Scattered but Certain | Pr Julian

You're listening to a message to go from acts church.

We hope this message will light up your tea.

Other question this afternoon, and the question is this, have

you found yourself in a situation or position where you

feel out of place?

Out of place?

Doctor Joe, Oh, yeah, my son has spelt out of

place before. Doctor Joel Edward read a scripture just now.

How the Bible said that we are not foreigners. Right,

We're not foreigners. God has brought us into his family.

We're adopted into his kingdom.

But sometimes you feel out of place.

You know, sometimes in certain situations you feel like, hmmm,

am I meant to be here? Like if you've been

thrown into a situation.

That is foreign and you're struggling.

Right, it's the last service of the year, the last

Sunday of twenty twenty five. Maybe at the end of

twenty twenty five you're still thinking, hmmm, I'm not sure

if I'm in the right place now?

Am I doing the right thing?

I don't want to go into the next year thinking like,

am I supposed to be here? Am I supposed to

be in this company or this school?

Like?

Are this friends meant to be my friends? Am I

in the right place. Why did God lead me into

this company to face all these challenges? God, I thought

you gave me this job so challenging. Why did I

come to this country where the culture is so different? Hey,

maybe from another place, another country, and he taught Malaysias

like the greener pasture.

Then you arrive here.

I'm like, hmm, it looked better than a postcard. Look

better than a postcard. The culture is so different? Or

maybe why did God lead me into this university? And

I'm the minority of faith? Right, you know, essentially all

of us as Christians, we are we are foreigners in

this world, right, right we are. We have a saying

in church we are not off this world.

We're in this world. They're not off this world. Right.

We're called to be different.

We're called to be said apart, right Roman self too,

you know, do not conform to the likeness of this world.

Do not become like the world, right because be said apart,

but be renewed by the transforming of your mind.

Right. So, so today we're going.

To look at one one chapter in the Bible from

First Peter chapter one and just sort of do a

Bible study verse to verse about this this book, which

Peter wrote to a bunch of people who felt like foreigners. Right,

And I'll share a quick story about how I was

in Osaka recently.

Right.

We were there to also be with Benji and Michelle

and for our family holiday a couple of months ago,

and I had this situation where I really felt like

a foreigner.

Right. So it's so funny.

I don't know, Draw speaks Japanese, right, you know a

little bit, okay, Julian speaks Japanese. And you know, we

were so excited we're going to go to Osaka. We

landed in this country down under, Japan for the first time.

And on our first day, we were going to travel

from Osaka to Kyoto, right and another city, and we

decided to take the shinkansen they bullet train, right, so

very far. And you know how complicated the train system

is right in Japan. So so first day, you know,

I don't know the language signs are so different.

People look the same but sound different.

And we were about to take the bullet train from

this city to another city, and and so we bought

tickets for this bullet train, right, and it was unreserved tickets.

So for unreserved tickets.

You need to sit in a certain carriage on a

bullet train, which is the.

Endler four and five.

Okay, so very long train one, two, three, four, five

carriages or sections of the train unreserve seat at the end.

So that's us. So I got the whole family tickets.

We're like rushing. I think we had like five minutes

to get on the train, right, and we would supposed

to meet our friends in the train as well.

So I'm trying to call them, like are you in

the train already? We're trying to get on the train.

Then, and then Laura tells me my wife, Laura, beautiful wife,

lady over there, come on, She said, make sure you

bring us to the right carriage, go to four or five.

I'm like okay, yes. And then at the corner of mine,

I saw a number. I thought I saw a number five,

Like that's.

The one, get in there now.

So we rushed in and I saw some seats that

were empty, so we said, okay, let's sit down here, guys,

all good five minutes early.

Sit down and we had.

Like three big like luggage bags trying to wheel around.

Then sat down, and then suddenly this Japanese man comes

to me looking really angry. Right, He's like, speaking of

Japanese thing, you said, no, not me. The uncle was

angry and and and he basically was saying, you're sitting

in my seat, and I'm like, are you sure?

And then you know, then we're like, okay, I oblige.

And then we got up.

