Go along, that's 1 Peter chapter 1, and that's on page 1217 of the Church Red Bibles.
Therefore, with minds that are alert and fully sober,
set your hope on the grace to be brought to you when Jesus Christ is revealed at his coming.
As obedient children, do not conform to the evil desires you had when you lived in ignorance.
But just as he who called you is holy, so be holy in all you do, for it is written,
Be holy, because I am holy.
Since you call on a father who judges each person's work impartially,
live out your time as foreigners here in reverent fear.
For you know that it is not with perishable things, such as silver or gold,
that you were redeemed from the empty way of life handed down to you from your ancestors,
but with the precious blood of Christ, a lamb without blemish or defect.
He was chosen before the creation of the world, but was revealed in these last times for your sake.
Through him you believe in God, who raised him from the dead and glorified him.
And so your faith and hope are in God.
Now that you have purified yourselves by obeying the truth,
so that you have sincere love for each other,
love one another deeply from the heart.
For you have been born again, not of perishable seed, but of imperishable,
though or through the living and enduring word of God.
For all people are like grass, and all their glory is like the flowers of the field.
The grass withers and the flowers fall, but the word of the Lord endures forever.
And this is the word that was preached to you.
Therefore, rid yourselves of all malice and all deceit, hypocrisy, envy, and slander of every kind.
Like newborn babies, crave pure spiritual milk,
so that by it you may grow up in your salvation.
Now that you have tasted that the Lord is good.
Thank you, Dan.
Good morning, everyone.
Pleasure to be with you again this morning.
Before we begin, let's just go to the Lord in a word of prayer.
Our Father in heaven, we thank you for the freedom that we have to gather in your name without interruption,
without fear of harassment or persecution.
Help us not to take that freedom for granted, Lord,
but help us to use it in this very moment to lift our voices and lift our hearts and lift our minds
to be elevated in our worship.
Holy Spirit, we ask that you would continue to direct us in our worship,
and we ask that you would help me as I, as an imperfect vessel, bring your perfect word.
So whatever has to be said of you, Lord, may it be lifted up.
May my own words be forgotten, but may your words live forever.
We ask this in Jesus' name. Amen.
About ten years ago, Seneca and I were still dating,
and I took a trip with her and her family to visit her dad's relatives in Wisconsin,
in the middle part of the U.S., and we took a day trip to see Lake Michigan,
which is basically a large ocean in the middle of America.
And on the shore, Seneca's dad picks up a rock, and he turns to me and he says,
how many stones can you skip across the lake?
Now, unknown to me, Seneca's family had an in-joke,
that only men who could do a certain number of skips across the lake
would be worthy of marrying one of their daughters.
So naturally, I accepted the challenge, stone skipping, not marriage,
and based on nothing more than testosterone and male ego,
proceeded to do my worst.
And I really mean that.
Inconsequential as it was in the end,
I portrayed myself as being good at doing this particular thing
I'd been challenged to do, skipping stones.
I was not good.
It became obvious by my efforts that I was not good at doing this thing.
You see, I talked a big game, even for something so trivial,
but I couldn't back it up.
Thankfully, a few months later, Tim exercised a kind of mercy
and graciously allowed me to marry his daughter,
so at least that went in the right direction in the end.
But basically today, Peter is telling us,
let's not just talk a big game,
but let's walk the walk, let's back it up.
So last week, we learned that we were shielded,
that we're being kept,
that our inheritance is guaranteed,
that if you follow Jesus Christ and you submit to him,
you can call yourself a Christian.
This week, we're going to start looking at the way we ought to live
because we're Christians.
So we don't just talk the talk, we walk the walk.
And we're going to look at three things that we ought to see in our lives,
that we ought to model out for other people.
If you have one of the handouts, it's in front of you.
Otherwise, feel free to take notes.
Firstly, we're going to see that we ought to be holy.
Secondly, that we ought to be reverent.
And thirdly, that we ought to be loving.
