Hope and Holiness

Morning everybody. I want to thank the elders for giving me this invite.

It's a real honor to be able to preach at JJ's church. For those of you who are playing hooky from 1st

Baptist, this is a sermon that you should be familiar with. I preached it a couple of months ago, but I did change it just enough so that hopefully you'll be blessed and be encouraged.

So let's just take a moment to go to the Lord in prayer. Heavenly Father, we thank you for the privilege of being able to open up your word.

We thank you, Lord, that you have done such a great work in each one of our lives. And we pray that as we continue our worship that we would keep you first and foremost in our thinking.

We pray, Lord, that you would guide us and lead us in your truth. Thank you, Lord. In Jesus' name, amen.

Knowledge of God's truth, our knowledge of the scriptures, our knowledge of sound doctrine can be potentially condemning and even dangerous if it is not accompanied by practice.

Orthodoxy, right practice, or right doctrine, should result in orthopraxy, which is right practice.

In other words, as we contemplate, understand, and behold the great truths of the scriptures, the application of those truths, the practice of those truths, must necessarily follow.

Charles Spurgeon remarked, "...all the doctrines of God's Word may readily be turned to good and practical account if we are willing to employ them.

Those who regard doctrine as simply a subject for debate, an opportunity for displaying one's argumentative powers, miss the mark altogether.

For we are taught the truth in order that it may lead us to holiness of life."

In other words, as we learn, as we contemplate and understand the great truths of the scriptures, the effect of those truths should produce in us righteousness, faithfulness, and holiness.

This means that anytime you read, hear, or study the scriptures, you need to contemplate and ask yourself certain questions.

What specific action does this truth require me to accomplish? How should this truth influence my thinking?

How should it influence my perspective, my outlook? How should this truth influence my daily walk in this world?

In light of this truth, what is it that the Lord God expects and requires me to do?

In the book of 1 Peter, specifically chapter 1, verses 1 to 12, there are some marvelous and encouraging truths that are recorded.

In these verses we learn that the Lord God has elected us to salvation according to His foreknowledge in the sanctification of the

Spirit for obedience to Jesus Christ. By His great mercy, the

Lord God has caused us to be born again to an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading.

And this inheritance is entirely secure. It is reserved for us in heaven.

And we too, by the Lord God's power, are being guarded through faith for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time.

And in these things, in these things we are to rejoice. Even though for a little while we are plagued and grieved with various trials and sufferings, but these various trials and sufferings are necessary, for these prove the authenticity of our faith.

Various trials and various sufferings test our faith, just as a fire tests the authenticity and the quality of gold.

And though we have not seen Him, we love Him. Though we do not see Him now, we believe in Him and we rejoice with a joy that is inexpressible and full of glory, obtaining the outcome of our faith, the salvation of our souls.

Therefore, in light of all these encouraging and tremendous truths, what does the

Lord God require? Please turn with me to 1 Peter 1.

Our text this morning is verses 13 through 16. This passage addresses our response to the marvelous truths of our great salvation.

1 Peter 1, 13 through 16. And this is in the ESV. Therefore, preparing your minds for action and being sober minded, set your hope fully on the grace that will be brought to you at the revelation of Jesus Christ.

As obedient children, do not be conformed to the passions of your former ignorance, but as He who called you is holy, you also be holy in all your conduct.

Since it is written, you shall be holy for I am holy. These verses mark a dramatic shift in thought.

In 1 Peter 1, verses 1 to 12, all of the verbs are in the indicative mood, meaning they state fact.

But beginning in verse 13, the verbs shift to the imperative mood, meaning they make commands.

So the facts have been stated, verses 1 to 12, and now comes the command.

Salvation has been described and now comes the duty and the responsibility of those who have received this great salvation.

There are two imperatives, two commands in verses 13 through 16. Let's look at each one in more detail.

1 Peter 1, 13. Therefore, preparing your minds for action and being sober -minded, set your hope fully on the grace that will be brought to you at the revelation of Jesus Christ.

In light of our great salvation, the first command is to set your hope.

To those who have received the Lord Jesus Christ, you must set your hope fully on the grace that will be brought to you at the revelation of Jesus Christ.

