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Sermon Notes of Rev.Dr.I.J.W.Oakley (26-6-2001 Framsden Baptist Church)
The opening verses of 1 Thessalonians 4 are about how to live and please God –living in purity, showing brotherly love, and working for a living. But right in the heart of the passage is a fundamental principle. It is God’s will that you should be sanctified (1 Thessalonians 4:3). All that is before and after (to be dealt with later) is just illustration of this basic principle. Going to start today with looking at God’s holiness and ours. Another week we will look at the same verse again under the heading of how to live a godly life. Also need to give time to consider the subject of sin in the believer, since the Bible says far more about sin in God’s people than in unbelievers.
Holiness is a very important but much neglected theme in
Christian and evangelical world at present. An article in “The Ulster
Christian”, titled “Holiness – a forgotten theme”, suggested ten of the
most important subjects discussed by the average Christian. The list included
gifts, Bible versions, women’s ministry, eschatology, marriage, divorce and
church government. But holiness was not among them. The article posed the
questions “When did you last hear a sermon on holiness? When did you last hear
of a conference called to discuss holiness?” It is not exciting enough.
Alright for the Puritans and early Methodists, but not for modern twentieth
century Christian. Years ago there were fierce debates about holiness and about
the different schools of thought on the subject (Reformed, Keswick, Wesleyan).
But the subject is never mentioned now. When the subject of walking with God is
preached on, the response is often that people are not interested in that
subject nowadays, its not exciting enough, they are looking for excitement and
emotional thrills.
The obsession of the church has
become better methods. But God is concerned with better men. The Holy Spirit
does not flow through methods, but through men. He does not anoint plans, but
men. One of reasons for failure of Christians to make an impact is that their
lives are so little different from the rest of the world’s.
Men not excited about holiness but God is very excited about it. It is God’s will that we should be holy. It is possible to get into heaven with the wrong views on spiritual gifts, second coming, divorce, church government, but not without holiness. Without holiness no one will see the Lord (Hebrews 12:14). Salvation is by grace through faith. But grace and faith which do not lead to holiness are not New Testament grace and faith. Holiness follows true grace, as night follows day. It is the only real evidence of new birth.
“Hallow”, “sanctify”,
“holiness”, “saint” – all from same family of Greek words -agiaxw
agiasmos agios. Here is one
of the most misunderstood terms in Christian vocabulary. “Holy” people are
portrayed in stained glass windows, with pale and unhealthy faces, and halos
over the heads of feeble and emaciated bodies. People speak of them in hushed
tones. “Holy” people sought to be “holy” by wearing hair shirts and
other devices to ensure they do not find life too enjoyable. They were regarded
as holy because of they impractical ways of life, they never smiled, and they
knew nothing of the real world.
Yet Bible saints were not weak
and anaemic, but tough. They had sunburnt faces and were full of joy. They were
very human beings, mixing with all sorts of men and fully aware of all that was
going on in the world. Think of Elijah, John the Baptist, the Apostle Paul. To
them, holiness was attractive and not forbidding and inhumane. The greatest
saints down through church history were characterised, not by haloes and
inapproachability, but by their humanity. They were intensely human, with a
twinkle in their eye, a sense of humour.
The adjective, noun and verb in
Hebrew and in Greek are from the same root, meaning “set apart”,
“separated unto God”. When we are separated unto God, it leads to a life in
which we grow in grace, have victory over sin, a transformed nature, and renewal
of the image of God. His is the characteristic mark of every Christian, not just
the spiritual elite. We are all saints. There are no two standards in the
Christian church – it’s not a case of ministers and missionaries in one
category, with ordinary Christians in another – and deacons somewhere in
between. We are all saints, separated unto the Lord.
Be holy, because I am holy (1 Peter 1:15). It is God’s will that you should be sanctified (1 Thessalonians 4:3). For He chose us before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in his sight (Ephesians 1:4). Predestined to be conformed to the likeness of his son (Romans 8:29). Here is our supreme concern as Christians. Not happiness, but holiness. Happiness will come as a by-product. God has married holiness and happiness. The holiest is always the happiest.
