The Heart of Holiness

I didn't anticipate that. Now, seeing as we're confessing, a certain superintendent of a certain district that I happen to be in right now, but I will not name, he told me that if I let you out a little early, you would not be offended. So, please know that he is your advocate. And please know that it kind of went in here. Never mind.

I'll go as quickly as I can. It is beyond question that holiness is one of the central themes of the Bible. The word holy occurs more than 600 times, more than 700 times when you include all its derivative words like sanctify, sanctification, holiness. I would argue you can't even make sense of the Bible without understanding that God is holy. Holiness pervades his entire being.

It shapes every one of his attributes. So yes, u God is love, but his love is a holy love. His mercy is a holy mercy. his judgment is a holy judgment. Even God's anger is a holy anger.

And above everything else, brothers and sisters, our God is intent on having a holy people filled with his holy spirit, submitted to his holy word, headed for his holy heaven. He's intent on that. So if anybody calls themsself a believer and they're neglecting holiness in their pursuit of the Lord Jesus, it's not due to a lack of instruction in scripture because it's everywhere. Holiness is not an optional extra for a few hyper super spiritual believers. It is the point of the Christian life.

It is the point of sanctification. so to say an unholy Christian, that's an oxymoron. That's a contradiction in terms. Biblically speaking, holiness is a synonym for several words. withdrawal, apart, separate, distinct, different, and sanctified.

Those are all synonyms for holiness. scripture teaches us that as disciples become sanctified, there's just a long list of things that happen. They will walk in good works, be rich in good works, be furnished with good works, show themselves a pattern of good works, be zealous of good works. They will maintain good works. Let's go to that next picture.

They will do good works that even sinners will observe. And Peter even said or the writer of Hebrews even says they will provoke one another to good works. This modern Christendom idea that good works have nothing to do with salvation. That's bogus. Good works have nothing to do with getting saved.

You can't do enough good works to deserve or merit salvation. But once you are saved, Paul says that God has created us unto good works. And he has before ordained that we should walk in them. So up until you get saved, no, good works don't matter because you couldn't do enough good works to merit salvation. We don't do good works because we're trying to get saved.

We do good works because we are appreciate that we are saved. That's why we do good works. the New Testament consistently teaches that growth in godliness requires some exertion on the part of the believer. here's a list again. we must put to death the deeds of the flesh.

We must put to death everything that is earthly. We must fight the good fight. Put off the old man. Put on the new man. We must strive to enter the narrow gate.

We must press toward the prize. All of these things require exertion. We must run the race, discipline the body. Peter even tells us that we must be discip diligent to add several disciplines to our faith. Now, it's just us.

Could I say this even more plainly? The Bible teaches me that true holiness will be evidenced in my body, in my eyes, my ears, my mouth, my hands, my hair, my clothing, my thoughts, my spirit. Holiness will affect every part of my life. You say, "That sounds difficult." Good. because it's supposed to be difficult.

Holiness is supposed to be impossible without the work of the Holy Spirit in your life. That's why God gave you a Holy Spirit to help you live a holy life. Now, speaking in tongues, we all know this. That's not a work of the flesh. You can't do that on your own.

Speaking in a language you've never learned, that's a work of the spirit. Holiness is a work of the spirit. You can't do it on your own. If you think you're pleasing God, just checking off some list. And you're still allowing all kinds of carnality bouncing around in here, that's not holiness.

That's fake news. That's what that is. That's for free. But what does it mean for us to be holy specifically? Well, God, when he told Israel to be holy in Leviticus, he was instructing them, I want you to be distinct from other nations.

I want you to obey specific standards and these things will set you apart from everybody else. God commanded his people Old Testament, you will be unique in your worship, your relationships, your appearance, your sexuality, your activities, your morals, your ethics, your food, your clothing, and many other areas. And here it is. God didn't even give them a reason for most of those commandments. He just said, "I want you to do it because I want the world around you to know that you belong exclusively to me." That principle of separation has not changed in the New Testament.

Hebrews 12:14, "Follow peace with all men and holiness without which no man shall see the Lord." In Acts chapter 2, the longest part of Peter's sermon is not recorded. The Bible says, "And with many other words he did exhort them." What was the subject of the longest part of Peter's sermon? What was the subject of the many other words that are not recorded? Well, we know vaguely, save yourselves from this untoward, crooked, perverse, twisted generation. Peter didn't just preach about salvation on the day of Pentecost.