And then I realized as the train started to move

bullet train speed, which is three hunder Tom's power or something,

that we were in the wrong place. We were probably

in carriage number two. So I had to bring the

whole family, all the luggages, big luggages, first day in Japan,

going through this little small owl, through different doors, and

the whole time I felt like, man, I don't want

to be here. All these Japanese looking at me. They're

calling me like guy g or something.

I don't know.

Oh, they didn't say that. I didn't say that, but

I felt it. And then I can see my wife.

She's walking angrily. Can't see her face, but I can

see her rolling her eyes at the back of her

head already. And it's so funny because from Osakata Kyoto

it's not very far and you're going that fast. By

the time we reached the final carriage. Right, we were there.

We were like, sat down for a while, open my sandwich.

Oh we are reaching Yoto. Get up again, let's go.

We wanted to experience how fast the train was, but like, yeah,

we experienced walking in the train all the way to

the end.

Yeah, we walked to Kyoto.

So yes, there are situations where we feel out of place.

We feel like, you know, persecuted.

By the very orderly and punctual Japanese people. I love,

I love the country, but the way I love Japan

so much, we would definitely want to go back there again.

But today, if.

I have a title, and my title is this from

First Peter Chapter one, Scattered but certain, Scattered but certain,

So like seats, we may be scattered in a far ground,

seemingly out of place, facing fierce conditions, but there is

certainty and purpose in the scattering. We are not foreigners.

We have been adopted into this family. So let's just

go straight into one Peter one, One Peter one. And

how we do it today is we just go through

the verses. Right, we'll go up to verse fifteen, okay,

and if you can track along with me, I hope

that that the Holy Spirit will just inspire us with

the word of God this afternoon.

One Peter one, Verse one, to.

God's elect exiles scattered throughout the provinces of Pontes, Galicia, Cappadocia,

Asia and Bithnia. Verse two, who have been chosen according

to the foreign knowledge of God the Father, through the

sanctifying work of the Spirit, to be obedient to Jesus

Christ and sprinkled with his blood. So those are the

two verses of one Peter one. And this is the

apostle Peter writing a letter to a bunch of people.

So this is my first point, right, and how we

sort of unpacked. The first point is this to understand

who the group of people the apostle Peter was writing two. Right,

So when Peter was writing both one Peter and two

Peter these two letters, it was written when he was

in Rome.

He called it Babylon, to a group of non.

Jewish Christians that were scattered around Asia Minor, which is

modern day Turkey.

Right.

So again I repeat this, right, Peter was writing this

letter to a group of non Jewish Christians. Okay, one

of non Jewish Christians. They are Gentiles, right, which have

received a religion or accepted crisis their savior. Right have

this faith, believing in a faith that is not from

my original background and culture.

Right.

And not only that they were not in the original country.

They were scattered, you see, they were in Pontus, Galaicia, Cappadocia, Asia, Britannia,

which is basically modern day Turkey. Okay, So they were

just like me on the shinkans end, going to Kyoto

in a foreign land.

Feeling so out of place.

This is this was who Peter was writing to, right,

a bunch of people scattered, Right. And not only that,

so they weren't in their own home. They were in

a foreign land. They were treated as foreigners. But not

only that, these people were persecuted by the Greeks and

Roman neighbors.

So dhala, they were in a foreign land.

The neighbors who were supposed to be enighborly to them

weren't treating them well. Right, they were persecuted. The government

of the day were persecuting them. Stares from all the locals,

wives all rolling their eyes in the back of their head. Right, persecuted.

And I want to say that there is certainty even

in situations like that, there is purpose in situations where

we are scattered. Peter essentially told them that they are

suffering refines their faith.

Right, So in my Bible, this Bible, you know.

How I how I started this devotion or started studying

first Peter was the first words in the preface of

this Bible. If the same Bible as me, and it

says this, you know here this persecution can cause either

growth or bitterness in the Christian life. Persecution can cause

either growth or bitterness in the Christian life. Response determine

the result. Right, That's how I dived into this this chapter.