So we ought to be holy, reverent, and loving.
Let's jump into the first one.
I actually want to start by looking at verses 15 and 16,
this idea of what it means to be holy.
So Peter writes,
Just as he who called you is holy,
so be holy in all you do.
For it is written, and he quotes the Old Testament,
Be holy, because I, the Lord, am holy.
Now that verse is the anchor of this whole section.
So underline it, draw a circle around it,
write something in the margin.
The first reason that we ought to live lives
that are good and righteous and God-honoring
is that God himself is holy.
Now, holy is a mysterious-sounding word.
For some reason, I always think of incense
when I hear the word holy.
It's probably just my background.
Maybe some of you think that too.
But it's not really a mysterious idea.
As we were just singing about,
holiness basically means being set apart from sin
or being set aside from sin.
So God is holy because God is perfectly without sin,
completely separated from sin.
He has nothing to do with sin
because of his very nature.
The prophet Isaiah, in his vision,
had a vision of God sitting on his throne
and angels hovering around him
and covering their eyes
because they couldn't look upon the holiness of God
and singing,
Holy, holy, holy is the Lord.
And like us, Isaiah knew he was a sinner.
And he knew that sinners cannot enter
into relationship with the holy God
unless that holy God reaches out
and does something.
Ultimately, he did that by sending his own son.
To pay the penalty for that sin.
Your sin, my sin,
and the sin of all who would follow him.
One writer puts it this way.
How hateful must sin be to God
for him to punish it
with the death of his own son.
And because that holy God reached out,
because that holiness led him to conquer sin
and bring us to him,
God tells us here,
through his servant Peter,
be holy,
for I am holy.
You call yourself my child?
Act like it.
God calls us to be different from the world
because he is different.
So how do we act like it?
Well, verse 13
tells us to have minds that are alert
and fully sober.
It doesn't necessarily come across
very clearly in the translation
we're using this morning,
but other translations say this,
prepare your mind for action.
Prepare your mind for action.
Get ready.
That's an interesting idea.
The phrase actually goes back
to this practice
when you were going on a long journey,
on camel or on horseback,
that you would actually tie up your robe
around your waist
so that it wouldn't dangle
and trip either you or the horse up,
which would end very badly
for both of you.
Basically,
it's like getting ready to run a race.
For instance,
Alex ran in the New York City Marathon.
Was it last year?
Yeah, last year.
And before he started the race,
he made sure he was dressed appropriately
to run in the race.
He didn't go to the starting line
and try and run 26 miles
wearing a full suit of medieval armor
and carrying a 50-pound bag of spuds.
That's an image for you, isn't it, Alex?
So we're to make sure
we have the right clothes on,
that we have those things on us
that means we can run this race.
We're to make our minds,
Peter says,
alert and sober,
free from intoxication,
free from anything
that's going to cloud you
and prevent you seeing the truth.
This hope,
this grace,
Peter says,
that will truly be ours
when we go to be with Jesus.
We have to make sure, friends,
we're not wearing anything
or carrying anything
that we shouldn't be.
Look at verse 14.
As obedient children,
do not be conformed
to the evil desires you had
when you lived in ignorance.
That word desires,
another way to put it
would be lusts.
Lusts.
What was it you lusted after
before you became a Christian?
For me, it was my career.
It was ambition.
And still something
I have to watch out for.
Just like we were singing
and just like Sam was talking about,
this isn't a once and done process.
These are things you must learn
to do throughout your life.
And one thing I've had to learn to do
is when I look at the next promotion
or the next competition for promotion,
I have to think carefully,
why do I want this?
Is it because I want more money?
Is it because I want more position?
Power?
Authority?
A better pension?
That last one is true,
but that's okay.
I have to think carefully.
Do I want to do this
because it glorifies God?
And I can do it in such a way
that actually points others
towards Jesus.
By being the best civil servant
I can be.
By being the best teacher,
the best mechanic,
the best student,
the best father,
the best mother,
whatever it is.
