brother Pugh. Tell me what was he like? What did you learn? What did you observe? He said, well, he said, Brother Pugh always used to pray. He said, I recall many prayer meetings when he would just sit there rocking praying, oh God, save me from myself. And so I have, I've adapted that into my own prayer life because I need to be saved from myself. You, we have an adversary. I know we can talk a lot about the devil, but I would tell you there's a lot of things we attribute to the devil that are nothing more than the face looking back at us in the mirror. We need to learn how to walk with God in order that we're not fulfilling the lust of our own flesh. Now to us, this world is not our

home. This is in your handout, references 1 Peter 2, as strangers and pilgrims, the Apostle admonishes us to abstain from fleshly lusts which war against the soul. Simply put, what you do in your life or in your body, the fleshly lust wars against the soul. So how you live or the consecration, how this guides the conduct of your life, it has a direct impact on the condition of your soul. It's important we know this. Now I know this may seem a little bit elementary here, but, but I'm laying some foundation, 1 Peter 1. This is the New Testament quoting from the book of Leviticus, which is to say that all that is in the Old Testament has not expired. So much of it is relevant to us, even in the cases in which we may not be bound by the law, there are many principles that it contains. But here Peter says, as he which has called you is holy, so be holy

in all manner of conversation. Now this is Old English, that just means your lifestyle. Verse 16, because it is written, be ye holy, for I am holy. God is holy and this essence is what separates him from sin and evil. From the beginning of time, God is always intended to have a people special to himself. And it is this call to be holy that sets us apart from the world and calls us to be consecrated to the Lord. Now we don't have time to go way down this road tonight, but if we were to consider for a moment the record of church history, we would find the sad reality of many practices that were very unbiblical. Some like the Scripture being kept from the people. Now we only have to go back a few hundred years into Christian church history when they would not make the Bible available to the people of God. It was limited to a language that the people did

not speak, not because there was not means of translation, but because the leaders of the church had decided we're not going to make this available. And if you were to find a Bible in that church, you would find it on a table right here in front of the pulpit chained to that table. And all of these things, I know how far out they seem to us tonight, but ingrained within these practices were some subtle ideas and people began to be taught that they can't go to God for themselves. You had to come into the building and get in this little confessional booth and your only access to God was through somebody who called themselves a priest. Now this is far from the Scripture. This is in what we might call Christian history. It is not in our history. It is not in the history of the Bible. It is not in the history of the apostolic Pentecostal church. This is not scriptural in

any form. But out of these practices come these ideas that, well, you can come and you can offer us token prayer. You can recite words without sincerity. They have no biblical accuracy. And all of this is supposedly sufficient for a reckoning. And while we acknowledge that this is not who we are, we do find these practices in church history. And I would submit all of this where the practices have vastly been removed have left this lingering detrimental paradigm that still floats around Christianity. And it is this. It is the notion that there is this vast separation between how the ministry lives and how the saints live. That the ministry is some professionalized role and that the saints of God do nothing but come and receive instruction that the ministry invests but there is no personal investment on the part of the saint. And that that view is not scriptural and it is not us. Now I do acknowledge that there is some merit

that yes there is a higher calling to those who are set apart for the purpose of fivefold ministry and ministry leadership but the ideal of the consecrated life is the demand of Scripture for every believer. In fact Paul said in Romans 12 it is your reasonable service. In fact as far back as Exodus 19 God told Moses that I want my people to be a kingdom of priests and a holy nation. I didn't want just a few people separated as a priesthood. I wanted all of my people to be a priesthood. And this language is found again in Revelations 1 when speaking of redemption it says that by Christ and by His shed blood we have been made kings and priests unto God. And so the mandate tonight is this is that the call to be consecrated is to everybody who calls themselves a Christian. So I offer you some considerations for those who would acknowledge the call to consecration. In your handout

now point one here. Holiness must be pursued. Hebrews 12 and 14. Follow peace with all men and holiness without which no man shall see the Lord. Simply put without holiness nobody will see God because God is holy and that essence keeps Him separate from anything unlike Him. But while holiness certainly is a weighty word that attracts our attention in considering this verse I would highlight to you that that first word follow maybe you want to underline it. Follow the word means to run swiftly or to pursue aggressively. This speaks not only to the action that we do but the attitude by which we do it. This means that to the serious believer we acknowledge spiritual growth is not a passive thing. Nobody progresses in their walk with God if they are passive towards the things of God. The holy life, the consecrated life, the people that walk in the spirit, this is the result of intentional action. We are set apart by our

