Welcome Again,
I am pleased to be able to be here again for another PathSeeker Weekly. I am more pleased to be able to bring to you a Gospel Message from Jesus Christ on a weekly basis. The very name of Jesus is light in times when hopes dim towards darkness.
I am still continuing with the main focal points within my main scripture reference of:
Romans 12:2 And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God.
Now here in part two of this verse “but be transformed by the renewing of your mind” I have going over some of the aspects of the character of Jesus. When ever we take these aspects and the actions of Jesus and apply these things to our daily lives we are becoming transformed to the renewed mind of Christ.
1 Peter 1:16 because it is written, “Be holy, for I am holy.”
We have probably all heard this verse or some form of before in our lives. But this is one of the many keys of becoming like Christ and to be able to prove what is Gods will for your life. Christ was Holy in all the aspects of His life and it was His will to do the will of His Father. Before I get carried away here I would like for you to see this verse along with the context it was written.
NIV 1 Peter 1:13 Therefore, prepare your minds for action; be self-controlled; set your hope fully on the grace to be given you when Jesus Christ is revealed. 14 As obedient children, do not conform to the evil desires you had when you lived in ignorance. 15 But just as he who called you is holy, so be holy in all you do; 16 for it is written: “Be holy, because I am holy.” 17 Since you call on a Father who judges each man’s work impartially, live your lives as strangers here in reverent fear. 18 For you know that it was not with perishable things such as silver or gold that you were redeemed from the empty way of life handed down to you from your forefathers, 19 but with the precious blood of Christ, a lamb without blemish or defect.
Prepare your mind, v.13, …do not conform, v.14. This text is somewhat similar to the words written down by the apostle Paul in our main reference of Romans 12:2. Being holy is a not only a characteristic of Christ but is also a characteristic of God the Father. In verse 16 of the above text it says “for it is written:” These words were indeed written:
Leviticus 11:44-45 For I am the Lord your God. You shall therefore consecrate yourselves, and you shall be holy; for I am holy. Neither shall you defile yourselves with any creeping thing that creeps on the earth.
45 For I am the Lord who brings you up out of the land of Egypt, to be your God. You shall therefore be holy, for I am holy.
19:2 Speak to all the congregation of the children of Israel, and say to them: You shall be holy, for I the Lord your God am holy.
20:7 Consecrate yourselves therefore, and be holy, for I am the Lord your God.
There are even different variations of this also from the words of Jesus and the apostle Paul:
Matthew 5:48 “Therefore you shall be perfect, just as your Father in heaven is perfect.
Ephesians 5:1 Therefore be imitators of God as dear children.
Be holy, be perfect, be an imitator these are all commands to be as God. Jesus came and gave us physical example of how it is to be as God. Jesus was tempted of the devil, He was beaten and could have felt as though God had deserted Him. Yet through all He faced He showed us how to be as God. Sure it is true Jesus was the Son of God and could actually do anything but He did not fail in showing us that even though we are human we can imitate Him. He also showed us, because of our inability to be perfect, just exactly what Grace and Forgiveness is all about.
John 8:3 Then the scribes and Pharisees brought to Him a woman caught in adultery. And when they had set her in the midst, 4 they said to Him, “Teacher, this woman was caught in adultery, in the very act. 5 “Now Moses, in the law, commanded us that such should be stoned. But what do You say?” 6 This they said, testing Him, that they might have something of which to accuse Him. But Jesus stooped down and wrote on the ground with His finger, as though He did not hear. 7 So when they continued asking Him, He raised Himself up and said to them, “He who is without sin among you, let him throw a stone at her first.” 8 And again He stooped down and wrote on the ground. 9 Then those who heard it, being convicted by their conscience, went out one by one, beginning with the oldest even to the last. And Jesus was left alone, and the woman standing in the midst. 10 When Jesus had raised Himself up and saw no one but the woman, He said to her, “Woman, where are those accusers of yours? Has no one condemned you?” 11 She said, “No one, Lord.” And Jesus said to her, “Neither do I condemn you; go and sin no more.”
