Labels

Thursday, May 4, 2023

I am Not Holy. – Lies of the Enemy #22– Purity 1034


I am Not Holy. – Lies of the Enemy #22– Purity 1034

Purity 1034 05/03/2023 

Purity 1034 on YouTube:



Good morning,

Today’s photo of a winding country road under blue skies with mountains in the background, presumably in North Carolina,  comes to us from Fred Dimmick who shared this photo on social media yesterday. Fred recently shared how he had retired back  on May 1st of 2019 and made the decision to leave upstate New York for Kentucky but then ended up moving to Florida and now he finds himself in North Carolina where we see these country roads.

I have been following Fred's photos since then and didn't realize that it's been four years! I would have sworn it was probably only a couple of years but time flies when you're moving and just following where the Lord leads you. That's what I've been doing and I'm pretty sure that's what Fred's been doing too, in his own way.

Fred had commented on how he spent his entire life just across the street from the house his grandfather had lived all his life and now in four years he's had all kinds of adventures seeing different parts of the country and sharing his travels online.  Fred's post encouraged all of his friends to pursue what they wanted to pursue and to enjoy their lives by taking the road less traveled. 

Well it's Thursday, and I share Fred’s photo because it's a great shot and as a visual reminder to get on or to stay on the path of Christian discipleship because I've discovered that the adventure that the Lord has for us is a lot better than we could have ever imagined or planned for ourselves. And while the journey He may put you on may not have you moving about the country, although it might - even if it's just the  country within driving distance from your home, when you walk with the Lord your peace and joy increases because not only are you appreciating your life and the beautiful things around you, you are doing it in the presence of the One who made it all because He loves us. Our walk with the Lord isn't marching orders. It's an invitation to know Him, to know ourselves, and to discover what He has for us to do. And it's good.

I know before coming to Christ, I thought that the Christian life wasn't for me. I knew my thoughts and interests and didn't see how what I wanted had anything to do with God. I thought that the Lord would limit what I could do and I challenged what I understood to be what God wanted us to believe or do mostly because I had a thrill to do what was forbidden and rather turn towards his ways I followed the impulse to do things my way and in some ways knowing that what I wanted was wrong all along. I not only went against God's wisdom, but I went against what my parents taught me, what's society said, and want my own common sense tried to tell me. Somewhere along the line I got the idea that as long as I didn't get in trouble there were no wrong things but that was a lie. But because I had these ideas about being above the law and knowing the intentions of my own heart, I decided I couldn't be a Christian because I wasn't holy.   I thought holiness was something you had to earn or something that you were just naturally gifted with. In my mind holy people were good people and my dark desires told me I wasn't a good person. So I spent most of my life doing things my way and rejecting the idea of being a Christian even if I had a loose association with Christianity through my family traditions and liturgical church background. I guess I saw myself as a black sheep and even if I was in the assembly of believers and even if I wanted to believe, I thought that I was different and really worried about my eternal destiny.

Bible passages like: 

1 Peter 1:14-16 (NLT2) didn’t help – in it the Apostle Peter writes
14  So you must live as God’s obedient children. Don’t slip back into your old ways of living to satisfy your own desires. You didn’t know any better then.
15  But now you must be holy in everything you do, just as God who chose you is holy.
16  For the Scriptures say, “You must be holy because I am holy.”

I wasn’t obedient so I figured there was no way that I would ever “be holy”. I saw holiness as “being good” – if you are not good you are not holy.  And so I believed I could never be “holy”.   

But that was a lie based on ignorance and a misunderstanding of what holiness is and who makes us holy.  

And this brings us to our current series, the Lies of the Enemy, which is an examination of some of the common lies, sometimes sneakily whispered into our minds as “first person” statements, that the enemy tells us to cause us to doubt our faith, lose our peace, cause division, or influence us to not follow the Lord with the way we live our lives.  

Today’s big lie is:

Lie #22:  I am NOT Holy.   

This is a lie the enemy has no problem selling to us all.  Any impure or sinful attitude or action in us testifies to the “truth” that we are not holy like God is holy.  