pursuit. Not simply our belief because I have met some who confess a belief but it has no bearing on their pursuit. We are set apart by our pursuit because the world is moving one direction but the call of the scripture is that we would be set apart pursuing God in an entirely different direction. The first consideration tonight is that holiness has to be pursued. You are not going to stumble into this accidentally. You are not going to be passive towards God and find the reality of Christ-like formation happening in your life. You have to resolve. You have to make up in your mind. I will pursue this regardless of the cost. Number two, you have to have a teachable spirit. Titus 2, 11, and 12. The Bible says the grace of God brings salvation has appeared to all men and note this, teaching us that. Now I have heard a lot of people talk about saved by grace. I acknowledge that. It

comes from Ephesians 2, for by grace are you saved through faith. Yes, it's the grace of God that saves you but your only access to grace is through faith. But I got a question for all the people that want to tout Ephesians 2 and 8. Why is nobody talking about Titus 2? Because the same grace that saved you, the Scripture says will teach you to deny ungodliness. I want you to underlie that. Denying ungodliness and, worldly less, that we should now underline this part, too, live soberly, righteously, and godly in this present world. So the grace of God that has saved me, thank God for salvation, but the same grace, the same spirit of Christ that has saved me will also teach me, and here's what it's going to teach me, to deny ungodliness. This is what not to do. The spirit of God is going to impress upon you, it's going to convict your conscience, it's going to lead and guide you

into all truth, and the grace of God that saved you is also going to sanctify you, it's going to disciple you, it's going to discipline you, because this is what it means to be a disciple, to be disciplined in our pursuit of Christ, the one in whom we are a disciple of, acknowledged when we were put into Christ by baptism. So the grace that saved you is also going to sanctify you, it's going to set you apart how by teaching you what is ungodly and what not to do, but it also teaches you how to live soberly, righteously, and godly in this present world. This means that grace does not just teach you what not to do, it also teaches you what you should do. This is the grace of God at work in our lives. Listen, we should all be able to take inventory of our lives, reflect over the last year, just the last couple Sundays and think okay, with all

that God is speaking, what is the spirit telling me to stop doing, and what is the spirit telling me to start doing? This is what it means to be set apart, this is what it means to be sanctified. Now all of this can be for naught, and I will tell you it is the plight of many preachers to come to a pulpit with a burden and to leave with a heavier burden, because they know they have preached to people who do not have a teachable spirit. I recall, in fact she was the first the first lady we baptized in Halifax and we had gone to start a church, an English lady named Lindsay, she was just so hungry for God, and I remember her saying one Sunday, just tell me what I need to do. If God says I have to eat potatoes every day, I will eat potatoes every day, and I said thank God he didn't say that because my dad

fed us enough potatoes growing up, but I don't care if I ever eat them again, but this is what I'm talking about. Now a wise teacher will recognize you may be asking for understanding concerning something that is beyond your level of maturity, and the wise teacher will take them back to where they need to be. The question may be asked with sincerity, the behavior modification they may be seeking may be biblical, but I remind you how the spirit works from the inside out. We'll get to this again in a few moments, but what does the wise teacher do? It takes them back to relationship, to daily Bible reading, to prayer, to learning how to walk in the spirit, but we must also acknowledge as we're walking in the spirit and the spirit is teaching us how to not fulfill the lusts of the flesh. There's going to be some things, listen, he's God, and if you really believe that, he doesn't need your

permission to meddle in your life. He's just going to show up and say, I think that needs to change. I know that's how you are and how you've been, but that's not how I am. And the grace of God will start teaching you there's some things you can't do anymore. But it's also going to teach you there are some things that you need to start doing. There must be a balance that I would submit in my travels, in my observation. There's not a lot of conversation surrounding that denying ungodliness and worldly lust stuff. Number three, you have to answer the acceptance question. Second Corinthians six, wherefore come out from among them and be separate, sayeth the Lord, and touch not the unclean thing. If you want to underline, these are the words you want to underline. I will receive you. I'll be a father to you. You'll be my sons and daughters, sayeth the Lord Almighty. You have to answer the acceptance question.