Well what does this phrase mean, set your hope? It means to fix. It means to settle.

It means to confidently look forward. It means to rest the full weight of your hope entirely, completely, and unfalteringly upon the grace that will be brought to you at the revelation of Jesus Christ.

This is not a faltering, flimsy, or emotional hope, but a confident, strong assurance of certainty.

I will set my hope because I am absolutely certain of the object of my hope.

In other words, not only is it a strong and certain belief, it is also an action that corresponds or coincides with the belief.

It is a hope that results in action. In light of our great salvation, our first responsibility is to live in hope.

Well, what is hope? Hope is an attitude. Hope is an attitude regarding the future.

Hope is believing in the word of the Lord God. Hope is trusting in the word of the

Lord God. Hope is actually very similar to faith. Well, what's the difference?

What's the difference between hope and faith? One commentator remarked, faith is trusting

God for the present, hope is trusting God for the future. Both are trusting

God. To put it another way, faith accepts, hope expects.

Faith appropriates, and hope anticipates. Faith believes

God for what He has done, and hope believes God for what He is going to do.

And what is it that the Lord God is going to do? What are we to set our hope upon?

Beloved, we are to set our hope fully on the grace that will be brought at the revelation of Jesus Christ.

Our hope is to be set on the future grace of God. Our hope is to be set on the return of the

Lord Jesus Christ, when our faith and our hope will become a reality. At His return, the

Lord Jesus Christ will pour His blessings out upon us, and we will obtain the outcome of our faith, the salvation of our souls.

Titus chapter 2, verses 11 to 14, for the grace of God has appeared, bringing salvation for all people, training us to renounce ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self -controlled, upright, and godly lives in the present age.

Verse 13, waiting for our blessed hope, the appearing of the glory of our great

God and Savior, Jesus Christ, who gave Himself for us to redeem us from all lawlessness, and to purify for Himself a people for His own possession, who were zealous for good works.

This is a very common theme throughout the scriptures, but especially in the book of 1st

Peter. Eight times in this short epistle, Peter reminds his readers to look past their current circumstances, to look past the difficulty that they face, and to look to the future.

The future revelation of the Lord Jesus Christ, the salvation of your souls, the day of visitation, the end of all things, when

His glory is revealed and when the Chief Shepherd will appear. Beloved, stop looking at the world around you and look to the end.

Set your hope on the Lord Jesus Christ. Fix your hope on the Lord Jesus Christ.

Securely rest in His Word, in His promises, in His return,

His reign, and live your life as if these truths are a present reality.

Far too often, we set our hope on temporal things. Far too often, we set our hope on momentary things, fleeting things, things that are passing, and then we expect that these transient things will give us fulfillment, will give us lasting joy.

Far too often, we expect that the things in this world will provide us with satisfaction, gratification, and contentment.

But remember, all of the things in the world are temporal. All of these things will perish.

All of these things will fade away. It is only when we set our hope fully on the grace that will be ours that we will be immune to the suffering, the difficulties, and the losses of this life.

Beloved, set your hope fully on the grace that will be brought to you at the revelation of Jesus Christ.

In light of our great salvation, this is the Lord God's command. Well, how do

I live this truth out in my life? How do I set my hope on the grace that will be brought at the revelation of Jesus Christ?

Peter gives us two ways. Therefore, preparing your minds for action and being sober -minded, set your hope fully on the grace that will be brought to you at the revelation of Jesus Christ.

The way to set our hope on the grace that will be brought at the revelation of Jesus Christ is to prepare your minds for action.

The term preparing is an interesting word. It means to gird up. It means to cinch up.

It means to tie down. Gird up, cinch up, tie down your thinking, your reasoning, and your thoughts.

Prepare your mind for action. In ancient times, men often wore long outer robes, which made it very difficult to move freely.

And it was very easy to get tripped up and to stumble over their outer garment. The fix was a belt that they would use to tuck in their robes.

The corners of the robe would be pulled up through the belt and cinched down. And this freed up their legs and made their movements more easy and free.

In Exodus chapter 12, this term was used when the Lord God told the Israelites that He was going to deliver them from their bondage in Egypt.

