Holy in Christ

Well, hopefully you had some good things you were able to share with one another.

Let me just say the reason I got you to do that is because there are so many good things that we can share amongst each other and with each other.

But as we've just sung, there is something good that ought to be on the tip of our lips all the time, and that is the goodness of Jesus Christ.

And that's what we've been discovering more and more in a deeper way here at St. Paul's in this series that have been joining in in the last number of weeks of In Christ.

As we've just sung, his mercy is more, his goodness is more.

And there's something that we are deeply committed to as a church of discovering that more and more.

And if there's something that you don't know at this point, we would delight for you to know in that.

We really would want you to know that.

His goodness, I think, is reflected really well in 2 Corinthians chapter 5.

2 Corinthians 5 · chapter mention

From now on, regard no one from a worldly point of view, though once we regarded Christ in this way, we do so no longer.

Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come.

The old is gone, the new is here.

And all of this, the whole lot of it, is from God who reconciled us to himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation.

That God was reconciling the world to himself in Christ, not counting people's sins against them.

God made him who had no sin to be sin for us so that in him, that's Christ, we might become the righteousness of God.

That we might become right before God.

So that's the heartbeat of St. Paul's, that we have not just the goodness of Christ, that we are in Christ, and it's entirely his work and not ours,

but that he's also given us this ministry, this serving the world with this message of hope in Christ.

In the next week, we have, if you've seen the Seasons magazine on page 18, we have one way that we can display that to the number of people who come to St. Paul's in the course of any given week.

But this coming Friday, we have our open house morning tea, where we just get an opportunity just to connect with members of our community.

So I would invite you to be part of that.

It's here, start kicking off at 9.30.

Come and connect with some of the people from our wider community who are already here on that day.

And we've got at least two groups here on that day.

But we're inviting anyone from the community to come along.

So come along, be part of that, and just connect over morning tea and chat with members of our community.

At the heart of the Christian life is the gospel.

It's what we call the gospel.

It's the good news of Jesus Christ.

I've just read it out to us from 2 Corinthians 5.

There is absolutely nothing, nothing that any of us do.

Not a single human being can do, deserve to have a right standing with God.

It's a gift that he gives us completely freely in Jesus Christ.

And as we've seen in the past weeks, that means that the Christian is fully accepted by God, loved dearly as he loves his own son, Jesus.

It means that everything that belongs to Jesus belongs to the Christians.

And it's solely, completely based on the obedience and the work of Jesus from the beginning to the very end.

We don't contribute a single thing to it at all.

Even if you've been a Christian for five, six, seven, eight decades.

You don't contribute a single thing to it.

And the danger is that we can see, well, if that's the case, then it's a great deal.

What a great deal.

You know, God's in the business of forgiving sin and I'm in the business of committing it.

I mean, great deal.

How then do I live?

The Christian is in Christ to be like Christ.

And that's what we're exploring today as John brings God's word to us.

But what the Bible tells us is that the gospel displays our sins so clearly to the world.

And therefore, we ought not hide our sin from God, our heavenly father, but to confess it with a repentant and obedient heart.

So we're going to do that now.

And we don't confess our sin hoping to be accepted by God.

We confess our sin because we already are in Jesus.

It's the gift.

Confession is the gift of the Christian.

So let's pray together.

Heavenly father, we praise you for adopting us as your children and make us heirs of eternal life.

In your mercy, you have washed us from our sins and made us clean in your sight.

Yet we still fail to love you and serve you as we should.

Forgive us our sins and renew us by your grace that we may continue to grow as members of Christ in whom alone is our salvation.

Amen.

Psalm 103 declares God's mercy and comfort for the penitent.

It says,

Let's continue to pray.

Gracious God and loving heavenly father, you are eternal, but we are finite.

You are supremely powerful and we are powerless.

You predestine the days, but we don't even know what's going to happen moment by moment.

You are the one who is faithful, but we lack faith.