As we consider the call to consecration, you have to answer the question, who is it that I seek to be accepted by? Do we want to be received by God or by people? This is what Paul said in Galatians one. He said, do I now persuade men or God? Do I seek to please men? For if I yet pleased men, I should not be the servant of Christ. Bob Dylan said it like this. He said, you're going to have to serve somebody. It may be the devil or it may be the Lord, but you're going to have to serve somebody. Believe it or not, it was listening to that song that that my father-in-law came to the realization that he had to serve somebody and submitted his life to Jesus Christ. The principle is this. Who you seek to please is who you serve. What is the name of the individual in your mind that you seek to please? Call to

memory the face of that figure whose presence manipulates your actions. What is this? It's the battle for the consecrated life. It is the enemy warring against your flesh and the human tendency to seek to be accepted to cause you to stray from the consecrated life. You have to answer this question. Am I more concerned about being received by God or received by people? And then number four, you have to take responsibility for yourself. The pastor said this on Sunday. I already had it in my notes, Acts 2 and 40. With many other words, did he testify in exhorts saying, save yourselves from this untoward generation. Now, this is not to deny the biblical truth. We all know Jesus saves us. You can't save yourself from your sin. Only Jesus can. But once Jesus saves you from your sin, you have a responsibility to save yourself from the world. There must be an acknowledgement that I'm responsible for me, that I can't put the

blame on anybody else. I have to work out my own salvation with fear and trembling, that there is a reverence, there is a recognition here that as a pilgrim and a stranger in this present world that is controlled by the spirit of disobedience, the Bible said. That if I'm not careful, my entanglement with those fleshly lusts and worldly desires, they literally, Peter said, war against my soul. And knowing that, I have to accept responsibility, that I'm in a fight whether I want to fight or not. And I will do the necessary work to be a disciple, is to be disciplined, to be disciplined in what? In the principles of being set apart, consecrated. Not just separate from the world, but separate from the world in order that I can be consecrated to God. 2 Corinthians 7 and 1. Having therefore these promises dearly beloved, let us cleanse ourselves. I remind you, this is a letter written to the church. These people, they've been

baptized. Their holy ghost filled. What's he trying to do? He's trying to teach them how to walk in the spirit so they won't fulfill the lust of the flesh. And he tells them, you must cleanse yourself from all filthiness of flesh and spirit, perfecting holiness and the fear of God. Cleanse ourselves. Not somebody else. Don't let somebody don't stand around hoping somebody's going to do it for you. This is your responsibility. It's my responsibility. I'm in a war with the man in the mirror. As I was studying this afternoon, I considered what Paul said in 1 Corinthians 6 when he said, don't you know that your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost which is in you? And I just began to think. I began to think about this house. Now listen, I love this house. I give sacrificially to this house. But if we want to be biblical, there's no such thing as a sanctified building in the New Testament church.

The thing that is sanctified is the place where his spirit is, and the Scripture said he put his spirit in you and me. But consider this now. Consider all the things that go into getting this house ready. People are cleaning in after school for the next day, before church, after church. I mean, there's just several dozen, probably over 100 hours per week, or certainly bi-weekly, go into just the bare minimum, just the basic care of this house. Because this is the house of God. And I begin to consider what Paul is saying, and I begin to really think about this house. We put all that time into this physical house. How much time do we put into this house? How much time do we make in sure that this is clean, not just this is clean? Because you know that story when Jesus got down and wrote in the ground? I'm not sure if you've considered this or not. He was not

on a dusty road. He was in the outer court of the temple. And while everyone's trying to figure out what did he write? What did it mean? The real lesson was the fact that the floor of the temple was dirty enough for him to write on. And it was an indictment against a religious system that had it all right on the outside, but had neglected the inside. He looked at them in one place and he said, you're nothing more than white wash tombs, graves filled with dead bodies, but your pain of the outside white. What are you saying? What I'm saying is if we can be so diligent in our care of this house, and I think we should, this is the matter. But there's a way to your matter. This is the matter. But there is a way to your matter. So I say, let us take responsibility for ourselves. Let's be diligent about the care of this temple. In number five,

you've got to embrace the process. Again, 2 Corinthians 7 and 1, but I highlight just those last six words, perfecting holiness in the fear of God. That word perfecting, it means to bring to an end or to come to completion. And this implies to us the idea of a process. What I mean by this is all of us, when we were born again, that was the beginning, the start of a journey. And there is not one of us in this house that has arrived yet. We all have areas in which we are still growing, and it is necessary for us to identify them because this is about our pursuit. It's easy to brush it under the rug and neglect the area that God wants to deal with. But if you're going to grow, there must be intentional action whereby you reflect and let the Spirit speak to you about things that you need to not do or things that you need to do.