He also touched on the topic of sanctification. how that when God saves you from an ungodly world, he will make you a different kind of people. Now, we don't know exactly what Peter said, but we can make an educated guess because he wrote a couple of letters and he's still not off the topic. 1 Peter 1:14, "As obedient children, don't fashion yourselves according to the former lusts in your ignorance. That's the way you used to live.

But as he which has called you is holy, you be holy in all manner of conversation. Conversation is a 400year-old King James Bible word. The Bible has not changed. But my goodness, the English language has changed. Conversation today means talk, talk, talk, talk.

Conversation 400 years ago meant all the different ways in which you converse or interact with the world around you. A modern equivalent word would be lifestyle. Peter is saying you be holy in every aspect of your lifestyle because it is written God says you be holy for I am holy. He doesn't drop it in chapter 2 verse 9. You are a chosen generation.

You are a royal priesthood. Here it is. You are a holy nation. You are a and by the way this isn't Old Testament. This is New Testament.

You are a pecular people. I study too. I know the word peculiar. It can have meaning of rare or precious. But there's a reason the translators use this word.

you are weird to the world. You are peculiar people to the world. What in the world would give God the right to make us weird in our world? Oh, glad you asked. that you should show forth the praises of him who has called you out of darkness into his marvelous light.

If God called me out of darkness and delivered me from eternity in a devil's hell, that gives him the right to ask for just about anything. Furthermore, if you keep reading, it will say which in time past you weren't even a people, but now you're the people of God. In time past, you had not obtained mercy, but today you have obtained mercy. That's what gives God the right to ask us to do things for him. And he hasn't dropped it in chapter three.

Seeing then that all these things shall be dissolved. What manner of persons ought you to be in all holy lifestyle, conversation, and godliness? Peter said, "Seeing that everything in our culture, everything in this world is eventually going to be dissolved, don't you think you should desert u devote some effort to pleasing God in holiness and godliness? All this is going to disappear. It's going to be dissolved.

But your relationship with God is what takes you to heaven." And so, Peter can't get off the subject. I think some of that is basically what he preached when he said, "Save yourselves from this untoward generation." Now, bro, we're going to go real real quick here. Paul, he won't leave it alone either. The topic of holiness or sanctification appears in just about every one of Paul's epistles in some way. Romans 12, I beg you, brethren, present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy.

Even your body should be a holy sacrifice. 1 Corinthians 3. Don't you know you're the temple of God. The spirit of God dwells in you. And if you defile the temple of God, what's that?

Your body. Then God will destroy you because that temple of God is holy, which temple you are. chapter 7 of 2 Corinthians. Having therefore these promises, dearly beloved, let's cleanse oursel from all filthiness of the flesh. Some would say outside and spirit some would say inside.

And you if you do that you will perfect or mature or complete holiness in the fear of God. Ephesians chapter 1 according he has chosen us before him in him before the foundation of the world that we should be here's God's plan holy and without blame before him in love. Ephesians 4, put off concerning your old lifestyle, that old man because it's corrupt according to deceitful lust. Be renewed, fight the battle, win the battle in the spirit of your mind, and put on that new man because that new man after God is created in righteousness and true holiness. Ephesians 5.

God's desire is to present to himself a glorious church, not having spot or wrinkle or any such thing, but that the church should be holy and without blemish. First Thessalonians 3, to the end, that God may establish your hearts unblameable in holiness. First Thessalonians 4, God has not called us unto uncleanness, but unto holiness. Every once in a while, somebody said, "Well, I don't like that holiness preaching." Well, good for you. I've got a scripture for you.

He therefore that despises despises what? Holiness. He's not despising man. He's not despising the preacher. He's despising God.

Because it's God who gave unto us a Holy Spirit. I don't need Einstein for this. I can just use you, dear folks. If God gave us a Holy Spirit, guess how he wants us to live? He wants us to live a holy life.

It's not rocket science. And then there's Jude. You have to be patient with James and Jude because James and Jude grew up in the same household as Jesus. Jesus was virgin born, but Mary and Joseph had other children and they were younger than Jesus and grew up in the house with a perfect older brother. They are scarred.

James and Jude don't play. James says in one of his chapters, he said, "You show me your faith without your works. Good for you. I'll show you my faith by my works, buddy. You believe there's one God.

Good for you. The devils believe that. And they tremble. At least they have an emotional response. You just sit there like a bump on a dill pickle.

He's scarred. James does not play. Why? Because James grew up every day of his life. I don't know why you can't eat all your banana like Jesus ate all his banana.

James, why can't you make your bed and clean up your room like Jesus? James, why can't you be more like Jesus? And it's the same for Jude. Same household. So Jude, he wanted to write this nice little epistle.