Not a word of yours falls to the ground, but we struggle to fulfill any of our promises.

You are perfect, but we are marked by sin and failure.

Where our love is fickle, yours is a covenant love that is consistent and true.

We are grateful that you have made it possible for us to know you and to relate to you.

We are so grateful for your infinite love in redeeming this broken and sinful world by the Lord Jesus.

Give us a strong sense of all of your mercies this day and the hope of future glory so that we might joyfully live,

loving you and all of your commands.

Give us teachable hearts that are earnest and intense and passionate about what matters most to you.

Give us the patience to labor hard and deep into your word,

to meditate on it and encounter more of your majesty and your mercy.

We are so weak and easily distracted.

And so we need your enabling each day to stay focused and committed to valuing your word.

And so we commit to you, our preachers and our community group leaders,

our next-gen leaders,

that they may lead us from your word and pass on to us a biblically informed love for you.

May they be committed to the authority of your word.

Shape the culture of this church by your word,

that we might love you and love what you command.

And so please guide and govern us by your Holy Spirit in such a way

that all of us who call themselves Christians may be led in the way of truth

and hold the faith in unity of spirit and the bond of peace

and in righteousness of life as we seek for your name to be honoured here in Chatswood and beyond.

We thank you that you have brought so many people from different backgrounds together into this city.

And so help us as a church of forgiven sinners existing in such a diverse community

to display your grace, your goodness, your beauty, your forgiveness, your mercy to this city.

Empower us as a church to live out our calling and our unity in you

by working hard to break down the walls of misunderstanding that so easily divide,

increasing us a genuine humility and a love for all people.

So we would ask as far as the gospel does that you would humble us,

rid us of the pride that would elevate one group over another.

Give us the grace to listen to each other and even here where we have wronged and done damage.

May we be quick to repent and to seek restoration and healing.

And Father, we pray that we would be ambassadors in this world

that desperately needs to know the hope of Jesus.

Almighty God, you are our sovereign Lord and King.

And you're the one who blesses all who seek refuge in you.

And so we pray for our world in all its devastation and destruction.

We pray especially for Nepal and Tibet as they recover from the flash flooding

and also with the risk of further to come.

You are the God of compassion.

And so please provide for those who have lost everything.

As the floodwaters recede, protect people from illness,

provide them with resources to rebuild homes and livelihoods.

Our hearts ache for the families who have received the news of lost loved ones

and for those who are waiting for the news.

And for those who are waiting for news with a deep uncertainty of moment by moment

as to whether their loved ones are alive or not.

So many people, nations even, deeply impacted.

And so would you comfort those who mourn for the lost ones

and those living with the anguish of uncertainty.

We'd ask that you would grant strength, endurance and skill to emergency workers and search teams.

Keep them safe, we pray.

May they reach many who are still alive.

Direct them in that way, we pray now, Lord.

As the whole creation groans with the effects of sin,

we are thankful for our mission partners, INF and Anglican Aid,

who are on the ground and ready to provide help and relief to those impacted by this disaster.

And so please give them wisdom as they determine where resources should be directed.

And despite this devastation, please strengthen your people in trust and faithfulness.

We pray too for the five Nepali students that we are,

this church is funding in their training right now.

We ask that you would strengthen them in this moment of devastation,

feeling all the impact on it.

Strengthen them not just to be able to focus on their studies and complete their studies,

but this would shape them for a life of service.

Service of you in a country that faces so much hardship,

devastation from natural disasters,

persecution from groups,

and even the lack of support of a government.

As they show others your love,

give them opportunity to speak about the hope that they have in Jesus Christ,

not just for now in this life that you are the one who walks with them,

but you are the God who gives them life forever.

Through this we ask that you would bring many people in Nepal and Tibet into relationship with you.

Help them to know that you are God,

their ever-present help in trouble,

and that nothing in all creation can separate us from your love.

