What an amazing book!

· The Bible is a perfect book (Psalm 19:7 The law of the LORD is perfect, converting the soul: the testimony of the LORD is sure, making wise the simple.)

· The Bible is a preserved book (Psalm 12:6-7 The words of the LORD are pure words: as silver tried in a furnace of earth, purified seven times. Thou shalt keep them, O LORD, thou shalt preserve them from this generation for ever.)

· The Bible is a profitable book (2 Timothy 3:16 All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness:)

· The Bible is a prophetic book (2 Peter 1:21 For the prophecy came not in old time by the will of man: but holy men of God spake as they were moved by the Holy Ghost.)

· The Bible is a pure book (Proverbs 30:5 Every word of God is pure: he is a shield unto them that put their trust in him.)

· The Bible is a powerful book (Hebrews 4:12 For the word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any twoedged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.)

A good name

What do you do when a mysterious hand appears during your party and starts writing on the wall something that you don’t understand? Call the guy with a good testimony. Daniel was known for some things: an excellent spirit, knowledge, understanding, interpretation of dreams, showing of hard sentences, dissolving of doubts, having the Holy Spirit in him, and having light in him. When Belshazzar made the worst choice of his reign by defiling the gold and silver vessels from the temple of God, God sent him a message of his definite destruction. The king despaired when none of Babylon’s wisest men could discern the message. Then his wife told him of Daniel. Belshazzar called for Daniel and said to him in Daniel 5:14, “I have even heard of thee…” and then again in verse 16, “I have heard of thee…” Daniel was a great man of God, and he was even known as such to the pagan world. He had a good testimony.

This calls for some self-reflection. It is required of a bishop that he “have a good report of them which are without” (1 Timothy 3:7). Deacons, “likewise” (1 Timothy 3:8), are to be “men of honest report” (Acts 6:3). So as a man in the ministry, yes, I must have a good testimony. But just as Christian, we all need to. Proverbs 22:1 says, “A good name is rather to be chosen than great riches, and loving favour rather than silver and gold.” In Ecclesiastes 7:1 it says, “A good name is better than precious ointment…”

What are you known for?

The abominations we don’t talk about.

It is common as a Bible believer to hear a preacher comment on homosexuality. It is a subject quite pertinent to our times. The frequent commentary on the matter is, “It’s an abomination!” To which I say, “Amen!” Because the Scriptures do condemn the behavior as sinful and it is expressly called an abomination: Leviticus 18:22, Leviticus 20:13, Romans 1:26-27, 1 Corinthians 6:9. However, I wonder to myself why we so often elevate this sin above other sins that God has called an abomination. For example, sometimes Christians will tell “white lies”, and we don’t consider them to be that big of a deal. If we had the Lord’s heart on the matter we would hate it when our tongue tells a lie or when someone else lies: Proverbs 6:16-17 “These six things doth the LORD hate: yea, seven are an abomination unto him…a lying tongue…” Proverbs 12:22 “Lying lips are abomination to the LORD…” What about another abomination to the Lord, Proverbs 6:17 “A proud look…” Proverbs 16:5 “Every one that is proud in heart is an abomination to the LORD…” The Lord hates pride. He sure put Nebuchadnezzar through the ringer, and after He did, Nebuchadnezzar said, “…those that walk in pride he is able to abase.” Daniel 4:37.

Proverbs 8:13 “The fear of the LORD is to hate evil: pride, and arrogancy, and the evil way, and the froward mouth, do I hate.”

May we fear the Lord and may God give us a holy hatred for evil in all its forms! Both in our own lives, and in the lives of others. And may we always remember, too, that we are to hate the sin, not the sinner.

”But by the grace of God I am what I am…” 1 Corinthians 15:10

Someone Must Address The Problem

A man went to a town that was on the river, and he went to a restaurant that was right on the river. As he walked up to the river, he looked out over the river and a guy was fishing. While he was fishing, an alligator came up and just chomped the guys arm right off. The man was absolutely shocked as anyone would be, and so he ran up and said, “Are you alright?! That Alligator just ate your arm!” The other guy said, “What? What are you talking about?” The man responded, “Your arm! Remember you were casting with it and reeling with it and now it isn’t there anymore?” He responded, “What are you talking about my arm? I don’t know what you’re talking about.” The man was disturbed and he looked across the way and saw a man that was missing part of his leg. He walked into the restaurant and saw people all over the place with parts missing out of their side, backside, limbs, and they were scarred all over the place. It was obvious that they had been attacked by alligators. As the man walks into the restaurant he says, “Hey, what’s going on? We’ve got to get rid of these alligators.” Then someone responded, “Wait a second, we don’t talk about alligators in our culture. We’re just not allowed to talk about them. We just don’t cross that bridge. We don’t go there.” But he said, “But they’re destroying people.” They said, “Listen, we just do not talk about alligators here. We let people figure it out all on their own.”