“It’s True I’m not Holy, just look at what I have done or the ways I think!”

However, we have to have a full understanding of the two aspects of holiness and just how it is we are made holy.  

There are two aspects of holiness – salvation and sanctification.   

In salvation, we are made holy the moment we put our faith in Jesus Christ. “Legally” and spiritually, we are not only forgiven of all of our sins (past, present, and future) but we are also declared righteous ( or holy) because we come into communion with Jesus Christ and have His sinless righteousness applied to, or imputed to, our lives.  We instantly receive the indwelling presence of the Holy Spirit and become adopted members of God’s royal family as His children. The moment we put our faith in God we are “holy” – or set apart – as forgiven and righteous – for the Lord’s purposes.

So if you are a Christian, by faith in Jesus Christ, you are holy – regardless of your thoughts or actions. The holiness that God gives you is not dependent on your actions, and it is only possible because of what Christ did. We could never be holy in ourselves. That’s why God sent Jesus – to save us – to make us “holy” – to set us apart as His people and to give us a purpose all our own for His kingdom.    We are set apart as “saved”, “forgiven”, “righteous” and “holy”.    So we are holy!!

The second aspect of holiness is sanctification, but the Lord directs that process too. Sanctification is “the action of making or declaring something holy”.  So God begins that “action” by moving us to put our faith in Christ. Our sanctification begins with salvation. At salvation we receive the indwelling presence of the Holy Spirit who encourages us to repent.  Now we can “quench” the Spirit by failing to listen to His promptings or by believing the lies of the enemy, who wants to keep us in the dark, or by willful disobedience to what is right.   Or we can reject the lie that “we are no different in Christ” and believe that the Lord has saved us and made us new and we can decide to actually live by faith and start living a “holy” – set apart – life by rejecting our former ways of darkness and by choosing to change our thoughts, attitudes, and actions to align with what God would have us do.  

Sanctification is a progressive experience and aided by our faith.  If we believe God has made us into new creations, we will have more success living as new creations than when we agree with the enemy that we “are not holy”.   When we ask the Lord to help, guide, and strengthen us, He will be faithful to do so and will lead us into repentance – where we renew our minds and change our actions to reflect the righteousness and holiness that the Lord has already given us.  

If we felt “different” before coming to the Lord, we will realize just how “really different” we are when we realize the Creator of all things has chosen us to live with Him for all eternity and has chosen to forgive us and to invite us to represent His kingdom! Yeah, we are not “like the others”  - we never were – because before we were ever born the Lord had chosen us to be with Him and to be like Him.  

The vast majority of people will never put their faith in Christ. We have been blessed and set apart when we didn’t deserve it and when we agree with Satan’s lie that we are “not Holy”, we hinder our sanctification and delay if not stifle the purposes that the Lord calls us to.   

So humbly agree, or boldly proclaim I am Holy! 

Because it’s true, even if you don’t “feel it” or currently reflect it.   God made you Holy through your faith in Christ! Your holiness is a “done deal” in one sense. But as someone who has been set apart for God’s special purposes, there is more holiness in store for you.  Forsaking sins and renewing the mind through the study of God’s world moves you closer to the Lord and the holy life He has for you. So don’t believe the lie  that “I am not Holy.”  Instead believe the truth and make the decision to do whatever the Lord calls you to do to make that truth a manifest reality in your life!

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

For those who want more evidence for Christianity than my simple apologetic will provide, I offer apologist, Frank Turek’s website, https://crossexamined.org/ .

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Today’s Bible verse comes to us from “The NLT Bible Promise Book for Men”.

This morning’s meditation verse is :

Jeremiah 29:11 (NLT2)
11  For I know the plans I have for you,” says the LORD. “They are plans for good and not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope.

Today’s verse encourages us that the Lord has good plans for His people. God gives us a future and a hope with Him for all eternity when we put our faith in Jesus.  

I know this verse’s context is towards the nation of Israel, but rather than being some snarky bible scholar who would tell you “that verse is being used out of context” when Christians proclaim it, I would encourage you to use it!

