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Christian Standards – Part 2

August 14, 2009 at 9:56 pm (Holiness & Separation)

Christian Standards, part 2 – Victorious Christian Living

5) The Christian’s place in the world:

A)    We can’t isolate ourselves from the world. It is possible to be IN the world but not OF the world! The presence of Christians in any community has a sanctifying influence.

Matthew 5:13 (English Standard Version)
You are the salt of the earth, but if salt has lost its taste, how shall its saltiness be restored? It is no longer good for anything except to be thrown out and trampled under people’s feet.

• Salt influences and serves as an agent of change. The paradox of “in the world but not of it” is explained with salt. When you sprinkle salt on your prime rib, the salt crystals do not become miniature prime ribs, instead, they remain as salt, but serve to change the taste and texture (depending on how much salt you use) of your prime rib.

B)    There is no such thing as a “worldly church.” That is an oxymoron, and impossible Biblically; however, there are many churches which have no similitude to Biblical practice and yet call themselves a “church.” These types have no effect on the world and can never truly minister to the lost.

2 Timothy 3:5 (God’s Word)
They will appear to have a godly life, but they will not let its power change them. Stay away from such people.

• Jesus will love you where you are, but will never leave you where you are! “Go and sin no more” is still a command today! Reach the world where they are, but don’t leave them where they are – take them higher. Lift them up just as you were lifted up from the depths of despair.

• And you don’t have to act like the world to win the world! That is a lie from the pit of hell! On the contrary, the world – your neighbors and coworkers – are looking for a beacon of hope and a bastion of morality. Even people who are not born again realize that the moral fabric of society is unraveling and whenever they see a TRUE Christian who practices their faith 24/7/365, they are influenced for the sake of the cause!

6) Standards ARE important!

A)    Conformity, whether to Christ or the world, is decided by the heart! If you love the world, you’ll follow the teachings of the world. If you love God, you’ll keep His commandments.

1 John 2:15 (English Standard Version)
Do not love the world or the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him.

Luke 16:13 (New King James Version)
No servant can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or else he will be loyal to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and mammon.

• Paul expressed that “love was the fulfillment of the Law.”  Jesus said that “all the Law and the prophets hinge upon love.” Love is demanding! Anyone who thinks the Law was strict, needs a fresh study of the New Covenant. Under the Law it was “an eye for an eye” but in the New Covenant I’m supposed to love my enemy and pray for him and bless him. Under the Law, it was “don’t commit adultery” yet under the New Covenant it is, “Don’t lust after a woman in your heart!”

• Yet, it is the power of love that leads to a persistent practice of the principles of God’s Word and in effect, a greater holiness than practicing the Law.

B)    God has made it possible to walk in holiness, yet He gives us the responsibility to do it. God will not walk it for you. Some pray for victory when they should be simply walking in obedience. In fact, walking in obedience to God produces victory over the roaring lion (the devil)…

Isaiah 35:8-9 (English Standard Version)
⁸ And a highway shall be there, and it shall be called the Way of Holiness; the unclean shall not pass over it. It shall belong to those who walk on the way; even if they are fools, they shall not go astray. ⁹ No lion shall be there, nor shall any ravenous beast come up on it; they shall not be found there, but the redeemed shall walk there.

• The farmer is entirely dependent upon God for the sunshine, rain, and the miracle of life in the seed. Nevertheless, the farmer will not have a crop unless he faithfully cultivates, plants, tends, and harvests. We cannot do what God must do, but God will not do what we can do.

C)   Following holiness requires personal effort; it’s not automatic. Genuine faith is obedient faith and it always produces good works. You will not be saved by works, but you will be judged by them and you are saved to DO good works.

Ephesians 2:8-10 (New King James Version)
⁸ For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, ⁹ not of works, lest anyone should boast. ¹⁰ For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them.

1 Corinthians 3:13 (English Standard Version)
Each one’s work will become manifest, for the Day will disclose it, because it will be revealed by fire, and the fire will test what sort of work each one has done.

1 Peter 1:17 (New King James Version)
And if you call on the Father, who without partiality judges according to each one’s work, conduct yourselves throughout the time of your stay here in fear;

7) Abominations to God:

A)    God is unchanging! If it displeased Him yesterday, it will displease Him today and tomorrow!

Malachi 3:6 (New King James Version)
For I am the Lord, I do not change…

• You must abhor and avoid all abominations!