He tells us, "I wanted to write an epistle." Like Peter and Paul, they all get to write epistles. I wanted to write an epistle. I wanted to write a nice epistle about the new birth experience, the common salvation. And God wouldn't let me. And God is Jesus, my perfect older brother.

He wouldn't let me. He's kind of mad. Jude, he only gets one chapter in the whole New Testament, by the way. Only one chapter. He's mad.

So, he doesn't play. So, Jude goes on a rant. He absolutely rails against people who have forsaken the message of holiness. He calls them filthy dreamers, brute beasts, clouds without water, and trees without fruit. None of those are complimentary.

He compares them to Cain, Balaam, Korah, Sodom, and Gomorrah, and the fallen angels. Again, not a compliment. And then he says they walk after their own ungodly lusts. And basically tells us they are mockers of the apostolic message. Why?

Because they knew this way and they walked away from this way. Jude chapter 1, he only gets one. Verse three. Beloved, when I gave all diligence to write unto you the common salvation, I wanted to write a nice little epistle about the new birth. But it was needful for me to write unto you and exhort you that you should earnestly contend, fight for the faith, the conviction, the truth which was once delivered unto the saints.

Why? Because there are certain men. They've crept into the church unawares. They were before of old ordained to this condemnation. They are unodly men.

Why are they ungodly? because they have turned the grace of our God into lasciviousness. I guarantee you none of you were sitting over your bagel this morning talking to your dearly beloved about lasciviousness. It's not a common modern word. Lasciviousness.

Lasciviousness means unrestricted living, unrestrained behavior and unbridled lust. It is loose living. And Jude says, "Because they have turned the grace of our God into living just like the world while claiming to be Christian, they are denying the only Lord God and they're denying our Lord Jesus Christ." So here's the point. The subject of holiness is serious in scripture. It is serious to God and it is serious to the apostolic church because holiness has most to do with altering the lifestyle of disciples.

Many people today express belief, but few allow their belief to alter their behavior. So, it would be easier, I'm talking to a lot of pastors and some wonderful saints today. It would be easier for all of our pastors to follow the crowd. give it up, dial it back, dumb it down, drop the bar, lessen the standards. That would be so much easier.

We could drop all the distinct distinctives unless we are trying to make disciples. If we're trying to make disciples, then holiness is nonnegotiable for the church. Now, at its very root, next picture. At its very root, holiness is a spatial term. It means separation.

Simply put, by definition, when something or someone is holy, they are set apart. There is observable distance between them and something else. End of story. Now, I could get myself kicked out of the Connecticut district right this moment. It would be easy for me to do.

All I would have to do is stand right here with this microphone looking you eyeball to eyeball and say something like this. We had a wonderful baptism at our church in Fredericton, New Brunswick, Canada last Sunday. We brought a bunch of people up to the altar. We stood them in a line and one of the pastors grabbed a bottle of water and he went down that line and he went, "Sprinkle, sprinkle, sprinkle. I baptize you.

Sprinkle, sprinkle." Brother Paskki would be sprinting toward the platform and he would grab the mic and this would be my last trip to the Connecticut district. Why? Because he knows that baptism has a definition. Baptism means to dip, to immerse, to plunge, to bury, to fully cover with water. So whatever we call a baptism other than that isn't a baptism biblically speaking.

Can I just tell you holiness has a definition. If there's no observable separation between you and an ungodly world, that's not holiness by the definition of holiness. Holy people stand out. Now, they're not just withdrawing from the world to try to make other people feel unholy. They're withdrawing unto the Lord.

The theologians call it the trisagion. It means thrice holy, three times holy. And the trisagion appears two times in the Bible. Once in the Old Testament book of Isaiah and once in the New Testament book of Revelation. Both times the trisagion the phrase is spoken by angelic beings.

Both times it occurs in a vision of the throne of God. The prophet Isaiah sees the six-winged seraphim flying around the throne, covering their faces and covering their feet in reverence. And he hears them cry one to another, "Holy, holy, holy is the Lord of hosts. The whole earth is full of his glory." And then the Apostle John hears the very same beings echoing the very same refrain some 600 years later. Holy, holy, holy, Lord God Almighty, which was and is and is to come.

And John adds that they rest not day and night. In other words, the holy angels have been singing that song around the throne of God constantly clear back into eternity past. Which brings me to this point. The closer you get to the throne, the more you will hear about holiness because holiness is proximity to the throne. The closer you get to the throne, the more holy you will become.