Why? Because it’s true! If it was true for Israel, it sure is true for those who have put their faith in Jesus!  God does have good plans for us, ultimately, and he does give us a future and a hope – in His eternal kingdom.  

Now we shouldn’t take this verse and declare that “everything will go our way” here on earth.  The truth is we may face persecution and death because of our faith – so temper your expectations in the  reality of a world that is broken by sin and where bad things happen to all people – because none of us are good, right?  

But ultimately, we will spend eternity with God in His kingdom, so with that future and hope we can rejoice and give thanks to the Lord no matter what our circumstances are here on earth.    

------------------------------------------------------------------------

As always, I invite all to go to mt4christ.org where I always share insights from prominent Christian theologians and counselors to assist my brothers and sisters in Christ with their walk.

Today we continue sharing from  “Satan, Demons & Satanism: A Sinister Reality” By June Hunt.

As always, I share this information for educational purposes and encourage all to purchase June Hunt’s books for your own private study and to support her work.  This resource is available online for $7.99 (https://june-hunt.myshopify.com/collections/keys-for-living/products/keys-for-living-on-satan-demons-satanism_ ).

Satan, Demons & Satanism

A Sinister Reality

by June Hunt

II.     Characteristics And Symptoms

A.  What Are the Levels of Satanic Involvement?

Involvement with the demonic is progressive. For most, it starts by straying down a seemingly innocent path beginning with a curiosity about horoscopes, occultic games, magic and fortune-telling … then unknowingly turning the corner only to travel on a terrorizing trip of demonic domination.

“Keep on, then, with your magic spells and with your many sorceries, which you have labored at since childhood. Perhaps you will succeed, perhaps you will cause terror.”

(Isaiah 47:12)

     Superficial

   No real understanding of satanism

   Fascination and curiosity with the supernatural

   Experimental and superficial activities

   Involvement with games, books, horoscopes, rock music, etc.

     Self-Styled

   Views that cover the whole spectrum of satanic beliefs

   Lack of any connection with mainstream satanism

   Improvised and impulsive activities

   Involvement with socially deviant activities (pornography, homosexuality, hard drugs)

     Secretive

   Beliefs that are the reversal of Christian beliefs

   Small, individually oriented groups

   Hidden and illegal activities

   Involvement with black magic and ritualistic sacrificing of animals and humans

     Sanctioned

   Beliefs based on the pursuit of hedonistic pleasure

   Large national and international organizations

   Open and legal activities

   Involvement in destructive magic and sexual rituals

“The god of this age has blinded the minds of unbelievers, so that they cannot see the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God.”

(2 Corinthians 4:4)[1]

---------------------------more tomorrow------------------------

Join our “Victory over the Darkness”, “The Bondage Breaker”, "Freedom in Christ" series of Discipleship Classes via the mt4christ247 podcast!

at https://mt4christ247.podbean.com, You can also find it on Apple podcasts

(https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-mt4christ247s-podcast/id1551615154). The mt4christ247 podcast is also available on Google Podcasts, Amazon Podcasts, Spotify, iHeartradio, and Audible.com. 

These teachings are also available on the MT4Christ247 You Tube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/@MT4Christ247

Email me at mt4christ247@gmail.com to receive the class materials, share your progress, and to be encouraged.

My wife, TammyLyn, also offers Christian encouragement via her Ask Seek Knock blog (https://tammylynask.blogspot.com/ ),  her Facebook Group: Ask, Seek, Knock (https://www.facebook.com/groups/529047851449098 ) and her podcast Ask, Seek, and Knock on Podbean (https://feed.podbean.com/tammalyn78/feed.xml)

“The views, opinions, and commentary of this publication are those of the author, M.T. Clark, only, and do not purport to reflect the opinions or views of any of the photographers, artists, ministries, or other authors of the other works that may be included in this publication, and do not necessarily reflect the views or positions of any entities the author may represent.”

I am Not Holy. – Lies of the Enemy #22– Purity 1034

Purity 1034 05/03/2023 

Purity 1034 on YouTube: Coming Soon!

