Separation From the World (Part 1) — Dale Gish

Hello, this is Brother Denny. Welcome to Charity Ministries. Our desire is that your life would be blessed and changed by this message. This message is not copyrighted and is not to be bought or sold.

You are welcome to make copies for your friends and neighbors. If you would like additional messages, please go to our website for a complete listing at www .charityministries .org. If you would like a catalog of other sermons, please call 1 -800 -227 -7902 or write to Charity Ministries, 400 West Main Street, Suite 1, AFPA, 17522.

These messages are offered to all without charge by the freewill offerings of God's people. A special thank you to all who support this ministry.

The Power and Authority of the Word of God

How much power is there in the Word of God? Did you ever meditate on that? As it has been translated into the English language, there are three things that can accurately be called the Word of God. The first thing that can accurately be called the Word of God is the word that God speaks.

The words that come out of His mouth. The spoken Word of God. Powerful Word. I mean, the entire universe as we know it. All of the heavens and the earth came into existence out of nothing by the power of the spoken Word of God.

God said, let there be light. And there was no sun. There was no moon. There were no stars, but there was light because God spoke and it was so. Isaiah says, His Word that goeth forth from His mouth will not return to Him void.

Never! Powerful, spoken Word of God. The second thing that can accurately be called the Word of God, according to the Scriptures, is Jesus Christ. The Son of God. The Living Word. John says of Him that in the beginning was the Word.

And the Word was with God. And the Word was God. And then he says that the Word was made flesh and dwelt among us. That's Jesus Christ. And in Revelation chapter 9, it says of Him, Jesus, as He was riding a white horse, it says that His eyes were as a flame of fire.

And on His head were many crowns. And He was wearing a vesture dipped in blood. And He said that He had a name written. And it says that His name was called the Word of God. That's Jesus Christ. The Living Word.

And the third thing that can accurately be called the Word of God is the Bible. The written Word of God. The spoken Word. The Living Word. And the written Word are all the Word of God. And they are equal in power and in authority.

And folks, do you realize the category that that puts this book in? Do you realize the power that there is backing up everything that this book says? Do you realize the authority that this book has over your life?

Reading Scripture as Children, Not Lawyers

And there are people who read this book like a lawyer. They bring this thing all the way down to man's level and they read it like a lawyer. So-called Christians do that. And I'm going to tell you today that that's not all out there somewhere.

I see some of that coming in right here among us. Do you know how you read this book like a lawyer? Well, if something is spelled out and it's perfectly clear, then you do it. If it's not spelled out and perfectly clear, then you don't have to do it.

That is the way a lawyer reads anything. If it isn't specific, clearly defined to the letter and stated, then you have no obligation. That's the way the courts of the land operate. Let me give you an example.

Jesus said you ought to wash one another's feet. Now, to a lawyer, hey, you have liberty. You can take it or you can leave it because it's not binding. But to a child who wants to obey his father, that thing is a direct commandment.

I don't care if we understand it or not. So how you read this book. The condition of your heart when you read this book. As a lawyer or as a child is going to have everything to do with how you apply it to your everyday life.

This book was not written to make lawyers out of anyone. The author of this book is not a lawyer. He's a father. The author and finisher of our faith in this book is not a lawyer. He's a Savior. The Holy Spirit of God is not a lawyer.

The Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost are not a team of lawyers. And the people of God shouldn't be either. God is a Father. He loves His children. He's a Holy Father. And He wants His children to be holy.

This book was written for us to get to know the heart. What is in the heart of our Father. Our desire this week is that we could be 100 scriptural. 100 connected to the heart of a lawyer. 100 connected to what is in the heart of our Father.

Separation From the World in 2 Corinthians 6

And with that, let us turn to 2 Corinthians chapter 6. For today, there's a passage of scripture that I would like to read here. And I would like to begin reading at verse 11. 2 Corinthians chapter 6, verse 11.

O ye Corinthians, our mouth is open unto you, our heart is enlarged. Ye are not straightened in us, but ye are straightened in your own bowels. And what Paul is saying there is that I gave you some counsel.