The closer you get to Jesus, the more his holiness will matter to you. If the seraphim show reverence, then it's not out of order for the saints to show reverence. If heavenly creatures cover their bodies in honor to God, it's not unreasonable for earthly people to cover their bodies in honor to God. And if the angels can't stop talking about God's holiness, I would contend that the apostolic church shouldn't stop talking about God's holiness. No matter what the world does and no matter what Christendom does.

But as we endeavor to make disciples, we must remember that sanctification, holiness is a process, not an instantaneous thing. That process takes an entire lifetime. It begins with redemption. It ends with transformation. It begins with deliverance.

It ends with discipleship. It begins with the new birth. It ends in the new Jerusalem. It begins at an altar. And it ends someday at the throne of God.

So if you are still breathing, guess what? God's still working on you. You're not done yet. There is no checklist in the Bible to complete. I did this.

I didn't wear that. I did wear that. There's no checklist there. Why? because you're supposed to keep growing and keep going.

God's not just working on the new convert, my brother, my sister, my pastor, my leader. God's still working on all of us. We understand that new disciples grow in the grace of God. So, we allow time for them to grow and for grace to teach them to walk separate from the world. Here's the big question.

As we try to grow churches, how much time do we allow them to grow in the grace of God? Here's the answer. As much time as they need. That's how much time we give them. And that approach informs every area of Christian living and church growth for us.

If you come visit our church, you will find people at every age and stage of their walk with God because we are God's family. Your family might be dysfunctional. My family might be dysfunctional. But God's family is not a dysfunctional family. We love every member of this family.

No matter if they're old or young, no matter if they're healthy or sick, no matter if they're victorious or depressed, we love them all. We don't kick people out of the family of God while they're growing. We let them grow in the grace of God. We love every member where they are right now while still teaching them that there is room to grow. And we still embrace what God expects of them as they mature.

When my son Matthew was three years old, not one time did I ask him, "Matt, take out the trash." Because the trash bag was bigger than he was, for one thing. But when he was 13 and still living at home, if I said, "Matt, take out the trash." passion. He gave me attitude. Then we go back down to Houston again. Houston, we have a problem.

Why? Because I loved him less. No, he'd been part of my family for an extra 10 years. I loved him more, but I loved him too much to let him sit there and not be disciplined. Well, that's the same thing in the family of God.

Disciple and discipline are the same word. And so, we're helping people as they grow. We do want them to grow in their relationship with God and that will include holiness. And so I want to take whatever time we've got here. brother Paskki told me to definitely be done by 7 o'clock.

so here are some principles that are important to apostolic churches and pastors as we disciple people. We are discipling the people that are following us. say, "Following us." Say, "Well, they're following Jesus." Yeah, but you're Jesus with flesh on for them. Paul said, "Follow me as I follow Christ." Paul said in another place, he said, "Uh, follow me." you can take all of us as examples. Use any of us as examples.

Just Paul said, "Do it like I do and you'll make heaven your home." You are the older brothers and sisters in the family of God. Guess what your job is? to be an example to the younger believers. That's your job. Do your job.

That's your job. How does a new believer that's lived in the world 20, 30, 40, 50 years, how do they learn how to worship? They watch you. How do they learn how to pray? They watch you.

How do they learn how to give and sacrifice? They watch you. How do they learn how to participate in a service? And how do they learn how to respond to apostolic preaching? They're watching you.

That's how they learn. How do they learn how to get their carcass in an altar every single service? By watching you. So if you never come to the altar, they're not going to come to the altar. Follow me as I follow Christ.

How do they learn how to live and dress and act godly and holy? They're watching you. Now, I know we live in an era in America. I'm not picking on you. I'm part of this.

But but it's it's worse here. It's worse here than anywhere else in the world. We got all these televangelists. Oh my goodness. And they all say something similar to this.

Don't look at me. Look at Jesus. Don't follow me. Follow Jesus. Now, that sounds really spiritual.

There's nothing more anti-new Testament than that. Follow me as I follow Christ. I know what they're doing. They're talking in code to the IRS. Don't look at me.

Look at Jesus. He doesn't have a tax problem. So, that was meddling. Again, I sorry the Canadians, they do it automatically. Okay.

So, so let me give you rapid fire some principles that may be helpful. Number one, don't expect practices without explaining principles. Don't tell people what to do when they're new without explaining to them why we do it. Stop that. You're hurting their relationship with God.