Lord Jesus, may you come soon

and restore all things.

And we pray all this in your name and for your glory.

Amen.

We're going to open our Bibles.

1 Peter chapter 1.

1 Peter 1 · chapter mention

Mel's going to come and read.

And as we read this and as John preaches,

may our attention be to God's word that we might hear it

and we might inwardly digest it and mark it

because as Jesus himself said,

none of us live by bread alone,

but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God.

And so may it be life for us this morning.

Amen.

Verses 13 to 25.

Is this working?

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,

reverent fear.

For you know that was 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 sin,

but of imperishable seed,

through the living and enduring work of God.

For all people are like grass,

and their glory is like the flowers of the field.

The grass withers,

the flowers fall,

but the word of the Lord endures forever.

And this is the word that was preached to you.

Thank you, Mel.

If you have not met me,

I'm John.

I'm a long-term regular member here at this church.

I became a Christian in Hong Kong in the early 80s,

and came to Australia in 87,

and started coming to this church around 2001, 2002.

And I really love being together with you,

serving among you,

and being led by our staff team,

Steve, Ash, and Nick,

as well as Jess and Craig.

I thank God for everyone of you,

for you are my spiritual family.

You have chosen to be part of this particular family,

to do life together as the body of Christ.

That is so amazing and wonderful.

And living as a Christian is doing life.

It has a lot to do with our union with Christ,

and how we are relating to each other.

We have been reflecting on various Bible passages

to ascertain what is involved.

We have talked about being found in Christ,

saved in Christ,

justified in Christ,

together in Christ,

and dead and alive in Christ.

And if you have missed any of those sermons,

please visit our YouTube channel or our app.

And indeed, you will also see today,

I will cover a very broad and pervasive aspect

of Christian life, holiness.

Holy in Christ.

And I have three points.

God's holiness,

your holiness,

and our holiness.

We have just read a passage from Peter's first letter

to the early Christians.

Peter is one of the main leaders of the early church,

one of the main disciples of Jesus.

And he urged them in 1 Peter 1,

1 Peter 1, 14 to 16,

As obedient children,

do not confirm to the evil desires you have

when you live in ignorance.

But just as he who calls you is holy,

so be holy in all you do.

For it is written,

Be holy because I am holy.

The early Christians faced with a lot of challenges

and opposition in their beliefs and relationship with God.

And so are we who try to live our Christian life

in today's society.

Instead of giving in and conforming to the world,

he calls Christians to be holy in all we do,

just as God who calls us is holy.

Peter quotes from the beginning session of the Bible

from Leviticus.

This session of the Bible tells about God's creating this world

and human,

and how God established and continued to maintain relationship

with his creation.

The very first time the concept of God's holiness

was introduced straight after the world was created,

on the seventh day of its existence.

In Genesis 2, verse 3 said,

Genesis 2:3

Then God blessed the seventh day and made it holy,

because on it he rested from all the works of creating

that he had done.

This statement shows three things about God.

Firstly, God is the holy one.

He is the holy of his very nature of being.

Secondly, he made holy.

God's method to make holy is by coming in

and resting with his creation.

And thirdly, he sent his sanctifying word

when he makes holy,

always accompanied by a blessing.

When God blessed the seventh day

and made it holy,

he elevated it above the other days,

setting it apart for the revelation of himself.

When the Bible talks about holiness,

it often refers to setting apart or separating.

When God rests from all the work of creating

that he had done,

the glory of that day surpasses everything before it.

It is a glorious day for God to rest

and enjoy the work of his creating.

God's holiness is God's glory and vice versa.

All God's perfection center in the word holy

and his glory streamed out from it.

From eternity,

before and during creating,

God has one purpose in mind for human

and their highest glory in the coming eternity.

That is to be a particle of his holiness.

He wants to keep blessing us by his holiness.

The seventh day never ends.

Not like the sixth previous day where he say,

and there was evening and there was morning

and so-and-so day.