The Lord God gave them specific instructions to prepare them for their deliverance.

And speaking of the Passover Supper, Exodus 12 verse 11, in this manner you shall eat it with your belt fastened, sandals on your feet, and your staff in your hand.

And you shall eat it in haste, it is the Lord's Passover. In other words,

Israel, you need to be prepared and you need to be ready. You need to be prepped and equipped to move at a moment's notice.

So tie up those robes, fasten those belts, put on your sandals, grab your staff, and wait in readiness.

Peter applies this principle to the mind. He applies this principle to our thinking.

Peter is saying, gird up the loins of your mind and prepare your minds for action.

Cinch it up, tuck it in, and tie it down. Do not get caught unprepared, but be ready to move and wait in readiness.

In other words, don't let your mind, don't let your thoughts, don't let your thinking be open and free to any and every influence.

Do not be tossed to and fro by human cunning, by craftiness and deceitful schemes.

Do not let your thoughts be seduced by false doctrines, false teachers, false ideologies.

Instead, pull in all those loose ends and anchor them, secure them, fix them firmly in position.

Nail down your thoughts, nail down your thinking. 2

Corinthians 10 .5, we destroy arguments and every lofty opinion raised up against the knowledge of God and take every thought captive to obey

Christ. Beloved, our thoughts are not to be held captive by selfish and temporal desires.

Our thoughts are not to be held captive by worldly arguments or worldly opinions.

Our thoughts are not to be held captive by anything that contradicts the knowledge of God. Rather, we must take every thought captive, captive to obey the

Lord Jesus Christ. Do you take your thoughts captive?

Do you interrogate your thoughts? Do you examine your thoughts and seek to ascertain their origin?

This is a discipline that every believer must partake in. Every thought must be taken captive and every thought must be examined in the light of the scriptures, in light of the truth of God, in light of the character of God.

Do you ever have negative thoughts about yourself? Do you ever feel that life is not worth living?

Do you ever feel that you're a failure? Do you ever feel like you're worthless? Do you ever feel like you're a waste of space?

Take each one of these thoughts and tie them down one by one.

Examine, study, and dissect them. Is this a good thought or is this a harmful thought?

Is this thought from the Lord God or is it from the adversary? Does this thought line up with the will of God?

Does it line up with the truth of God or is this thought contrary to the word, will, and character of the

Lord God? Will dwelling on this thought progress and enhance my relationship with the

Lord God or will it hinder and retard my relationship with the Lord God?

Will this thought make me more like Christ or will it make me more like the world?

Philippians 4 .8. Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is of good repute, if there is any excellence and if anything worthy of praise, think about these things.

Beloved, the reason why so many Christians struggle in their circumstances, the reason why so many

Christians struggle in their walk with the Lord God is because their minds are not prepared for action.

And rather than setting their hope on the grace that is to come, they often look to a lost and secular world to help them in their spiritual need.

Rather than the truth, their minds are filled with wrong thoughts, wrong perceptions, and pragmatic solutions that contradict the revealed knowledge of the

Lord God. And these wrong thoughts, wrong perceptions, and pragmatic solutions become a stronghold.

These become a stronghold for the adversary to launch his attacks. Well, I can't do it.

It can't be done. It just doesn't work. What's the point? I've tried everything.

There's just no way to solve this problem. There's no way to save this marriage. There's no way to reconcile this relationship.

There's no way I can make peace. I just can't forgive them. There's nothing else that I can do.

It's a hopeless situation. If you hear a Christian saying these types of things, you can be sure that their mind was not prepared.

And they did not take their thoughts captive to obedience to Christ. Rather, they allowed the adversary a stronghold.

The hope to which Peter refers will never become a reality in your life without disciplined and ordered thinking.

Beloved, your thoughts will determine your actions. What you think about, what you dwell upon, what you consider and contemplate will determine how you live your life.

Proverbs 23, 7, for as he thinks in his heart, so he is.

Martin Luther, the inspiration behind Lutherpalooza, said you can't keep the birds from flying over your head, but you can keep them from making a nest in your hair.

In your thinking, you must be disciplined. You must guard. You must protect.

