The Path To True HOLINESS (part 3).

…continued from The Path To True HOLINESS (part 2).

IV. The Greek ἁγιασμός (hagiasmos) (Strong’s G38) is translated holiness 5 times and sanctification 5 times. It refers to consecration, purification and sanctification of one’s heart and life. It also refers to the effect of consecration. We are commanded in Hebrews 12:

¹⁴Follow peace with all men, and holiness, without which no man shall see the Lord: ¹⁵Looking diligently lest any man fail of the grace of God; lest any root of bitterness springing up trouble you, and thereby many be defiled;

Here, in the context of the Greek writing, we are told to follow peace with all men and to do so eagerly, earnestly and swiftly. We are also told to eagerly, earnestly and swiftly pursue holiness because without peace and holiness, NO MAN SHALL SEE THE LORD! This refers to literally looking at the Messiah, Jesus Christ!

Look also at 1 Peter 1:

²Elect according to the foreknowledge of God the Father, through sanctification of the Spirit, unto obedience and sprinkling of the blood of Jesus Christ: Grace unto you, and peace, be multiplied.

Here we are told that we are picked out and chosen (elect) by God into, unto, to, towards obedience and purification (sprinkling) of the blood of Jesus Christ. This is done through the consecration, purification and sanctification (sanctification/holiness) of the Holy Spirit. What is also interesting is that this is the only place in the entire Bible where all three members of the God Head are independently mentioned in one verse.

V. The Greek ἱεροπρεπής (hieroprepēs) (Strong’s G2412) is translated holiness in 1 verse in the New Testament and refers to people, places, actions or things that are sacred to God. Look at Titus 2:

³The aged women likewise, that they be in behaviour as becometh holiness, not false accusers, not given to much wine, teachers of good things;

Here Bishops are told to speak good doctrines. One of the many reasons listed is so that elderly women can be sacred to God in their physical demeanor, spiritual deportment and moral bearing. They must become sacred in order to teach the young women to imitate them.

All born-again believers are exhorted to travel this path to true holiness. We must be obedient to the Word of God and submissive to the Holy Spirit in order to become sincere travelers on this most necessary path. There can be no compromise, no wavering, and no turning back.

God Bless You!

The Path To True HOLINESS (part 2).

…continued from The Path To True HOLINESS (part 1).

In the New Testament the word holiness  occurs 13 times being translated from 5 different Greek words.

I. The Greek ὁσιότης (hosiotēs) (Strong’s G3742) occurs 2 times in 2 verses and refers to piety towards God and fidelity in observing the obligations of piety. We are commanded in Ephesians 4:

²²That ye put off concerning the former conversation the old man, which is corrupt according to the deceitful lusts; ²³And be renewed in the spirit of your mind; ²⁴And that ye put on the new man, which after God is created in righteousness and true holiness.

Here we are told that the new man,  that is your inner being who has been born again in Christ Jesus, is created in righteousness and true holiness, so, we should be renewed in the spirit of our minds and put off the old man who is corrupt. This is something we have to do and we can only do it with the strength and power that Christ gives through the Holy Spirit in our spirit.

II. The Greek εὐσέβεια (eusebeia) (Strong’s G2150) is translated holiness in 1 verse and godliness in 14 other verses. It refers to reverence, respect and piety towards God. We are encouraged in 2 Peter 1:

²Grace and peace be multiplied unto you through the knowledge of God, and of Jesus our Lord, ³According as his divine power hath given unto us all things that pertain unto life and godliness, through the knowledge of him that hath called us to glory and virtue: ⁴Whereby are given unto us exceeding great and precious promises: that by these ye might be partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust.

Here we are told that through the precise and correct knowledge [epignosis (Strong’s G1922)] of God, Jesus Christ’s divine power has given us all things having to do with life and godliness/holiness. Its also says that through this epignosis we are given great and precious promises and these promises enable us to become partakers of God’s divine nature, once we escape the corruption that comes from lust.

III. The Greek ἁγιωσύνη (hagiōsynē) (Strong’s G42) is translated holiness in 3 verses. It refers to majesty and moral purity. We are encouraged in 2 Corinthians 7:

¹Having therefore these promises, dearly beloved, let us cleanse ourselves from all filthiness of the flesh and spirit, perfecting holiness in the fear of God.

Here we are told WE MUST clean, cleanse, purge and purify ourselves from actions that cause defilement of both body and spirit. WE must perform or accomplish majesty and purity (holiness) in the reverential fear of God.