You're making them think that this is some kind of dress code or some kind of Sam's Club membership. They don't get to belong to the church because they act a certain way, dress a certain way, do certain things. They belong to the church by the salvation experience they have received from the Lord. The rest is discipleship. So you are not helping when they say, "Well, why do you wear that?" And you say, "Well, pastor says that is the worst answer in the world." >> My pastor says, "We have to." Would you stop in Jesus name?

Get your nose in the Bible and figure out why you do what you do. >> Now, you're either going to find a commandment or you're going to find a principle and whether it's principle or precept, learn it, devote yourself to it, and be able to explain it to somebody. Don't expect them to do what without explaining why. Secondly, holiness is often better caught than taught. That's the follow me as I follow Christ.

They will do what they see you do because you're their older brother and sister in the family of God. However, if holiness is never taught, once in a while, we have to teach it because if it's never taught, eventually it will be fought. So, the greatest benefit of mature saints in an apostolic church is you are the example to the new ones and the young ones. There's a positive peer pressure in a great apostolic church. The pastor doesn't have to skull people, guilt people, nag people, shame people, embarrass people.

Just live it. If you're not living holiness convictions out of joy, stop. You're hurting us. You're hurting us all. Just stop.

If you're going to be hateful, be hateful and unholy. Don't be hateful and holy. That hurts us all. Furthermore, there's no such thing as hateful and holy. I've made it my life goal to shut down the local detachment of the Pentecostal police.

Oh my goodness, those people are insane. It's usually a lady with a flashing red light perched on top of her hairdo. She pulls over a new convert in the foyer and gives them a ticket. You should be wearing that, dear, and you should be doing that. That's not your business.

That's Jesus business and pastor's business and their business. It's not your job to police all the other saints. Here's your job. put your arm around him and say, "I'm so proud of you. I'm so glad you're part of our church family.

You're doing so good. YOU'RE GROWING SO FAST. THIS IS AMAZING. Look what God's done for you." That's your job. Do your job.

Oh, I'm getting kind of free here. It's dangerous. Her name is Alicia. First time we ever get introduced to her, she called the church office on the phone. I was still pastor then.

And I be in the office. I picked up the phone. She said, "Hi, is this Pastor Raymond?" I said, "Yes, it is." She said, "My name's Alicia. I come from a family and they are atheists and recently I had an experience with God and my family hates that I am trying to go to church. They forbid me from going to church." So, she was a college student.

She was a party girl. she had to sneak out of the house. She would tell her parents, "I'm going to study with a friend." She'd go and study for five minutes and go to church. And that was her initial experience with God. And she said, "Pastor Raymond, I've been watching your church online." And she said, she's kind of hesitated.

She said, "Your church, I think your church is a little livelier than my church." I said, "I think that's probably true, Alicia. Can I come to your church?" Of course you can. So, she comes. And it was within a month. She was just a sharp, smart young lady.

She pops into the office and she's she's young. She's real excitable, you know, energetic. She talks kind of fast. she popped into the office after service one night and so this I'm slowing it down half speed just for your clarity. But this is what she said almost to a tea.

Pastor Raymond, do I have to wear a skirt to come here? Because I noticed I look around all the young ladies wearing skirts. All the teenagers are wearing skirts. All the old ladies are wearing skirts. Everybody wears a skirt here.

All the women wear a skirt. I don't have a skirt. I don't own a skirt. I've never worn a skirt. I don't have a skirt in my closet.

But if I have to wear a skirt, I'll go buy a skirt. I'll come here and wear a skirt. Do I have to wear a skirt to come here? And I said to Alicia the same thing I've said to everybody who's asked me a similar question in 45 years of ministry. No, Alicia, you don't have to wear a skirt to come here.

Here's some scriptures. It's exactly what I told you. Here's some scriptures. Go read these scriptures and when Jesus talks to you about this, come on back and talk to me. sharp young lady, very, very smart, wanting to serve God and please him.

She received the baptism of the Holy Ghost, got baptized so early after she appeared at CCC. It probably wasn't a month, maybe six weeks, but a very short time. She comes back into the office. Pastor Raymond said, "Yeah, hey Alicia, notice anything? I said, "New haido?" "No." "New glasses?" "No." "Oh, Alicia, you're wearing a skirt.