You must secure your thinking. Every one of your thoughts must be taken captive and lined up to the truth of the

Scriptures. To prepare your minds for action, you must rid your mind of everything that violates the truth of God.

You must rid your mind of everything that violates the will of God. And you must fill your mind with the truth of the

Scriptures. In Bunyan's Pilgrim's Progress, which is an allegorical story of Christian's journey in this world, the main character

Christian encounters Mr. Worldly Wise Man. And Mr. Worldly Wise Man counsels

Christian to travel to the village of Morality to meet with a man called

Legality, who is said to be able to ease Christian from his great burden. And Bunyan writes, when

Christians unto carnal men give ear, out of their way they go and pay for it dear.

For Master Worldly Wise Man can but show a saint the way to bondage and to woe.

Beloved, you need to rid yourself and get yourself untangled from the so -called wisdom of this world.

You need to get yourself untangled from the philosophies of this world. Make a deliberate and volitional choice and commit to live your life in the reality of the grace that is to come.

Prepare your minds for action. The second way to set your hope on the grace that will be brought to you at the revelation of Jesus Christ, 1

Peter 1 .13, therefore preparing your minds for action and being sober -minded.

You set your hope on the future grace of the Lord God by preparing your minds for action and by being sober -minded.

Well, what does it mean to be sober -minded? Well, what is the opposite of being sober? The opposite of being sober is being drunk.

The opposite of a sober mind is a drunk and intoxicated mind. Being sober -minded is descriptive of someone free from drunkenness or free from the effects of any other intoxicant.

It refers to someone who does not live according to his passions, who does not live in a state of excess or a state of overindulgence.

A sober mind is a clear thinking mind. It means that your thoughts are disciplined.

It means that you are restrained, self -controlled, and temperate in your thinking. The sober -minded are not subject to the whims and the corrupting influences of the world.

The sober -minded are steadfast and circumspect. The sober -minded walk wisely in this world.

To be sober -minded means that you are mentally alert and discerning. Rash judgments are not made, but all things are lined up with the truth of the scriptures.

The sober -minded do not look to the world but to the rule and counsel of the

Lord God. The sober -minded will not be influenced by the world, by the majority, or by those who hold the greatest sway.

Rather, the sober -minded will prayerfully and thoughtfully make decisions based upon the truth of the

Lord God, not upon popular opinion. Peter uses this same word later on in his epistle in 1

Peter 5 .8. He says, be sober -minded, be watchful.

Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion seeking someone to devour.

If an actual lion were roaming the halls of your home, it would be exceedingly unwise to get drunk and roam the halls.

It would be exceedingly unwise to dull your senses and dim your wit. If an actual lion was on the loose, you would be alert and you would be on the lookout.

You would be watchful for yourself, for your family, and anyone else who was there.

You would take every precaution so that no one would be injured or worse, devoured.

It's important to remember the context of this letter, 1 Peter. The recipients of this letter are described as elect exiles.

Well, why does Peter refer to them as elect exiles? Well, Peter is reminding his readers of their status.

In this world, Christians are the strangers. Christians are the aliens. Christians are the foreigners and the sojourners.

In this world, we are the ones who do not belong. Our citizenship is not on earth.

Our citizenship is in heaven. But until then, we continue to live in dangerous and hostile territory.

Our entire lives are lived behind enemy lines, in enemy territory. And the enemy is always on the prowl.

The enemy is actively seeking to devour and destroy. So to live in a state of spiritual drunkenness, to live according to one's passions, not with a prepared mind, not in control of one's thoughts, not in control of one's emotions and passions, is to live with a giant bullseye on your back.

Easy pickings for the enemy of our souls. Spiritual drunkenness will dull you to the greatness of your salvation.

It will dull your mind and your thinking. And through carelessness and the distraction and allurements of the world, it will lull you into a drowsy sleep.

And you will lose sight of the great grace that will be brought to you at the revelation of Jesus Christ.

If you set your mind on the temporal, on the momentary, on the earthly desires and riches of this world, then you will never be fully able to set your hope on the future grace that is to come.

All throughout the scriptures, this theme is repeated again and again.

