Many Christians have what we might call a “cultural holiness”. They adapt to the character and behavior pattern of Christians around them. As the Christian culture around them is more or less holy, so these Christians are more or less holy. But God has not called us to be like those around us. He has called us to be like himself. Holiness is nothing less than conformity to the character of God.
We are to humble ourselves under God’s mighty hand, approaching every relationship and every circumstance in reference to Him.
Shall we presume on God’s grace by tolerating in ourselves the very sin that nailed Christ to the cross?
No one can act outside of God’s sovereign will or against it. Centuries ago, Augustine said, “Nothing, therefore, happens unless the Omnipotent wills it to happen: he either permits it to happen, or he brings it about himself.”5.
All my labors are marred by sin and imperfection. As I think of every act I have ever done for God, I can only cry out, ‘Oh, God, forgive the iniquity of my holy things.’”5.
If we are to trust God, we must learn to see that He is continuously at work in every aspect and every moment of our lives.
This is fellowship: sharing with one another what God is teaching through the Scriptures, and this is an important part of true community.
We need to ask God daily to search our hearts for sin that we cannot or will not see.
But the holiness of Jesus was more than simply the absence of actual sin. It was also a perfect conformity to the will of His Father.
God in His infinite wisdom knows exactly what adversity we need to grow more and more into the likeness of His Son. He not only knows what we need but when we need it and how best to bring it to pass in our lives. He is the perfect teacher or coach. His discipline is always exactly suited for our needs. He never over trains us by allowing too much adversity in our lives.
Christ’s death was the result of God’s grace; grace is not the result of Christ’s death.
Even as Christians our best efforts are still marred with imperfect performance and impure motives. But God no longer “sees” either our deliberate disobedience or our marred performances. Instead He “sees” the righteousness of Christ, which He has already imputed to us.
What can wash away my sin? Nothing but the blood of Jesus.”2.
And the God who ruled absolutely in the life and fortunes of the most powerful monarch of that time still rules in the fortunes and destinies of governments today. No government or dictator is so powerful as to be beyond the sway of His sovereign rule over all the nations of the earth. GOD.
The sovereignty of God is often questioned because man does not understand what God is doing. Because He does not act as we think He should, we conclude He cannot act as we think He would. GOD.
If you are going to experience the joy of your freedom in Christ, you have to decide whether you will please God or people.
Sin, in the final analysis, is rebellion against the sovereign Creator, Ruler, and Judge of the universe. It resists the rightful prerogative of a sovereign Ruler to command obedience from His subjects. It says to an absolutely holy and righteous God that His moral laws, which are a reflection of His own nature, are not worthy of our wholehearted obedience.
The same grace that brings salvation teaches us to renounce ungodly living.
Biblical community, then, incorporates this idea of an active partnership in the promotion of the gospel and the building up of believers.
Without this relationship with God, there can be no spiritual relationship with one another.