That's beautiful on you." She said, "Yes, and I'm going to write a book called Skirt Adventures." She said, "Pastor Raymond, do you know that you can't run upstairs full tilt wearing a full skirt?" I said, "I've never really thought about that, Alicia." She said, "And do you know that when you close the car door and you've got a full skirt on, you have to be really, really careful or you can rip the whole side out of your skirt." She said, "But don't you worry, Pastor Raymond, I had duct tape in the glove compartment and I fixed it." So, I was modest. That was, I believe, the same weekend that we were having a big youth function and Alicia was on her way to church. She was in a hurry to get there and she was like a superintendent in a certain district that I am presently in but can identify and she's a little heavy on the foot and she was speeding and she got pulled over by the police and the police told her that she deserved a fine and what the amount of the fine was I think it was like $185 or something like that. She said, "Uh, you know, I should give you a fine." And he was turning around to go back to his car to write her a ticket. And she jumped out of the car.

I do not recommend this. She jumped out of the car, started jumping and spinning and worshiping God in the sidewalk there beside her car. And he thought she was so weird that he just gave her a warning and sent her away. Go to church. The only reason I know that story is because that night we got an offering of $185 in cash wrapped up in a speeding warning.

She threw it in the offering. The night she walked out of my office so excited that she had discovered something that could please God. When she closed the door and went on into church, I said out loud to Jesus, Jesus, that's the way it's supposed to be. That they do it out of joy and not out of pressure. That they do it out of submission and not out of guilt or somebody nagging them or getting on their case.

Could we just let our precious new believers grow up in the faith and love them all the way and be patient? You didn't kick out your child because he didn't walk as early as his sister. You didn't shame him for the rest of his life because he wasn't potty trained as soon as his older brother. Children grow at different pla paces and speeds. And that's okay in the family of God.

let me hurry so we're not here all day. U your direction number three. Your direction, not your current position, is what determines your destination. So God's not concerned. And I'm not concerned as a pastor about where you are right now.

I'm concerned about the direction you're heading. I'm way more concerned about somebody that's been in the church for 55 years and they're looking back toward the things of the world and they're starting to let their convictions slide. I'm way more concerned about them than I are than I am about a new convert who just crawled out of the baptistry and they got all kinds of habits still hanging on them. But they're doing their best to serve Jesus. I'm with them.

They're headed the right direction. I've heard this too and you have too. I'm sure it made it all the way down from the crazy New Brunswickers all the way to Connecticut. Well, when I got baptized, when I got the Holy Ghost, that all fell off of me. And that's said as a criticism of some new believer that's still struggling with a habit.

Would you get a grip? Just because sin broke them in a different place than it broke you doesn't give you a right to be judgmental. You want to thank God for every step that they're taking. And if they're walking in the right direction, here's what you can do. Don't look back and criticize them.

Look back and reached out your hand and say, "Come on, WE'RE GONNA DO THIS. YOU'RE doing amazing." Very quickly, holiness is whatever makes righteousness look normal and sin look strange. What is worldliness? Worldliness is whatever makes sin look normal and righteousness look strange. So you need to be careful apostolics who have been in this for a long time and cut your teeth on a Pentecostal pew.

Be careful of your media because media its whole goal is to make righteousness look weird and sin look normal. Number five, the Holy Ghost doesn't just restrain the flesh. These are principles we need to use as we're discipling new members. The Holy Ghost doesn't just restrain the flesh. It retrains the flesh by putting new desires within you.

That takes some time. Yes, we could try to shame them into adopting a new activity and a new dress code and a new set of friends. We could pressure them, but we're just restraining the flesh. If you'll give the Holy Ghost an opportunity, it will retrain the flesh, and they'll do it out of love for Jesus. number six, for any new believer that you're dealing with, you can tell them this.

You don't have to understand completely to begin obeying immediately. It's true. you know, well, I don't understand all that holiness stuff. That's okay. You don't have to understand every nuance and every commandment and every scripture.

There's a blessing in just obeying because it's in the Bible. There's a blessing in just obeying because your pastor taught you. There's a blessing in that. how many married people are here? Would you wave your hand at me?

Married people. Good. You stood at an altar and you looked at your dearly beloved and you said, "I do." And it took two seconds. And you spent the rest of your life so far trying to figure out what you promised in two seconds. You didn't understand everything completely.

I got baptized when I was 12 years old. I didn't understand baptism. All I knew as a 12-year-old boy was that if I will obey the word of God and I'm baptized in the name of Jesus, God is going to wash away my sins. I didn't know that baptism was the New Testament fulfillment of Old Testament circumcision. I didn't know that.

That would have weirded ME OUT. I DIDN'T KNOW ANY of that. All I knew was that if I just obey Jesus, when it comes to holiness, you don't have to understand completely to begin obeying immediately, there's a blessing in it. And finally, for all you wonderful apostolic people, and then I have a scripture and a story, and we're out of here. The story's long, multi-chapters, and several books.

