- Br. Revanth T
(ABC for Teens, 29th May, 2021)
(ABC for Teens, 29th May, 2021)
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Sermon Transcript
We've been talking about the same thing over the last couple of days, the first day like Br. Rexlin reminded us I spoke to you about living a cross shaped life. Having as the cross the center of your life as you live it as a Christian or having the cross as the center of your life as you live the Christian life.
Yesterday, we spoke about living in light of the Lord's return almost the same thing but from a different flavour touching a different flavour or looking at it from a different angle. So, we said that there is a kind of life that you and I need to live especially among the assembly believers but also to people outside where they look at us and say that this brother and this sister really is looking forward to the return of the Lord Jesus Christ. He believes in the imminent anytime return of the Lord Jesus Christ. He's waiting for him. His focus is up there. He's waiting for the blessed hope. And that's why he's living the kind of life that God wants us to live. That's the second day.
The third day today, we will look at it from a different angle in terms of how to be cleansed, so that we can be a useful vessel for the Lord. You and I must be on a journey of sanctification in the right direction to be used by the Lord. And all of us want to be used by the Lord in some measure in some capacity or the other and to some degree or the other. Right. We all want to be used by the Lord. And we want to see what kind of a life God uses this morning. So that we can this morning we exhausted from the word to live that kind of alive so that we can be a useful vessel in the hand of the master, a useful, honourable vessel in the hand of the master.
Illustration
Let me begin with an illustration today, just like the other days, and we will get ahead with the sermon by beginning with the illustration. There was a man by the name of Michael Blumenthal. Michael Blumenthal was a former chairman of Unisys company you would have heard of that multinational company called Unisys. So, Michael Blumenthal was a former chairman and he once talked about the mistakes he made in hiring people, especially for the top positions in his company. He said this that you have to try to make sure that the people you hire for the top positions in a company, have a clear sense of what is right and what is wrong.
We also have to be sure that those people have a willingness to be truthful, the courage to say what they think is right. When it is right. Even if politics stand against everything that they're doing. This was the quality he said that should be really at the top. And then he went on to make a very interesting comment, and we need to listen to this. He said I was too often impressed by the intelligence and the substantive knowledge of an individual and did not always pay enough attention to the question of how honest, courageous, and good a person was before I hired the person. Did you hear that? He said he was often too impressed with the intelligence and knowledge of an individual and did not pay attention to the character of the individual before he actually hired that person.
What kind of life does God want?
Hold that illustration to the back of your minds. As I asked you this question. All of us are called to minister and serve the Lord to some degree or another, in some capacity, or ministry or another. But have you ever thought about what kind of a life you need to live for the Lord to use you? Have you given a thought about what is the kind of life that you and I ought to live, for the Lord to use us?
Probably there are some of you young people desiring to be used by the Lord in an enormous way. It's a good thing. It's a good desire. Maybe you want to be a godly elder some 20 years down the line, and shepherd the flock of God under your care. Maybe you want to be an evangelist very soon, and work full time for the kingdom and make a difference in the kingdom of Christ. A good desire. Perhaps you desire to be a Bible teacher, who people will listen to, as you bring gems and insights from the Word of God. Or perhaps you want to be fruitful in whatever you're gifted with, and whatever you think God has called you to do. These are all great desires.
But I want you to know this morning, that there are qualifications to be used by the Lord. There are qualifications to be used by the Lord. So, we need to ask some serious questions this morning. What are the qualifications I need to have to be used by the Lord to bless others? How can the Lord use me to bless others and what are the qualifications that I need to have? Or a better question would be, what kind of life should I live for the Lord, to use me in his service? What kind of life should I live for the Lord to use me in his service? Thankfully, all these questions have been answered well by the Apostle Paul.
In his second letter to Timothy, Paul is writing to his co-worker that is Timothy, to stand strong in the face of opposition from false teachers. Paul had left Timothy in charge of the church in Ephesus, giving him instructions to deal with the heretics there who had become leaders of the church. Now, he was in a dungeon suffering in chains. It was a cold dungeon. He was about to be executed. Paul was. So, he's writing this letter to encourage Timothy to be strong in the face of difficulties that are going to come. Paul wants him to know that God can use him if he will make himself available to God. Paul wants Timothy to know that God can use him if Timothy would make himself available to God.