Neither do I condemn you; go and sin no more.” These are words Jesus speaks to every one of us. Jesus knows we all sin and fall short of the glory of God ( Romans 3:23 for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, ) and if were not for Grace non of us would make the grade. 1 Peter 1:18 tells us that were redeemed (bought for a price) not by silver or gold but by the very blood of Jesus. Jesus has paid the way for us all to be holy with His precious blood. The blood of Jesus has cleansed us from the disease that has been deteriorating our bodies since Adam and Eve sinned in the garden. Kind of like the way chemo-therapy is to remove cancer from a body but only His gift of cleansing cleans your body of all sin and death. We no long have sin within us we are made holy by Grace God has given you.
Romans 6:1 What shall we say then? Shall we continue in sin that grace may abound? 2 Certainly not! How shall we who died to sin live any longer in it? 3 Or do you not know that as many of us as were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into His death? 4 Therefore we were buried with Him through baptism into death, that just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life. 5 For if we have been united together in the likeness of His death, certainly we also shall be in the likeness of His resurrection, 6 knowing this, that our old man was crucified with Him, that the body of sin might be done away with, that we should no longer be slaves of sin. 7 For he who has died has been freed from sin. 8 Now if we died with Christ, we believe that we shall also live with Him, 9 knowing that Christ, having been raised from the dead, dies no more. Death no longer has dominion over Him. 10 For the death that He died, He died to sin once for all; but the life that He lives, He lives to God. 11 Likewise you also, reckon yourselves to be dead indeed to sin, but alive to God in Christ Jesus our Lord. 12 Therefore do not let sin reign in your mortal body, that you should obey it in its lusts. 13 And do not present your members as instruments of unrighteousness to sin, but present yourselves to God as being alive from the dead, and your members as instruments of righteousness to God. 14 For sin shall not have dominion over you, for you are not under law but under grace.
Should we continue in sin and just let grace take care of it? Personally I would not want to take the chance. Two questions for example I ask men. Would you want to be sitting in a strip club when Jesus parts the clouds? Do you think He is going to take you with Him after finding you there? If you have know the truth of Jesus and His Grace and have called upon the name of the Lord, then you have been saved. But we are also told to be Holy as He is Holy after we have been saved. After being taught by Jesus with Him telling you that all you have to do is look a woman with lust in your eyes then you have sinned. you know that when Jesus parts the clouds and finds you in a strip cloud you are smack dab in the middle of sin. We are told that no sin will be able to go into Heaven. So if you are in the middle of sin I don’t figure you will go with Him. Then you will probably cry out and say, “what about grace? Grace comes before death, before resurrection. After you have been resurrected with Christ you should be as He is which is, Holy.
Daily we all sin. Even after being reborn with Christ in resurrection. Sin is just in our nature. But we can try to be holy, and this is something really amazing about God is that He knows and gives us a benefit of the doubt. All God wants of you is to strive to be perfect as He is perfect. Strive is to try with desire, desire to be perfect in all you do. Above all strive to be sinless, is what and all God expects.
There are two types of sin: knowingly sin and unknowingly sin. Do the best you can to avoid temptation which leads to knowingly sin. Confess unknowingly sin when it becomes known to you. And one day in judgment of your life you will be as Joshua.
Zechariah 3:1 Then he showed me Joshua the high priest standing before the Angel of the LORD, and Satan standing at his right hand to oppose him. 2 And the LORD said to Satan, “The LORD rebuke you, Satan! The LORD who has chosen Jerusalem rebuke you! Is this not a brand plucked from the fire?” 3 Now Joshua was clothed with filthy garments, and was standing before the Angel. 4 Then He answered and spoke to those who stood before Him, saying, “Take away the filthy garments from him.” And to him He said, “See, I have removed your iniquity from you, and I will clothe you with rich robes.” 5 And I said, “Let them put a clean turban on his head.” So they put a clean turban on his head, and they put the clothes on him. And the Angel of the LORD stood by. 6 Then the Angel of the LORD admonished Joshua, saying, 7 “Thus says the LORD of hosts: ‘If you will walk in My ways, And if you will keep My command, Then you shall also judge My house, And likewise have charge of My courts; I will give you places to walk Among these who stand here.
In closing I would like to say, that it is my hopes and prayers that all who read this to please take this into account and test these words to the words of God. Allow the Holy Spirit to be your guide in all of your studies of Gods word. And please ask of and always remember, to have Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior
Thank you and God Bless,
Tommy Harmon