Unfortunately, this parable I heard from Pastor Chris Chadwick describes so well a mentality that exists in Christianity today. This is very much what it is like when it comes to the topic of sex in local New Testament churches. It feels like if you bring up sexuality in any sense, the response is, “we just don’t talk about that here!” If not there, then where do we talk about it? I must be honest, in regards to that subject I learned most of what I know in two places: the boys locker room, and the bench of my little league baseball team. Sadly, the first time I was introduced to pornography was at a friend’s house in 6^th grade. This is not an uncommon story. If something does not happen, sexual education will continue to be promoted only through sources like Hollywood, television, public schools, locker rooms, little league benches, dirty magazines/websites, and any other means you can think of that won’t teach what the Bible says. My friends, something must be done.

Pornography, adultery, fornication, and lust are destroying lives everywhere. Youth, adults, singles, couples, homes, and churches are being affected by immorality. The Bible has a lot to say about sex and sexuality. It is time to stand up and address it. I believe that a biblical understanding of sex, and teaching what the Bible has to say about it would solve and prevent many problems in the lives of Christians. If you would like to learn a little more about some ways that the Bible addresses sexual purity, please read the post titled “Purity” from Tuesday, July 21st, 2009.

Purity

Ephesians 5:1-4
1 Be ye therefore followers of God, as dear children;
2 And walk in love, as Christ also hath loved us, and hath given himself for us an offering and a sacrifice to God for a sweetsmelling savour.
3 But fornication, and all uncleanness, or covetousness, let it not be once named among you, as becometh saints;
4 Neither filthiness, nor foolish talking, nor jesting, which are not convenient: but rather giving of thanks.

In the last article that I wrote, I discussed holiness. It would be very good if you would read that article before reading this one; it would give you a good foundation to understand what I will discuss here.

We are to be followers of God. As his children, we are called to a life of holiness. I want to discuss the idea of sexual sin. Fornication has been defined by some as any sexual relation before marriage. Adultery has been defined by some as any sexual relation with anyone but your spouse after marriage. The Word of God makes it clear that God has a plan for sex, and, as all good gifts come from Him, we know that sex is a gift from Him. His plan for sex is between one man and one woman in a marriage relationship for life. Along with many other areas, man has corrupted this beautiful relationship that God created for man and woman. Fornication, adultery, and lust are perversions of God’s perfect plan for sex. God’s commandment is that we would not allow these sings to even “be once named among” us. Why? Because that is what God expects of His saints. A saint is a holy one. The word for saint and the word for holy in the Spanish language is “santo”. Christians are saints. These perversions of sex should not even be allowed to be named among the saints. One important area of holiness in the life of a Christian is sexual purity. That means that we should clean our lives of filth like pornography, immoral relationships, and lust. The opposite of living in these sins is living in purity. The Word of God gives much practical help for purity in the life of a Christian.

Before I try to give some practical help on being pure, I want to challenge you with five things.

1. Have a biblical understanding of holiness, and your calling to be holy.

2. Do not blur the lines of what is sin and what is not sin. Admit that pornography, lust, and all forms of sexual relations outside of God’s plan are wrong. They are an offense to Him

3. Sin has a way of deceiving us into thinking that if we are in the dark or if we are alone, then our sin will not affect anyone. Don’t be fooled, the end of sin is death. Know that you are not alone; the Word of God says that His eyes are in every place beholding the evil and the good.

4. Confess your sin and forsake it. The Bible says that the blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanses us from all sin.

5. Commit to do what it takes to be pure, for the glory of God.

Here are some practical truths from the Word of God than can help the Christian with purity. I pray that they’ll be a blessing and a help to you.

A. Identify areas of struggle and eliminate them

Matthew 5:27-30
27 Ye have heard that it was said by them of old time, Thou shalt not commit adultery:
28 But I say unto you, That whosoever looketh on a woman to lust after her hath committed adultery with her already in his heart.
29 And if thy right eye offend thee, pluck it out, and cast it from thee: for it is profitable for thee that one of thy members should perish, and not that thy whole body should be cast into hell.
30 And if thy right hand offend thee, cut it off, and cast it from thee: for it is profitable for thee that one of thy members should perish, and not that thy whole body should be cast into hell.

I am not suggesting that you pluck out your eye or cut off your hand, but I would suggest the following. If you know that you struggle when you are alone, then try not to be alone. If you know that you struggle with the internet, then stop using the internet. If you know that movies cause you to struggle, then stop watching movies. If a boyfriend or a girlfriend is someone that causes you to struggle, then end that relationship. Don’t continue a friendship at work if it may lead to sin. If the mall or the beach are places where you struggle, then don’t go to either of them. If night time is a difficult time then replace whatever you would normally do with time in the Word of God and prayer. Fill your time with the Bible, prayer, and evangelism. Don’t leave your calendar open. Rid yourself of problem areas!

B. Don’t try to do this alone

Ecclesiastes 4:9-10
9 Two are better than one; because they have a good reward for their labour.
10 For if they fall, the one will lift up his fellow: but woe to him that is alone when he falleth; for he hath not another to help him up.

We are better together. God did not intend for His children to live this life alone. That is one reason why we have the local church. Christ purchased the church with His own blood; if He loved it that much, then we ought not to forsake the assembling of ourselves together. May we highly esteem the local church!