Romans 8, 18, For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worth comparing with the glory that is to be revealed to us.

2 Corinthians 4, 16 through 18, So we do not lose heart, though our outer man is wasting away, our inner man is being renewed day by day.

For this light momentary affliction is preparing for us an eternal weight of glory far beyond all comparison, as we look not to the things that are seen, but to the things that are not seen.

For the things that are seen are transient, but the things that are unseen are eternal. Colossians 1,

Colossians 3, verses 1 to 3, If then you've been raised up with Christ, keep seeking the things above where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God.

Set your minds on things that are above, not on things that are on the earth.

For you have died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God. Beloved, you cannot consider the sufferings of this present time not worth comparing to the glory that is to be revealed without clear and lucid thinking.

You cannot look past the temporary and transient things of this world to the eternal without a clear and sober mind.

You cannot seek the things above where Christ is without setting your hope fully on the grace that will be brought to you at the revelation of Jesus Christ.

Therefore, beloved, keep your head up. Look alive.

Look alert. Be watchful. Keep your eyes fixed on the

Lord Jesus Christ. In light of our great salvation, set your hope fully on the grace that will be brought to you at the revelation of Jesus Christ by preparing your minds for action and by being sober -minded.

The second imperative, the second command, is the command to be holy.

In light of our great salvation, we are to be holy. 1

Peter 1, 14 through 16. As obedient children, do not be conformed to the passions of your former ignorance, but as he who called you is holy, you also be holy in all your conduct.

Since it is written, you shall be holy, for I am holy. Setting your hope on the grace that will be brought to you at the revelation of Jesus Christ by preparing your mind for action and by being sober -minded means that you will strive to live a righteous and holy life.

It means that you will strive and discipline yourself to put off sin and to walk in obedience to the

Lord God in submission to his will. It's interesting that walking in hope and walking in holiness are often linked closely together in the scriptures.

1 John 3. Beloved, we are God's children now, and what we will be has not yet appeared, but we know that when he appears, we shall be like him, because we shall see him as he is, and everyone who thus hopes in him purifies himself as he is pure.

As children of God, we have a sure and certain hope. We know that when he appears, we shall be like him.

We know that when he appears, our faith will become sight, and it is this certainty, the certainty of our glorious future that should motivate us to live righteous and holy lives now in the present.

The fruit of hope is a pure life. The fruit of hope is holiness.

Everyone who thus hopes in him purifies himself as he is pure.

Leviticus 20 .26. You shall be holy to me, for I am the Lord. I am holy, and I have separated you from the peoples that you should be mine.

2 Corinthians 7 .1. Since we have these promises, beloved, let us cleanse ourselves from every defilement of body and spirit, bringing holiness to completion in the fear of God.

Hebrews 12 .14. Strive for peace with everyone, and strive for the holiness without which no one will see the

Lord. To be holy means to be set apart from the world and to live like the one whose image we bear.

To be holy means to be like God, to be without sin, to be without spot, to be without blemish. Well, how is this possible?

How can I possibly be without spot and without blemish? How can

I be holy when I struggle every day with sin? Turn with me briefly to John chapter 13.

There is a principle in this passage that sheds quite a bit of light on these questions.

John 13 verses 3 to 10. Jesus, knowing that the

Father had given all things into his hands and that he had come from God and was going back to God, rose from supper.

He laid aside his outer garments and, taking a towel, tied it around his waist. Then he poured water into a basin and began to wash the disciples' feet and to wipe them with the towel that was wrapped around him.

He came to Simon Peter, who said to him, Lord, do you wash my feet? Jesus answered him,

What I am doing now, you do not understand, but afterward you will understand.

Peter said to him, You shall never wash my feet. Jesus answered him,

If I do not wash you, you have no share with me. Simon Peter said to him,

Lord, not my feet only, but also my hands and my head. Jesus said to him,

The one who has bathed does not need to wash, except for his feet, but is completely clean.

And you are clean, but not every one of you. In this passage, a distinction is made between a bath and the basin.

At the time of your salvation, you are bathed. You are cleansed.