As Christians, we may be scattered, but this scattering and

this persecution can cause either growth of bitterness, and the

response that we have will determine the result. So that's

what we're going to go into this afternoon, right, and

why certain scattered, but certain to be certain is to

be sure to confirm, to affirm yes, because it was

part of the plan. See this verse says that they

are elects. They have been elected. Like what Joel rat

just now, we are no longer foreigners. We got been

elected and brought back into the family of God. Right,

we may be scattered, but we are elected. And verse

two says, who have been chosen according to the fall

knowledge of God. There is purpose in the scattering. There

is purpose in the scattering, there is purpose in the persecution.

God has chosen, he has intention, and our response will

determine the result. So that's point number one. Scattered but certain.

Let's go to verse three. First three says this, praise

be to the God and Father of our Lord, Jesus Christ.

In his great mercy, he has given us new birth

into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ

from the dead, and into an inheritance that can never

perish spoil of faith. This inheritance is kept in heaven

for you. I mean, this is a bunch of verses.

He is so amazing. What a promise we have. The

second point is this, we are saved by God's mercy.

Number one, we are scattered, but there's certainty. Number two,

we are saved by God's mercy. In his great mercy,

he has given us new birth into a living hope.

And to unpack the second point, we want to understand

who was Peter? Who was Peter? Peter wasn't called Peter

all along. When he was before he was named Peter,

he was called Simon. That's why someone we say Simon Peter, right,

And Simon Peter was one of the closest friends of Jesus.

Right.

So Jesus had twelve disciples, and just like all of us,

we have our favorites.

I've got three kids and all of them are my favorite.

Yeah, come on, Simon Peter was probably in my view,

the closest disciple to Jesus. Okay, And the moment where

when his name changed from Simon to Peter, this is

the situation, right, So Jesus was asking all these disciples,

or who do the people say I am?

How does the people see me? Right?

So some say you're John the Baptist, or Elijah or

just another prophet, And then Simon raises his hands he's

probably sitting from the class like a nerd, and said

you are the Messiah, the Christ, right, the savior of

the world. He had a revelation of who Jesus is

and was, and from that moment Jesus changed his name from.

Simon to Peter. So in the Greek it's called.

Patross, right, and what Patross means is the rock solid,

So Peter's name meant the rock. What's the rock, super strong, foundational,

something you can depend on.

Right, so Jesus called him the rock Patross.

Ironically he was not really very solid, right, He wasn't

very solid because we know when when persecution came and

when it was time for Jesus to go on the cross,

he freaked out. You know, he's the one that actually

go and chop off the guard's ear right. And not

only that, he denied Jesus three times. So one of

the closest person to our savior ended up betraying, betraying him.

So imagine that, like one of your closest friends, someone

that you know you can depend on, my rock, my

foundation on days of trouble I want to turn to,

this person ended up betraying me.

I mean, how much hurt with Jesus would have felt.

But we know that that Jesus, after he was raised

from the dead, went again to see Peter Simon Peter

and and re established him, restored the relationship, forgave him right.

So so this Peter, the same Peter that had this revelation,

the same Peter that denied Jesus and was restored.

But again the same Pittho that.

Was so volatile can now say this word to the

church right in his great mercy, he has given us

new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of

Jesus Christ from the dead.

And to me this is Peter experiencing.

Given a second chance in life, being given a second

chance when I messed up. And I want to just

say this today to this room. Like you know, it

doesn't matter what your past track record is.

It doesn't matter the mistakes that you have done.

You may feel like you're exile and scattered like a

pharuloh because of your own doing. You may feel so

out of place in your own family because you say

some things in anger. But today we have a new birth.

We are saved in Christ, not by our own good work,

but by God's mercy. Amen, by God's mercy. Come on,

you are saved. Come on, you have a new beginning.

You have a new birth. You have a new birth.

So wherever you are today, I declare, by his great mercy,

you have new birth into a living hope, not by

your own strength, but by the resurrection power of Jesus Christ.

Come on, He was raised from the dead, and this

inheritance you can never perish, It can never perish, spoil

of faith. We have a second chance with Jesus.

Amen. So your environment may be hostile and.

Deaily, but you have hope in Jesus that defeated death.

Come on.