And it was all of 1 Corinthians. This is 2 Corinthians. He had sent them a letter with some counsel in it, and they were struggling with that counsel. They were having a hard time with it. And what Paul is saying here is that the counsel that I gave you is not the problem.

The problem is in your heart. Ye are not straightened in us, but ye are straightened in your own bowels. And one thing I get out of that verse is that there is a time to speak very straight to the people of God and tell them that they have a problem in their heart.

Now, for a recompense in the same, I speak as unto my children. Paul says, for a recompense in the same, or because of this, because you had trouble with this counsel, I'm going to speak to you as a father.

Be ye also enlarged. Now, here's a father saying to his children, it's time to grow up. We need to mature a little here. And so I'm going to say that to each of us. Let's grow up some, and let's come together so that we can read the rest of this chapter and find out what is in the heart of our Father.

Be ye not unequally yoked together with unbelievers. For what fellowship hath righteousness with unrighteousness? And what communion hath light with darkness? And what concord hath Christ with Belial?

Or what part hath he that believeth with an infidel? And what agreement hath the temple of God with idols? For ye are the temple of the living God. Well, that's a mouthful. As God hath said, I will dwell in them and walk in them.

And I shall be their God, and they shall be my people. Wherefore, or therefore, because of that, come out from among them and be ye separate, saith the Lord. And touch not the unclean thing, and I will receive you.

And will be a father unto you. And ye shall be my sons and daughters, saith the Lord Almighty. And let's read one more verse. Amen. Having therefore these promises, dearly beloved, let us cleanse ourselves from all filthiness of the flesh and spirit, perfecting holiness.

Did you get that? Perfecting holiness in the fear of God. I believe that we have just read there somewhat of a revelation of the heart of God for his people. We have prayed. We have read from his word.

God has asked us five questions. An apostle has just spoken to us as a father. What are we going to do with that? I'm going to tell you that I see a need for more caution in our everyday life. There is a looseness that I see creeping in among us.

And I want us to know that when looseness creeps into our everyday life, you are not going to perfect holiness in the fear of God. You are not. And sometimes it doesn't really look to me like we're all that concerned about it.

We still have the promises. We hang on to them. But we don't worry about the rest of it. And what that does is it changes this verse right here so that it would sound like this. Having therefore these promises, don't worry about it.

But that's not scriptural, brothers and sisters. It's not. Let's read it the way God's heart would have us to understand. Having therefore these promises, dearly beloved, let us cleanse ourselves from all filthiness of the flesh and spirit, perfecting holiness in the fear of God.

God's heart is very clear. He wants a people set apart unto Himself. A peculiar people. Paul says, a peculiar people, zealous of good works. Peter says, a peculiar people, a holy nation. A royal priesthood.

Holiness, Distinctiveness, and the Heart

Do you know what peculiar means? It has a really neat meaning. It really does. You can find something out about the heart of God if you know what peculiar means. It means a purchased possession. Sole ownership.

No one else has any right to you at all. Not the enemy. Not the world. Not even you. We belong to God only. We take orders from God only. We receive influence from God only. That's what peculiar means.

We do not receive influence from the flesh. Or from this world around us. Is that a good description of your life? God wants a people like that. Separate unto Himself. And when looseness begins creeping into our everyday lives.

Looseness in dress. Lack of discernment in music. Looseness in the cars that we drive. Looseness in fads and fashions. That is when man begins to draw a conclusion. He begins to say, That separation that God wants.

It's in here. It's not out here. God said to him, Look not on his countenance. Or on the height of his stature. For I have refused him. Man looks at that. But God looks at the heart. What God was saying to Samuel there.

Was Samuel, I don't care how big Eliab is. I don't care what kind of a runt David is. God wants a heart that is broken before Him. God was not saying, What is out here doesn't matter at all. That's not what He was trying to say.

He wants a broken heart before Him. You know, lawyers will never figure that out. But when you get real close to the heart of God. You can figure that out. I have a chart here. I know that you've seen this diagram before.