You are sanctified. You're set apart. You're made holy. Before the

Lord God, you are considered clean. You are considered without spot and without blemish because you are clothed in the righteous robes of Christ.

Positionally, you are holy because you are in Christ. But as we live and walk in this world, we continue to sin.

But you don't need to bathe again. What you need is the basin. You need to wash your feet.

You need daily cleansing from sin. Through the washing of the word, through confession of sin, the

Lord God cleanses us from all unrighteousness. And the goal of the

Christian life is for our practice to mirror our position. Our conduct is to mirror our creed.

Our action is to mirror our knowledge of the truth, who we are in Christ Jesus.

Our behavior and our beliefs must be inseparable. Positionally, before the

Lord God, we are holy. We are clean. And thus, practically, in our daily lives, we must also strive to be holy and clean and to live holy and clean lives.

Well, how do we do this? Peter answers in verse 14, as obedient children, do not be conformed to the passions of your former ignorance.

The phrase, do not conform, means to form according to a pattern or mold.

It means to fashion alike. It means to fit into the same outward pattern.

It means to mold one's behavior with a particular pattern or set of standards.

Christians are not to conform to the passions of their former ignorance.

Christians are not to conform to the habits and practice that characterize them before salvation.

Christians are no longer to be fashioned and molded by selfish and sinful pursuits.

Paul expresses this same thought in the book of Romans and in the book of Ephesians. Romans 12, 1 and 2,

I appeal to you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship.

Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.

In Ephesians 4, 17, now this I say and testify in the Lord, that you must no longer walk as the

Gentiles do in the futility of their minds. They are darkened in their understanding.

They are alienated from the life of God because of the ignorance that is in them due to the hardness of their hearts.

They have become callous and have given themselves up to sensuality, greedy to practice every kind of impurity, but that is not the way you learned

Christ. So how can I pursue holiness? By not conforming to the world, by no longer living in darkness, by no longer walking as the world walks, by no longer living in the futility of the mind, by no longer walking in ignorance.

Beloved, do not be conformed to the sinful standard that was yours prior to your salvation, but rather live according to the holy standard that was set by the

Lord God. As He who called you is holy, 1 Peter 1, 15 and 16, you also be holy in all your conduct, since it is written, you shall be holy for I am holy.

Beloved, the Lord God is the one and only standard. The Lord God is our benchmark.

The Lord God is the only rule by which each one of us must be measured. Matthew 5, 48, you therefore must be perfect as your heavenly

Father is perfect. The Lord our God is holy, holy, holy. As His children in our thoughts and in our conduct, we too must strive to be like Him.

We must strive to turn from our sin and turn to the Lord Jesus Christ.

We must strive to put sin to death, to mortify the deeds of the flesh, and to consider ourselves dead to sin and alive to God in Christ Jesus.

Peter is essentially saying that the great pursuit of our lives should be holiness. Even in the seemingly mundane and ordinary activities of everyday life, we are to strive to be holy.

You shall be holy for I am holy. Let me just close with some very practical help.

This is one of my favorite passages. I preach this numerous times at our church.

Ephesians 4, 22 through 23. Ephesians 4, 22 to 24.

Put off your old self, which belongs to your former manner of life and is corrupt through deceitful desires, and be renewed in the spirit of your minds, and put on the new self, created after the likeness of God in true righteousness and holiness.

In your pursuit of holiness, if you want to be conformed, not to this world, but to the

Lord God, here's the formula. You put off the old self, you be renewed in the spirit of your mind, and you put on the new self.

Put off the old self, lay aside the old self. The old self is concerned with one thing, pleasing self.

The old self is conformed to the passions of your former ignorance, thus it has no place in your life.

It must be put off, and in its place, you put on the new self.

The new self is also concerned with one thing, not pleasing self, but pleasing the

Lord God. The new self is being conformed to the image of the Lord Jesus Christ.

Thus, put on the attitudes and put on the actions of the Lord Jesus Christ. Well, how do we put off and how do we put on?

Ephesians 4, 23, by being renewed in the spirit of our minds.

In other words, as we behold the scriptures, as we hear them, as we read them, as we study them, as we memorize them, as we meditate upon them, as we sing them, the

Holy Spirit illuminates and convicts and instructs us in the truth, so that we are able to apply it and we are able to walk in obedience to it.