So number one, the scattering has certainty. Number two, we

are saved by God's mercy. We have a second chance

in life. God has not forgotten you. Just like Peter,

He will restore you today. Number three. Suffering that refines,

Suffering that refines. We jump to verse six. In all this,

you greatly rejoice. In all this, you greatly rejoice. So

Peter is talking to a bunch of exiles, scattered foreigners

not in their own country, being persecuted by different ones, suffering,

and he says in verse six, in all these you

greatly rejoice. Though now for a little while you may

have had to suffer grief in all kinds of trials.

These have come so that the proven genuineness of your faith,

of greater worth than goal perishes. Even though refined by fire,

may result in praise, glory, and honor when Jesus Christ

is revealed.

Pointome three.

Sure there may be suffering, but suffering will refine us.

Suffering will refine us.

Remember what I said earlier, persecution can cause either growth

or bitterness in the Christian life.

Respond determines the result. Come on Jane.

Chapter one says this, dear brothers and sisters, when troubles

of any kind come your way, consider it an opportunity

for great joy.

For you know.

That when your faith is tested, your endurance has a

chance to grow.

So let it grow.

For when your endurance is fully developed, you will be

perfect and complete, needing nothing. So there is a purpose

in suffering, right, it refines our faith. The Analty version

of James. These trials will show that your faith is genuine.

It's being tested as fire tests and purifies core.

Amen.

So I you know this, I mean this Japanese thing

not obvious like I mean reading a lot about like

Japanese stories. And you know the thing about Japanese bonzai, right,

you know what a bonzaie plan is. And if you

have bonz eye plants at home, no, a bonzie plant

is like a mini tree. It's like a full grown tree,

but small, right, like a big rainforest tree you see,

you know, but it's in a small it's so small,

in a fit in the house, right, And you know

in Japan, master bonzie growers So people who are experts

in in a in growing plants that are bonze eyes, right,

they will sometimes deliberately expose young trees to win coal

and restricted soil. Okay, So the thing is, if trees

grow in perfect protected conditions, right, they grow very fast

and grow very big, but they'll be very very weak.

But trees that are exposed to wind, stress and limited

nutritions grows slower, but they develop thicker trunks, stronger root systems,

and they become more resilient structures. So this is just

an illustration about how our perspective on suffering should be.

All of us in life.

I'm sure everyone in this room has gone through difficult times, right,

All of us here are maybe going through difficult times

right now. There are things in your life where you

just wish weren't part of your life. Right, God, just

take this away. God, just answer my prayer. God, just

remove this person from my life. God give me your

provisions so that I don't have to go through this process.

But the Bible reminds us today that our perspective on

suffering should be that it refines us, It makes us better,

just like that bonds iplan. So today I just want

to say a few things prophetically, You know, if and

I want to challenge all of us to have a

fresh perspective on your sufferings and trials. Just like how

Peter reminded the exiles, what did he say, greatly rejoice,

Just like what James said in the Book of James,

Count it all joy, Count it all joy.

Greatly rejoice.

Though now for a little while you, all of us,

may have had to suffer griefs in all kinds of trials, right,

count it all joy. Know that this suffering refines us.

If you're going through a difficult time in your workplace,

maybe your manager's persecuting you, giving you a hard time,

I'll see it to you today. Count it all joy,

Count it all joy. This process will refine you. If

you're going through challenges in school, the specific subject, come on,

counted all joy, Count it all joy. If you're going

through conflicts and strive in a relationship with someone with

a loved one, count it all joy. I'm saying to

you today that that relationship is going to get better

because true, that process, it refines us. It refines us. Amen,

Let's move on. Okay, let's go to the next verse.

We'll jump to verse thirteen. Therefore, gird up the loins

of your mind, be sober, and rest your hope fully

upon the grace that is to be brought to you

at the revelation of Jesus Christ. Therefore, girt up the

loins of your mind, be sober, and rest your hopefully

upon the grace that is to be brought to you

at the revelation of Jesus Christ.

So now we've.

Established that, Hey, guys, it's okay that we are scattered.

It's okay that we feel like we feel like a

foreigners in this land.

It's okay to know.

That that to know that suffering actually refines us.

But how do we go through the process? Right?