Good morning,

Today’s photo of a winding country road under blue skies with mountains in the background, presumably in North Carolina,  comes to us from Fred Dimmick who shared this photo on social media yesterday. Fred recently shared how he had retired back  on May 1st of 2019 and made the decision to leave upstate New York for Kentucky but then ended up moving to Florida and now he finds himself in North Carolina where we see these country roads.

I have been following Fred's photos since then and didn't realize that it's been four years! I would have sworn it was probably only a couple of years but time flies when you're moving and just following where the Lord leads you. That's what I've been doing and I'm pretty sure that's what Fred's been doing too, in his own way.

Fred had commented on how he spent his entire life just across the street from the house his grandfather had lived all his life and now in four years he's had all kinds of adventures seeing different parts of the country and sharing his travels online.  Fred's post encouraged all of his friends to pursue what they wanted to pursue and to enjoy their lives by taking the road less traveled. 

Well it's Thursday, and I share Fred’s photo because it's a great shot and as a visual reminder to get on or to stay on the path of Christian discipleship because I've discovered that the adventure that the Lord has for us is a lot better than we could have ever imagined or planned for ourselves. And while the journey He may put you on may not have you moving about the country, although it might - even if it's just the  country within driving distance from your home, when you walk with the Lord your peace and joy increases because not only are you appreciating your life and the beautiful things around you, you are doing it in the presence of the One who made it all because He loves us. Our walk with the Lord isn't marching orders. It's an invitation to know Him, to know ourselves, and to discover what He has for us to do. And it's good.

I know before coming to Christ, I thought that the Christian life wasn't for me. I knew my thoughts and interests and didn't see how what I wanted had anything to do with God. I thought that the Lord would limit what I could do and I challenged what I understood to be what God wanted us to believe or do mostly because I had a thrill to do what was forbidden and rather turn towards his ways I followed the impulse to do things my way and in some ways knowing that what I wanted was wrong all along. I not only went against God's wisdom, but I went against what my parents taught me, what's society said, and want my own common sense tried to tell me. Somewhere along the line I got the idea that as long as I didn't get in trouble there were no wrong things but that was a lie. But because I had these ideas about being above the law and knowing the intentions of my own heart, I decided I couldn't be a Christian because I wasn't holy.   I thought holiness was something you had to earn or something that you were just naturally gifted with. In my mind holy people were good people and my dark desires told me I wasn't a good person. So I spent most of my life doing things my way and rejecting the idea of being a Christian even if I had a loose association with Christianity through my family traditions and liturgical church background. I guess I saw myself as a black sheep and even if I was in the assembly of believers and even if I wanted to believe, I thought that I was different and really worried about my eternal destiny.

Bible passages like: 

1 Peter 1:14-16 (NLT2) didn’t help – in it the Apostle Peter writes
14  So you must live as God’s obedient children. Don’t slip back into your old ways of living to satisfy your own desires. You didn’t know any better then.
15  But now you must be holy in everything you do, just as God who chose you is holy.
16  For the Scriptures say, “You must be holy because I am holy.”

I wasn’t obedient so I figured there was no way that I would ever “be holy”. I saw holiness as “being good” – if you are not good you are not holy.  And so I believed I could never be “holy”.   

But that was a lie based on ignorance and a misunderstanding of what holiness is and who makes us holy.  

And this brings us to our current series, the Lies of the Enemy, which is an examination of some of the common lies, sometimes sneakily whispered into our minds as “first person” statements, that the enemy tells us to cause us to doubt our faith, lose our peace, cause division, or influence us to not follow the Lord with the way we live our lives.  

Today’s big lie is:

Lie #22:  I am NOT Holy.   

This is a lie the enemy has no problem selling to us all.  Any impure or sinful attitude or action in us testifies to the “truth” that we are not holy like God is holy.  

“It’s True I’m not Holy, just look at what I have done or the ways I think!”

However, we have to have a full understanding of the two aspects of holiness and just how it is we are made holy.  

There are two aspects of holiness – salvation and sanctification.   

