WEBVTT 00:00:03.700 --> 00:00:06.580 I want to thank the watchmen also for being here. 00:00:06.980 --> 00:00:09.039 They're going to be with us in the next service 00:00:09.039 --> 00:00:11.400 and then be with the high schoolers during Sunday 00:00:11.400 --> 00:00:16.399 school this morning at 1115. And thanks to those 00:00:16.399 --> 00:00:19.920 of you who helped in hosting them. Would you 00:00:19.920 --> 00:00:22.679 open your Bible please with me to 2 Corinthians 00:00:22.679 --> 00:00:28.000 chapter 6. Our text today begins in the middle 00:00:28.000 --> 00:00:32.100 of verse 16 and concludes with the first verse 00:00:32.100 --> 00:00:39.079 of chapter 7. For we are the temple of the living 00:00:39.079 --> 00:00:45.539 God Just as God said I will dwell in them and 00:00:45.539 --> 00:00:49.420 walk among them and I will be their God and they 00:00:49.420 --> 00:00:53.759 shall be my people Therefore come out from their 00:00:53.759 --> 00:00:57.179 midst and be separate says the Lord and do not 00:00:57.179 --> 00:01:01.420 touch what is unclean and I will welcome you 00:01:01.420 --> 00:01:05.019 and I will be a father to you and you shall be 00:01:26.650 --> 00:01:30.469 I recall when I was a young boy the excitement 00:01:30.469 --> 00:01:34.299 of going to family reunions. Some of you will 00:01:34.299 --> 00:01:37.719 be going to reunions in a couple of weeks or 00:01:37.719 --> 00:01:41.400 later on in the summer, and there you will see 00:01:41.400 --> 00:01:44.120 family members that you've not seen for a long 00:01:44.120 --> 00:01:46.680 time, and you might even wish you wouldn't see 00:01:46.680 --> 00:01:49.420 again. I don't know. If it's like most families, 00:01:49.480 --> 00:01:53.519 that might be the case with one or two. But I 00:01:53.519 --> 00:01:56.019 can remember as a young boy the excitement that 00:01:56.019 --> 00:02:01.280 I felt when I realized that I had cousins and 00:02:01.280 --> 00:02:05.140 began to understand what cousins were all about. 00:02:06.099 --> 00:02:12.560 Cousins were more than friends. One who was my 00:02:12.560 --> 00:02:16.620 cousin was someone who was blood related to me. 00:02:18.180 --> 00:02:22.659 My grandpa and grandpa were their grandpa and 00:02:22.659 --> 00:02:29.250 grandpa. There was a relationship. among us that 00:02:29.250 --> 00:02:35.909 did not exist among my friends and myself. The 00:02:35.909 --> 00:02:39.169 relationship of family is a very important one. 00:02:40.770 --> 00:02:43.969 Although we have to admit sadly that it's missing 00:02:43.969 --> 00:02:50.449 in our society today far too often. Families 00:02:50.449 --> 00:02:55.650 become separated because of our mobility. I grieve 00:02:55.650 --> 00:02:59.189 that my children do not have the same sense of 00:02:59.189 --> 00:03:02.590 family that I grew up with because they live 00:03:02.590 --> 00:03:06.090 so far from their cousins and their aunts and 00:03:06.090 --> 00:03:09.870 uncles. And of course in addition to that we're 00:03:09.870 --> 00:03:14.909 facing the phenomenon of families that are disintegrating 00:03:14.909 --> 00:03:18.990 and so to many children the word family becomes 00:03:18.990 --> 00:03:23.400 really a confusing term. They're not exactly 00:03:23.400 --> 00:03:28.860 sure what family refers to. Several years ago 00:03:28.860 --> 00:03:32.620 David Clatterbuck, who teaches Christian education 00:03:32.620 --> 00:03:35.060 at Northwestern College, was speaking to a group 00:03:35.060 --> 00:03:36.939 of our leaders at the church and talked with 00:03:36.939 --> 00:03:43.439 us about a healthy