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Sermon from July 31, 2011
Brother Joseph Barr
II Corinthians 6:17-18 “17Wherefore come out from among them, and be ye separate, saith the Lord, and touch not the unclean thing; and I will receive you.
18And will be a Father unto you, and ye shall be my sons and daughters, saith the Lord Almighty.”
Last Sunday, we started with a lesson on glorifying God and I will continue that lesson this morning. We talked last Sunday about the fact that there is only one way to glorify God, and that’s in the church. No human being can justifiably glorify God outside of the church. That means that non-Christians may glorify God but it doesn’t do them any good. Is it good for them to glorify God? I say yes, but it’s even better for them to do it and receive credit for it.
You and I in the church of Christ may successfully glorify our God in heaven. God has made a distinction between the children of God and the children of the devil. In our verse this morning, God said, “come out from among them, and be ye separate.” So we have an obligation to come out from the sinners. In 1 Peter 2:9, the Bible says, “9But ye are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, an holy nation, a peculiar people; that ye should shew forth the praises of him who hath called you out of darkness into his marvellous light.” We became his own special people, a holy nation. That word ‘peculiar’ means sanctified – setting us apart, we glorify Him by the lives that He has granted us or taught us to live.
Every day that you and I are alive, it is our duty and privilege to glorify our God by the lives we live. That is our duty. Let’s look at some scriptures to see what God is trying to tell us.
In 1 Corinthians 1:17-19, it says, “17For Christ sent me not to baptize, but to preach the gospel: not with wisdom of words, lest the cross of Christ should be made of none effect.
18For the preaching of the cross is to them that perish foolishness; but unto us which are saved it is the power of God.
19For it is written, I will destroy the wisdom of the wise, and will bring to nothing the understanding of the prudent.”
Paul says God’s intention is to destroy the wisdom of the wise. There is wisdom of the world. There is a knowledge that man possesses, and a knowledge and understanding that God possesses. God is trying to show the world through His church, that His wisdom is far more superior. Verses 20-24 say, “20Where is the wise? where is the scribe? where is the disputer of this world? hath not God made foolish the wisdom of this world?
21For after that in the wisdom of God the world by wisdom knew not God, it pleased God by the foolishness of preaching to save them that believe.
22For the Jews require a sign, and the Greeks seek after wisdom:
23But we preach Christ crucified, unto the Jews a stumbling block, and unto the Greeks foolishness;
24But unto them which are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God, and the wisdom of God.” See, the wisdom of God is hidden in the gospel of Jesus Christ. So, when we live our lives, we demonstrate the wisdom of God compared to the wisdom of men. Colossians 2:3 says, “3In whom are hid all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge.” That’s’ important because there are some things you don’t know and you will never know, until you are baptized into Jesus Christ. You can come and listen, Sunday after Sunday, and go home and study your Bible, but until you are baptized and in the church, you won’t know it. That’s why it’s incumbent on you and I to not go after the wisdom of the world. We’re not of the world. We’re in the church now.
When people look at us, they don’t see the wisdom of the world – they see the wisdom of God. As a man, I had to follow the wisdom of God. That’s why I feel so sorry for the people who don’t believe you have to be baptized to be saved, when the Bible says it over and over. In Colossians 3:1, 10, the Bible says, “1If ye then be risen with Christ, seek those things which are above, where Christ sitteth on the right hand of God.” “10And have put on the new man, which is renewed in knowledge after the image of him that created him.”
In Joshua 24:15, he said, “15And if it seem evil unto you to serve the LORD, choose you this day whom ye will serve; whether the gods which your fathers served that were on the other side of the flood, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land ye dwell: but as for me and my house, we will serve the LORD.” Jesus didn’t point the way; he led the way. He didn’t point to the cross, he went to the cross. As a man, I have to lead to the cross. Look at 1 Timothy 3:1, “This is a true saying, if a man desire the office of a bishop, he desireth a good work.”Let me tell you something brothers, it’s a good work to be an elder in the church. To be a spiritual leader, you must be a spiritual leader in the home. A man doesn’t lead by pointing; he leads by showing the way.
What about a Christian woman? We are constantly competing with the world. The world laughs at us. In worldly homes, there is no head. One of the greatest glories of a woman is the role of being a Christian woman in the church. The worldly women say, “I wanna preach.” They say, “I don’t need a man to have a family. I can do it myself.” Well you can’t tell me that children don’t need a mother AND a father. Now, I know there are some exceptions but exceptions don’t make the rule. The wisdom of the world say otherwise. Paul says in 1 Timothy 2:9-15, “9In like manner also, that women adorn themselves in modest apparel, with shamefacedness and sobriety; not with broided hair, or gold, or pearls, or costly array;
10But (which becometh women professing godliness) with good works.
11Let the woman learn in silence with all subjection.
12But I suffer not a woman to teach, nor to usurp authority over the man, but to be in silence.
13For Adam was first formed, then Eve.
14And Adam was not deceived, but the woman being deceived was in the transgression.
15Notwithstanding she shall be saved in childbearing, if they continue in faith and charity and holiness with sobriety.
A woman glorifies God by the way she cares for and loves and raises her children. Are you letting the world raise your children or are you teaching them the admonitions of God? Now you can be Godly parents and raise a devil. But as long as they’re alive, there’s hope. They’ll eventually remember what you’ve taught them and can come back around. There are other families that are watching our families. As they observe us in Christ, they ought to be saying, “Boy, I wish I had THAT! What’s your secret?”
Now, if you’re in the church and you can’t say that, then shame on you…shame on us. God gave it to us. We got it. We could have the most beautiful marriages on earth, and the most happy homes. If we don’t have it, we ought to. Maybe we just won’t let Jesus have control. It’s got to be my way-me, me, me, me, me. We can’t give God the glory.
We could leave here today, go home, sit down with one another, and fix what’s wrong, get up and be happy. Whatever went wrong yesterday, that’s yesterday. But from this day forward, let’s be happy and glorify our God. The Lord says forgive each other, as I forgive you. Let go of that language. Unpack your suitcases. You’re not perfect and I’m not perfect. Let’s glorify God We’ve got the knowledge…when are we going to use it?
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Where are you today?
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