I've had to tie up that loose end
to keep watch on it
because it still might trip me up
if I don't watch it.
That was my former ignorance,
one translation puts it.
Before,
I didn't know any better.
I was lost,
dead in my sin,
Paul says.
But now,
God is my father.
I do know better.
Because I talk the talk,
I have to walk the walk.
So what is it that trips you up?
What is it that you tend to struggle with?
And I could mention lots of things here,
but here's just a few.
Just completely random thoughts.
Maybe they hit home,
maybe they don't.
Are you addicted to comfort
or entertainment?
In your spare time,
do you automatically glue yourself
to your iPhone
or Netflix?
Or do you open your Bible
and you read and listen
to what the Lord has to say?
How about this?
This happened to me this morning
when I was driving here.
When someone calls you out
on something bad
you've done or said.
In this case,
it was the driver
who came across the intersection.
Is your first reaction
to get your back up?
To get defensive?
Well, I did the right thing.
I don't know what that guy's problem is.
Or do you freely admit your fault?
Do you freely admit,
I can do better
and humble yourself?
How about this one?
I've seen a lot of this lately.
When you're on social media,
when you're on Facebook,
Twitter, whatever,
do you use that freedom of speech
that we were just praying about
to spread anger
and to spread outrage?
You know,
the roads in this country
are disgrace.
It's disgraceful
what the government is doing.
I swear,
disgraceful is the most popular word
in Irish people's lexicon.
Or do you use
that freedom of speech
to point others
towards the tender love of Jesus?
Do you use a platform
of speech
not to push an agenda
or grind an axe,
but to actually demonstrate
what it looks like
to be a Christian?
In other words, friend,
do you look any different
from the world around you?
Are you holy
in the things that you do?
Do you have a desire
to grow in this holiness?
And again,
you won't get this perfect
because we're all imperfect.
But what path are you on?
Do you blend into
the background
of self-absorption
that the rest of the world
seems to be mired in?
One writer put it this way,
if you were put on trial
for being holy,
would there be enough evidence
to convict you?
As with all things,
don't look to your own efforts.
Yet not I,
but Christ in me.
Look to Christ.
Look to Jesus
who set aside
his heavenly rights
and his heavenly dwelling
and he made himself nothing
to become the suffering servant
who would set you free.
Jesus didn't come into the world
so that we would look
like the rest of the world.
Jesus came into this world
that we would be set apart
from this world.
So don't just talk the talk.
Walk the walk as well.
So we ought to be holy.
Secondly,
we ought to be reverent.
Verse 17.
Since you call on a father
who judges each person's work impartially,
live out your time
as foreigners
here in reverent fear.
Have you ever said this?
You can't judge me.
Only God will judge me.
You're absolutely right.
He will.
He'll ask you,
first of all,
what did you say about my son?
Who did you say he is?
And if you call upon him
as Lord Jesus,
he'll ask you,
what did you do
in my son's name?
Jesus said that every person
will have to give an account,
friends,
for every idle word
and every idle thought
that they've ever uttered,
that they've ever thought.
You could nearly put it this way.
Because you're a Christian,
live your life
in such a way,
this reverent fear,
that you show the proper respect
and deference
towards God.
Because Peter says
he's an impartial judge.
He'll ask you to give an account
for being his servant.
And that's pretty much
what reverent fear means.
Having an appropriate sense
of who God is
versus who we are.
Not trembling,
not cowering in a corner
like you're terrified of,
I don't know,
spiders,
the dark,
heights,
whatever the case might be.
It's not that kind of fear.
It means
respecting the difference
between us
and God.
Honoring him
and living lives
that honour him.
I'll illustrate this
with a personal example.
My dad and I
were very close.
I loved him
and I respected him.
And he'd tell me
and illustrate to me
what to do
in order to show
that I actually was
part of this family,
that I would prove myself
to be part of this family.
And I respected that.
I respected his direction
and his advice
and his opinion.