Jesus taught in John 14 about abiding, abiding me and I and you. Branch can't bear fruit of itself except that abide in the vine. This idea of fruit, nobody grows fruit overnight. Now you can go to Hobby Lobby and buy something that looks like fruit, but when someone tries to eat of it, they're gonna discover that while it looked like it, it was not. What he's saying, if you're really gonna be like me, you have to abide in me. You have to let the Spirit work in your life through seasons and circumstance because that is how I form you. This is a process. Whether you've been here for four weeks or 40 years, you're in the process. And now our next section, that was just the foundation. Pastors up here talking about need to amen himself. I think I know what he's feeling like, but if you thought that was tough, it's gonna get a little tighter. But I feel very confident in

the Word of the Lord. Contending for godly families, this theme, this subject, this heading, this idea, in fact the first couple sentences or sentences under that heading is pastor's words verbatim, I think. I don't think maybe if I don't think it changed anything, I think that's verbatim what he sent me. But I took those words and I've prayed about it and I'm gonna offer some things for you to consider tonight because I'll tell you what I feel. I really think there's some families in this house that your home is under attack. And I don't need an amen. We'll let the Word work and God can judge it. But I used the Scripture last week in John 14 and 30. Jesus said, hereafter I will not talk much with you. The prince of the world cometh, but he hath nothing in me. And this is the goal because you need to know this. The enemy's coming for you. He's coming for your kids. He's

coming for your home. Listen, hell hath enlarged itself, the Bible said. The enemy is coming for your grandkids. He's coming for our families. And it is imperative that we may say, as Jesus said, when the enemy knocks on our door, sorry, devil, you won't find the world in this house. But I remind you that what sets us apart is our pursuit of God and it is incumbent tonight that we consider not just our own heart, but the atmosphere of our homes and the values of our families are we as families actively pursuing God. In fact, you want full disclosure? I had a five-year-old that's having a few days with no tech because he had a little attitude a few mornings ago and he decided he'd throw a little temper tantrum this afternoon. So he got the proverbs discipline. That's called the spoon in my house. And he was crying his tears and throwing his fit and finally things settled down and

he walked down the stairs like a new kid. What happened? I asked Hailey on the way to church, did you just have an awakening? Did he fall asleep? Did you spank him again? What happened? She said, well, you really want to know what it did? She said I laid hands on him. I started pleading the blood and calling on the name of Jesus. And she said, I'm not so sure that that behavior wasn't spiritual. I started thinking, yeah, you know, that's probably true. The enemy will use any door he can and if I've got a five-year-old who's had a couple late nights and his fuse is already short and he's grumpy because he's not allowed any tech this week and you said, well, that's just flesh. Yes, it's fallen, unredeemed, carnal, worldly flesh and the enemy will use any avenue he can. So what do we do? Well, we're going to discipline, we're going to maintain order, but we're also going

to recognize the spiritual nature. Listen, if you believe what this book says, it says this, that there is a spirit of disobedience, I feel the Holy Ghost right now, that is at work in the world right now. And as parents, as leaders, as adults, as elders, as examples, it is necessary that we be diligent in our responsibility to direct the pursuit of children and to guard the sanctity of the home. So four things I will offer for you to consider. The first is your attitude. This is your inward disposition. It's the perspective by which you live that forms all things. This is your baseline. How do you live? Do you live peaceful, joyful, or is there a current of anger that runs through your spirit all the time? Are you bitter? Are you caught up on the events from years gone by, or are you offended about what the Word of God pricked and convicted you of, or are you resentful? Whatever you

carry in your spirit will become the disposition from which you speak and lead. It sets the tone for all things, your communication, the perspective by which you parent. And so we must consider our attitude. Is our attitude set apart and sanctified by God? We're conduct. This is the second consideration. This is simply your behavior. And this really is the outflow of what's happening internally. So attitude and conduct really have to be considered in tandem because the conduct is, if I could say it this way, it's like the manifestation of your attitude. So do you exemplify patience as Christ was patient towards you? Are you as a parent, as an elder, a grandparent, a leader? I know I'm speaking to adults tonight. If I was speaking to teens, the context would be different. But I ask us adults in the room, are you conducting yourself in a manner that protects your moral authority? Because if not, here's what's going to happen. The enemy will