Or one similar. And I know that God is everywhere. But for right now, He's right over here. And the world is over here. And whenever you see any kind of diagram like this. You will always see that the heart is right here in the center.

And then out of that heart comes the values that we have. And the beliefs that we have. What we really believe. And what we really believe comes out here. In our behavior. And you cannot disconnect this from any one of these three.

Scripturally, you cannot disconnect them. Because out of the abundance of the heart. The mouth speaketh. They're connected. As a man thinketh right here in his heart. Guard thy heart. It's like this is the root.

And this is the fruit. And you know, brothers and sisters, you can't disconnect root and fruit. You can't separate them. The things we do and the things that we say. The way we serve. That's fruit. Our heart.

That's who we are in Christ. That's the root. And you can't separate root and fruit. You just can't do it. And there are people today who say, I know that I have some problems out here. But my heart is right with God.

I know that part of me out here is drawn a little this way. But everything of me right here is going this way. And I say, wait a minute. Are we trying to make God a liar? God said, if this part of you is going this way, it's because this part of you is going that way too.

May God convict us of that. None of this, oh, but my heart is right stuff. But when I see looseness creeping in to our everyday life, there's part of me that would just like to tell you what you should do out here to perfect holiness in the fear of God.

There's just something that would like to admonish you on that. But I've noticed something. I've noticed that when you tell someone that what they're doing is wrong, you can't do that anymore. That doesn't automatically create Holy Ghost discernment in their heart.

Most often that creates a reaction. And I don't want to do that. I don't want to do that with you folks. I want to bring caution into your everyday life. I want to bring Holy Ghost discernment in your heart.

And I have prayed earnestly. I prayed fervently. God, how can I do that? I believe the brothers that have stood here this week have prayed that thing. How can I get into their heart and not cause a reaction and cause them to walk away?

I don't know if you understand the burden that one feels to stand here in the place of God and exhort on His Word, His powerful Word. As I prayed, it just seemed like God was saying to me two things. He was saying, Dale, you need to get specific.

These youth need specific direction. And then He was saying to me, but first, I want you to lay the specifics down. And I want you to tell the people that there is a condition to the promises of God. Don't just take them and run.

Or God will take them. Tell the people. And it just seemed like the Lord was leading me to a Scripture. Let's go to 1 Samuel 2. I want you to turn there, but I don't want you to read this yet. I just want you to listen.

We'll read it together in a little bit. God had promised the office of priesthood to Aaron and his household forever. And He confirmed it again years later to the house of Eli. And I want to read to you, and I just want you to listen.

Conditional Promises in 1 Samuel 2

Verse 30, part A. God says to Eli, Wherefore the Lord God of Israel saith, I said indeed, that thy house and the house of thy father should walk before Me forever. Now that's a promise. That is a promise.

God said, I said indeed. In other words, yes, I said that. And yes, I know what I was saying. And yes, you heard me right. And yes, I meant what I said. That's what God was saying. But when you read on, it sounds like God is going back on His Word.

But now the Lord saith, Be it far from Me. We're trying to find out what is in the heart of our Father. He said, I said indeed, that thy father's house should walk before Me forever. But now, be it far from Me.

And when you first read that, it just sounds like God is going back on His Word. But is He? If you read on, it just sounds like there's a condition that went with it. But now the Lord saith, Be it far from Me.

For them that honor Me will I honor. And they that despise Me shall be lightly esteemed. Do you see what happened to the promise of God to His people when He was lightly esteemed? When He was despised?

I think it would be good. Are you all there? 2 Samuel 2 verse 30. Let's stand before the Lord and let's read this verse together. And let's learn something of the heart of God as we read this. Verse 30.

Let's read it together. Wherefore, the Lord God of Israel saith, I said indeed, that thy house and the house of thy father should walk before Me forever.

But now the Lord saith, Be it far from Me.

For them that honor Me I will honor.

And they that despise Me shall be lightly esteemed.