And I remember once
when I was going through
a fairly long period
of unemployment,
I was naturally
pretty depressed.
If you've been unemployed,
you understand that feeling.
I was depressed
and discouraged
and I was sort of
venting this to dad
on the telephone.
And he said,
it's all right, Dan.
You're an Usthäzen.
You'll get there.
You're an Usthäzen.
You'll get there.
Now, he wasn't just telling me
to sit back
and let it happen.
He was saying
that he saw
certain qualities in me
that he saw in himself,
saw in his brothers,
saw in his father,
saw in his grandfather,
things like hard work
and perseverance
and determination.
What he was saying was,
keep going.
Keep going
towards the prize.
Remember that you're my son
and my son
ought to run the race
in such a way
that he'll cross
the finishing line.
That's basically
what Peter is saying.
You call yourself
God's child.
Do you run the race
in such a way
that you will cross
the finish line?
And this reverend fear,
like I said,
it's not because
we're terrified of God.
That's not what it's about.
It's because we know
what he's done for us.
Look at verses 18 to 19.
God redeemed us.
That means he ransomed us,
bought us,
not with currency,
not with euro
or pounds
or whatever's going to exist
after Brexit comes through,
not with silver
or gold,
Peter says.
You know the old saying,
you're worth your weight
in gold.
No, you're not.
You're worth
much more than that
to God
because the price
that had to be paid
for your sins
and for my sins
was the precious
blood of his son.
That was the only thing
that could clear the debt.
So high was that price.
And that's what Jesus meant
when he said
on the cross,
remember this,
he said it is finished.
Not it has begun,
not the down payment
has been made
and now you can enter
into a monthly variable
installment arrangement.
It is finished.
In Greek,
tetelestai,
it's what they used
to stamp
on the deed
of a house
or a mortgage
to show you
that the debt
had been paid
completely.
The debt is discharged,
paid in full,
nothing left
to be collected,
final payment made.
I lived my life
in a certain way
because I revered
and I respected
my dad.
And I wanted to honor him
by the way I lived.
So how much more
ought I honor a God
or live a life
that honors a God
who sent his son
and completely eradicated
my sinful debt?
Verses 20 and 21,
it is through God's own son
that we believe.
This son who was chosen,
the literal word there
is foreknown,
before the ages began.
If you were here last week,
you might remember
we talked about this idea
of being foreknown.
God's desire
to be intimate
with us
goes back to
before creation itself
and in the same way
the son
was foreknown
by the father.
So think about this.
Despite
our sin,
the father
was pleased
to crush
his son,
Isaiah tells us,
to bring us
into relationship
with him
based on
the same relationship
that the father
has
with his son.
And now you and I,
if we declare
that Jesus is Lord,
Paul tells us,
we
are children
of God
and fellow heirs
with Christ
in his kingdom.
And despite
the fact that
Jesus was perfectly
divine,
totally united
with the father,
he submitted
to the will
of the father.
He revered
and respected
the father
even though he was
and is fully divine
and deserved everything
with his divine
trappings and surroundings.
He deferred
to this plan
to save
lost people.
See,
being himself
God,
friends,
Jesus knew
the only way
that these people
can come into
relationship with God
is if God
reaches out.
And so in full
agreement with
this plan
that was set
in motion
before the ages
began,
he voluntarily
accepted this role.
Taking on human form,
he became like us.
He gave us the perfect
example of reverence
by submitting himself
completely
and totally
to the will
of the father.
And because of
his submission,
he was able
to declare,
it is
finished,
complete,
done.
friends,
we ought to
be reverent
by honoring
God's will
for our lives.
So we have to
ask ourselves,
does my life
honor God?
When I stand
before him
and he asks me
that question,
Dan,
what did you do
with your life?
What did you do
with this freedom
that I gave you?
What will I
submit as evidence?
Will I
say I did
things my own
way?
I looked
to my own
strength,
Lord.
I did the
best I could.
I spent all
my time
on my iPhone.