attack your confidence. And because of your doubt in the insecurity in your spirit, you will not address issues and bring correction in a biblical and godly manner. So consider your conduct. Is your behavior guided by the wisdom of Scripture? Is your conduct godly or is it worldly? If someone observed your response in a trying situation or a frustrating moment when customer service wasn't what you thought it should be, did your conduct identify you as one of his people or one from the world? The third is relationships. Is the fellowship of your home and your family godly? Consider consider your fellowship circle now. Is the humor in which you share laughter pure? Is the language godly? Is your conversation edifying? Or is it bitter and divisive? Now, maybe you'll be fortunate to not have to live through this reality. I don't know. I think it's probably the plight of every child of God. But if you're going to be consecrated, I think Pastor may

have said this this past Sunday or the Sunday before, but if you're going to be consecrated, it may cost you some relationships. Probably one of the most painful moments for me in my pursuit of God was when my childhood best friend wrote me a letter three weeks before my wedding to tell me he wasn't going to be the best man, he wasn't coming to the wedding, and that we weren't even friends anymore. And I read that letter with tears rolling down my cheek, clenched my fist and punched my mother's desk because I was angry. I'm trying to pursue God and you're going to let me feel this, this rejection, this hurt. Forsaken like this, 18 years of friendship and memory flushed down the drain. Oh, yeah. Because somewhere near the end of that letter, he said, you're just not the same person you used to be. And as much as it hurt, those were words that I couldn't deny because I was on

the path of consecration. God had set me apart and it cost me some of the most valuable and dear relationships of my life. I want you to hear me now. If you're serious about following God, if you're serious about being used of God, you want to walk in the spirit, you want to get victory over those things, let me tell you it's going to cost you some relationships. I would add this, it's not because you don't love them. It's just because you love him. And who you seek to please is who you serve. And the last thing I'll offer in this section, I feel like I'm on a firing wall tonight, but it's media. I feel like, you know, I'm only human. I hope you know my heart. I'm only human. I don't want people to think bad of me. But I really feel like I stand in a predicament sometimes between, I'm not trying to make any enemies, but do we really,

do we really want the word? Because if I had to bear my heart to you a little bit tonight, I would tell you I have been grieved as I have become aware of the media choices of some of those who call this house home. I'm talking about music, movies, television and books. Have we stopped to consider what are the values being promoted through this medium? Is the language of this song or this show godly? Is the conduct of the actors godly? What values are promoted by the lyrics? Does the beat of this song set the tone of my spirit towards God? Or does it provoke something fleshly and sensual in me? How would you feel as a parent if your child copied the behavior and language of those songs and those shows? And it's not just the content that we have to consider, it's the time that we give it. Something may be permissible by content, but still become an idol by means

of one's devotion to it. And this idea of media, I would submit, it's largely probably nothing more than a marketing system for the spirit of the world. And I would tell you that the devil's been working in the marketing business since the Garden of Eden. She saw that the fruit was good, pleasing to the eye. And the devil said, well, let's have a little conversation about that. It was the first trade show, but I want to talk to you about music for a minute. And I'll be honest with you, I speak with some awareness because I've seen what they post. I've heard them sing the lyrics and it concerns me. Now, you probably think this just, that's you, Dan. You're an old Scrooge and maybe I am, but this is what, this is what Ludwig van Beethoven said. Music is the mediator between the spiritual and the sensual life. According to Job 38, I've got a hurry for the sake of time, but

according to Job 38, music and singing predated creation. According to Ezekiel 28, Saint was made to do music in the heavens. Music was designed by God as the engine that drives praise and worship. And so when David plays the harp, the evil spirit leaves the room. When King Nebuchadnezzar wanted an entire nation to bow before him, he used music as the cue. And I would submit to you, Saint's desire is still the same. It is to take attention from God and to himself. And I would submit to you that music is one of his primary avenues. God made it, but Saint has mastered it. Music was made by God to move the emotion of man to align itself with the spirit of God. It's why music is so powerful. It can change your mood. It can turn it positively. It can turn it negatively. It can send you farther into despair or it can pull you out. What do you want to listen

to? You want rock? You want rap? You want country? You just pick your genre and you can dictate your mood. Why? It's how God made it. It stirs a desire, so one will act upon that desire. And God intended music to be designed for worship so it would direct the posture of our heart towards him. And when Saint fell, he didn't change this. He used his music to get worship, just not worship to God. Now, I'm not naive. I'm not foolish. I know that not all secular or worldly music is wrong. By definition, the anthem is secular music. But I would say, for our definition tonight, the mark of worldly music is the exaltation of a worldly view of life. A worldly view of life is one that leaves God out and approves of what he disapproves. And I would challenge you tonight as a parent, grandparent, aunt, uncle, adult, leader in the house of God, worldliness that is entertained in any of