Peter tells us the answer Here three things. Gird up

the loins of your mind. Number one. Second, be sober

and certainly rest your hopefully upon that grace.

So let's break this down a little bit. How do

you gird up the loins of your mind?

So I got this from the Art of Manliness dot Com.

Come on the Art of Manliness dot com. You gotta

be manly, man and it gives us, It gives us

six steps of how to gird up, gird up our

what's this called a tunic?

Gird up your tunic? So we've got some man with tunics. Here, come,

I'm gonna get I'm gonna get Joe. This that up

for a while. He looks like he's wearing a tunic.

Lowd Okay, alright, not really maybe.

Dr Dan, Doctor Dan, all right, Okay, looks quite similar.

It needs to be like three three feet longer. So

so okay, if we don't. We don't really wear tunics

nowadays because we dress like normal humans to be like pants,

pants and uh. But basically back in the day, they

would have looked like what doctor Dan is wearing right now,

he's going to get up.

What are you doing? Oh my god, man, this is golden.

This is golden.

Okay, yeah, so it would look very similar to what

he's wearing, right, And and this is how this is

how men dressed back in the day. Right, they wear

a tunic, and and to be fair, they don't wear

anything underneath, but leave your pants on. Yeah, we've got

kids in the room today.

Yeah, I think I think your hand.

So so just just imagine that, Just imagine that man

was wearing basically like a long dressler, right, without ony pants.

And and the thing with wearing a tunic is it's

very difficult.

Run or move fast.

So I think ladies can uh can identify with this, right.

I think you're wearing a very long dress and then

suddenly or you you want to go to the toilet quickly,

then you do.

Especially they're wearing you.

Know, they're trying to so so then you see them

like trying to lift up a skirt and then they

run fast or like it's raining.

Right, So, so how.

How do men back in the day when they had

to do something that requires speed or edgileness? What do

they do? What do they do? They gird up their loins, right,

they get up their loins. So a loin, if you

know a popline right ally is basically anything the down part, okay,

the down part, and.

You want to gird it up.

So the Art of Manliness dot Com today tells us

how to get up our loins of our tunic and

quickly go through this.

Number one.

Hey by tunic would allow you to go into battle.

So the first step you do, I want to ask

you to the first thing you do is you need

to roll up the loins of the tunique, right, roll

it up.

Next light. Yeah, then it becomes quite graphic. Family Sunday.

And you get all the excess garment in front of you. Okay,

So ladies, if you're wearing a long dress, next time,

you know what to do, right, yea, gether all the

extra material in front of you, and you just put

it under, put it under you and pull it to

the back. Okay, next light, and it looks like wearing

a nappy, like a diaper. You take both sides sides

and put it to the front again, and you tie

and not in front.

Right. Finally, finally tie.

Your two handfuls of material to get and you're all

set for both battle and some hard labor. Come on, guys,

go forth, be man and good up your loans. So

this is what Peter was telling the people that they right,

we can't really imagine it because you don't wear tunics today.

But what he was saying is by girding up the

loins of your mind, you need to be in a

state of alertness and readiness for battle. Right, how do

we go through suffering? We need to be alert and ready.

Gird up the loins of your mind. We were going

to a Christmas service on Thursday, just a couple of

days ago, right, and you know, great service, and that

that morning for the first time, the tables were turned. Sorry,

I wasn't serving. Laura was serving, so she went early

by grab and I drove the kids that morning to

church and it was a new place, right, so I

was using the ways our GPS system to get there.

And the moment the last turning I had to take

right to go into the to midlands the convention center,

Micah decided to take my phone away, right, So I

wasn't ready, Like I told him, don't touch my phone,

touch my phone, but he's like, took it away. So

I wasn't alert and ready and I'm and I missed

the destination. I missed the turning right then I was

a bit annoyed. Last see, oh my god, you aited

ten minutes. I wanted to make it in time for

the leaders briefing. Now it gonna make me look bad

man his pastor walking in late with three kids. Oh no,

not ready, No ex kidding, But the fact the fact

is like, if we are not alert and ready, we

may lose or miss our destiny. Right, if we are

not alert and ready, we may miss out on what

God is trying to teach us right if I wasn't

paying I wasn't paying attention that morning, I missed it.