To be continued in The Path To True HOLINESS (part 3).

The Path To True HOLINESS (part 1).

In the Holy Bible we are commanded to be:

• Holy, not “holier than thou”! Ephesians 1:4 and 5:27; 1 Peter 1:15-16.
• Obedient to the Word of God! Isaiah 1:19; 2 Corinthians 10:5; 1 Peter 1:13-14.
• Loving to everyone, even our enemies! Matthew 5:44; Luke 6:35.
• Intimate with God, Jesus Christ and the Holy Spirit! Romans 8:9-11; Hebrews 2:11; Jude 1:21.
• Noble in word, deed and truth! Colossians 3:17; 1 Peter 2:9; James 5:12; 1 John 3:18.
• Edified by the Word of God and the Holy Spirit! John 14:26; Romans 14:19; Colossians 3:16; 1 Thessalonians 5:11.
• Sanctified to God and set apart from sin! 1 Corinthians 6:11; 2 Timothy 2:21.
• Servants of God in love! Matthew 4:10; John 12:26; Romans 15:1-3; Galatians 5:13.

In case you missed it, I spelled the word holiness above. 🙂 What is holiness and what does the Holy Bible say about it? Let us find out in this new series!

In the Old Testament the word holiness is translated from the Hebrew word קֹדֶשׁ (qodesh) (Strong’s H6944). It is also translated holy, most holy, sanctuary, dedicated, hallowed and consecrated. The idea includes apartness, holiness, sacredness, separateness, and derives from the Hebrew root קָדַשׁ (qadash) (Strong’s H6942), which means to set apart, to consecrate, sanctify, prepare, dedicate, be hallowed, be holy, be sanctified and be separate. The use of the word in Psalm 29:2 KJV is a good example.

“Give unto the LORD the glory due unto his name; worship the LORD in the beauty of holiness.”

We are commanded to give God the glory due to His name and to worship Him in the beauty of sacredness, separateness, consecration, sanctification, or holiness!

Blessings!

To be continued in The Path To True HOLINESS (part 2).

A LICENSE TO SIN???

The following scripture draws a contrast between something earned or due to be paid and something not earned or freely given. Let us examine this and see how it applies to my topic.

“For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.” Romans 6:23 KJV

The word “wages” is translated from the Greek word OPSONION (Strong’s G3800). It refers to that part of the soldier’s support given in place of pay [i.e. rations] and the money that he is paid (Luke 3:14). It is also a metaphor for wages: hire or the pay of sin.

The word “gift” is translated from the Greek word CHARISMA (Strong’s G5486). It refers to a favor someone receives without any merit of his/her own.

This means that death is the pay for sin but eternal life is unmerited favor through Jesus Christ. The Apostle Paul wrote to the Christians in Rome, telling them they had been freed from sin and it’s pay. He explained that they should not yield to sin since they were under grace.

This also means that sin still affects the recipient of eternal life and may even affect this unmerited favor. Why else would Paul caution them and us so fervently. He said anyone who yielded to sin was a servant of sin and that sin led to death. We discussed this death in the previous post: WILL GOD LET PEOPLE GO TO HELL.

Paul asked a most important question: “What shall we say then? Shall we continue in sin, that grace may abound?” Romans 6:1 KJV.

Paul had previously told them: “Moreover the law entered, that the offence might abound. But where sin abounded, grace did much more abound: That as sin hath reigned unto death, even so might grace reign through righteousness unto eternal life by Jesus Christ our Lord.” Romans 5:20-21 KJV. He was saying the law came so that the wrongdoings might be multiplied. He also said where sin had multiplied (abounded) grace had increased beyond measure (did abound). He used two different Greek words for these two words.

Now in 6:1 he was asking them if they thought they had a license to sin since grace increases beyond measure when sin is multiplied. He answered with: “God forbid” and issued a command in 6:12-16.

“Let not sin therefore reign in your mortal body, that ye should obey it in the lusts thereof. Neither yield ye your members as instruments of unrighteousness unto sin: but yield yourselves unto God, as those that are alive from the dead, and your members as instruments of righteousness unto God. For sin shall not have dominion over you: for ye are not under the law, but under grace. What then? shall we sin, because we are not under the law, but under grace? God forbid. Know ye not, that to whom ye yield yourselves servants to obey, his servants ye are to whom ye obey; whether of sin unto death, or of obedience unto righteousness?” 