family. He gave to us a list 00:03:43.439 --> 00:03:48.909 of characteristics of a healthy family. One way 00:03:48.909 --> 00:03:51.430 to measure a healthy family is the number of 00:03:51.430 --> 00:03:55.250 people in the nuclear family itself and in the 00:03:55.250 --> 00:03:59.849 immediate circle of intimate acquaintances. The 00:03:59.849 --> 00:04:02.990 closest friends or other family members that 00:04:02.990 --> 00:04:06.689 live right in the area. Sociologists have found 00:04:06.689 --> 00:04:09.889 that if a family is going to be a healthy family, 00:04:09.990 --> 00:04:15.520 it needs to have at least 25 to 30 people. in 00:04:15.520 --> 00:04:18.639 the nuclear family and in the immediate association 00:04:18.639 --> 00:04:23.079 of the nuclear family. And they found that an 00:04:23.079 --> 00:04:28.720 unhealthy family will have only 10 to 15 such 00:04:28.720 --> 00:04:33.180 relationships. That presents a dilemma, especially 00:04:33.180 --> 00:04:36.800 to those of us who have moved from our roots. 00:04:38.740 --> 00:04:41.279 Whereas those who have lived in an area for a 00:04:41.279 --> 00:04:44.720 long time have families that they can go see 00:04:44.720 --> 00:04:47.600 and they have longtime associates and friends 00:04:47.600 --> 00:04:52.220 that they accompany with for the holidays and 00:04:52.220 --> 00:04:55.860 other special occasions, those who move around 00:04:55.860 --> 00:04:58.560 from place to place don't always have those kinds 00:04:58.560 --> 00:05:01.899 of benefits. That's one reason that our family 00:05:01.899 --> 00:05:04.579 has especially appreciated being part of a flock 00:05:04.579 --> 00:05:08.389 this last year. where we've been able to get 00:05:08.389 --> 00:05:10.529 to know some other families in our church on 00:05:10.529 --> 00:05:14.029 a more intimate level. It's very important for 00:05:14.029 --> 00:05:17.569 us to have those kinds of relationships in order 00:05:17.569 --> 00:05:23.670 to be a healthy family. Healthy family relationships 00:05:23.670 --> 00:05:28.769 provide guidelines as well as management for 00:05:28.769 --> 00:05:34.810 times of stress and times when assistance is 00:05:34.810 --> 00:05:39.350 needed. When we have those kinds of relationships, 00:05:39.610 --> 00:05:44.730 there are positive supports that come to us, 00:05:44.850 --> 00:05:49.910 and we all need those. I looked up the word relationship, 00:05:50.189 --> 00:05:52.029 since that's what I'm talking about this morning 00:05:52.029 --> 00:05:55.670 in the dictionary, and I found that a synonym 00:05:55.670 --> 00:05:57.790 of the word relationship, according to Webster, 00:05:57.870 --> 00:06:01.550 is the word connection. And I thought to myself 00:06:01.550 --> 00:06:03.850 how up -to -date this dictionary is, even though 00:06:03.850 --> 00:06:07.839 I bought it 20 years ago. A relationship is a 00:06:07.839 --> 00:06:13.420 connection by blood or marriage. Or a relationship 00:06:13.420 --> 00:06:18.600 is kinship. So a relationship is a connection. 00:06:19.060 --> 00:06:22.959 That's different than a conjunction. In recent 00:06:22.959 --> 00:06:25.839 days we have observed something that people on 00:06:25.839 --> 00:06:28.699 the earth have not seen for about 600 years. 00:06:30.199 --> 00:06:32.839 In the evening sky we have seen three planets 00:06:32.839 --> 00:06:36.399 come into what is called conjunction. They're 00:06:36.399 --> 00:06:39.480 in the same part of the sky, a beautiful sight. 