“On Being Holy”

1 Peter 1:13-23

¹⁵ But just as he who called you is holy, so be holy in all you do;

¹⁶ for it is written: “Be holy, because I am holy.” 1 Peter 1:15-16

 

¹³ Therefore, with minds that are alert and fully sober, set your hope on the grace to be brought to you when Jesus Christ is revealed at his coming. ¹⁴ As obedient children, do not conform to the evil desires you had when you lived in ignorance. ¹⁵ But just as he who called you is holy, so be holy in all you do; ¹⁶ for it is written: “Be holy, because I am holy.”

 

¹⁷ Since you call on a Father who judges each person’s work impartially, live out your time as foreigners here in reverent fear. ¹⁸ For you know that it was not with perishable things such as silver or gold that you were redeemed from the empty way of life handed down to you from your ancestors, ¹⁹ but with the precious blood of Christ, a lamb without blemish or defect. ²⁰ He was chosen before the creation of the world, but was revealed in these last times for your sake. ²¹ Through him you believe in God, who raised him from the dead and glorified him, and so your faith and hope are in God.

 

²² Now that you have purified yourselves by obeying the truth so that you have sincere love for each other, love one another deeply, from the heart. ²³ For you have been born again, not of perishable seed, but of imperishable, through the living and enduring word of God. 1 Peter 1:13-23

 

What Holiness Is Not

 

 

What Holiness Is

“Holy,” means to be “marked off” or “set apart,” “withdrawn from common ordinary use.

 

 

 

The Demand of Holiness

 

 

 

On Being Holy

 

 

Sermon Notes for Sunday, September 26, 2021

 

“Hope beyond Suffering”

1 Peter 1:1-9

 

Pastor Joe Alain

Date: September 26, 2021, Carrollwood Baptist Church

 

¹ Peter, an apostle of Jesus Christ,

 

To God’s elect, exiles scattered throughout the provinces of Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia and Bithynia, ² who have been chosen according to the foreknowledge of God the Father, through the sanctifying work of the Spirit, to be obedient to Jesus Christ and sprinkled with his blood:

 

Grace and peace be yours in abundance.

 

³ Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! In his great mercy he has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, ⁴ and into an inheritance that can never perish, spoil or fade. This inheritance is kept in heaven for you, ⁵ who through faith are shielded by God’s power until the coming of the salvation that is ready to be revealed in the last time. ⁶ In all this you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while you may have had to suffer grief in all kinds of trials. ⁷ These have come so that the proven genuineness of your faith—of greater worth than gold, which perishes even though refined by fire—may result in praise, glory and honor when Jesus Christ is revealed. ⁸ Though you have not seen him, you love him; and even though you do not see him now, you believe in him and are filled with an inexpressible and glorious joy, ⁹ for you are receiving the end result of your faith, the salvation of your souls. 1 Peter 1:1-9, NIV

 

We Have a Permanent Inheritance (1:4)

1. Unravaged: Can never “perish,” “Imperishable” (ESV), “Incorruptible” (NKJV).

 

2. Undefiled: Can never “spoil,” “Undefiled” (ESV, NKJV), “Be ruined” (CEV).

 

3. Unfading: Can never “fade,” “Disappear” (CEV).

 

¹⁹ “Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal, ²⁰ but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal. Matthew 6:19-20, ESV

 

We Have a Divine Protection (1:5, 9)

1. Kept by God’s Power: “Shielded,” “Being guarded” (ESV), “Kept” (NKJV).

 

2. Kept for God’s Purpose: “Until the coming of the salvation that is ready to be revealed in the last time.”

 

(1)    “Chronos,” ordinary time.

 

(2) “Kairos,” special or seasonal time. The “last time” is a reference to the second coming of Jesus (Matt. 24:36, 44; 1 Thess. 4:16-17; 5:2-3; 2 Peter 3:10).

 

The word, “End” (1:9) means “completion” as in the completion of purpose, or a goal has been realized.

 

“Being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus.” Philippians 1:6

 

We Have a Developing Faith (1:6-7)

1. Trials are necessary, “proven genuineness of your faith” (1:7).

 

2. Trials are distressing, “suffer grief” (1:6).

 

3. Trials vary in number and forms, “all kinds of trials” (1:6).

 

4. Trials grow our faith, “genuineness of your faith” (1:7).

 

Supplementary Sermon Notes for August 1, 2021

Supplementary notes for the Sermon Preached on Sunday, August 1, 2021

by Dr. Joe Alain at Carrollwood Baptist Church

 

Why Do Some People Doubt the Bible, God’s Word?

I have found that most of the doubts that people have about the integrity and truthfulness of the Bible usually result from misunderstandings about what the Bible is and what it is not. They fall under the following categories:

 

1. The Bible uses phenomenological language, rather than precise scientific language. For instance, we know the sun does not really “set” but that is how we see it, it is not incorrect to say so, it is the language that describes the phenomenon.

 

2. We sometimes hold the biblical writers to standards that they themselves did not follow or were unaware of. For instance, one writer might say there were 100,000 troops while another may say there were 125,000 troops. Does this mean the Bible is wrong or are both of these numbers simply approximates made by different people before our day and time when numbers are much more objective and precise?

 

3. Related to the above, even though the Holy Spirit superintended what the biblical writers wrote, they had the freedom to write from their understanding and point of view. We see this especially in the four Gospels: Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John. The first three Gospels we sometimes refer to as the synoptic Gospels because they parallel one another more often than John’s Gospel. But even when you harmonize the Gospels, they have unique point of views that are key to interpreting them. Rather than asking, “Why are they not the same?” we might ask, “What makes one different from another?” The biblical writer is telling us something important by what he leaves out or by what he includes.

