Holiness

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Psalm 101:4 Don’t Know Wickedness

A perverse heart shall depart from me; I will not know wickedness. Psalm 101:4

Freedom allows a person to choose what one wants to see or be a part of. Having a choice allows a person to choose to know things that are good or bad and to participate in those things. The world does not have a rock solid standard of what is good or bad and so the majority of the world has no problems being a part of anything without seeing it as bad. Unless it directly harms someone in the immediate, the world does not see anything as wicked.

David states that he will have the perverse heart leave him and that he will choose to not know wickedness.

Walking through this world, it is nearly impossible to not see things that are wicked or sinful. Wickedness can be easily seen in movies, music, books, magazines, television and nearly everywhere and in everything else. Sin is promoted as good and fun. Honoring of wickedness is commonplace.

Since wickedness is so prevalent throughout the world, many believers have fallen into the same trap as the world and choose to see and know it and participate in it. In order to choose to not know wickedness, one must go against the flow of normal society, to be different and strange.

Believers are supposed to be holy, set apart, different, strange in comparison to the world. Everything that they see, know or do is to be holy unto the Lord. God hates wickedness and sin, and so the believer should also hate wickedness and sin and not desire to be a part of it in any way. Instead of knowing wickedness, believers should know the love of God, His holiness and righteousness and true living in the ways of God.

Wickedness is all around you, regardless of where you live or go. The world will strive to pull you into that wickedness and sinful way of living. At the moment you choose to believe in Jesus, He removed all wickedness–sin–from you. Do not allow yourself to go back to that wickedness. Do not choose to know what wickedness is. Be innocent of the ways of the world that brings only death in the end, but knowledgeable of the holy and righteous ways of God that brings eternal life.

Today I pray that you will know Jesus as your Lord and Savior; that you will know God’s ways of living; that God will turn your heart from the wicked and evil ways of this world; and that you will live the holy and righteous life God has called you to live.

Picture by Hayley Murray on Unsplash

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Nehemiah 4:1 The World Will Mock

But it so happened, when Sanballat heard that we were rebuilding the wall, that he was furious and very indignant, and mocked the Jews. Nehemiah 4:1

Whenever someone does something that others do not like they are often mocked and ridiculed. People will do whatever it takes to try and discourage and stop others that they do not agree with or like. The process of mocking will often include telling lies and false rumors, making fun of the other or anything else possible to discredit the person and get them to fail.

As the Israelites were rebuilding the walls of Jerusalem, Sanballat was angry and began to mock them for what they were doing.

Believers are to build up walls of morality, holiness and righteous living in the towns, cities and nations in which they live. They are to be set apart, separate from the wicked and sinful ways of the world, clothing themselves with Christ’s righteousness and putting up barriers to keep themselves from participating in sinful activities.

Immediately upon building these walls of protection on their lives, the world will begin to mock believers. Sometimes this is directed at a specific individual, while other times it is to believers as a whole. Watch many television shows, movies, and read books and magazines to see how the world will mock true Christians.

Upon being mocked, many believers will back down and stop building the walls. Some will give in and begin to let the world into their lives, sinning on purpose against God and His standards of living.

Instead of giving in, believers need to group together to hold each other up and keep on building those walls together, allowing God to spread His hand of protection over them. A choice to obey and follow God rather than the world must be made.

God has shown you how to live your life in Christ Jesus through His word. You are to live a life that is holy and separate from the world.

The more you choose to stand for God and build His wall, the more the world will choose to mock you and try to destroy you. The world does not want to lose you to God and will do whatever they can to make you stop and return to sin. Don’t give in, but lean on God, His word and the Holy Spirit to guide you and give you strength to build a holy and righteous life in Christ Jesus.

Today I pray that you will know Jesus as your Lord and Savior; that God will give you strength when the world mocks you; that you will turn to God for strength as the world attacks; and that you will be able to build walls of holiness in your life and the lives of those around you.

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2 Chronicles 33:7 What Image Is In God’s Temple?

He took the image he had made and put it in God’s temple, of which God had said to David and to his son Solomon, “In this temple and in Jerusalem, which I have chosen out of all the tribes of Israel, I will put my Name forever.” 2 Chronicles 33:7

Images have a lot of meaning. They give people a physical vision of what something is or what that something is all about. This can be used on things or even on people to cast that vision. It can also show the truth of something or cover up the truth.

Manasseh had made an image and placed it in the temple of God that was supposed to have only God’s name upon it.

The world is often focused upon self-image. People are absorbed with having the right clothing, makeup, hairstyle, tattoos, jewelry and much more. Billions of dollars are spent every year in every nation to bring about a certain image, often covering up what is not desired or does not look just right.

Believers, as the temple of God, are also to have an image on them. Many follow the ways of the world and put on the physical images of the world. The false gods of this world are taken up and placed in the temple of God.

Rather than allowing the images of the false gods of this world in their hearts and minds, believers should have the image of God stamped upon their lives. As the temple of God, every believer has the image of God upon them and in them.

Everything about the believer, both inside and outside, physically and spiritually, should reflect who God is. All sin should be repented of and cast out. The holiness and righteousness of God should be worn on the inside and the outside.

You are the temple of God, if you consider yourself a believer in God. As the temple of God, you are to bear His image for all the world to see.

Do not allow His temple to be defiled with the sinful things, thoughts and actions of this world. Jesus took away your sin and is making you to be holy and righteous. Do not allow sin to be placed in your life to defile His holy temple. Repent and cast out the false images and gods in your life and show the world who God really is.

Today I pray that you will know Jesus as your Lord and Savior; that God will reveal false images in your life; that God will give you strength to cast out false images in His temple; and that you will be the holy temple of God that Christ has called you to be.

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2 Kings 21:9 Leading Others Astray

But the people did not listen. Manasseh led them astray, so that they did more evil than the nations the Lord had destroyed before the Israelites. 2 Kings 21:9

Every person leads someone. Some people lead many more people, while others lead only a few. Each person has some influence on someone else. This influence can help lead a person correctly or incorrectly, down a right or wrong path in life. Being an influencer can be done on purpose with focus or done without purposeful intention. Just being around others causes some influence on how they think and act in life.

Manasseh led the Israelites astray away from the commands of God to the point of doing more evil than even the nations God had destroyed before them.

Looking specifically at the churches in America, many believe that they are doing good. However, many in those same churches are leading others astray away from God more and more all the time.

Inside the church one can see that divorce, living together outside of marriage, sexual immorality, drunkenness, murder of babies, and many more sins are just as prevalent, if not more so, than outside the church walls. People are leading more and more into sin and evil ways against God, than for God. Their influence is changing to be against God, rather than for God.

And, sadly, this is done in the name of God as if God accepts all of this.

Believers are to stand out as different, separate from the world and its ways of sin and death. They are to be holy in all that they think, say and do, influencing others to turn from evil ways and live for God. No believer should be influence by the world and its ways, but be the one to influence the world.

No matter where you live or what you do, there are people that you are having an influence on. Just as the world tries to influence you for evil, you must seek to influence the world for God and His holy ways of living.

Every action you do and word you speak is being seen and heard by those in the world. Those words and actions need to be those of Jesus, that will lead people to God, not away from God.

Ask yourself if what you are saying or doing is leading people to or away from God.

Today I pray that you will know Jesus as your Lord and Savior; that God will guide you in living holy and separate from the world; that you will lead others in the ways of God; and that you will turn from all sin to live a holy life for God.