I missed it. So this is what Peter was saying.

We need to be ready and alert.

We're going through the process of suffering because God has

something for us a man. So the other word that

Peter uses is this, be sober minded. Be sober minded.

So what's the opposite of sober drunk? Yeah, that was quick,

don't raise her hands. But who has been drunk here before?

No family Sunday guys.

But a state of drunkenness or intoxication just shows that

a person is like unsure and not alert. They kind

of even walk straight right, they don't know where they're going.

So funny.

I was in Japan again. I mean, it's not a

Japan story, but we went for a run. I went

for a round with Pasta Benji and he told me

we want to He ran at six am and he

told me, okay, Julian, be ready, uh for the run today.

We're going to run in Osaka. It's great, great city.

A little bit dirty, you know, but okay, and be

ready to see like a bunch of men who had

a had a very interesting night, drinking a lot, just

slipping on the streets right, intoxicated.

And I was like, are you sure really?

And true enow like we saw so many they're just

lying down on the streets like passed out. I mean

it was nice in Cola, you know. Uh, And they

were intoxicated. They don't they didn't have purpose and that

day was gone. They didn't have control for what a hit.

So when Peter reminds us to be sober minded, it's

this to be serious, to be steady, to be sensible,

to be composed, clear, hated, earn a self controlled, because

a drunk person is often not himself right, often himself

they're like it.

Kind of walks straight.

They're not supposed to drive because it's driving is very dangerous,

right if you're if you're intoxicated. Going back to the

Book of James, if you read further down, it says this,

be sure that your faith is in God alone.

Do not waver.

For a person with divided loyalty is as unsettled as

a wave of the sea that is blown and passed

by the wind. How do we go through suffering? We

need to be alert and ready. Not only that, we

need to be sober minded. We need to be sure

that God is with us. And I'm going through this

process knowing that He will bring me through.

Don't waiver, don't waiver.

Here and there we were there to minister to the

church in Osaka as well, and I was so blessed

by so many stories of how of how amazing how

a church plunder can go to a foreign land, not

knowing the language much and now have a group of

community that is living out their faith. And I was

speaking to Benji. We spent a day with him, and

he was sharing with me it was not easy. They

went during COVID, right, so imagine going to a foreign

land and don't have support system, and then they had

their first child there and and you know when things

are difficult, you don't have anyone to turn to.

And they still kept going on. They still kept.

Sober minded, being sure that God has called me to

this city of Osaka to bless the people of Osaka

and I will.

Keep doing it. Right.

If he wasn't sober minded, right, I'm like Pasta Kenneth.

I think it's time for me to come back to Ko.

It's getting too hard. The winters are cold, and some

ofers are hot. That's the one that help me. Take

help my kid, bring me back home.

Right.

Wavering here and there some days is good. I want

to be here. Some days is good. I want to

be here. No. To be sober minded is to be sure.

God has called me through this process, and I will

continue going through it having confidence in Jesus. So set

your hope on that grace to be brought you to

you when Jesus Christ is revealed at the coming.

So we set our hope on that grace. Amen.

I've got two statements here. An uncertain person is unstable

in troubled times. An uncertain person is unstable in troubled times.

But a certain person goes through troubled times with genuine faith.

It's not about the traveling times. We will go through

trouble time, tis, but our certainty and faith in Jesus

will bring us true Amen. We're almost there. Our last

point is this. We'll jump to verse fourteen. Set apart

for holiness, So as obedient children do not conform to

the evil desires you have 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? So how do we

wrap up today? How do we how do we keep

keep on the faith? How do we keep being faithful

to Jesus? Peter reminds us today, be holy because I

am holy. We need to be consistent to keep going,

not falling back. We need to be set apart. So

a few questions I have today. Are our schedules set

apart for Christ? It's our speech set apart for Christ?

Are my actions set apart for Christ? Is my lifestyle

set apart for Christ?

We started off.

Today by saying how challenging it is to be scattered

scattered away like foreigners? Ironically, will end by saying Peter

is reminding us that we actually need to be set apart.