 

4. Some people doubt the Bible because they fail to understand the relationship of all Scripture. The Bible is a unified book and is only understood when we see how God’s revelation unfolds. The easiest way to get in trouble is to view an Old Testament passage in isolation from the New Testament. The Bible when properly interpreted, meaning everything needs to funnel through the New Testament and especially Jesus Christ, is completely true and trustworthy. Always, always, always move from the Old to the New when interpreting the Bible.

 

5. Some apparent problems people have with the Bible is a failure to understand that the Bible is written by people using a variety of literary genres. We understand that today when reading literature that poetry is read and interpreted differently than a historical account of an event. We must read the Bible the same way. The book of Proverbs (Wisdom genre) is quite different from the book of Acts (Historical, Narrative genre).  

 

6. Some people doubt the Bible because of what it bluntly says. The biblical writers did not hold back. They told the good, the bad, and the ugly! However, because the Bible does not leave the bloody and the bad out, that is in its favor as being authentic. If people would have devised the Bible, they would have taken all the unpleasant seemingly problematic passages and stories out. That they are in our Bible gives it credibility as a real document.

 

7. Related to the last point, some people doubt the Bible because they do not understand the difference between what the Bible “describes” and what the Bible “prescribes.” The fact that the Bible “describes” the anger and anguish of the Psalmist who wants to see the pagan children’s heads smashed as a “pay back” for the cruel injustices of the Babylonians, does not mean that this language is “prescriptive” or “normative” for believers today. It is important to learn what is “descriptive” and what is “prescriptive.”

 

Get Started Reading the Bible

There are many great plans for reading the Bible and an array of resources to help you. Shown below are just a few web sites that will help you get started off right. Great helps are just a click away.

 

http://www.oneyearbibleonline.com/

Read the Bible online in the Bible translation of your choice. Includes a link to a one-year Bible Blog. This excellent resource includes historical background of the day’s passages and elaborates on the Scriptures that you are reading.

 

http://www.biblegateway.com/

Indispensable for Bible study! Access over sixty (60) complete English versions of the Bible. Search the Bible, print Scripture, and find links to other resources.

 

https://www.backtothebible.org/main-menu

Discover a variety of complete reading plans (Chronological, Historical, Old and New Testament Together, Beginning to End, etc.). Includes other Bible study resources as well.

 

https://odb.org/

A favorite devotional, now online! Listen or read “Our Daily Bread” daily devotionals.

 

http://www.bibleplan.org/

A variety of different Bible reading plans to choose from.

 

“The entrance of your words give light.” Psalm 119:130

Welcome to Worship! Notes for July 18, 2021

 

“We Believe in the Forgiveness of Sins”

Series: The Apostles’ Creed, These Things We Believe

Matthew 18:21-35

²¹ Then Peter came to Jesus and asked, “Lord, how many times shall I forgive my brother or sister who sins against me? Up to seven times?”

 

²² Jesus answered, “I tell you, not seven times, but seventy-seven times.

 

²³ “Therefore, the kingdom of heaven is like a king who wanted to settle accounts with his servants. ²⁴ As he began the settlement, a man who owed him ten thousand bags of gold was brought to him. ²⁵ Since he was not able to pay, the master ordered that he and his wife and his children and all that he had be sold to repay the debt.

 

²⁶ “At this the servant fell on his knees before him. ‘Be patient with me,’ he begged, ‘and I will pay back everything.’ ²⁷ The servant’s master took pity on him, canceled the debt and let him go.

 

²⁸ “But when that servant went out, he found one of his fellow servants who owed him a hundred silver coins. He grabbed him and began to choke him. ‘Pay back what you owe me!’ he demanded.

 

²⁹ “His fellow servant fell to his knees and begged him, ‘Be patient with me, and I will pay it back.’

 

³⁰ “But he refused. Instead, he went off and had the man thrown into prison until he could pay the debt. ³¹ When the other servants saw what had happened, they were outraged and went and told their master everything that had happened.

 

³² “Then the master called the servant in. ‘You wicked servant,’ he said, ‘I canceled all that debt of yours because you begged me to. ³³ Shouldn’t you have had mercy on your fellow servant just as I had on you?’ ³⁴ In anger his master handed him over to the jailers to be tortured, until he should pay back all he owed.

 

³⁵ “This is how my heavenly Father will treat each of you unless you forgive your brother or sister from your heart.”

 

God Forgives Our Sins

Why do we need to be forgiven? 

1. Sin separates us from God

2. Sin spoils relationships

3. Sin brings suffering

4. Sin leads to restless living

5. Sin enslaves 

 

The Meaning of Forgiveness

To "Carry Away," Ephesians 1:7

To "Wipe Away," Acts 3:19

 

God Provides Ongoing Forgiveness

"If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness." 1 John 1:9

 

We Model God's Grace by Forgiving Others

"Bear with each other and forgive one another if any of you has a grievance against someone. Forgive as the Lord forgave you." Colossians 3:13 

The Parable of the Unforgiving Servant (Matthew 18:21-35)

1. He Was a Debtor (18:23-27)

2. He Was a Creditor (18:28-30)

3. He Became a Prisoner (18:31-34)

Why We Find it Difficult to Forgive Others

1. We mistake forgiveness for giving people a pass on their bad behavior. 

2. We don't see evidence that the person is really sorry for what they have done to us. 

3. We mistake forgiveness for restoration. 

4. We don't "feel" like forgiving. 

5. We fail to realize that withholding forgiveness only harms us not the other person.