The national Redwood forest in northern California is home to the Giant Sequoia trees. These trees have undergone some of the most tremendous conditions and have survived them all. You name it; storms, lightning, time, and other adviersities…the sequoias have survived them all. Why is this? It is because what you see of the sequoias is not the whole story. Underground their roots grow deep and strong. This is not their secret either…their secret is that the roots of these massive trees link with the roots of one another. Underground you have a system of roots interconnected. Much like the sequoias, God has given us the local New Testament church to be connected with other believers. We are stronger with these relationships.

Accountability. Choose a spiritually mature Christian brother or sister of your same gender and ask them to hold you accountable to living pure. Go to coffee once a week and be honest and upfront with one another. Pray for one another. Hold one another accountable. Be faithful in this friendship. If the internet is one area that you struggle with then I would recommend a program like safe eyes that filters inappropriate websites. I also recommend a program called x3watch. X3watch is a free program that records questionable websites that you visit and sends them to the email of an accountability partner of your choice. Both of those programs are available here: www.x3watch.com

C. Do not flirt with sin, but flee from it

1 Corinthians 6:18-20
18 Flee fornication. Every sin that a man doeth is without the body; but he that committeth fornication sinneth against his own body.
19 What? know ye not that your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost which is in you, which ye have of God, and ye are not your own?
20 For ye are bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body, and in your spirit, which are God's.

2 Timothy 2:20-22
20 But in a great house there are not only vessels of gold and of silver, but also of wood and of earth; and some to honour, and some to dishonour.
21 If a man therefore purge himself from these, he shall be a vessel unto honour, sanctified, and meet for the master's use, and prepared unto every good work.
22 Flee also youthful lusts: but follow righteousness, faith, charity, peace, with them that call on the Lord out of a pure heart.

Notice that God’s Word does not say to “casually walk away from sin,” rather, it says to “FLEE” fornication and youthful lusts! That means that you are to turn and run from them! God gives us a tremendous example from the life of Joseph in His Word. When the temptation arose for Joseph to have an adulterous relationship with the wife of Potiphar (his master), here is what the Word of God says happened:

Genesis 39:12
And she caught him by his garment, saying, Lie with me: and he left his garment in her hand, and fled, and got him out.

Joseph knew that to have sex with Potiphar’s wife would have been a grave sin, so when she tried to force him he ran! He got out of there! May we follow Joseph’s example and flee fornication and youthful lusts.

D. Make no provision for the flesh

Romans 13:13-14
13 Let us walk honestly, as in the day; not in rioting and drunkenness, not in chambering and wantonness, not in strife and envying.
14 But put ye on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make not provision for the flesh, to fulfil the lusts thereof.

This point is directly related to identifying areas of struggle and eliminating them. It is important that we understand our flesh and its propensity towards sin. Paul said, “Who shall deliver me from this body of death?” Our flesh is at enmity with God. It does not want to live for Him and according to His Word. Our flesh would rather indulge in carnal, or fleshly, pleasures. Sexual sins are examples of fleshly pleasures. Do not make provision in areas where your flesh will say, “I want that!” Because more times than not, in your weakness, you will give the flesh what it wants, even if you know it’s wrong. The Word of God commands us to walk in the Spirit, and it says that when we do we will not fulfil the lusts of the flesh.

It is not uncommon to hear a teen ask a question like this one, “How far can I go with my boyfriend/girlfriend and not sin?” Often times older Christians have a similar mentality. Do not ask how close you can get to sin, but rather try to live as far from it as possible! One man said, “Why do you want to see how close you can get to Hell without falling in?” Do not make any provision for your flesh.

There was a king in an ancient land who was dissatisfied with his chariot driver. He decided to have a contest to find the best charioteer in the land to be his new driver. The contest ended with three finalists. The king decided how to find which driver was the best. He explained to the drivers that each of them would have a chance to drive him personally in a chariot for the final test. The driver would go full speed towards the edge of a cliff and stop; the driver who stopped closest to the cliff would be the winner. The first driver took off at full speed and stopped within 10 feet of the cliff. The king was impressed. The second driver took off also at full speed and stopped within 5 feet of the cliff. The king was very impressed. The time came for the third driver to have his try and he said, “Your highness, I would not dare get near that cliff, your life is too precious and dear to our people to jeopardize it in any way.” The king was astonished at this man’s wisdom and chose him as his new chariot driver.

May we treasure our purity like that charioteer. Please understand that our mentality should not be to see how close we can get to sinning without actually sinning. May we stay far from any wickedness and live holy lives for our great God and Saviour, Jesus Christ.

In conclusion, please think over these truths again. Have a biblical understanding of holiness and your calling to be holy. Do not blur the lines or what is or what is not sin. Know that the eyes of the Lord are in every place. Confess sin and forsake it. Make a whole-hearted commitment to be pure for the glory of God. Identify areas of struggle in your life and eliminate them. Do not try to live a pure life alone; depend on God and others. Don’t flirt with sin, but, rather, flee from it. Do not make provision for your flesh. Stay as far from sin as you can. May God help you and me to live pure lives for His honour and glory.