00:06:40.819 --> 00:06:42.939 But that's only from our perspective, because 00:06:42.939 --> 00:06:45.420 actually those planets are as far away from one 00:06:45.420 --> 00:06:50.500 another as they ever are. But from our perspective, 00:06:50.519 --> 00:06:53.100 they come together in conjunction. But that's 00:06:53.100 --> 00:06:56.740 not a connection. Connection is when there is 00:06:56.740 --> 00:07:02.079 an actual tie. A popular term coined these days 00:07:02.079 --> 00:07:06.329 to communicate the same idea. is the word network. 00:07:07.689 --> 00:07:11.670 Network is a noun in my dictionary, but in more 00:07:11.670 --> 00:07:14.490 recent years it's also become a verb. Have you 00:07:14.490 --> 00:07:19.269 been networked? Oh, I'm networked into this company 00:07:19.269 --> 00:07:23.389 or into this church. That means that we have 00:07:23.389 --> 00:07:27.850 established relationships. Now one can have an 00:07:27.850 --> 00:07:33.339 appropriate number of relationships and yet still 00:07:33.339 --> 00:07:37.040 missed the single most crucial one and that is 00:07:37.040 --> 00:07:41.139 the relationship with God. Our relationship with 00:07:41.139 --> 00:07:48.920 God was broken when humanity fell into sin. God 00:07:48.920 --> 00:07:54.240 in his marvelous loving kindness worked through 00:07:54.240 --> 00:07:58.220 his son Jesus Christ to restore the possibility 00:07:58.220 --> 00:08:03.180 of relationship once again. Sin broke the relationship 00:08:03.180 --> 00:08:07.779 between us and God, but through the cross of 00:08:07.779 --> 00:08:12.040 Jesus Christ, God worked so that we might once 00:08:12.040 --> 00:08:17.480 again have relationship with Him. John summarizes 00:08:17.480 --> 00:08:20.699 it this way. In the first chapter of his gospel 00:08:20.699 --> 00:08:24.040 he says, But as many as received Jesus Christ, 00:08:24.600 --> 00:08:28.199 to them He gave the right to become children 00:08:28.199 --> 00:08:34.259 of God. even to those who believe in His name." 00:08:34.259 --> 00:08:38.159 Children of God, that's one way of saying relationship. 00:08:39.980 --> 00:08:43.639 Our text in 2 Corinthians chapter 6 pictures 00:08:43.639 --> 00:08:46.940 that relationship with God in a couple of ways. 00:08:48.080 --> 00:08:51.059 Notice that it is first of all pictured as a 00:08:51.059 --> 00:08:57.860 temple. God says, we are the temple. of the living 00:08:57.860 --> 00:09:01.080 God. And notice that he then makes three statements 00:09:01.080 --> 00:09:05.740 regarding this temple as an illustration of his 00:09:05.740 --> 00:09:09.279 relationship to those who trust Christ. He says, 00:09:09.759 --> 00:09:16.019 I will dwell in them. I will walk among them. 00:09:17.440 --> 00:09:20.899 I will be their God and they shall be my people. 00:09:20.980 --> 00:09:25.960 Three statements. elaborating upon this illustration 00:09:25.960 --> 00:09:31.019 of ourselves being the temple of God. What a 00:09:31.019 --> 00:09:33.600 wonderful illustration of relationship with God. 00:09:33.679 --> 00:09:40.259 I will dwell in them. Perhaps as the apostle 00:09:40.259 --> 00:09:44.580 is writing this, he is reminded of that dwelling 00:09:44.580 --> 00:09:46.879 of God in the Old Testament that we call the 00:09:46.879 --> 00:09:52.700 tabernacle, that tent of a meeting place. that 00:09:52.700 --> 00:09:56.720 was constructed by Moses and skilled craftsmen 00:09:56.720 --> 00:10:02.600 after the pattern that God gave to them. That 00:10:02.600 --> 00:10:05.220 temple that they carried from place to place 00:10:05.220 --> 00:10:08.500 as they marched as a people in the wilderness. 00:10:09.759 --> 00:10:13.440 That tabernacle that was set up in the midst 00:10:13.440 --> 00:10:20.159 of all of their camp. It was there that God dwelled. 