Number seven, we don't just need standards of holiness. People can get around your standards, no matter how detailed they are, because the human heart is deceptive and deceitful and desperately weak. We need a spirit of holiness. our teenagers that worship in our altars. We need a spirit of holiness to overtake their young lives in their formative years because a spirit of holiness will protect you when you can figure out an escape hatch for the standard of holiness.

And I don't know about you, I can keep the standards now. I'm I'm I'm old. I can keep the standards. I can check off the list with the best of you. I need a spirit of holiness.

We need to pray that a spirit of holiness invades the apostolic movement in an ungodly age. We really do. We really do. One final scripture and then a story and I'm finished. Thank you for your kind attention.

This is just this is like, you know, listening to Woodward for two two and a half hours. That's like that's like the great tribulation. But anyway, thank you for your Hosea chapter 2 verse 16. Now you remember Hosea. That's that awful little book in the Old Testament where God commands one of his prophets, I want you to go and marry a prostitute named Gomer.

And Gomer did what prostitutes do. She cheated on him with every other man that she could find. And she ends up in a slave market being sold as a prostitute. She's worthless and helpless. And God says to Hosea, "Go back and get her.

Buy her back." And he does. And it's a picture. It's a picture of Israel who backslid. Sought other lovers and other loves and betrayed God. God bought them back from the slave market and the scrap heap and the dunghill.

And he did that for us, too, before we get all high and mighty. And God gives Hosea this word and Hosea speaks it and it gets written down. And it shall be at that day sayeth the Lord. This is addressed to Israel, that thou shalt call me is and you shall no more call me Baali. Baali means my master.

Ishi means My husband, there's coming a day if we can restore this relationship. You won't look at it as a task that you have to do to obey your master. It'll be a love relationship. And you will not call me Baali, my master. You'll call me Ishi, my husband.

That's the spirit of holiness. The spirit of holiness will separate you from the spirit of the world. But you hear me if you don't hear anything else. Holiness will separate you from the spirit of the world. But apostolic, holiness will not sever you from the people of the world.

A heart for holiness is also a heart for the lost who don't yet have it. Otherwise, it's not real holiness. If your holiness makes you ignore evangelism, you don't have holiness. Not holiness at all. Could we lift up our hands and I'll tell my story and get out of here.

Lift up your hands and pray for a spirit of holiness for just a moment and I'll finish. Oh, pray. I don't mean like a rumble in honor to the preacher. I mean pray pray something. God fill me with a spirit of holiness.

Let your holy spirit have his perfect way in my life. Bro, help me out at the back and I'll just tell this story and we'll be finished. It was just another Wednesday in Midland, Texas on October the 14th, 1987. That is until one teenage mom ran inside to answer the phone and her 18-month-old daughter fell into the 8 in opening of an abandoned 22 foot deep well. Within moments, firemen and paramedics have been summoned and within just an hour or so, oil drillers arrived and they struggled to reach little Jessica McClure as the world watched round the clock on a brand new news network called CNN.

Microphones lowered into the well, picked up that little girl's voice. Sometimes she would cry for her mommy and sometimes she would try to calm her little self by singing songs about Winnie the Pooh. The only way the rescuers could reach her, they couldn't drill straight down. They would have collapsed the sides of that well on her and instantly smothered her. The only way they could reach her was to go several yards away and drill a parallel 28 foot shaft and then drill a tunnel across at a right angle until finally it put them just under baby Jessica.

But the drilling took 45 hours, almost two days. And then began the painstaking work of trying to retrieve that precious little baby girl. Midland Fire Department paramedic Robert O'Donnell, who by the way was claustrophobic, he was the one tasked to lay on his back in a very narrow horizontal shaft and inch his way along while his fellow paramedic Steve Forb stood in the vertical shaft and he owed to the people up above on the ground. When Robert O'Donnell got his head poked into that little well shaft, he could see the problem. When little baby Jessica fell, one leg went down and one leg went up and it had wedged her in that well shaft.

That's all that held her in place. And for a time it seemed hopeless. They couldn't budge her. 13 more hours dragged by as dozens of workers above peered helplessly into that hole in the ground. And it was now approaching Friday evening, October the 16th.

A strained conversation between the paramedics and one of the doctors on the surface was later dramatized in a 1989 television movie called Everybody's Baby: The Rescue of Jessica McClure. See, the paramedics were so concerned about hurting her irreparably, they were dismayed by her cries of pain. Robert O'Donnell radioed up and he said, "I tried to pull her leg to bring her down to me. All I succeeded in doing was I dislocated her hip." And that precious little girl screamed in agony and pain. So they radioed up to that doctor and they said, can't get her out.

