- Aug 10, 2006
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“But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for his own possession, that you may proclaim the excellencies of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light. Once you were not a people, but now you are God's people; once you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy.
“Beloved, I urge you as sojourners and exiles to abstain from the passions of the flesh, which wage war against your soul. Keep your conduct among the Gentiles honorable, so that when they speak against you as evildoers, they may see your good deeds and glorify God on the day of visitation.” (1 Peter 2:9-12 ESV)
These words are addressed here to the elect of God, his saints, his holy ones, his called out ones who are to be living holy lives pleasing to the Lord, separate (unlike, different) from the world because we are being made to be like Jesus in character, of the Spirit of God, as we cooperate fully with God’s work of grace in our lives. For we are called to obedience to Jesus Christ and to his New Covenant commands, as well as to the forsaking of our sins.
We who believe in Jesus Christ with genuine God-persuaded faith in our Lord are to be those who have died with Christ to sin and who are now living to him and to his righteousness. So, we are to put away all malice, deceit, hypocrisy, slander, murder, immorality, idolatry, adultery, and the like. And we are to long after the pure word of God in the Scriptures so that we may know God’s will, and so that we may walk in obedience to his commands.
For God has chosen us out of the world to be his holy people for his own possession. Not only are we to be living lives separate from the world, in holy living, and in walks of obedience to his commands, but we are to be his messengers in proclaiming the excellencies of our Lord who called us out of darkness (sin) into his marvelous light (truth, righteousness, Jesus Christ). We are to be sharing the truth of the gospel with the people of the world.
And the truth is what Jesus Christ and the NT apostles taught (in context). And they taught that coming to faith in Jesus Christ means us dying with Christ to sin, forsaking our sinful practices, and now walking in obedience to his commands, in practice. For if we continue walking in sin, in deliberate and habitual sin against God, and against our fellow humans, we will not inherit eternal life with God, regardless of what our lips profess.
This is the truth that we are to be proclaiming, not the watered-down “gospel” message so popularized in America today. For we are not saved from our sins and promised heaven as our eternal destiny based off lip service only. We cannot just profess him as Lord and Savior, and then acknowledge what he did for us on the cross, and now we are saved and on our way to heaven. We must die to sin and obey our Lord’s commands.
For the mercy of God is not just getting a free pass into heaven. Do any of us deserve his salvation? No! Can we do anything to earn it? No! But by faith in Jesus Christ, by God’s grace, we are delivered out of our addiction to sin so that we can now serve God with our lives in doing what he says to do. But this involves us surrendering our lives to the Lord and submitting to his will and obeying him and his commands, in his power, as part of saving grace.
Therefore, while we live on this earth as strangers (not one with the world), we are commanded that we are to abstain (refrain) from the passions of the flesh which wage war against our souls. We are no longer to be engaged in lying, cheating, stealing, sexual immorality, trickery, adultery, idolatry, and/or murder, and the like. These are to be put out of our lives so that we can now live for our Lord in doing his will and purpose for our lives.
And when our walks of faith and obedience to our Lord are genuine, for our lives are surrendered to his will and purpose for our lives, this will serve as a testimony to others as to what it means to be a follower of Jesus Christ. For it is not in lip service only, but in action, and in deed (see Ephesians 2:8-10 and Titus 2:11-14). And, via our walks of faith, this may lead other people to genuine faith in the Lord who die with him to sin and obey his commands.
[Matt 7:21-23; Lu 9:23-26; John 10:27-30; Acts 26:18; Rom 2:6-8; Rom 6:1-23; Rom 8:1-14; Rom 12:1-2; 1 Co 6:9-10,19-20; 1 Co 10:1-22; 2 Co 5:10,15,21; Gal 5:16-24; Gal 6:7-8; Eph 2:8-10; Eph 4:17-32; Eph 5:3-6; Col 1:21-23; Col 3:1-17; Titus 2:11-14; 1 Jn 1:5-10; 1 Jn 2:3-6,15-17; 1 Jn 3:4-10; 1 Pet 2:24; Heb 3:1-19; Heb 4:1-13; Heb 10:23-31; Heb 12:1-2]
Not I, but Christ
By Ada A. Whiddington / A. B. Simpson
… I no longer live, but Christ lives in me… (Galatians 2:20 NIV)
Not I, but Christ be honored, loved, exalted,
Not I, but Christ be seen, be known, be heard;
Not I, but Christ in every look and action,
Not I, but Christ in every thought and word.
Not I, but Christ to gently soothe in sorrow,
Not I, but Christ to wipe the falling tear;
Not I, but Christ to lift the weary burden,
Not I, but Christ to hush away all fear.
Christ, only Christ, no idle word e'er falling,
Christ, only Christ, no needless bustling sound;
Christ, only Christ, no self-important bearing,
Christ, only Christ, no trace of “I” be found.
Not I, but Christ my every need supplying,
Not I, but Christ my strength and health to be;
Christ, only Christ, for spirit, soul, and body,
Christ, only Christ, live then Thy life in me.
Christ, only Christ, ere long will fill my vision,
Glory excelling soon, full soon I'll see;
Christ, only Christ, my every wish fulfilling,
Christ, only Christ, my all in all to be.
Oh, to be saved from myself, dear Lord,
Oh, to be lost in Thee,
Oh, that it might be no more I,
But Christ that lives in me.
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