00:10:20.379 --> 00:10:23.899 It was there that he settled down and was at 00:10:23.899 --> 00:10:32.600 home amongst his people. Now God says, we are 00:10:32.600 --> 00:10:37.940 his dwelling place. We, as a body of people, 00:10:39.759 --> 00:10:42.240 become the tent of meeting, as it were, where 00:10:42.240 --> 00:10:49.080 God dwells, where God is at home. And he says, 00:10:49.100 --> 00:10:54.700 I will walk among them. I will walk among them." 00:10:54.700 --> 00:10:59.220 God did not do that in the Old Testament. God 00:10:59.220 --> 00:11:03.820 was confined, as it were, to the tent of meeting 00:11:03.820 --> 00:11:09.480 because the rest of the campground was unsanctified. 00:11:11.879 --> 00:11:16.220 It was that area that was set apart for the tabernacle, 00:11:16.860 --> 00:11:20.120 the tent. And it was appropriately sprinkled 00:11:20.120 --> 00:11:23.860 with blood and prepared so that God might dwell 00:11:23.860 --> 00:11:27.940 there. But God did not walk among His people. 00:11:28.299 --> 00:11:31.740 He dwelt in the middle of them. But God says 00:11:31.740 --> 00:11:35.799 now that He walks among us. Why is that? Because 00:11:35.799 --> 00:11:38.620 we have been sprinkled with the blood of Christ. 00:11:40.019 --> 00:11:44.549 We have been sanctified. by the work of God. 00:11:44.669 --> 00:11:47.289 We have been set apart so that God is pleased 00:11:47.289 --> 00:11:50.950 not only to dwell in us, but to walk amongst 00:11:50.950 --> 00:11:56.169 us as his people. And then he says, I will be 00:11:56.169 --> 00:11:58.990 their God and they shall be my people. Notice 00:11:58.990 --> 00:12:05.250 the possessive pronouns in that statement. I 00:12:05.250 --> 00:12:10.669 will be their God and they shall be my people. 00:12:13.639 --> 00:12:16.840 When we trust Jesus Christ as our Savior and 00:12:16.840 --> 00:12:22.620 Lord, God then belongs to us in a possessive 00:12:22.620 --> 00:12:30.259 sense. And we, we belong to Him. God says, I 00:12:30.259 --> 00:12:32.820 want you to know that there is a relationship 00:12:32.820 --> 00:12:36.720 between you and me. And that relationship is 00:12:36.720 --> 00:12:40.940 illustrated in this truth. You are the temple. 00:12:42.379 --> 00:12:48.700 of the living God. You see, salvation is not 00:12:48.700 --> 00:12:52.879 about going to church. Salvation is not about 00:12:52.879 --> 00:12:57.899 performing rituals or doing sacraments in a building 00:12:57.899 --> 00:13:05.120 somewhere. The salvation is connection. Salvation 00:13:05.120 --> 00:13:09.779 is relationship with the living God of the universe. 00:13:10.139 --> 00:13:13.299 a relationship that is established by faith. 00:13:16.080 --> 00:13:18.440 There's a second illustration in our text of 00:13:18.440 --> 00:13:21.259 this relationship between the believer and God, 00:13:22.240 --> 00:13:28.820 and it is the illustration of a family. God says, 00:13:29.200 --> 00:13:32.360 I will welcome you, I will be a father to you, 00:13:32.419 --> 00:13:37.860 and you shall be sons and daughters to me. Again, 00:13:37.960 --> 00:13:42.450 three statements. I will welcome you. Is there 00:13:42.450 --> 00:13:47.110 any word in our language that communicates welcome 00:13:47.110 --> 00:13:54.870 any more than the word family? When you go to 00:13:54.870 --> 00:13:58.090 see family, you know you are going to be welcomed 00:13:58.090 --> 00:14:03.750 there because you are a part of the same bloodline. 