We're hurting her. We're injuring her. And that doctor radioed back down and took command of the situation. And here's what she said. Just pull.

We're running out of time. We've got to get her out of that well. So, if you have to break her arms or break her legs, that's okay. Just get her out of there. Just pull.

We can fix the rest. And suddenly, just before 8:00 p.m. Central time, every major television network switched in America to the live feed from Midland. as a young photographer named Scott Shaw snapped that Pulitzer Prizewinning photograph and it said it all. A grimy paramedic emerging from the rescue shaft, cradling a little bundle in his arms, swaddled in bandages, frightened eyes, pitifully battered little arms.

But 58 hours later, baby Jessica was alive. I love that story. So, what do we do about your new convert, your baby believer, still partially buried in their worldly lifestyle and their sinful behavior? What do we do about your backslider that walked away from God and they're still not back and their new lifestyle is embarrassing to you and you're wondering how the church would ever even receive them?

I'll tell you what we do. Just pull. We're running out of time. We've got to get them out of that godless sinful world. We've got to get them delivered.

So, could I say something to all you wonderful apostolic leaders and saints? Would you please ignore what they look like and act like and talk like and dress like? Would you please ignore what others think about them or think about you befriending them? Would you just love them? That's part of holiness.

Holiness is not arrogance. Holiness is the love of God shed abroad in our hearts by the power of the Holy Ghost. So just pull. We can fix the rest. We've got weeks and months and years if necessary to fix the rest.

We can disciple them. We can grow them. We can teach them classes. We can pray them through. We can get rid of habits.

We can negotiate the scars OF PAST RELATIONSHIPS. DON'T DO THAT THE first minute they come TO THE ALTAR. JUST PULL. WE'VE GOT TIME to fix the rest. Stand with me.

Thank you for your kind attention. Would you lift both of your hands and all of your voice and would you just begin to pray at the end of this session? Just pray. Your job's not to guilt him, nag him, shame him. Your job's to pull.

Get beside him and just pull. We got time to fix the rest. I know there's some intercessors in this district. I wish you'd lift up your voice and just push in prayer. I'm not trying to hold you.

If you need to leave, we'll understand. But for the rest of us, could you just take a moment and just pray in the spirit? Just intercede in the spirit. A spirit of holiness is a heart for the hurting. A SPIRIT OF HOLINESS IS A HEART for those that aren't at all holy.

A spirit of holiness just wants to get beside them and encourage them. A spirit of holiness WANTS TO PULL THEM OUT OF THAT SIN. Oh yes yes yes yes. I know, bro. Can you help me with one final scripture?

I didn't give it to you, but just help me. I know the concern is if we're that compassionate, if we're that patient, if we get involved with that many people who aren't holy and godly, what about our kids? And what about our young people? And what about our future? What about our church?

And what about our standards? And what Remember Jude, he just got one chapter, but he said some good things. Here's something he said, Jude, in that one single chapter. Verse 22. And if some have compassion, and your compassion will make the difference for them, but others, you're going to have to save with fear.

You're going to have to pull them out of the fire. Here's the safety net. While you're reaching for them, pulling them out of the fire, you make sure that you're hating not them, you're hating the garment that is spotted by the flesh. Love the sinner. Be very careful of the sin.

If you're fixated and fascinated on the things of the world, you're a danger to yourself and others. But if you've really got a heart for the lost, you can go into the worst places in the state of Connecticut, and God is going to help you reach a great harvest. Here's why. You got one hand extended for them. Next verse.

You're holding on to him with another hand now. Unto him that is able to keep you from falling. You're going to go to the edge to reach them and to pull them in. but to him that is able to keep you falling, keep you from falling and to present you faultless before the presence of his glory with exceeding joy. That's really holiness and evangelism in a nutshell.

We are going to go to the edge and we are going to reach wherever and whenever and however we can, but we're going to make sure we keep another hand in his hand, in the holy hand of a holy God. and we're going to be okay and we're going to have revival and we're going to raise up a generation of new believers to love the Lord. Thank you for the great honor of being part of your district conference and certainly of teaching you today. can we just do this? I'll turn it back to brother Paskki.

Would you grab the hand of somebody next to you? a friend, a family member, a spouse. Would you lift every hand and now every voice? Let's make this a choir of uplifted hands today. As we close, let the lifting of my hands be as the evening sacrifice.

I thank God for the message of holiness. It keeps me. It changes me. Lift your voice higher than your hands.