these areas will destroy all levels of godly commitment. I can tell you about a lady my wife grew up with, whose marriage survived a terrible, terrible affair. Her husband cheated on her with, it was bad. Stayed in the church, all this, and his events would unfold now. She no longer serves the Lord. A couple years ago, my wife asked her, she said, where did you go wrong? I mean, you went through something that's unfathomable, but you were still in the church. Where did you go wrong? She said, you know, Haley, honestly? She said, I started listening to country music. Well, yeah, no duh. Whose boots have your bed been under? You know, the best of country music is about somebody's dog dying. So, you know, the best case scenario is that you're just going to be sad. But the other 99% of country music is about broken marriages, immoral relationships, families falling apart, people drinking. I heard some young people listening to

this real popular person here a little while ago, so I thought, well, go see what he's about. Go look at his lyrics, yeah. Every song that he sings is about drinking, driving down the road in his red pickup truck with a brown paper bag. I don't, maybe the world's changed, but there ain't nobody drinking, died Dr. Pepper out of a brown paper bag. He's talking about drinking and driving, and really? Because the beat's good? No. We're consecrated. We're called to be separate. Come on, we have got to raise up a standard as the people of God. I don't know about you, but that is not the trajectory I want my family going. Proverbs 29 says, the rod of reproof give wisdom, but a child left to himself bring his shame to his mother. So what am I saying? I'm saying that the four areas in which I have identified as a parent, grandparent, leader, as an adult, you have to involve yourself in

these areas. Now the last section, I've got a hurry because it's 7.20. When I say I've got a hurry, that's probably where you're thinking, amen. You don't want to say it, but this is wisdom for living in, but not of the world because we're just pilgrims and strangers. Number one is a friend of the world is an enemy of God. That's James 4 and 4. Enmity just means to be opposed or hostile. If I become friendly towards the world, now I don't want you to misunderstand this, this does not mean that we cannot be friendly with people. Scripture's not talking about people, it's talking about the world, the spirit of the world. It's talking about making an alliance with the spirit of the world. That's 1 Corinthians 2. So what the writer is saying is we are not to become friendly towards the world's value system. What the world offers, what the world says is acceptable because a friend of the world

sets themselves as an enemy of God. You must choose the one who will you seek to be accepted by? Who is it that you want to please? Are you more concerned about pleasing a classmate, a co-worker, a sibling, a cousin? Really? More than God? Well, now the behavior makes sense because we've answered the acceptance question. The directive is clear, 1 John, I won't read it, just love not the world. We are not to be empathetic towards the world. In fact, if you're curious and want to do a little research, go study about when modern media first introduced homosexual characters to mainstream television. You know what you're going to find? It was always the likable person. Everybody else becomes the disheveled, backwards, annoying, but the one they want you to accept now, now, fast forward a few years and we've got a fatherhood problem in America. Look at the statistics of those in prison and those in broken homes and those in poverty

and look at the statistics concerning the absent father. Well, look at modern media. How many modern shows promote wholesome families, lasting marriages. Many of these shows are built where the father figure is some unlikable, dumb backwards. Why? Because there is a spirit at work in the world that works through the avenue of media to promote a value system that is against God. So I just say there is no directive in scripture that we be empathetic towards the spirit of the world. We can love the people, be kind to the people. We can serve the most vile of sinners, but we have no tolerance for those values. Number two, consecrated lives come from changed minds, Romans 12 and 2. Be not conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. You want to underline or circle that word renewing, it means to renovate. I'm not a, I'm no Joe and Dennis Hoopengarner, but I've been around a little bit of

carpentry and, you know, I learned early on I would much rather deal with new construction than renovation. Because when you get to start brand new, you can make sure everything's square. You know what you got going in. You got the best of materials from the ground up. The frustrating thing about a renovation is you got to deal with existing matter, whether it's good or bad. But the fact is we all come to Jesus with some existing matter that is not the way God wants it to be. And so Paul says the only way that you can prove or accomplish the will of God is to submit yourself to a transformation. And the way this happens is the renovation of your mind. God has to take some existing matter out. That's grace teaching you what not to do. And he's got to put some new material in. That's grace teaching you what to do. And if you don't submit to the process of a

changed mind, you will never live a consecrated life because the values which you hold dear, dear will be in conflict with the behaviors which you want. So a consecrated life needs a changed mind. Number three, you have to understand the peace filter. Philippians four and seven, the peace of God which passeth all understanding shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus. Now I consider this today because I feel like this is how the Lord has taught me how I've learned to walk with God. But I don't know that I've ever connected it with this scripture or taught it like this before, but I felt so directed to this passage and even verse number eight when we consider the content of our minds. But Paul said, the peace of God will keep your hearts and minds. How? What does that mean? How does peace guard my mind? I think I have an answer because the presence of peace is the sign of authority.