00:14:05.529 --> 00:14:09.860 There is a relationship. God says, I will welcome 00:14:09.860 --> 00:14:15.100 you. I will be a father to you on this Father's 00:14:15.100 --> 00:14:20.759 Day, 1991. It is good for we who are fathers 00:14:20.759 --> 00:14:24.200 to remember that God calls himself our Father, 00:14:25.039 --> 00:14:29.080 and he gives to us something of a pattern that 00:14:29.080 --> 00:14:33.600 we are to follow in our lives as dads in this 00:14:33.600 --> 00:14:39.100 world. And thirdly, God says, you will be my 00:14:39.100 --> 00:14:46.080 sons and daughters. And we think of the family 00:14:46.080 --> 00:14:49.639 relationship, and God is our Father, and we as 00:14:49.639 --> 00:14:52.580 children. There are three thoughts that come 00:14:52.580 --> 00:14:56.100 to mind. When we think of Father, we think of 00:14:56.100 --> 00:15:03.240 progenitor. One who gives life. I knew my father 00:15:03.240 --> 00:15:06.570 only for eight years. He died when I was eight 00:15:06.570 --> 00:15:14.389 years old. And I have but few precious, few remembrances 00:15:14.389 --> 00:15:21.649 of him. But I do respect him, though I have few 00:15:21.649 --> 00:15:25.570 memories. Because I know that he is my progenitor. 00:15:25.649 --> 00:15:29.990 He is the one who, along with my mother in their 00:15:29.990 --> 00:15:35.409 love, gave me life. That's why God calls Himself 00:15:35.409 --> 00:15:39.529 our Father. Because He is the one who gives us 00:15:39.529 --> 00:15:45.370 life when we trust in Christ. When we think of 00:15:45.370 --> 00:15:51.149 Father, we think of one who is provider. One 00:15:51.149 --> 00:15:56.470 who is to meet the needs of wife and children. 00:15:57.899 --> 00:16:02.000 Ephesians 5, when it says, Husbands, love your 00:16:02.000 --> 00:16:08.200 wives just like Christ loved the church. It means 00:16:08.200 --> 00:16:12.440 that just as Jesus gave himself to provide for 00:16:12.440 --> 00:16:16.100 the church, we are to give ourselves to provide 00:16:16.100 --> 00:16:20.059 for our wives and our children. And God does 00:16:20.059 --> 00:16:23.799 that. He's our provider. When we think of God 00:16:23.799 --> 00:16:26.659 as our Father, we think of Him also as our protector. 00:16:29.070 --> 00:16:33.750 A father is a protector of his family. He has 00:16:33.750 --> 00:16:38.029 that sense, that innate sense of responsibility 00:16:38.029 --> 00:16:45.690 for family. To protect. And so does God. God 00:16:45.690 --> 00:16:49.370 hides us, to use another illustration, under 00:16:49.370 --> 00:16:55.169 his wings. We dwell in the secret place of the 00:16:55.169 --> 00:17:00.539 Almighty. Do you see why God uses this particular 00:17:00.539 --> 00:17:03.659 illustration when He wants to describe relationship 00:17:03.659 --> 00:17:09.940 to us? I'll be your father, and you're my son, 00:17:10.079 --> 00:17:13.759 you're my daughter. It means that He gives us 00:17:13.759 --> 00:17:19.299 life. He provides our needs. He keeps us safe. 00:17:22.039 --> 00:17:26.539 Because we are His sons and daughters, We bear 00:17:26.539 --> 00:17:31.440 his likeness morally. We have an inheritance 00:17:31.440 --> 00:17:34.400 that is an eternal one that is coming one day 00:17:34.400 --> 00:17:40.559 because we're in Christ. What a wonderful relationship 00:17:40.559 --> 00:17:45.940 God makes possible through Jesus. Sin separated 00:17:45.940 --> 00:17:49.180 us from God. It destroyed the original relationship 00:17:49.180 --> 00:17:53.599 between God and humanity. But now, through Jesus 00:17:53.599 --> 00:17:56.019 Christ, God has provided that there might be 00:17:56.019 --> 00:18:01.519 relationship again when we