We actually should not look like the world. It'll be weird,

It'll be not right if we look exactly like the world.

We need to be different. You know, Alex Martin, I

give this. I say this illustration a lot. Alex Martin,

our dear friend whom I'm known for many years. He

gives this perfect illustration of what being set apart means.

Being holy means. He has a beard, as some of

our blest friends have luscious beards. I tried, man, I

tried before. It's like, yeah, it's like little things, little

towel gays and like curly is almosto, Like, don't try anymore.

Just just accept the fact, yeah that I need to

be clean shaven most of the time. So he has

a beard, and and the thing with bearded man, right

is you need to upkeep and clean the beard, especially

if it's longer. Right, So to clean the beard you

need a comb or a brush of some kind. I

don't know where you have it too, No, long enough,

not long enough again? And and he he wanted He

told me, okay, I want to I want to buy

a brush, comb for my for my luscious beard. Right,

And he went to this specialized store, probably from the

Art of Manliness, to purchase a beard for his a

comb for his beard.

But he was so expensive.

It's like, I don't know, a couple of hundred bucks

for a wooden comb for the beard, because you know,

it's the label says comb for beard.

I don't know.

Maybe there's so few people in the world that has

like long beards, so it's very exclusive price.

So he thought, I'm not going to buy him that shop.

I'm going to go to uh a shoe shop like

mister di y, and he he goes and.

Finds a brush that people brush there their shoes, right,

and it looks exactly the same two brushes. Okay, So

it's like, I don't know cost, the fraction of the price,

I'll just buy the brush right from the shoe shop.

But the thing is, this brush will be set apart

for my beard only. It's like how you use your

tooth brush only for your tooth.

Right.

So he's set apart this brush that can be so ordinary,

brought from a regular shoe shop at the so called

very low price, but it's been set apart and placed

in a place in his wardrobe of such importance and

such value to him that he can only clean his beard.

That is being set apart, That is being set apart.

We are all ordinary people. Sometimes we look at ourselves

like do I have much value?

Right?

I'm someone from mister Diife, made in China, Right. But

God has purchased me with a price so big and

set me apart for his calling and for his work.

The Hebrew word holy kadush means separate or set apart,

and sure is a word that God calls us to be,

but it's actually a word that he uses to describe himself,

be holy, because I am holy. It came to be

used to describe the ardedness of God. The holiness of God,

God being said apart, and how his character and nature

is so much greater and more wonderful than any other

person or thing.

God described himself as holy.

So for something else to be holy simply means for

it to be dedicated to God, dedicated to God.

Just like how that brush was bought.

With intention to be dedicated for a single use and

a purpose. Or something else to be holy simply means

for it to be dedicated to God. You are holy

to the extent that your life is devoted to Him

and your actions reflect His character. Come on, so today

as we end, and I'll just invite the worship ministry

to also come up. As we go into twenty twenty six,

it may not be the easiest time. You may feel

like you're not in the right place, maybe feel you

may feel like you're scattered or placed in a situation

of uncertainty. But today I want to say that in

that scattering, that's certainty and we are saved by God's mercy.

Come on, it's not by our own doing, it's not

by our own good works, but it's by God's mercy

that we have new births, that we are born again.

And how do we go to suffering? We need to

be sober minded and alert in our suffering. And we'll

keep keeping the faith as long as we are set

apart for holiness. So let us remember as we start

off twenty twenty six that God, you are the reason,

and you are a source of hope in every situation,

and we look to you. We look to you today

this afternoon, we fix our eyes on Jesus. Or just

like Peter who walked out of the boat walking on water.

What a miracle.

But when he looked at the waves and the wind,

his faith started to shake.

But Jesus picked him up.

And today we have that second chance to keep our

eyes fixed on Jesus, keep our eyes focused on him,

that in every situation.

We can be walking on water with him.

We can experience the goodness of God, we can experience

how He will bring us through every situation with confidence

and faith.

We hope you've been blessed by this message. For more

information on our church, please visit as Church Org. We

are also active on Facebook and Instagram. We're believing that

this week is going to be a good week. I

hit for you, God bless