I had to
tell people
about what
was going
on with
the national
roads
infrastructure.
You know
me,
Lord.
Or will
I say,
Lord,
I honored
you because
I sacrificed
myself daily
like your
son did.
Will I
be able
to say I
walked the
walk?
You might
ask how do
we do that?
Well,
Peter tells
us,
our last
point.
Because we're
Christians,
we ought to
be loving.
Verses 22
and 23.
Now that we
have purified
ourselves by
obeying the
truth,
that means
now that we're
saved,
now that we're
believers,
so that we
have sincere
love for one
another,
that means
we're saved
into a
fellowship of
believers,
not just by
ourselves,
we're saved
into a
church.
Because of
these things,
we ought to
love one
another deeply
from the
heart.
We use that
word love
a lot.
We say it to
our spouses,
to our
parents.
The highlight
of my day
is when Jack
or Alice
comes up to
me and
says,
I love you
daddy.
I think that
puts a
smile on
every parent's
face.
Some of us
love our
wives cooking,
maybe a
little too
much,
speaking for
myself.
We can be
both meaningful
and casual
in the way
we use the
word love.
love.
But this
love,
that Peter
refers to,
is grounded
in nothing
casual,
in nothing
flippant.
It is
grounded in
the precious
love of
Jesus.
We should
love one
another deeply
because we
have been
born again.
We have
been resurrected
with Christ
into new
life.
We've heard
the good
news that
Christ came
into this
world to
save sinners
among whom
we are
chief.
And this
good news,
this word,
Peter says,
is imperishable
seed.
It doesn't
die.
It just
lives.
And you
see,
friends,
this is his
point.
Everything
in this
world is
eventually
going to
fade away.
Your
career,
my career,
my ambitions,
your bank
account,
your favorite
political party.
We're like
grass,
verse 24,
and all our
glory is like
the flowers of
the fields.
They look
good for a
season.
Maybe they
even yield
a little bit
of fruit
in their
season.
But eventually
they wither
and they
fall.
And none
of it lasts
forever.
The only
thing that
does,
Peter says,
is the
word of
the Lord,
the reality
that Jesus
conquered death
and sin
and opened
the gate so
that all who
call on the
name of the
Lord would
not die
but would
live forever.
And that's
the point,
friends.
You don't
have to have
it all figured
out before
you come to
Jesus.
Jesus came.
He didn't
go straight
to the
righteous or
the self-righteous
or the
religious or
people who
had their
lives all
together.
He went
into the
home of a
prostitute.
He went
and sat
with tax
collectors,
which is
obviously near
and dear to
my heart.
He went
and spent
time with
the most
lowly people
in society.
He didn't
go to the
people who
had it
figured out.
He went
to the
people who
needed a
savior,
people like
you and
me.
Now look
at the
first two
verses of
chapter 2
and then
we'll
finish.
This is
the application.
Verse 1,
therefore,
now that I've
told you
that,
here's what
you do.
Now that I've
told you all
these things,
this is how
you walk
the walk.
Peter says,
rid yourselves
of all malice
and all
deceit
and all
hypocrisy,
envy and
slander of
every kind.
Rid yourselves,
Peter says.
Pick it up,
bundle it
up,
and throw
it away,
as far as
you can
throw it.
And the
things he
says speak
for themselves,
so I won't
unpack each
one in
detail.
Instead,
think about
things like
this.
Again,
just some
random
thoughts.
Malice.
When someone
disagrees with
you,
or maybe
even gives
you feedback,
or constructive
criticism,
them,
when it
looks like
they're not
in your
sight,
do you
desire to
cut them
out of
your life?
How about
deceit?
When there's
something you
stand to
gain,
job,
money,
position,
whatever the
case might
be,
when you
stand to
gain something,
do you
tell people
what they
want to
hear,
so that
you get
it?
Hypocrisy.
Are you
sitting here
right now
thinking,
I really
hope so
and so
is paying
attention,
when there's
something God
is trying to
tell you?