trust in Jesus Christ 00:18:01.519 --> 00:18:06.599 for our salvation. That relationship has some 00:18:06.599 --> 00:18:11.680 responsibilities with it. In our text, God enumerates 00:18:11.680 --> 00:18:18.579 two of them. He says, come out from their midst 00:18:18.579 --> 00:18:24.519 and be separate, says the Lord. When we have 00:18:24.519 --> 00:18:29.319 a new relationship with God, it means a change 00:18:29.319 --> 00:18:35.140 in our old relationships. God says, come out 00:18:35.140 --> 00:18:40.740 and be separate. In the previous verses he elaborated 00:18:40.740 --> 00:18:45.039 on that a bit. Do not be bound together, he says, 00:18:45.140 --> 00:18:50.160 with unbelievers. For what partnership have righteousness 00:18:50.160 --> 00:18:54.390 and lawlessness? Have you ever been involved 00:18:54.390 --> 00:18:57.589 in a partnership where there wasn't equality? 00:18:59.690 --> 00:19:02.269 Where there was on the part of one side or the 00:19:02.269 --> 00:19:06.829 other a failure to keep the partnership equal? 00:19:08.609 --> 00:19:13.869 It's disastrous. God says what relationship is 00:19:13.869 --> 00:19:16.750 there between righteousness and unrighteousness? 00:19:17.830 --> 00:19:21.069 What fellowship, he says, what communion is there 00:19:21.069 --> 00:19:26.089 with light and darkness? What harmony has Christ 00:19:26.089 --> 00:19:31.250 with Belial? That's a word for Satan. The word 00:19:31.250 --> 00:19:36.029 harmony in the text here is the Greek word symphonesis. 00:19:37.670 --> 00:19:39.890 And if you listen to that, you hear the word 00:19:39.890 --> 00:19:46.210 symphony. He says Christ and Satan cannot be 00:19:46.539 --> 00:19:54.279 in symphony together. And he says, what has a 00:19:54.279 --> 00:19:58.740 believer in common with an unbeliever? And what 00:19:58.740 --> 00:20:03.319 agreement has the temple of God with idols? Some 00:20:03.319 --> 00:20:08.200 very pointed questions that he asks before he 00:20:08.200 --> 00:20:11.700 says to us, by way of command, come out and be 00:20:11.700 --> 00:20:16.160 separate. And yet the drive among so many of 00:20:16.160 --> 00:20:19.339 the contemporary Christians these days is to 00:20:19.339 --> 00:20:23.059 go in and be as much like the world as you can 00:20:23.059 --> 00:20:31.759 be, imbibe in it, compromise with it, accommodate 00:20:31.759 --> 00:20:38.819 yourself to it. And God says, no, no, we're in 00:20:38.819 --> 00:20:43.339 relationship. Therefore, you must come out and 00:20:43.339 --> 00:20:51.160 be separate. And in verse 1 of chapter 7 he puts 00:20:51.160 --> 00:20:55.619 it this way, let us cleanse ourselves from all 00:20:55.619 --> 00:21:02.160 defilement of the flesh and spirit. We are forbidden 00:21:02.160 --> 00:21:07.759 by God to enter into intimate spiritual bonds 00:21:07.759 --> 00:21:11.359 or other kinds of intimate bonds with unbelievers. 00:21:11.690 --> 00:21:17.089 That includes marriage. It includes business 00:21:17.089 --> 00:21:20.670 partnerships. It doesn't mean a believer can't 00:21:20.670 --> 00:21:22.910 work for an unbeliever or that a believer can't 00:21:22.910 --> 00:21:26.730 hire unbelievers, but there's not to be a partnership 00:21:26.730 --> 00:21:31.769 because there's inequality there and it leads 00:21:31.769 --> 00:21:36.210 to trouble. Cleanse ourselves, he says. Let us 00:21:36.210 --> 00:21:39.589 cleanse ourselves once and for all. It's a peremptory 00:21:39.589 --> 00:21:45.809 act. Let's cleanse ourselves from all defilement, 00:21:47.450 --> 00:21:52.390 whether it be of the flesh, the body, the outward 00:21:52.390 --> 00:21:56.990 actions, or it be of the spirit, the attitudes 00:21:56.990 --> 00:21:59.869 of the heart, those things that are hidden, the 00:21:59.869 --> 00:22:04.750 thought processes. Cleanse ourselves. Perfecting 00:22:04.750 --> 00:22:11.200 holiness. perfecting it as a way of life. It's 00:22:11.200 --> 00:22:15.279 a process, you see. It's something that we don't 00:22:15.279 --> 00:22:18.319 do in an instant of time. Oh, if only we could. 