In this day,

we don't count the days anymore.

We count our blessing in God,

as Nick had pointed out last week.

God said that

never-ending day for us

to count how God makes us holy,

to consider God's holiness.

Even though human ends up disobeying

and rebelling against God's original intent,

but that does not nullify God's plan.

The second time the word holy

appeared in the entire Bible

is in Exodus chapter 3,

Exodus 3 · chapter mention

when God appeared to Moses

in flames of fire from within a bush.

Strangely, the bush was on fire,

but it did not burn up.

And Moses wanted to go over to check it out,

and at which it said,

when the Lord saw that

he had gone over to look,

God called to him from within the bush.

Moses, Moses,

and Moses said,

here I am.

Do not come any closer.

Take off your sandal,

for the place where you are standing

is holy ground.

A fire often draws us towards it,

but equally,

we also instinctively keep our distance from it,

because we know that

if we get too close,

it will harm us.

In Exodus,

throughout and throughout the Bible,

fire points to God's holiness,

and how such holiness

endangers sinful people,

and excludes them from God.

Back in Hong Kong,

I have an uncle

that is a goldsmith,

and he often invites me

to his workshop

to see how he refined

his gold by the fire.

And the amber of that modern gold

was so attractive,

and I really want to touch him.

But every time,

my uncle says,

as I want to move my hand a little bit,

it's a strong warning to say,

hey, this is not for you to touch.

Moses is whom God will give the law

and whom God used to lead his people back to him.

And during his first encounter with God,

he saw something that attracted him,

and he did not know

that he was approaching the holy God

and he was in danger.

So God told him

not to get any closer

and take off his standouts,

for the place he's standing

is the holy ground.

Why is it a holy ground?

Because God was there.

God came there

and occupied that ground.

Where God is,

there is holiness.

The presence of God makes holy.

God did not reject Moses

or kill himself away,

but he set a way for Moses

to stand in the holy ground.

And the condition for that to happen

is very simple and accessible.

Remove your sandals.

The removal of sandals

is a lesson in simple obedience

because obedience

is a condition of being

in the presence of the holy God.

Through Moses,

the law will be revealed.

When the law is given,

sin will be manifest

and humans will feel

their distance from God.

The intention of the law

and command is that

the human,

in learning to know

himself or herself,

or his or her sinfulness,

may learn to know

and long for God

to make them holy.

God's holiness

is presented in a flaming bush.

It draws near,

but at the same time

instill a sense of fear

within us.

Having a proper fear

towards God

and respect his holiness

is what God asks of us.

The English Bible

uses words like

holy, holiness,

keeping holy,

saints, sanctify,

sanctification

to translate the same word

in the original language.

when God or Christ

is called the holy one,

the Hebrews,

and the Greek word

is precisely the same use

when a believer

is called a saint.

He or she, too,

is the holy one.

Peter explained

the reason a believer

is holy

in verse 18 to 20

that was read out.

It is not

with perishable things

such as silver or gold

that you were redeemed

from the empty way of life,

but with the precious blood

of Christ,

chosen before

the creation of the world,

we feel in this last day

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.

People of God

long to be made holy,

Christian long to be

sanctified in Christ.

The full meaning

of being a saint,

being sanctified,

the priceless blessing

we long to fully possess,

all originated

in the awe-inspiring act of God

through what he has achieved

in Christ.

God's holiness

is revealed

in his interaction with us.

He made holy

by his presence.

God revealed himself

to Moses

in flame of fire

from within a bush.

The fire signified

purifying work,

but the bush,

the tree,

did not burn up,

for an everlasting tree

has been prepared

to show how wonderful

God's plan and purpose

for his people

would be carried forward

and brought to completion

in Jesus.

Apostle Paul,

which is another main leader

of the early church,

often addressed the believers

at the beginning of his letter

by calling them

the holy people of God.