Character over Deeds
Hear me, please and let's be honest about this. Some of us would rather be admired for what we do than what we are. Isn't that true? Some of us would rather be admired for what we do in terms of the tasks that we do and accomplish than what we are as people. But Paul is telling Timothy here, that character, what you are is of utmost importance in the Christian faith. What you are is more important than what you do, all be it some great and wonderful things in the assembly. What I am is more important than what I do. So, what you are, is of supreme importance. What is your character like? is of supreme importance this morning.
So, Paul here instructs Timothy on how to be an instrument that God will use for His glory, how to be an instrument that God will use for His glory. So, today's passage will reveal to us two things that you and I must do. We've been seeing two things in each sermon. Today, it's gonna be two things as well. Two things that you and I must do, to be the kind of person to have the kind of life that God uses to bless others. Paul discusses these two features in Second Timothy chapter two, verses 20 through 24.
We'll just look at verses 20 through 24, or perhaps we might stop at verse 23. Let me just check I think we look at verse 24. Okay, let's just read till verse 23. I don't have I don't want anybody to read it aloud. As usual. What we'll do is we'll go step by step verse by verse, but we'll just look at verses 20 through 23, four verses here. So, follow along in the outline, please, as we look at this passage, and see what the Lord has to speak to us this morning. In verses 20 and 21.
Get Rid of Anything Dishonourable in your Life
You will see the first thing that you must get rid of anything dishonourable in your life, to be used by the Lord for His glory, to bless others. You must get rid of anything dishonourable, sinful, in your life. Sanctification, we've been talking about sanctification this morning the Lord wants to speak to us from His word very clearly. That if you want to be a vessel that God would use to bless others for His glory in a way that pleases Him. You and I must get rid of anything dishonourable in our lives. You and I must cleanse ourselves of anything and everything that dishonourable in our lives. And Paul explains this by saying two things about it. And let's look at them one by one. First, he says there are different vessels used for different purposes. Look at verse 20, please, chapter two of Second Timothy and verse 20. Let me read the verse for you. And we will explain the verse as well.
A. Different Vessels for Different Purposes
Now in a great house, there are not only vessels of gold and silver, but also of wood and clay, some for honourable use, some for dishonourable use. Now listen here, please. There is an imagery that Paul is setting up here. And the imagery is of a large house, some translations have it as a great house. So, it is no ordinary house, and deliberately the Spirit of God put that as a great house or a large house. And then there's a reference to vessels of gold and silver. There's vessels of gold and vessels of silver in that house. It certainly suggests that the house belongs to a very wealthy owner. Now how many of us would know people who have vessels of gold and silver? If they do, they must be extraordinarily wealthy?
The description shows that the house here stands for the church. And Paul is introducing this image to discuss about the mixed nature of the church, mixed nature of the Assembly of God. There are vessels of gold and silver in the assembly, as well as vessels of wood and clay. If you remember, in First Timothy chapter three, verse 15, Paul depicted the church as a household. It's a community in which all members have various responsibilities. In this passage that we are studying right now, the images of the building in which the members of the household would dwell. And the real reason why Paul is introducing the image of the house is to describe the articles within the house. And Paul is using a clear contrast here. There are not only vessels of gold and silver, but also of word and clay.
Now the Greek term used for vessels can describe a range of articles commonly used in a house, put to common use in a house. Before I move further, let me make a couple of observations please, and listen to me very carefully here. The first observation, the household articles are distinguished one from another on the basis of the material with which they are made. The household articles are distinguished on the basis of the material that they are made. Gold and silver. They are vessels made of that. And then there are vessels made of wood and clay.