00:22:19.720 --> 00:22:26.420 But it is a process of perfecting holiness in 00:22:26.420 --> 00:22:33.240 the fear of God. I would say this to you today 00:22:33.240 --> 00:22:38.730 that we, in the 1990s, who call ourselves Christians, 00:22:39.789 --> 00:22:46.349 tend to be far too laid back in our understanding 00:22:46.349 --> 00:22:53.250 of God. We are too laid back with God, and we 00:22:53.250 --> 00:22:56.049 need to recapture the idea that there is a reason 00:22:56.049 --> 00:23:02.890 to fear Him, to have a holy and awful reverence. 00:23:03.400 --> 00:23:08.839 For this one who is in relationship with us And 00:23:08.839 --> 00:23:11.940 who says you are my temple you are my children 00:23:11.940 --> 00:23:17.099 and I am your father and who says come out and 00:23:17.099 --> 00:23:21.440 be separate be different and Cleanse yourself 00:23:21.440 --> 00:23:24.279 from the defilement of the world the culture 00:23:24.279 --> 00:23:29.710 in which you live Peter says it this way, you 00:23:29.710 --> 00:23:33.410 are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy 00:23:33.410 --> 00:23:38.230 nation, a people for God's own possession, that 00:23:38.230 --> 00:23:41.029 you may proclaim the excellencies of Him who 00:23:41.029 --> 00:23:43.849 has called you out of darkness into His marvelous 00:23:43.849 --> 00:23:49.789 light. For you once were not a people, but now 00:23:49.789 --> 00:23:58.799 you are the people of God. Relationship. It goes 00:23:58.799 --> 00:24:02.380 on to say, Beloved, I urge you as aliens and 00:24:02.380 --> 00:24:06.099 strangers, a change you see in our relationships 00:24:06.099 --> 00:24:09.420 in the world. Now we're aliens and strangers 00:24:09.420 --> 00:24:16.160 here. I urge you to abstain from fleshly lusts 00:24:16.160 --> 00:24:21.619 with wage against the soul. One of the good gifts 00:24:21.619 --> 00:24:25.440 of God And that's our theme for this summer. 00:24:25.539 --> 00:24:28.799 One of the good gifts of God is the gift of relationship. 00:24:31.000 --> 00:24:34.319 Relationship is a privilege. And with the privilege 00:24:34.319 --> 00:24:40.460 comes responsibility. The royal family of England 00:24:40.460 --> 00:24:46.740 has a good handle on what that means. For the 00:24:46.740 --> 00:24:49.539 people who are born into that family are born 00:24:49.539 --> 00:24:58.799 into a relationship with a nation. And it is 00:24:58.799 --> 00:25:02.220 a relationship that entails a great deal of privilege. 00:25:03.579 --> 00:25:09.819 They are unbelievably wealthy. They have holdings 00:25:09.819 --> 00:25:15.220 and land and estates that can hardly be calculated. 00:25:17.019 --> 00:25:22.680 Palaces in which to live, jewels to wear, Palm 00:25:22.680 --> 00:25:26.940 and circumstance wherever they go, privilege. 