1 Peter 2 : 11-12 Beloved, I beg you as sojourners and pilgrims, abstain from fleshly lusts which war against the soul, having your conduct honorable among the Gentiles, that when they speak against you as evildoers, they may, by your good works which they observe, glorify God in the day of visitation.
As we read and study our Bibles, we will find that the life of the Christian is very different from the life of a non-believer. This is largely due to the fact that as Christians, we have the Holy Spirit residing within us. The Holy Spirit nudges us to live pure and holy lives. Lives that will please the Lord Jesus Christ who has washed away our sin with His own blood which He shed on the cross. We understand that it is not our own righteous ways that make us holy but only the blood of Jesus Christ can do that work within us. But after having believed and receivied Christ's gift of salvation into our lives, we then make every effort to please the Lord in our conduct in our daily lives. Therefore the Lord calls us to conduct ourselves with our hearts filled with grace, mercy, love and purity as we go about our daily routines - the love and fear of the Lord as a background in everything we do.
The word "holy" implies sacredness, being set apart to God, and belonging to Him. To be holy is to be set free from anything that offends God who is completely and perfectly holy. The Bible teaches that we are called to holiness in 1 Peter 1: 14-16 where it says - as obedient children, not conforming yourselves to the former lusts, as in your ignorance; but as He who called you is holy, you also be holy in all your conduct, because it is written, “Be holy, for I am holy.” By the power of the Holy Spirit within us we receive power to say "no" to the evil that we used to serve before we came to Christ. It is a decision to yield oneself to God entirely - to actually give Him the authority in one's life. Through study of the Bible, we come to understand what it is that pleases Christ and then it becomes a matter of doing what the Bible teaches. God has set the standard as to what is qualifies as sin and so as a Christian we yield to His standards even when we do not fully understand His ways. As we yield to the Lords's ways, and consistantly resist the devil and the temptations that he throws at us, we find that God is our strength, our hope and joy and our constant companion and friend.
Holy living is important because God commands it but also because God is glorified when we allow Him to work in us. In this way we become a testimony to the power of God. When our friends and family see that we have only one real desire - a desire to please Christ - we become a witness to them. The Holy Spirit will use our witness to draw them to also desire to live a holy life pleasing to the Lord.
The Bible teaches and we believe that every human who has ever lived will stand at the judgement seat of Christ one day and give account of the life lived here. We are all looking for the day when we hear the words from the mouth of the Lord Jesus in that day - welcoming us home.....saying -
Matthew 25: 21 Well done, thou good and faithful servant: thou hast been faithful over a few things, I will make thee ruler over many things: enter thou into the joy of thy lord.
As we read and study our Bibles, we will find that the life of the Christian is very different from the life of a non-believer. This is largely due to the fact that as Christians, we have the Holy Spirit residing within us. The Holy Spirit nudges us to live pure and holy lives. Lives that will please the Lord Jesus Christ who has washed away our sin with His own blood which He shed on the cross. We understand that it is not our own righteous ways that make us holy but only the blood of Jesus Christ can do that work within us. But after having believed and receivied Christ's gift of salvation into our lives, we then make every effort to please the Lord in our conduct in our daily lives. Therefore the Lord calls us to conduct ourselves with our hearts filled with grace, mercy, love and purity as we go about our daily routines - the love and fear of the Lord as a background in everything we do.
The word "holy" implies sacredness, being set apart to God, and belonging to Him. To be holy is to be set free from anything that offends God who is completely and perfectly holy. The Bible teaches that we are called to holiness in 1 Peter 1: 14-16 where it says - as obedient children, not conforming yourselves to the former lusts, as in your ignorance; but as He who called you is holy, you also be holy in all your conduct, because it is written, “Be holy, for I am holy.” By the power of the Holy Spirit within us we receive power to say "no" to the evil that we used to serve before we came to Christ. It is a decision to yield oneself to God entirely - to actually give Him the authority in one's life. Through study of the Bible, we come to understand what it is that pleases Christ and then it becomes a matter of doing what the Bible teaches. God has set the standard as to what is qualifies as sin and so as a Christian we yield to His standards even when we do not fully understand His ways. As we yield to the Lords's ways, and consistantly resist the devil and the temptations that he throws at us, we find that God is our strength, our hope and joy and our constant companion and friend.
Holy living is important because God commands it but also because God is glorified when we allow Him to work in us. In this way we become a testimony to the power of God. When our friends and family see that we have only one real desire - a desire to please Christ - we become a witness to them. The Holy Spirit will use our witness to draw them to also desire to live a holy life pleasing to the Lord.
The Bible teaches and we believe that every human who has ever lived will stand at the judgement seat of Christ one day and give account of the life lived here. We are all looking for the day when we hear the words from the mouth of the Lord Jesus in that day - welcoming us home.....saying -
Matthew 25: 21 Well done, thou good and faithful servant: thou hast been faithful over a few things, I will make thee ruler over many things: enter thou into the joy of thy lord.
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