Now, like I said earlier, gold and silver vessels could be descriptive of the owner's wealth. They will things by which the wealthy wealthy people were known. In this case, gold and silver vessels refer to the various bowls and plates that would decorate the table of the wealthy people. In contrast to these vessels or implements made of gold and silver or vessels of wood and clay. Since you can easily obtain such implements. These items are not of much value, we know that they're not very valuable. And they were typically put to common use everyday use. That's the first observation.
The second observation is this. The initial classification of the articles leads to that distinction based on the purpose. He first talked about the metals with which the articles are made and then he went on to draw the purpose of each article based on the metal that they've been made with. He says there are some for honourable use some for dishonourable use. Paul is pointing out that in every large house, there are bowls or plates used for different purposes. For instance, all of us are most of us at least have good dinner sets that we bring out from the closet for special occasions. Then there is the ordinary dinnerware that we use on a daily basis. And we also have garbage cans in our home and most people, sensible people put garbage cans away from the common view of people who enter the home.
What is Paul's point here? He is saying that within the church, different people have different purposes, or potentials. Some who are associated with the church, some who are associated with the church are truly born again. Then there are others who profess to be believers, but they're actually not. They are not truly born again. They are vessels of dishonour. And Paul is saying that no one should be a vessel of dishonour. No one should be a vessel of dishonour. So, there are different vessels use for different purposes.
B. Lord Will Set Apart for Himself, Anyone Who Lives A Clean Life
Second thing the Lord will set apart for himself, anyone who lives a clean life, the Lord will set apart for himself anyone who lives a clean life. Look at Verse 21. Therefore, if anyone cleanses himself from what is dishonourable, he will be a vessel for honorable use, set apart as holy useful to the master of the house, ready for every good work. Now, this is a beautiful verse and I want all of you to read it again. Let me read that for you here and pay attention please, to what Paul is saying in God's word.
Therefore, he says, verse 21, if anyone cleanses himself, from what is dishonourable he will be a vessel for honourable use, set apart as holy, sanctified, useful to the master of the house, ready for every good work. Isn't that a beautiful promise? The household imagery that Paul gave now opens up into a general invitation for all of us to respond. What does Paul say? If anyone cleanses himself from that which is dishonourable, he or she will be a vessel for honourable use. Clearly, Paul is presenting all of us with a choice. Do you want to be a gold or silver vessel? Used for honour? Or will you be achieved clay pot used for dishonour?
You can change but the change must start in your heart. And let me say this, you will never change until you want to change, you will never change until you want to change. Paul here is emphasizing our responsibility in our sanctification, in cleansing ourselves, and that's why he says if you cleanse yourself from all that is dishonourable, you have a responsibility, my dear brother and sister to cleanse yourself of the defilement, the defilement of sin, so that you will be a vessel for honourable use.
Let me give you an illustration here to drive home the point suppose you invite some of your friends over for dinner. You want to serve them food from a garbage can, will you? If you were to do that, that'll be the end of your friendship to be sure. Garbage cans are used for storing waste that you intend to throw out. But you serve a meal using some nice dinnerware. Especially if you're calling some good friend’s home. That's the same thing with the Lord as well. He operates on the same principle. There are gold and silver Christians who by virtue of their character are very useful to the Lord.
Then there are men and women who are clay pot Christians, who are not very useful to the Lord, not useful to the master. Now when you look at the gold and silver Christians, these are men and women of integrity, who take their faith seriously, who walk in the Spirit, demonstrate the character of Christ in all that they do. But like I mentioned, and like Paul is emphasizing here, there's also wood and clay Christians who lack that character, and therefore they are not very useful to the Lord. They are perhaps filled with a waste product of life. And the Lord cannot use them. They're not fit for noble purposes. They're not useful to the master.
Let me talk to you directly here. As I speak to myself. You may be an angry person, but you don't have to stay that way. You may have given to lust, but you don't have to stay that way. You may always be criticizing people. Maybe you're a critical person, but you don't have to stay that way. You may be a person with bad temper. You don't have to stay that way. You may be a person with sinful secret habits. You don't have to revel in them. You can change. Paul says here, if a man cleanses himself. If a man cleanses himself, you can change but the change must start in your own heart.