Deuteronomy 7:26 (New King James Version)
Nor shall you bring an abomination into your house, lest you be doomed to destruction like it. You shall utterly detest it and utterly abhor it, for it is an accursed thing.

B)    You will become like what you worship.

Luke 4:8 (English Standard Version)
And Jesus answered him, “It is written, ” ‘You shall worship the Lord your God, and him only shall you serve.’ “

C)   Six categories of abominations:

• Moral abominations – all sexual sins and sins of the flesh, both inward and outward.

• Incest (Lev. 18:17), Adultery & fornication (Ezek. 18:1-13), Sodomy (Lev. 18:22), Bestiality (Lev. 18:23), Transvestitism (Deut. 22:5), Whoredom (Deut. 23:17-18), A heart that devises wicked imaginations (Prov. 6:16-18).

• Occult abominations – all types of idolatry which encourages the worship of objects, whether animate or inanimate, other than God. This also includes wizardry, charming, enchantment, and witchcraft.

• Deuteronomy 7:25; 18:9-14

• Vocal abominations – all abuses made with the tongue!

• Leviticus 18:21, Proverbs 6:16-19; 17:15

• Violent abominations – all attacks against life.

• Proverbs 6:16-19, Jeremiah 7:8-10, Ezekiel 18:1-13

• Abominations of character – the attitudes that govern His character & principles.

• Deuteronomy 12:29-32, Proverbs 15:8-9; 6:18

• Abominations of worship – false worship!

• Deuteronomy 17:1, Proverbs 15:8-9; 28:9

D)   In view of God’s hatred for abominable things, those who wish to please Him must make three basic commitments: 1) abstain personally from all abominations, 2) refuse to permit abominable people to influence their home, and 3) cleanse the home of all abominations.

• Such a commitment will result in the home being cleansed from questionable books, magazines, recordings, videos, and pictures.

• Parents spend time and money to “kid-proof” their homes, providing a safe environment for their children. This is commendable and shows care and concern, however, the principle is even more commendable when you are willing to keep your home free of the influence of the world through any and all means!

8) The negative influence of the media:

Ask yourself this question: “Are any of the above mentioned abominations presented on television?”  It’s not the technology, or the box itself that is evil, but rather the programming and the agenda presented by the programmers!

A)    Mary Lewis Coakly, in her book Rated X – The Moral Case Against TV (Arlington House) demonstrates that television is saturating “American homes with raw sex, blood and gore, slanted news, and subtle attacks on religion and morality, family and country.” After sitting through hundreds of programs, she assembled a table of contents which bears a striking resemblance to the list of Biblical abominations.

B)    In Christ and the Media, Malcolm Muggerridge, veteran British journalist and broadcaster, announced his startling opinion that the media have “provided the devil with perhaps the greatest opportunity accorded him since Adam and Eve were turned out of the Garden of Eden.  If you want my absolute opinion, I think the best thing to do is not to look at television, and to that end, I have disposed of my set.”

C)   In 1980 in Falls Church, Virginia, PTA members kept their eyes fixed on TV programs through the hours children would be viewing them. They observed 185 programs for 114 and ½ hours and they saw: 281 assaults, 117 killings, 19 robberies, 16 kidnappings, 10 murder conspiracies, 3 arsons, 3 extortions, 3 jailbreaks, 1 lynching, 1 bombing, and 1 suicide!  I shudder to think what it would be today!

D)   Bill Bixby, the actor who portrayed “The Incredible Hulk” on television several years ago refused to allow his then four-year-old son to watch his TV saying, “People think cartoons are harmless because they are not real, but children believe them.”

E)    98 out of 100 Americans own a television – which is more than own refrigerators or kitchen ranges). The church MUST educate and inform Christians of the many dangers and evils of this modern medium of communication.

9) Your mind is a terrible thing to waste:

A)    For additional information regarding this, please refer to the following two sermons:

• A Thief at Your Window – Bishop Myron Powell

• The War of the Worlds – Bishop Myron Powell

• Both of these are available in CD and MP3 format, and if they are out of stock on the sound booth table, please see Brother Dan to request a copy.

• In summary of Christian Standards, and in regards to the evils presented on TV and in movies, and on the internet, David offers wise counsel:

Psalms 101:2-3 (English Standard Version)
² I will ponder the way that is blameless. Oh when will you come to me? I will walk with integrity of heart within my house; ³ I will not set before my eyes anything that is worthless. I hate the work of those who fall away; it shall not cling to me.

• David could not have a TV in his home and at the same time “walk with integrity of heart within his house.”