You may be seated. And what that's really saying, folks, is that is what God was talking about in that verse. He was talking about the actions of Eli's sons. Them that honor Me out here, I will honor them.

And them that despise Me out here, them that disconnect this from this, shall be lightly esteemed. And it was lack of that understanding that took the promise away. And you can read sometime the rest of that chapter about God's judgment upon the house of Eli.

But is God going back on His Word? Or is He just being faithful to the condition upon which it was given? You can say, Oh, Brother Dale, that's Old Testament. And I know that. But we can learn something of the heart of God in the Old Testament.

And if you're not satisfied with being there, then I say, let's go to the New. I would like to turn to Acts chapter 27 now. There's an interesting story there that I would like to read. I'm going to consider verses 22 -32.

Paul’s Shipwreck and the Condition of Salvation

And here again, before we read this together, I would just like to explain this situation. And then we will read it. In this chapter, Paul was at sea in a fierce Mediterranean storm. A tempestuous wind called Heraclodon.

I have thought that nowadays we'd probably call that Hurricane Clyde. But it lasted for two weeks. Over two weeks. And the ship they were in was damaged. And all hope that they would be saved was then taken away.

But at that point, the angel of the Lord came down from heaven. And He stood beside Paul in this disastrous situation. And this angel of God said to Paul, Be of good cheer, Paul! There shall be no loss of any man's life.

Well, that's quite a promise. If you read verse 37, you'll find out that there were 276 men on that ship. And that promise was good for every one of them. There shall be no loss of any man's life but of the ship.

And that's not all. Not only were they all going to live, but not one hair was going to fall from the head of any one of them. I mean, you think about that. Two weeks of wet heads, hair blowing in the wind, tempestuous winds, shipwrecked, swimming ashore, not one hair.

That's quite a promise. And you know what Paul said about it? He said, I believe God! And that that's what we do with the promises of God. I believe God that it will be exactly as He said it would be.

But my question for us today is are we able to say that about the conditions that go with the promises? They go together. An interesting thing happened in this story. There were three kinds of men on this ship.

There were sailors. The Bible calls them shipmen. They were the ones who knew how to run that ship. There were the soldiers. The centurion and his men. And there were the prisoners. Paul and his fellow prisoners.

Shipmen, soldiers, and prisoners. And the ones who knew best that that ship was going down were the sailors. The shipmen. The ship was damaged, and they were headed for the rocks, and they were shipmen.

They knew how to interpret that thing. And I'll just tell you, those shipmen, they didn't care what the angel of the Lord said. They were going to get out of there and let everyone else die. And they wanted to get out of there and not let anyone else know what they were doing.

And so they went to the front of the boat, and they began casting anchors, making it look like they were casting anchors out of the front of the ship. But really, they were letting down the lifeboats so that they could flee out of that ship and let everyone else die.

That's what they had in mind. And Paul, he saw them doing that. And he went to the centurion, and he said, except these abide in the ship. Except these men who know how to run this ship. Except these abide in the ship.

Ye, soldiers, cannot be saved. Now brothers, wait a minute, brother Paul. Where did you get the liberty to say that? You just had an angel of God come down from heaven and tell you there would be no loss of any man's life.

And now you're standing up telling this centurion that except these abide in the ship, you're going to die. Where did that come from? This story, by illustration, connects the condition of a promise with salvation.

Let's read this passage. Let's see if that description fits this story. Paul in verse 22 says,. And now I exhort you to be of good cheer. For there shall be no loss of any man's life among you, but of the ship.

For there stood by me this night the angel of God, whose I am and whom I serve, saying, Fear not, Paul. Thou must be brought before Caesar. And lo, God hath given thee all them that sail with thee. Wherefore, sirs, be of good cheer.

For I believe, God, that it shall be even as it was told me. Howbeit, we must be cast upon a certain island. But when the fourteenth night was come, as we were driven up and down in Adria, about midnight, the shipmen deemed they figured out that they drew near some country, and sounded and found it twenty fathoms.

And when they had gone a little further, they sounded again and found it fifteen fathoms. Then fearing, lest we should have fallen upon the rocks, they cast four anchors out of the stern and wished for the day.

