ScriptureStream

Procrastination

• I Thessalonians 5:2-3 – The day of the Lord will come like a thief in the night.
• Luke 12:20
• II Corinthians 8:10-12 – Do what you can today! Don’t wait for the perfect time.
• II Cor…

The slavery practiced in America was full of sin.

Stealing people is slavery.

• I Timothy 1:10 – Enslaving listed as a sin.
• Exodus 21:16 – Death penalty for selling someone into slavery.
• This is no…

Introduction

• Philippians 2:15

What is going on?

• Genesis 4:6-10
• Genesis 6:11-13
• Sin is going on. It is nothing new.
• Hebrews 1:1-3
• Ezekiel 7:23
• Hebrews 1:36-39
• Mark 15:22-25 – The creation murder…

How is holy living possible?

Is holy living even possible?

• Key passage: Romans 6:5-7
  • This is our goal.
• Romans 6:12-19
  • Do not let sin reign in your body
  • Sin shall not have dominion over you
  • We…

James 5

• James 5:3 – The meaning of the end of this verse is a bit unclear. It may just mean that this problem had become especially bad recently.
• James 5:4 – Under the Law of Moses, workers were …

Introduction

• Matthew 6:9-13

The point of prayer

It’s not to show off (Matthew 6:5)

• Long prayers are not bad – Jesus Himself sometimes prayed for long amounts of time.
• The problem is when you ar…

Holiness: optional for Christians?

Holiness is not optional because:

It is given through Christ

• II Timothy 1:8-10 – This was the plan from the very beginning.
• Hebrews 10:10-14, 19-26 – By Christ’…

James 4

• James 4:1 – See James 1:14; 3:13. The source of our trouble is our own lust – not God. Other people might create problems, but we must look inward and see what problems we might be causin…

Introduction

• Mark 1:17
• John 4:13-14, 34 – Jesus often used physical things to teach spiritual lessons.
• John 7:37-38

Self-control and discipline

• I Corinthians 9:24-27
• Athletes put tremendous eff…

Introduction

• Proverbs 16:31

Be realistic, but optimistic

• Acts 1:16
• Psalms 71:9, 15, 5-8 – He had learned to trust in the Lord.
• Philemon 1:8-9 – Paul appealed to him as an old man. Can you do th…

Holiness of Christ

Scripture calls Him holy

• Mark 1:24 – I know who you are – the Holy One of God!
• Luke 1:35 – Holy One who is to be born
• Hebrews 7:26 – High Priest who is Holy

How did He demonst…

James 3

James 3:1-12

• James 3:1 – Be careful about being teachers. We have plenty of authority to teach, but we must be careful with that responsibility.
• James 3:2 – If you can control your tongue…

Introduction

• I Peter 1:7

Academic integrity

• II Corinthians 8:20-21 – It would have been easy for Paul to steal some of the money, but he didn’t want his integrity to be questioned.
• Ephesians 4:…

Introduction

• I Corinthians 14; Acts 20:7 – It’s God’s will that local churches assemble. Buildings are authorized under this general authority.

Let’s keep our focus on the spiritual.

• Matthew 23…

Holiness: Its expression in scripture

• God’s name is holy (Matthew 6:9; Luke 1:49)
  • Before scribes would write the name of God, they would change clothes, purify themselves, and use a different qu…

Introduction

• God formed the family at the very beginning. It is a critical relationship.
• God uses “family” in both physical and spiritual relationships.
• I Corinthians 4:14-17 – Paul uses familial…

James 2

James 2:1-4

• James 2:1 – Faith and favoritism do not go together.
• James 2:2-4 – In those days, the senatorial class wore gold rings. The peasant class would typically only have a single cl…

Introduction

• Authority – the right to exercise power

Jesus has authority

• Matthew 1:1
• Matthew 2:1-2
• Matthew 3:1-3, 11-12 – The kingdom was coming! Jesus is described as coming with authority!
• Ma…

Holiness begins with God

• Greek: hagios – sacred, physically pure, morally blameless, ceremonially consecrated, set apart
• The Bible uses the word “holy” in two different ways:
  • Holiness of God – r…

This man was serious about serving God!

• Acts 8:26-28 – This man was likely a proselyte. He was a treasurer for the queen of Ethiopia, who held the title Candace (it was a title like Pharaoh, not …