To the Romans,

he said,

to all in Rome

who are loved by God

and called to be

his holy people.

He referred to the believer

in Philippi

as God's holy people

in Christ Jesus.

And to the believer

in Corinth,

he said,

to the church of God

in Corinth,

to those sanctified

in Christ Jesus

and called to be

his holy people.

Paul wrote his letter

not just to the different

churches of his time.

His letter is written

for us

who come to be in Christ

through his writing today.

We have the same title

as the early believer.

We are God's holy people.

These titles,

God's holy people

in Christ Jesus,

holy people in Christ,

sanctified in Christ Jesus,

signify your holiness.

Your holiness

is guaranteed by Christ.

Christ makes God's holiness

accessible

by living it out

through human actions

and relations.

He tears down the barrier

that separates us

from God

and his holiness.

He brings God's holiness

lead by uniting us

with himself.

To be holy in Christ

means our holiness

is a gift from God.

We serve for us,

impart to us,

and actively working

powerfully within us

simply because

we are in him.

In Christ,

you see what God's holiness is,

what your holiness is.

In Christ,

both are one

and both are yours.

You can say to yourself,

in Christ,

I am holy.

Holding on

and growing in him,

I can be holy

in all manners of living

as God is holy.

In Christ,

in whom all the wisdom

and love of God

are unfailed,

the Father giving his Son

to be one with you,

the Son dies on the cross

to make you one with him.

The Holy Spirit

of the Father

drawing in you

to establish

and maintain that union,

a union as tight

as the one enjoyed

by the Trinity

among the Father,

Son,

and the Holy Spirit.

In Christ,

it's a summary

of what redemption

has done

and of the inconceivable

blessed life

in which the child of God

is permitted to dwell.

In Christ,

it's the one lifelong lesson

we have to study on earth.

In Christ,

it's God's ultimate answer

to all your needs

and prayers.

And in Christ,

it's a guarantee

and a foretaste

of the eternal glory

that awaits

every believer.

look again

at what Paul urges.

Just as he who calls you

is holy,

be holy in all you do.

For it is written,

be holy because I am holy.

I don't know about you,

but every time

I hear the command,

be holy as I am holy,

it feels like

there's a vast,

unbridged gap

between God's holiness

and my own.

And every time

I have to remind myself

and use that big word

but,

B-U-T.

But in Christ,

that gap is breached.

Christ's fullness

completely fills the gap

and gives me access to God

and His holiness

becomes mine.

Christ's holiness

is your holiness.

In Christ,

God and humanity met.

In Christ,

God's holiness

reaches us.

claim us as His own

and take on human form

and can truly become yours.

If there are

any anxious pleads

and a deep longing

for kindness

thirst within you,

you know you are a believer

who trusts in Jesus

but still don't know

how to be holy.

He is God's answer.

You are holy

in Christ Jesus.

It is by an act

of divine power

that you are in Christ

and are kept in Him.

It is this I want us

to realize and hold firm to.

Your holiness

is not yours

but Christ's.

remember the divineness

of your position

in Jesus.

Jesus Christ

is a living person,

a loving Savior,

how He delights

in taking full possession

of you

and doing all the work

within you.

Holding on to

this truth,

as we go on,

you have a rightful claim

on Christ,

on His love

and power

to make you holy.

as His redeemed one,

right now,

no matter who you are

or where you are,

you are in Him,

His holy presence

and love surrounds you.

You are in Him

and cause in that tender love

that constantly wraps you

in His holy presence

and your holiness

light

in the acceptance

and fully understanding

of their presence.

Peter starts off

his letter

by addressing

all his readers

and all the believers

together as though

who have been chosen

according to the full knowledge

of God the Father

through the sanctifying work

of the Spirit

to be obedient

to Jesus Christ

and continue to urge them

now that you have

purified yourself

by obeying the truth

so that you have

sincere love

for each other,

love one another

deeply

from the heart

from you have been

born again

not of perishable seed

but of imperishable

through the living

and enduring

word of God.