And as the shipmen were about to flee out of the ship, when they had let down the boat into the sea under color, as though they would have cast anchors out of the foreship, Paul said to the centurion and to the soldiers, Except these abide in the ship, ye cannot be saved.

So the soldiers went and cut the ropes off of the boats and let her fall off, so that the shipmen had to stay in the ship. Where did Paul get the liberty to say what he did? Except these abide in the ship, ye cannot be saved.

We know that Paul had an anointing of God. And I believe there's a lesson here for us to learn. And I don't know how the man on that ship could claim the promise of life and not be obedient to God's Word.

And I don't know how we're going to do it either. I don't know how we're going to claim the promise of life and not be obedient to God's Word. We are instructed in the Word of God to take heed. That is more than just enjoy the promises.

Taking Heed to the Conditions of God’s Promises

Take heed to your spirit. Take heed how ye hear. Take heed that the light that is in thee be not darkness. That the light that is in thee be not darkness. Take heed and beware of covetousness that comes right out of the heart.

Take heed lest he also spare not thee. Let him that standeth take heed lest he fall. Take heed, brethren. That's not take heed, O lost, rebellious world. That's talking to the people of God. Take heed, brethren, lest there be in any of you an evil heart, brethren, of unbelief in departing from the living God.

But exhort one another daily while it is called today, lest any of you be hardened through the deceitfulness of sin. There is a lot in that. Deceitfulness of sin. That means you don't always recognize it.

That's what that means. As if in everyday life we begin to move this way and it's not right and we don't know what we're doing. That's the deceitfulness of sin. Take heed to the conditions that are connected to the promises of God.

Matthew 7 .21 says, Not everyone that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven. But he that doeth... That's your everyday life. He that doeth the will of my Father, which is in heaven.

And if you read on there, it says, Many shall say in that day. There's not just a few people that got a little confused there. Many shall say in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in Thy name?

This sounds good. I don't know who these people are. And in Thy name cast out devils. And in Thy name done many wonderful works. And God is going to say to them, Depart from me, ye that work iniquity.

I never knew you. Who are those people? I don't know who those people are, but they sound pretty impressive. I don't know who they are, but I know this. I don't want it to be any of you. Let's not just say, Oh, well, it won't be me.

Take heed. Take heed to the conditions that are connected to the promise. One of the most condition-making words in the Scriptures, or anywhere, is that little word, if. And it's all through the Scriptures.

The Significance of “If” in John 21

Jesus used it often. I want to show you in John 21, here's an example of the power of the word if. Peter, again, here, as was not too uncommon, was minding other people's business. And he looked at John, and he looked at Jesus, and he said, And what shall this man do?

And Jesus said to him, He said, If I will that he tarry till I die, what is that to thee? And do you know what the disciples did with the words of Jesus? I want you to notice here what they did. That's verse 21.

Jesus saith unto him, If I will that he tarry till I come, what is that to thee? Follow thou me. The disciples took the words of Jesus there, and they just thumped that little if right out of there. Thumped that little thing right out of there, and it was gone.

And then they told everybody what was going to happen to John. And John had to straighten them out a little while later. John had to clarify that and say that is not what Jesus said. But I want you to notice, in verse 23 it says, Right after they thumped that little if right out of there, then went this saying abroad among the brethren, that that disciple should not die.

But that is not what Jesus said. And the only difference between the actual words that Jesus said, and the saying that went abroad among the brethren, the only difference was they thumped that little if right out of there.

And there are lots of sayings and theology today that have gone abroad among the brethren. Like, for example, it's not what's out here that counts. It's all in here. That thing has gone forth among the brethren today.

And I have a burden on my heart that when we stand before God, He is going to say, That is not what I said. There are ifs all through the Scripture, and they are a big word. They put a condition on things.

The things on the outside are important because they do reveal what is in the heart. And you know, it's amazing to me how you can teach these things and people will receive it with an amen. But as soon as you get specific, almost immediately, you find out what is really in here.