In salvation, we are made holy the moment we put our faith in Jesus Christ. “Legally” and spiritually, we are not only forgiven of all of our sins (past, present, and future) but we are also declared righteous ( or holy) because we come into communion with Jesus Christ and have His sinless righteousness applied to, or imputed to, our lives.  We instantly receive the indwelling presence of the Holy Spirit and become adopted members of God’s royal family as His children. The moment we put our faith in God we are “holy” – or set apart – as forgiven and righteous – for the Lord’s purposes.

So if you are a Christian, by faith in Jesus Christ, you are holy – regardless of your thoughts or actions. The holiness that God gives you is not dependent on your actions, and it is only possible because of what Christ did. We could never be holy in ourselves. That’s why God sent Jesus – to save us – to make us “holy” – to set us apart as His people and to give us a purpose all our own for His kingdom.    We are set apart as “saved”, “forgiven”, “righteous” and “holy”.    So we are holy!!

The second aspect of holiness is sanctification, but the Lord directs that process too. Sanctification is “the action of making or declaring something holy”.  So God begins that “action” by moving us to put our faith in Christ. Our sanctification begins with salvation. At salvation we receive the indwelling presence of the Holy Spirit who encourages us to repent.  Now we can “quench” the Spirit by failing to listen to His promptings or by believing the lies of the enemy, who wants to keep us in the dark, or by willful disobedience to what is right.   Or we can reject the lie that “we are no different in Christ” and believe that the Lord has saved us and made us new and we can decide to actually live by faith and start living a “holy” – set apart – life by rejecting our former ways of darkness and by choosing to change our thoughts, attitudes, and actions to align with what God would have us do.  

Sanctification is a progressive experience and aided by our faith.  If we believe God has made us into new creations, we will have more success living as new creations than when we agree with the enemy that we “are not holy”.   When we ask the Lord to help, guide, and strengthen us, He will be faithful to do so and will lead us into repentance – where we renew our minds and change our actions to reflect the righteousness and holiness that the Lord has already given us.  

If we felt “different” before coming to the Lord, we will realize just how “really different” we are when we realize the Creator of all things has chosen us to live with Him for all eternity and has chosen to forgive us and to invite us to represent His kingdom! Yeah, we are not “like the others”  - we never were – because before we were ever born the Lord had chosen us to be with Him and to be like Him.  

The vast majority of people will never put their faith in Christ. We have been blessed and set apart when we didn’t deserve it and when we agree with Satan’s lie that we are “not Holy”, we hinder our sanctification and delay if not stifle the purposes that the Lord calls us to.   

So humbly agree, or boldly proclaim I am Holy! 

Because it’s true, even if you don’t “feel it” or currently reflect it.   God made you Holy through your faith in Christ! Your holiness is a “done deal” in one sense. But as someone who has been set apart for God’s special purposes, there is more holiness in store for you.  Forsaking sins and renewing the mind through the study of God’s world moves you closer to the Lord and the holy life He has for you. So don’t believe the lie  that “I am not Holy.”  Instead believe the truth and make the decision to do whatever the Lord calls you to do to make that truth a manifest reality in your life!

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

For those who want more evidence for Christianity than my simple apologetic will provide, I offer apologist, Frank Turek’s website, https://crossexamined.org/ .

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Today’s Bible verse comes to us from “The NLT Bible Promise Book for Men”.

This morning’s meditation verse is :

Jeremiah 29:11 (NLT2)
11  For I know the plans I have for you,” says the LORD. “They are plans for good and not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope.

 

Today’s verse encourages us that the Lord has good plans for His people. God gives us a future and a hope with Him for all eternity when we put our faith in Jesus.  

 

I know this verse’s context is towards the nation of Israel, but rather than being some snarky bible scholar who would tell you “that verse is being used out of context” when Christians proclaim it, I would encourage you to use it!

 

Why? Because it’s true! If it was true for Israel, it sure is true for those who have put their faith in Jesus!  God does have good plans for us, ultimately, and he does give us a future and a hope – in His eternal kingdom.  

 

Now we shouldn’t take this verse and declare that “everything will go our way” here on earth.  The truth is we may face persecution and death because of our faith – so temper your expectations in the  reality of a world that is broken by sin and where bad things happen to all people – because none of us are good, right?  