The lack of peace is an indication of trouble. So the way in which peace guards your mind is when you do not have peace, that is the spirit saying, red flag, red flag. And I, I just, I try, oh God, I hope you don't hate me after, but I become aware, listen, in the process of ministry and leadership, I become aware of situations and I observe things and I watch things and I had no other way to tell you than to tell you I don't have peace. There are, there are situations right now that are weighing so heavy on my heart. I don't have information. I don't have facts. All I know is I have the absence of peace concerning this situation or that individual. In the absence of peace is God's indication. Not all is well. So if you're going to learn how to live in the world but not be of the world, you've got to learn this principle. If you

don't have peace, that's God saying to you, wake up, be on guard, watch out. Because just like the devil came from Peter, he's going to come for you. He's going to come for your home and your kids and your grandkids. He's going to come for our church. So what do I do? I got to walk in the spirit. I got to know the absence of peace. Listen, when that dove went out and found no place for its foot to rest, what happened? It came back. This is how I know when God's kind of dealing with something because I can feel it in the spirit. It's like the Holy Ghost just goes, I want to rest on that. But if there's no peace, there's no place for the spirit to rest, that is an indication. Listen, that's a concerning thing and you have got to learn how to use that peace filter. That if I don't have peace, well, stop, time out. We are

not doing anything till we get our lives and our home calibrated to the Holy Ghost. Then you got to use the wisdom filter. 1 Corinthians 10, 23, all things are lawful for me, but not all things are expedient. All things are lawful, but all things edify not. Wisdom, that's what we're talking about now, wisdom. Wisdom doesn't ask if I can. Wisdom asks if I should. In whatever it is that we consider, whatever the matter may be, is this helpful for my pursuit of holiness? If not, wisdom would say, don't do it. Now, I know there's always somebody who says, well, I want scripture in verse. Well, I'm sorry. But you are on a dangerous trajectory if you think that the silence of scripture is equal to the permission of God. Listen, that Bible is thousands of years old. God wasn't going to detail every action that would come through humanity. The world has evolved, culture has changed, but we can find principles. And

so the question is not, am I allowed to do this? Is this right? The question should be, is this wise? Does this help me or hinder me in my pursuit of holiness? And number five, you have to involve God in your decisions. Over the course of ministry, it has startled me time and time and time again. When I come to the realization of the decisions people make with no consideration, of God in that decision. Acts 15 and 28 says, it seemed good to the Holy Ghost and to us. And this is the formula I would offer to you. A template for godly decision making is this, consult God. Does this seem good to the Holy Ghost? Maybe you've never considered it, but now you know to. And to us, it would be wise of us to find some people with a similar pursuit towards God who are wiser, more experienced, some elders, some leaders, some proven saints of God and say, I'm trying

to decide. I'm trying to come to a conclusion concerning this consecration. This is what God is dealing with me about. What do you think? And together, to the counsel of the Holy Ghost and iron sharpens iron, I say, let us pursue holiness. Amen. Stand together with me. Samson was different from his birth. Still in the womb of his mother with a destiny on his life, God told his mother that he would be a Nazarite for life. This is unique, but one in which I think we can find many parallels because Samson grows up with consecrations that are imposed upon him by his parents. But as every child does, he will come to a time when his consecrations will be tested. It must be determined if they will come only from his parents or from his own heart. Think of this now. We're talking about a man who had a prophetic destiny, a divine purpose, a special touch of God on his life. Now,