We are to be holy because God is
holy, and because we are saved and in His family. He has chosen us to be His, He
wants us to be like Him. Through them you may participate in the divine
nature (2 Peter 1:4). Put on the new self, which is being renewed in
knowledge in the image of its creator (Colossians 3:10). God’s supreme aim
is to make us men and women like Himself, He wants to make us godly.
God’s holiness is referred to
more often than all of His other attributes put together. He is the “Holy One
of Israel”. God was separate from His creation, exalted above it, different
from us. No one can be compared with Him. Separate from sin is the main way He
is unlike us. My God, my Holy One… your eyes are too pure to look on evil;
you cannot tolerate wrong (Habakkuk 1:12,13). God’s holiness was His moral
perfection.
So God cannot compromise with
sin in any form. He requires conformity with His moral laws, i.e. ten
commandments. He requires purity in thought, word and deed. Men’s failure in
this leads to His wrath and judgment.
How do we react? First recognise
that God is supremely the Holy One. This is forgotten, in our haste to portray
Him as the God of love. But what of His holiness and other attributes? Exclusive
emphasis on love leads people to believe they can live as they like, speak as
they like, do as they like. They think they can still ask for His help and
blessing, and get very peeved with Him when He does not dance to their tune.
They convince themselves that at the end, we are all going to heaven, for there
is no hell - God is a god of love, after all.
The way Christians speak of God, live their lives, act in public worship, so often gives away how little they understand His holiness. Worship God acceptably with reverence and awe (Hebrews 12:28). Hallowed (sanctified) be your name (Matthew 6:9). This does not mean a slavish and cowering emotion, but a healthy attitude of awe and reverence. The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge (Proverbs 1:7), and so influences the way we live. To fear the Lord is to hate evil (Proverbs 8:13). He who fears the Lord has a secure fortress…. turning a man from the snares of death (Proverbs 14:26,27). Through the fear of the Lord a man avoids evil (Proverbs 16:6). To fear the Lord means to acknowledge His holiness, see the importance of His will, realization of our accountability to Him. When we are filled with confidence in our own ability, it is the complete antithesis of holiness. One of the marks of spiritual decline is when there is no fear of God before men’s eyes (Psalm 36:1).
From the moment we receive new
life from God in new birth, we are responsible to see that that new life grows.
We are set apart for God for His use, His glory and doing His will. Regeneration
leads to sanctification. Going to say more about this next time, but briefly,
this means we are committed to humbling ourselves before Lord, aware of our own
unworthiness. So we separate ourselves from all that is unworthy and sinful,
concerned to be like Him in thought, word and deed. Our lives will inevitably be
very and increasingly different from the people around us, who are under the
influence of the world, flesh and devil. We are being transformed into his
likeness with ever-increasing glory (2 Corinthians 3:18). As our faith in
and love to Christ increases, we see more and more in Him every day, and it is
our concern to please Him at home, at work and in His church.
Increased spirituality and
spiritual taste result. We prize the things of God more and more. Spiritual
conversation and companions. The ways of the world have less appeal to us. The
more conscious we are of the evil and sin in ourselves, the greater our sense of
humility and unworthiness. Old ways of behaviour and ways of looking at things
are replaced by new ones. God’s will, glory and purposes are the only things
that matter in life.
It does not mean we shall be perfect. We will never be beyond the need to confess sin and be cleansed in Christ’s blood. But there will be growth and development. And we will become increasingly useful to God, and pleasing to Him. These things are our responsibility. But how impossible! Sanctification drives us back on God’s resources. Abide in Christ (John 15:5). Christ lives in me (Galatians 2:20). I can do everything through Him who gives me strength (Philippians 4:13). Be filled with the Spirit (Ephesians 5:18). Suddenly these verses take on reality, and cease to be meaningless pious phrases. We are committed to one hundred per cent of me and one hundred per cent of God.