00:25:28.400 --> 00:25:31.680 But with the privilege, hear me, with that privilege 00:25:31.680 --> 00:25:39.660 comes a tremendous responsibility. A responsibility 00:25:39.660 --> 00:25:44.960 to live a certain way. A responsibility to use 00:25:44.960 --> 00:25:48.759 their time a certain way. They are not their 00:25:48.759 --> 00:25:56.289 own. They belong to the nation. You see, the 00:25:56.289 --> 00:25:59.430 relationship defines the way in which they must 00:25:59.430 --> 00:26:03.769 conduct themselves. And so it is with God's royal 00:26:03.769 --> 00:26:12.210 family. So it is with God's royal family. There 00:26:12.210 --> 00:26:16.410 are external demands that are made upon us because 00:26:16.410 --> 00:26:21.299 we belong to God. Come out and be separate. Cleanse 00:26:21.299 --> 00:26:24.519 yourself from all defilement of the flesh and 00:26:24.519 --> 00:26:27.619 spirit, perfecting holiness in the fear of God. 00:26:29.500 --> 00:26:32.400 You see, with those demands, God provides an 00:26:32.400 --> 00:26:37.660 internal dynamic so that the change is produced 00:26:37.660 --> 00:26:42.579 from the inside out, not forced from the outside 00:26:42.579 --> 00:26:48.140 in. One of the good gifts of God is the privilege 00:26:48.140 --> 00:26:53.130 of relationship. And one who enters into that 00:26:53.130 --> 00:26:57.289 relationship experiences a connection with the 00:26:57.289 --> 00:27:03.789 living God. And because of that connection, life 00:27:03.789 --> 00:27:12.529 can never be the same again. With that privilege 00:27:12.529 --> 00:27:21.000 comes responsibility to live for God. Let's pray 00:27:21.000 --> 00:27:27.099 together. Our heads bowed, our eyes closed, and 00:27:27.099 --> 00:27:30.420 as the Spirit of God brings to our hearts the 00:27:30.420 --> 00:27:34.819 point of this message, just two questions. Number 00:27:34.819 --> 00:27:39.799 one, do you have a relationship with God? Have 00:27:39.799 --> 00:27:45.059 you received Jesus Christ as your own personal 00:27:45.059 --> 00:27:49.480 Savior and Lord? Have you connected with God 00:27:49.480 --> 00:27:53.200 or is there still a separation because of your 00:27:53.200 --> 00:28:00.859 sin? Would you today trust in Christ so that 00:28:00.859 --> 00:28:04.140 your sin might be forgiven and that relationship 00:28:04.140 --> 00:28:08.400 might be established? Right where you're seated 00:28:08.400 --> 00:28:14.380 you can do that. And those of us who can be called 00:28:14.380 --> 00:28:18.079 the sons and daughters of God Have we lately 00:28:18.079 --> 00:28:22.359 pondered our responsibility? Have you considered 00:28:22.359 --> 00:28:24.920 how you may have compromised with the world? 00:28:26.460 --> 00:28:29.819 How you may have come into some kind of an intimate 00:28:29.819 --> 00:28:34.220 partnership or union with the lost in a way that 00:28:34.220 --> 00:28:39.900 displeases God? Would you today commit yourself 00:28:39.900 --> 00:28:43.339 to come out and be separate? To live differently? 00:28:44.599 --> 00:28:51.650 To cleanse yourself? from what defiles you? Tell 00:28:51.650 --> 00:28:58.589 Him so. Tell God that right now. For Jesus, we 00:28:58.589 --> 00:29:02.210 thank you that there is not a friend like you. 00:29:04.930 --> 00:29:08.750 Thank you for dying for us, for calling us to 00:29:08.750 --> 00:29:13.730 be your own people, for dwelling in us and walking 00:29:13.730 --> 00:29:20.390 amongst us. May we in the fear of the Lord cleanse 00:29:20.390 --> 00:29:27.029 ourselves and come out and be separate Right 00:29:27.029 --> 00:29:32.630 upon our hearts that privilege entails responsibility 00:29:32.630 --> 00:29:37.869 I pray that you will send us on our way today 00:29:37.869 --> 00:29:42.630 rejoicing that we can call you father and know 00:29:42.630 --> 00:29:45.650 the intimacy of that relationship with you as 00:29:45.650 --> 00:29:50.589 a reality in our lives. In Jesus' name, Amen.