By the power of the Spirit, we put off the old man with his evil practices, with his evil passions, and we replace it with the new man, with new practices and new passions that please, honor, and glorify the

Lord God. Paul gives us an exceedingly helpful example of how to apply these truths in our lives.

In Ephesians 4, verse 25, he writes, therefore, having put away falsehood, let each one of you speak the truth with his neighbor, for we are members one of another.

What's the put off? Falsehood. What's the put on? Truth. Ephesians 4, 28, let the thief no longer steal, but rather let him labor doing honest work with his own hands, so that he may have something to share with anyone in need.

What's the put off? Theft. What's the put on? Hard work and sharing.

Ephesians 4, 29, let no corrupting talk come out of your mouths, but only such as is good for building up, as fits the occasion that it may give grace to those who hear.

What's the put off? Corrupting talk. What's the put on? Edifying talk, talk that encourages, talk that builds up.

In Ephesians 4, 31, we are commanded to put off bitterness, wrath, anger, slander, clamor, along with all malice.

In Ephesians 4, 32, we are commanded to put on kindness, tenderness, forgiveness, as God in Christ forgave you.

This is the formula for how to grow in holiness. This is

God's formula for you to grow in holiness. Put off, put on, and be renewed in the spirit of your mind.

Beloved, what sin is it that is a particular plague to you? What specific sin is hindering you in your walk with God?

Is it anger, irritation, or impatience? Is it envy, jealousy, or bitterness?

Is it pride? Is it self -reliance? Is it selfishness? Is it a lack of faith?

Is it a love of the world? Is it a love of the things in the world? Beloved, whatever sin it may be, you must go to the scriptures, and you must be renewed in the spirit of your mind, and whatever sin it might be, you put it off by putting on something new.

Change is that simple. Put off the old man, put on the new, and be renewed in the spirit of your minds.

Do not be conformed to your old habits. Do not be conformed to your old practices or the passions of your former ignorance.

Rather, be conformed to the Lord Jesus Christ. Set your hope on the

Lord Jesus Christ. Set your hope on the grace that will be brought to you at the revelation of Jesus Christ.

J. C. Ryle wrote this, look to anything of your own, and you will never feel comfortable.

Your own life and doing, your own church going, and sacrament receiving, your own

Bible reading and your prayers, your own almsgiving and your charities, what are they all but a huge mass of imperfection?

Rest on nothing but Christ crucified and the atonement he made for you on Calvary.

Beloved, in light of our great salvation, in light of our great salvation, set your hope fully on the grace that will be brought to you at the revelation of Jesus Christ, the appearing of the glory of our great

God and Savior Jesus Christ, and prepare your minds for action.

Be sober -minded. Pursue holiness. Put off, put on, and be renewed in the spirit of your mind.

Look to the Lord Jesus Christ alone, and be holy in all your behavior.

Because it is written, you shall be holy, for I am holy.

Let's pray. Lord God, even as I preach this message, my sin is ever before me.

Lord, I confess my pride, my self -reliance, my selfishness, and Lord, I thank you so much that the

Lord Jesus Christ did away with all those things, and that positionally I am now in Christ Jesus, and I no longer identify with those sins that once plagued me, but I identify with the risen

Christ. I thank you so much for this great salvation, and that one day,

Lord, I will be like you. I will be free from this body of sin, and Lord, to that day,

I eagerly look, and Lord, until then, I pray that I would put the work in, that I would discipline myself for the purpose of godliness, that I would pursue holiness, that I would work out my salvation with fear and trembling, knowing, knowing that it is you who are working in me.

Lord, I thank you that I belong to you, that I am your child, and Lord, I pray for each person here that we would pursue holiness, that we would see that the pursuit of anything else is a pursuit of vanity.

It is a pursuit of emptiness. So, Lord, I pray that these words, your words, would encourage us to put sin to death in our lives, and to pursue righteousness and holiness, to pursue the pattern that the

Lord Jesus Christ gave us. Lord, in the power of your Spirit, we pray that we would follow you.