How about
envy?
When somebody
else gets
recognized for
their gifts,
maybe even
in the church,
maybe even
gifts that you
have,
gifts of
teaching,
music,
leadership,
whatever the
case might
be,
when someone
else gets
recognized for
those things,
do you envy
them for it?
Do you resent
them for it?
Or slander?
If you have a
problem with
someone in
this church,
and because I
know people,
people always
have problems
with each
other,
if you have
a problem
with someone
in this
church,
do you go
and talk to
them about
it face to
face?
I've been
really meaning
to talk to
you about
something,
something in
my heart,
I need to
talk to
you about,
or do you
just gossip
behind their
back?
You see,
if I call
myself a
Christian,
friends,
Peter puts
these in
the negative,
if I call
myself a
Christian,
but my
behavior isn't
loving,
then,
frankly,
I'm not
acting like a
Christian.
I might be
talking the
talk,
but I'm not
walking the
walk.
I'm focused
on my own
glory,
and all the
glories of
this life,
my career,
my money,
my house,
everything like
that,
but ultimately,
they all fade
away,
they all fall
and die.
God's glory
is forever,
because you
see,
Jesus came
and there
was no
malice in
him.
He didn't
come and
condemn the
world.
He came to
save the
world.
He didn't
come and
spread deceit,
but he told
people the
truth about
God.
He wasn't
hypocritical,
but he
perfectly obeyed
the will of
his father
on the road
to Calvary.
He was
jealous for
nothing,
except his
sheep.
He slandered
nobody,
but spoke to
others in
love.
He didn't
seek to
glorify himself,
he sought to
glorify the
father.
And we look
to that example
of love as a
way to honor
God in our
lives, to put
other people
before ourselves.
The apostle
John puts it
this way,
we love,
because he
first loved
us.
It really is
that simple.
We love
because he
first loved
us.
This simple
idea, verse
2 calls it
the spiritual
milk, it's
pure.
It's just
like a baby
nursed by
his mother.
Depending on
that milk for
life, so
too our
spiritual life
depends on
this truth,
depends on
modeling out
this holy,
reverent,
loving nature
of Jesus
Christ.
Imperfect
as it will
be, because
we're not
perfect, we're
all fallen.
But because
he came, and
because he
first loved
us, we
ought to
love one
another.
It's the
entire reason
we're saved,
that love is
the great
truth of
God's
gospel.
You see, we
need to keep
our minds
focused,
friends, on
this simple
truth, and
meditate daily
on the word
of God, which
reminds us of
his love.
love.
That's why
Psalm 1
says that the
blessed person
who delights
in the law
of the Lord,
who delights
to know the
things of
God, reflects
on it day
and night, and
he or she is
like a tree
planted by
streams of
living water
which bear
fruit.
Peter writes,
this is how
we grow up
in our
salvation.
It's how we
mature as
believers, and
you're never
mature enough.
It doesn't
matter if you've
been a Christian
for 30 years,
it doesn't
matter if you
grew up in a
Christian family,
or you became
a Christian
last week,
there's always
room for us
to mature.
This process
is ongoing.
This process
will take the
rest of our
lives, and
we'll just get
a small glimpse
of what it
looks like,
until we go
and be with
him forever.
And think
about this,
every time you
have one of
these little
battles, these
things that
trip you up,
these things
that just
happen to
you in life,
these opportunities
to demonstrate
love, and
holiness, and
reverence, every
time you have
one of those
moments, and
you actually
choose the
right path, do
the God
honoring thing, do
the loving thing,
do the holy
thing, hang
on to those
moments, and
hang on to
how you think
can feel in
those moments,
because you're
going to feel
like that for
the rest of
eternity, when
you go to be
with God.
So be
encouraged, you
will fall, but
he who began a
good work in
us, will bring
it to completion
in the day of
Christ Jesus.
This love is how
we come to
understand and
appreciate the
depth and the
greatness of God
and his
character.
love.