Jesus also teaches

the same thing

in John 8,

31-32

that obedience

will lead to

ascertaining

the truth

which is the intent

outcome

of the sanctifying

work of the Holy Spirit.

To those

who have believed

in Him,

Jesus said,

if you hold

to my teaching,

you are really

my disciples

and you will know

the truth

and the truth

will set you free.

God gave His people

the law

through Moses.

The law given

helped us to realize

and understand

our sins

and how far

short we are

from God.

God used

what is written

to increase

in His children

the conviction

that we must

be holy.

and praise

to the God

and Father

of Lord Jesus Christ

who has blessed

us in the heavenly realm

with every

spiritual blessing

in Christ

for He chose

us in Him

before the creation

of the world

to be holy

and blameless

in His sight.

God's ultimate

purpose and aim

for each person

when He set aside

the seventh day

to rest

and make holy

is for us

to partake

in His holiness.

His word

gives us

the knowledge

of how we are

to be holy

and the joy

that we might

be holy

and the faith

that we can be holy

all come from

living words

that were inspired

by God's Spirit

as we study it together.

Peter points out

in the end

of the first chapter

of his second letter

he says

above all

you must understand

that no prophecy

of Scripture

came about

by the prophet's

own interpretation

of things.

for prophecy

never had its origin

in human's will

but prophets

though humans

spoke from God

as they were carried

along by the Holy Spirit.

The Holy Spirit

is a key

to our holiness.

He does the

sanctifying work

by first inspiring

the prophet

to write down

God's Word

and ever since

the creation

continue to remind

the believers

again and again

of the truth.

God choose you

as first fruit

to be saved

through the sanctifying

work of the Spirit

and through

believing in the truth.

You might find that

the more you meditate

and study on God's Word

especially when you do it

with others together

the less you grasp

this infinite holiness

and that the more

you momentarily

catch hold of it

the more you despair

of the holiness

is so divine.

Remember that

this bricking

and despair

are exactly

what the Word of God

was meant to accomplish.

That is the sanctifying

work of the Spirit.

God gave

His Holy Spirit

to enable us

to live a holy life.

We need to understand

the more you try

to become holy

by your own effort

the further away

you are from

achieving holiness.

learn to stop

relying on

your own wisdom

just as we must

stop relying

on our own goodness

as Stephen mentioned

it's nothing

but our own goodness

to be in front of God.

Allow the Spirit

of God

to work on us

through God's Word.

Remember

the one who calls you

is faithful

and He will do it.

God's holiness

is revealed

in His willingness

and His work

in making us holy.

In the death

and resurrection

of Christ

and the continued

sanctifying work

of the Spirit

your holiness

and our holiness

do not only mean

for us to enjoy

but God's holiness

also is for sharing.

When we gather together

and approach Him

with a humble

empty spirit

letting God

showing us

that the holiness

He demands

is utterly

beyond human knowledge

on human power

to the soul

that sees trusting

in ourself

and has no confidence

in His own human strength

He will reveal

and actually give

the holiness

He calls to.

Everyone

can share

in God's holiness.

God's intention

when He creates

the world

is for a human

to be partaker

of His rest

and holiness.

when was the last time

you shared with others

how great God is?

When was the last time

you talked to others

about God's glory

in your life?

When your mind

and body

is preoccupied

and concerned

with telling others

about how awesome

our God is

you have no time

to sin or confirm

to the evil desire

of this world.

So may God Himself

the God of peace

satisfy you

through and through.

May your whole spirit

soul and body

be kept blameless

at the coming

of our Lord Jesus Christ.

The one who calls you

is faithful

and He will do it.

As obedient children

do not conform

to the evil desire

you have

when you live

in ignorance

but just as He

who calls you

is holy

so be holy

in all you do

for it is written

be holy

because I am holy.

may may may

Thank you.