I know you know Samson for the extraordinary display of power and strength and equally so for that Nazarite vow and when Delilah eventually cuts his hair, that power is lost. But I want you to know this, the hair was not where his power came from. His power came from God. His hair was a consecration that God asked for. And when Samson honored the conviction, God honored Samson. So what happened? A lot. One of the first things was when he was walking through a Philistine town one day and sees a woman that he deemed attractive. And he comes home with no regard to the fact that God told him not to mingle with other nations and tells his parents, she is right in my eyes. His desire is rooted in his own lust and then neglects all wisdom and godly counsel. He lacks self-control and it leads him in a manner that is contrary to the convictions he has been raised with and

now he himself has been living with for some time. The Bible would go on to say that his parents actually accompany Samson while going to visit this woman. And their presence would seem to me as taken as an acceptance when I think the story should bear witness to their objection. He passes through a vineyard, the lion attacks him and as that strong man always did, kills the lion, returns sometime later and you know the story I'm sure he sees the bees have made a home in that carcass and produced honey from which he takes a handful and eats and in doing so he has violated another of the Nazarite vows. And that cycle continues for the rest of his life. His actions were sinful and so he will suffer for them throughout his life. I would say do like this and I think we'll find it familiar because I've heard pastors say in regard to the Sabbath. But when Samson stopped keeping his

convictions, his convictions stopped keeping him. Come on. This is who we are. This is who we are. We're set apart people bought by the precious blood of Jesus Christ. This is who we are. Now you can judge it. God can judge it. But I'm going to tell you my heart's been heavy for many days for the families in this church. How different might it have been if Samson's parents sat him down and said, Hey, this is not the wise thing. Well, can you give me a scripture that says I can't walk through this town? But Samson, you have to trust me. I don't have peace. I don't think this is wise. Just please, Samson. Oh God, come on. Can we just lift up our hands and lift up our voice. Father, we need you. God, we need you. It's by your spirit, Lord. It's not by the power of our flesh or our intellect or our abilities. It's by your spirit. And I'm

asking that your spirit would bear witness to your word. Oh God, God, we teach in defense of a godly people and godly homes. God, we teach in defense of a future that some have not yet realized. I pray, God, that you would help our hearts become aligned towards you. Help our minds become aligned with your word. It's hard for the peace filter to work. It's hard for the wisdom filter to work. And we are not in alignment with you. God, I'm asking that your eyes would search this house and search our homes and search our hearts tonight. Oh God, come on. I know it's 737, but I think it'd be all right if we just took a couple minutes here. It wouldn't hurt you to lift up your voice and pray right now. Oh God, come on. If you've been struggling in your consecration, his mercy is made new and you can make it right. If you've been struggling to lead an exercise

authority where you know God is calling you to exercise authority, you have to resist the enemy's tools of doubt and insecurity. You must teach the scripture, you must walk in the spirit. God, search us, search us, search us. God, we want to be like you. We want to think as you think and see as you see. Let our values be your values. How you feel about matters is how we want to feel. Let the scripture form our perspective. Let our hearts be sensitive to the presence of your spirit. If we only understood the significance of direction, Lot ended up where he did because he pitched his tent in that direction. What about the prodigal son of Luke 15? You know, he was as far from the father when he was standing in the house asking for the money as he was in the pig pen. He didn't look bad yet, but his direction had already set him in a pursuit that was contrary

of God. But when he had a change of heart and he stunk like pigs and he was dirty and malnourished and he was yet a great ways off, dad came out of the house and met him on the road. Why? Because it was all about direction. This is why I think these things are a big deal. This is why attitude matters. It's why conduct matters. It's why relationships matter, and it's why media choices matter. Because those four things tell me the direction that you're going. And listen, I'm glad you're here, but you can be standing in the house and your heart still be a million miles from God. I'm talking about direction. And so in light of the word tonight, if we are to take inventory on those four areas of our life and start applying those last few principles I gave you, what direction do your pursuits have you going? One more time, would you just lift up your hands and lift

up your voice? Jesus, we thank you. We thank you for your word. Thank you for your spirit. Come on, I can feel the spirit of the Lord move and I can feel the burden of the Lord, his conviction, his leading. I can feel his voice speaking to some people in this room. What is it? It's the grace of God teaching you. It's the grace of God saying, don't do that again. Don't watch that again. Don't listen to that anymore. Cut off that influence. It's the grace of God saying, all right, it's time to start reading your Bible more. It's time to schedule some fast days. It's time to prioritize midweek. Help us, Jesus. Help us, Jesus. Well, thank you for not throwing a tomato at me, but in all sincerity, I'm telling you before God, my heart has been heavy for many days. I'll go back to what I own, exercise your godly role. Listen, the enemy's coming. You don't have to surrender

your home or your family to the tide of the world. God, I pray a spirit of revelation and wisdom over the men and women of this great church. I pray that you would give them practical direction from the spirit, areas of change, conversations to have, things to do. We pray this in Jesus' name, amen, amen. That's one thing to teach. It's another thing to act, but let's go and do it in Jesus' name.