We simply
have to love
one another.
And we do
this, verse
three, because
we have tasted
the sweetness
of the Lord's
goodness.
In other
words, because
we have come
to Christ, we
have seen the
goodness of
Christ, we
have seen his
love, seen
his holiness, seen
his reverence.
In love, God
reached down to
us, and in
love, we ought
to reach out to
each other.
Jesus said it
as usual, most
simply and most
profoundly.
A new commandment
I give to you,
love one another.
As I have
loved you, so
also are you
to love one
another.
And by this, all
people will know
you are my
disciples, if you
love one another.
Because of what
he's done for us,
friends, we ought
to mimic Christ.
Because he's
holy, set
apart from sin,
we ought to be
holy.
Because he was
reverent and
honoured the
Father, so
ought we do
the same.
And most of
all, because he
first loved us,
we ought to
love one
another.
Now after we
finish, we're
going to sing,
and we're going
to go to the
Lord's table
together.
And as we go
to the Lord's
table, we
remember the
sacrifice of
Jesus.
We remember
the Lamb
without blemish,
whose body
was broken
for us.
So when we
break the
bread, we
remember this
sacrifice where
Jesus was
broken.
When we take
the wine or
the juice, we
remember the
sinless Messiah
whose blood was
shed for us.
And we
remember the
one who
shows us
holiness,
reverence,
and love.
I don't know
your individual
circumstances,
but you do,
and the
Lord does.
So we'll
pray before we
break bread
together.
But ask
this, this is
what I'll be
asking him.
Lord, help
me to be
holy.
Help me to
be reverent.
Help me to
love the people
in this church
the way you
love them,
and the way
you love me.
Amen.
Let's pray.
Amen.
Father, we
give you
all due
glory and
praise for
what you
have done
for us
by setting
aside your
heavenly
privileges and
becoming nothing
like us,
so that through
your death and
resurrection you
would be
ascended to
the highest
place.
We thank
you, Lord,
for giving
us your
word which
is so clear
and so
profound
and so
simple.
We ask
you, Lord,
to help
us in our
daily lives
with those
things that
can trip
us up.
Help us
to be
honest with
ourselves.
Help us
to see
those things
which don't
honor you,
those things
we have to
be putting
to death,
and help
us to
simply get
rid of
them,
to model
out instead
the holiness
that you
have, Lord,
that you
hate sin,
that you
are apart
from sin,
and help
us to do
that by
revering who
you are
and respecting
who you
are and
what you've
done for
us and
realizing that
our own
efforts count
for nothing
and that
ultimately it
was only
because of
the perfect
submission of
your son that
we are able to
come to you.
So help us to
be humble as
we live out
these lives and
try and be
holy and help
us most of
all, Lord,
to be loving
because we
know of faith,
hope, and
love, the
greatest of
these is love.
We pray,
Lord, that you
would really give
us a heart
for each
other, that
you would
melt our
hearts of
stone, that
you would
give us hearts
of flesh in
you, and
that day by
day you
would help
us to grow
in this pure
spiritual milk
that is the
word, that
you came for
people like
us, not for
perfect people,
but that you
reached down
into a world
of darkness,
and you came
to those who
needed you the
most, ourselves
included.
So as we
come together
around the
table, Lord,
we pray that
we would
remember these
truths, and
we pray that
you would give
us a real
sense of
your presence
here this
morning, and
that in all
things, we
pray we would
say and do
and think
everything for
your glory.
So be with
us for the
remainder of
our time
today.
We ask all
this in
Jesus' name.
Amen.
I'm going to
ask the
musicians to
come back
up, and
we're going
to sing
When I
Survey the
Wondrous
Cross, because
all that's
left to do,
when you
compare
yourself to
a holy
God, when
you compare
yourself to
what he's
done for
us, all
it's left
to do is
to look to
Christ and
to sing songs
of worship and
to give him
glory and
praise.
So let's
stand together
and sing.
Amen.