 

But ultimately, we will spend eternity with God in His kingdom, so with that future and hope we can rejoice and give thanks to the Lord no matter what our circumstances are here on earth.    

 

------------------------------------------------------------------------

As always, I invite all to go to mt4christ.org where I always share insights from prominent Christian theologians and counselors to assist my brothers and sisters in Christ with their walk.

Today we continue sharing from  “Satan, Demons & Satanism: A Sinister Reality” By June Hunt.

As always, I share this information for educational purposes and encourage all to purchase June Hunt’s books for your own private study and to support her work.  This resource is available online for $7.99 (https://june-hunt.myshopify.com/collections/keys-for-living/products/keys-for-living-on-satan-demons-satanism_ ).

Satan, Demons & Satanism

A Sinister Reality

by June Hunt

II.     Characteristics And Symptoms

A.  What Are the Levels of Satanic Involvement?

Involvement with the demonic is progressive. For most, it starts by straying down a seemingly innocent path beginning with a curiosity about horoscopes, occultic games, magic and fortune-telling … then unknowingly turning the corner only to travel on a terrorizing trip of demonic domination.

“Keep on, then, with your magic spells and with your many sorceries, which you have labored at since childhood. Perhaps you will succeed, perhaps you will cause terror.”

(Isaiah 47:12)

•     Superficial

—   No real understanding of satanism

—   Fascination and curiosity with the supernatural

—   Experimental and superficial activities

—   Involvement with games, books, horoscopes, rock music, etc.

•     Self-Styled

—   Views that cover the whole spectrum of satanic beliefs

—   Lack of any connection with mainstream satanism

—   Improvised and impulsive activities

—   Involvement with socially deviant activities (pornography, homosexuality, hard drugs)

•     Secretive

—   Beliefs that are the reversal of Christian beliefs

—   Small, individually oriented groups

—   Hidden and illegal activities

—   Involvement with black magic and ritualistic sacrificing of animals and humans

•     Sanctioned

—   Beliefs based on the pursuit of hedonistic pleasure

—   Large national and international organizations

—   Open and legal activities

—   Involvement in destructive magic and sexual rituals

“The god of this age has blinded the minds of unbelievers, so that they cannot see the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God.”

(2 Corinthians 4:4)[1]

---------------------------more tomorrow------------------------

Join our “Victory over the Darkness”, “The Bondage Breaker”, "Freedom in Christ" series of Discipleship Classes via the mt4christ247 podcast!

at https://mt4christ247.podbean.com, You can also find it on Apple podcasts

(https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-mt4christ247s-podcast/id1551615154). The mt4christ247 podcast is also available on Google Podcasts, Amazon Podcasts, Spotify, iHeartradio, and Audible.com. 

These teachings are also available on the MT4Christ247 You Tube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/@MT4Christ247

Email me at mt4christ247@gmail.com to receive the class materials, share your progress, and to be encouraged.

My wife, TammyLyn, also offers Christian encouragement via her Ask Seek Knock blog (https://tammylynask.blogspot.com/ ),  her Facebook Group: Ask, Seek, Knock (https://www.facebook.com/groups/529047851449098 ) and her podcast Ask, Seek, and Knock on Podbean (https://feed.podbean.com/tammalyn78/feed.xml)

“The views, opinions, and commentary of this publication are those of the author, M.T. Clark, only, and do not purport to reflect the opinions or views of any of the photographers, artists, ministries, or other authors of the other works that may be included in this publication, and do not necessarily reflect the views or positions of any entities the author may represent.”

Encouragement for the Path of Christian Discipleship



[1] June Hunt, Biblical Counseling Keys on Satan, Demons & Satanism: A Sinister Reality (Dallas, TX: Hope For The Heart, 2008), 7.

 



[1] June Hunt, Biblical Counseling Keys on Satan, Demons & Satanism: A Sinister Reality (Dallas, TX: Hope For The Heart, 2008), 7.

No comments:

Post a Comment

Note: Only a member of this blog may post a comment.