WILL GOD LET PEOPLE TO GO TO HELL?

WILL GOD LET PEOPLE TO GO TO HELL?

Many persons ask the following question: “Do you think God will let people go to Hell?” Some are concerned about people who they believe have “fallen away” while others are concerned about people who have not accepted Christ as Lord and Savior. It is not a very hard question to answer because the truth is right there in the Holy Bible.

Firstly, the Bible says that God wants no one to die in sin because He loves EVERYONE unconditionally, including the sinner.

“The Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as some men count slackness; but is longsuffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance.” 2 Peter 3:9 KJV

“For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.” John 3:16 KJV

This brings profound meaning to the phrase “we are the world” and tells us that all people are “whosoever”! This is an awesome explanation of God’s unconditional love for ALL people.

Secondly, the Bible says God gives us free will. He does NOT force us to choose him but gives us the liberty to choose Him or not. It is up to us. He lays out the options, tells us the pro’s and the con’s, “the consequences and repercussions,” as my 7 year old twin nieces say, and tells us to choose.

“I call heaven and earth to record this day against you, that I have set before you life and death, blessing and cursing: therefore choose life, that both thou and thy seed may live:” Deuteronomy 30:19 KJV

The principle is evident and of universal application. It is no secret then that a blessing is in the choice of life, yet so many choose the curse by either choosing death or by refusing to choose life.

Thirdly, I have seen people use the scripture below to say “nothing can separate us from God”. Many use it to support the assertion that Christians (born-again people) cannot fall away. This is like a license to sin. It does NOT say that; read it carefully:

“For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, Nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.” Romans 8:38-39 (KJV)

This does not say “separate us from God”, it says “separate us from the love of God”. There is a big difference. We can be separated from God but we cannot be separated from His love. In fact, He loves ALL, even those who are separated from him, doesn’t he? Indeed He does! He loves the disconnected as much as He loves those who are connected, and He desires that the disconnected reconnect to him through Christ.

Fourthly, if, as people say, nothing can separate us from God, then why does the scriptures tell us that sin is a separator? Why does the scripture tell us a soul that sins shall die?

“But your iniquities have separated between you and your God, and your sins have hid his face from you, that he will not hear.” Isaiah 59:2 KJV

“Behold, all souls are mine; as the soul of the father, so also the soul of the son is mine: the soul that sinneth, it shall die.” Ezekiel 18:4 KJV

This is an unimpeachable law:

“The soul that sinneth, it shall die.” Ezekiel 18:20a KJV  

The penalty for sin is death while God’s gift to us is eternal life through Christ Jesus.

“For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.” Romans 6:23 KJV

Look at the contrast in this scripture. Eternal Life vs Death! This death is eternal separation from God, in hell. The word “death” in this scripture is translated from the Greek word THANATOS (Strong’s G2288) and, according to Thayer’s Lexicon of the New Testament, refers to “the death of the body with the implied idea of future misery in hell.”

It’s important for us, once connected to God, to remain in fellowship with HIM by being obedient to His Word. We cannot allow sin to ensnare us. The Psalmist says “sin not” and the Apostle John told his disciples “sin not”.

“Stand in awe, and sin not: commune with your own heart upon your bed, and be still. Selah.” Psalm 4:4 KJV

“My little children, these things write I unto you, that ye sin not. And if any man sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous:” 1 John 2:1 KJV

This is also our command, sin not. We are also told that IF we do sin, we must remember our advocate. We are further urged to be obedient and to keep His commandments. Many think it is impossible. I say be obedient moment by moment, second by second, minute by minute; stay prayerful and trust God to keep you in all your ways.

Finally, any soul that commits sin shall die because the penalty for sin is death. God does not want people to die in sin but he won’t force us to choose Him or to serve Him. He gave us FREE WILL, which is one evident fact that He loves us without condition. Nothing can separate us from His love, and even if we are separated from Him because of sin, He still loves us and wants to connect with us through Christ.

Once we connect to God through Jesus Christ we are commanded to SIN NOT. If we make mistakes and sin, God says we have an advocate, Jesus Christ. We must REPENT IMMEDIATELY and ask for forgiveness through Him.

So NO, God doesn’t send people to hell or even allow them to go, He gives all people, everywhere, the choice; choose life and live!

WILL GOD LET PEOPLE TO GO TO HELL?