And let me say that you will never change until you want to change. And the good news is no one needs to stay that way. No one needs to stay where they are. You may cleanse yourself of your low living and if you do, you will be like gold and silver Christians whom the Lord uses to bless others. If you have been living in the garbage can of life. You don't have to stay there. This is the wonderful news that we have this morning. From the gospel of Jesus Christ. And it can be truly life changing. If you and I can take this very seriously. But the point is, do you know that not every person wants to change?
Not every person wants to change. Sometimes we get so used to our anger. We get so comfortable in our sarcasm. We get so accustomed to our compromise that we can't imagine anything better or different. I believe the most important thing for any of us to do is to cry out to the Lord to change us right now. Can you do that? Can you do that? After we finish the sermon? Or perhaps even as you're listening to me right now from God's word, can you cry out from your heart? Lord, I need your help. I need your help to change. I want to cleanse myself, but I need your help.
The psalmist says this poor man cried and the Lord heard him and he saved him out of all his struggles. Cry out to the Lord asked for his help. Admit that you're powerless to change tell the Lord that without him. You will always be stuck right where you are. And I promise you, God will never turn away those who cry out to Him in sincerity and in humility. He will change you into a vessel for honourable use. And Paul uses certain descriptions that are beautiful here. Look at the description that Paul gives of a vessel that the master wants to use. Set apart as holy. Look at the phrase set apart as holy. When you have separated yourself from wickedness you are devoted to the Lord. Set apart unto God. Sanctified, set apart. Holy, a beautiful phrase.
Second thing he says you're useful to the master of the house. The word usefulness simply means that you're able to do what the master is asking you to do. Suppose you're sitting in a restaurant, and the waiter gives you a plate on which there's still a morsel of food eaten by the previous customer. Even to think of it is so dirty, isn't it? What would you do? You would rightly demand for a clean plate. The dirty one is not useful. So same thing with the Lord. A dirty vessel is not useful to the Lord. When we cleanse ourselves of sin, and defilement, we become useful to the master of the house.
Third description that Paul gives is that we are ready for every good work, ready for every good work. Authentic faith produces beautiful service to the master. Genuine faith produces beautiful service to the master. The cleansed to vessel is always waiting for the master to pull it out of the shelf and put it to honourable use. You're ready for every good work. So, to be useful to the master, you and I must cleanse ourselves of all that is dishonourable and the Lord this morning is giving us a choice.
Do you want to be a vessel of wood and clay that cannot be put to good use? If you, are you don't have to stay that way? And the Lord this morning with the help of the Spirit is asking us to change. We can cleanse ourselves and become vessels of gold and silver. Ready for every good use by the master of the house. Don't you want to do that? So, in verses 20 and 21 we saw that we must get rid of anything and everything that is dishonourable in our lives, Sanctification, sanctification.
Escape Youthful Desires and Run after Godliness
Then there's a second thing that you and I must do to be the kind of person that the Lord uses to bless others and that is in verses 22 and 23. We'll just stop at verse 23. And these verses say that you must escape youthful desires and run off to godliness. You and I must escape youthful desires and run after godliness. You and I must make sure that we are not impulsive. But we are following the path that brings honor to the Lord. We are following the path that brings honour to the Lord. And Paul says three things about it. And I want you all to listen to me carefully please.
A. Runaway from Youthful Desires
First thing he says run away from youthful desires. Look at this first part of verse 22. So Flee youthful passions, so Flee youthful passions. Paul now goes on to show what this looks like in practice. And he gives two commands, flee and pursue, flee and pursue. We'll look at them one by one. What does Paul want Timothy to flee from? He says flee youthful passions, flee youthful passions. Now, it is certainly a reference to sexual temptation. But it's not just that. It also refers to all the headstrong passions of the youth that lead them into anger, arrogance, pride, envy, and the need to win at all costs, the desire to win power, and at all costs. We must flee that inner desire that makes us want to be in control of our little corner of the universe. We have to flee those things says Paul.