Specific Obedience and the Rich Young Ruler

When you grab the reins on something out here specifically, this thing here starts showing up. And you find out what's really in there. And that's exactly what happened in the heart of the rich young ruler when Jesus laid His finger on a very touchy subject, but a need that was in his life.

You know, the rich young ruler was a very impressive young man. He looked really good. He was very spiritual. He was. He was very scriptural. There weren't any problems showing up in his life. The Bible even says that he ran and fell at the feet of the Lord Jesus Christ.

And the Bible says that Jesus loved him. That's beautiful! What fellowship! They must have had as long as the commandment was general. Just love the Lord with all your heart and be obedient. It was amen, Lord.

Amen. But as soon as the finger of God got specific, we found out what the first love was in here. And they watched him walk away sorrowful. Because being specific revealed something in his heart that being general could not do.

It's been said that it doesn't matter how hard you come down on sin, the people are going to say amen. But when you start naming them, you can empty the church house. And it's because being specific does that.

It reveals something in your heart that being general cannot do. And that's a problem for the flesh. Because there are so many Scriptures that are general. Did you know that? And God never intended that those general commandments would never hit home.

That was not his heart. That's what it means to walk in the Spirit. It means making specific applications in your everyday life, all day long. That's what walking in the Spirit is. That's what it means to have Holy Ghost discernment.

You know how to get specific with those general commandments. If you never make specific applications to those general commandments, that's when you make the Word of God of none effect. In from all appearance of evil.

A man of God knows how to get specific with what evil is. And until you do, you will not abstain from all appearance of evil. And I'm not talking about rules and regulations, brother. But I am talking about specific application of Scripture by the Holy Ghost in your everyday life.

And I am talking about being under authority. That is one way that God gets specific with you. And you are missing a blessing of God if you reject that one. I want to turn to 1 Thessalonians 5. There's a passage of Scripture that I want to read here.

General Commandments and Holy Ghost Discernment

1 Thessalonians 5. I want to read verses 16 -24. It goes like this. Rejoice evermore. Pray without ceasing. In everything give thanks. For this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you. Quench not the spirit.

Despise not prophesying. Prove all things. Hold fast that which is good. Abstain from all appearance of evil. And the very God of peace sanctify you wholly. And I pray God, your whole spirit and soul and body, be preserved blameless unto the coming of the Lord.

Now, this is an interesting passage of Scripture here. It is full of beautiful admonitions that are very clear to commandments, but they are completely general. You look at verse 19. Quench not the spirit.

Doesn't mention any specific area at all. Despise not prophesying. Doesn't tell us what one prophecy is or what it's referring to. Prove all things. That's a commandment, but gives us no specific direction.

Hold fast that which is good. Doesn't tell us what good is. Abstain from all appearance of evil. Doesn't tell you what evil is, but it does say all. Whoa! It's general, but it's very clearly a commandment.

I want to say something that I've observed. The easiest kind of commandment to obey is a specific commandment. If that's hard for you to obey, you're going to have trouble with the big ones, because that's the easiest kind to obey.

For example, thou shalt not steal. You get a commandment like that, you can focus in on it, you know exactly what God has in mind, and if your heart is geared to obey, you just don't steal. But the hardest kind of commandment to obey is a general commandment, because they're broad.

They are big. They go everywhere. They cover every area of your life. I mean, you think about it. Which is easier to obey? Don't watch television? Or abstain from all appearance of evil? Well, television is a specific commandment.

You know exactly what that means. And if your heart is inclined to obey, you just don't watch television. But abstain from all appearance of evil, that thing is big. It goes everywhere. And you can't write enough rules to cover that one.

No way! The only way that you'll ever obey that commandment is when you have Holy Ghost discernment. And when your heart is broken, and when you are under authority, and Jesus Christ is Lord, none of those things are a problem to a broken heart.

Another thing I've noticed in life is that lukewarm Christians, they love big general commandments. Because they're so big that they don't back you into a corner. They give you room to have reasons and excuses, and they just never quite nail you down.