So, Paul was telling Timothy, that while it is right to defend the faith against serious error, and to stand firm on the central doctrines of Scripture, there's a right way to go about it. There's a wrong way to go about it. And later on, he will explain to us what the right way is. Here he is warning against the wrong way. And Paul is telling Timothy, not to be arrogant about how much you know, and impatiently blast others in error. He's asking him not to be quarrelsome, and self-assertive. Flee youthful passions, Flee youthful passions.
Illustration
You know a brother in Christ, to go to his work every day, he had to drive past a ginormous billboard. This is in the US, a ginormous billboard by the side of the road. It had a dirty picture on it. It was very inappropriate. So, he had to drive past this on his way to work. This is a true story that a brother shared and as he was driving past, he looked at the picture on a couple of days, and he said, I couldn't get that out of my mind. For almost half a day at work, I couldn't work and then he realized this. The only way to avoid it is not to take that road at all. He used to take a completely different route. Now going a different route for him in in the traffic of a city, which is a lot in the US. It will take an extra 15 minutes, he said in his commute, and it's valuable to him. But then he understood there was no other way to get rid of such a passion that was raging in his heart as he was driving past a billboard. So from that day on, he made it a point to take that extra 15 minutes for his commute, take another road and get to work and get back home and never drive that way where there's a billboard by the side of the road.
And I want to see this young people very often, instead of fleeing these kinds of passions, we slouch away slowly, hoping that the passions will catch up sometime. That Paul is saying, Timothy, don't let that happen. Don't let that happen. Flee youthful passions, flee, youthful passion. There is no other way to be used by the Lord to bless others for His glory. Second thing, Paul is saying run after what is upright. Look at the second part of verse 22. and pursue righteousness, faith, love and peace along with those who call on the Lord from a pure heart.
B. Run after what is Upright
First thing, Paul said Timothy flee from something and then he's giving him another command which is to pursue after something. What does Paul want Timothy to pursue? He says pursue righteousness, pursue faith, pursue love and peace along with those who call on the Lord from a pure heart. Sanctification, sanctification. The order is crucial here. In order to pursue the right things. You have to flee from the wrong things. You can't pursue good and evil at the same time.
One will always win out and usually it is evil that wins the day. Beware and be careful, flee youthful passions and pursue what is the righteous. And what is of faith, what is of love, and what is of peace, along with the assembly of God's people who call the name of the Lord with a pure heart. The word pursue here is a very interesting word in the New Testament. Especially in this context, it is to go after something with all your heart, run hard after something. And Paul is commanding Timothy to run hard after four aspects of godliness. Look at the verse.
Pursue Righteousness
First, he says, pursue righteousness, Pursue righteousness. This is a general term that refers to a right behaviour that is in conformity with the standards of God's Word. God's word is not vague about how you and I should live. It gives us the commandments of God very clearly, which are for our good. Go after it. Go after it with all your heart. Pursue it with all your heart. David, in Psalm 40 verse eight he exclaimed, I delight to do Your will. Oh, Lord. So, David explained to the delight to do your will, oh, Lord. Your law is within my heart. I do like to do Your will. Oh my god. Your law is within my heart. Actually, Hebrews chapter 10 puts those words in the mouth of Jesus. And if you're going to be like Jesus, and if you're growing to be like Jesus, you're growing in the delight of pursuing righteousness from the heart. Pursue righteousness. Go at it. And go after it with all you've got, with all your heart.
Pursue Faith
Second thing Paul says, pursue faith, pursue faith. The Greek word the original word may mean faithfulness. We should be pursuing faithfulness which is all too rare these days. It means that you are trustworthy. You're honest, you're reliable. If your elder walks up to you in the assembly and gives you a job to do, you can be counted on to do it. Faithfulness, pursue faithfulness. But the word also can mean faith. We are to pursue faith. Faith is related to your concept of how you look at God. What you think about God, is he mighty? Does he hear the prayers of His people and act on their behalf? Do you trust him to do far more than you're able to in your own strength, working through you? Pursue faith, pursue faithfulness.
Pursue Love
Thirdly, Pursue love. Now, you may say, Well, Brother Revanth, I'm just a naturally loving person. I'm sorry to disappoint you, no you're not. That's why Paul is commanding, Pursue love. We're not naturally loving people, we're naturally selfish people. And Paul has to clearly command us pursue love. That requires getting your focus off yourself and onto others, so that we begin to treat others just as we would want to be treated. It means giving our time to listen to somebody who's hurting. It means befriending somebody who's lonely in the assembly, or even outside. Sometimes it means having the courage to go and talk to a brother or sister who was in sin with the sole aim of restoring him to the Lord. It means being patient, being kind, being considerate, and not being easily provoked. Pursuing love means investing constant efforts to love others as you love.
Pursue Peace
Fourthly, pursue peace along with those who call on the Lord from a pure heart. Now, peace doesn't automatically happen. You have to pursue it deliberately. Sometimes with much effort. It is debatable whether the comma must be inserted after peace. You know scholars’ debate about it. This is just technical issue. With the comma after the peace the sentence means that you should join with other believers in the common pursuit of peace. Without the comma there, the idea is that you should pursue peace with other believers. And the other believers here are described as those who call on the name of the Lord with a pure heart, regardless of what it is, the idea is that you and I must pursue peace with others.
Pursue peace with others. You need God's people come alongside you. If you're going to pursue single mindedly love, faith, peace and righteousness, you need the help the encouragement and the example of God's people. We are not here creating Lone Ranger's in the assemblies, we need one another. And it's in the context of the local assembly, that there is mutual accountability. There is a mutual example and mutual exhortation that we can give to one another. And Paul here is saying, I want you to pursue this with all who call on the Lord from a pure heart. He's using the word pure, which is related to the verb cleanse, we use the word cleanse before, and thus it refers to a heart that has been cleansed from sin.
And the implication of this command is that even though Christians, all of them call on the name of the Lord out of their hearts that have been cleansed from sin, they still have conflicts and misunderstandings with each other. And therefore, we as Christians need to pursue peace with one another. We need to pursue peace; we need to strive towards having peace with one another. The world's way of dealing with misunderstanding so conflict is to nurse hurt feelings is to spread gossip about others, is to stand up for your rights. God's way of dealing with it is to go is going directly to the one who's offended you and seeking reconciliation with that person. And Jesus said this, it is important that even if you're going to worship, leave your worship there. And first be reconciled with your brother or sister. Recognizing this is difficult, but we must recognize it and pursue peace. Run after what is upright, run after what is upright.
C. Resist Foolish and Ignorant Speculations
Thirdly, and lastly, Paul says resist foolish and ignorant speculations, resist foolish and ignorant speculations. Look at verse 23. Have nothing to do with foolish arguments, ignorant controversies, you know that they breed quarrels. The final condition for being used by God involves how we deal with those who do not know the Lord. That's part of our sanctification process as well. Paul begins with a negative, he uses two terms here, foolish and ignorant. Foolish. The word foolish describes words and arguments which produce nothing useful. Ignorant literally means stupid, uneducated.
So, you can see that false teaching is full of arguments and controversies. And he says don't waste time in foolish and ignorant or stupid arguments. Sometimes people will just say things, to see if they can get us angry. They will try to stir up trouble by pushing our buttons. Most of us no such people and some of us may be close to such unbelievers. Paul's advice is very simple for us. And it's easy to follow as well. Don't let them do it. Don't let them get you riled up. So that you lose your control. You lose your cool, and you blow up and you say things that you ought not to be saying. Don't yell back at them. If they yell at you. Don't curse those who curse you. Don't intimidate those who try to intimidate you.
In other words, you and I are not to match the tactics of those who oppose us and ridicule our faith. They are unbelievers. We must keep our cool all the time and at all costs. One reason for this is very practical and hear me please you cannot argue a person into the kingdom of God. You cannot insult a person into becoming a Christian. You can't intimidate them into accepting Christ as Saviour. It is quite possible that you do all these things and turn them away from the kingdom. But you can never argue them or insult them into the Kingdom.
Salvation is a miracle of God that takes place in the human heart. Only the Spirit of God can bring the soul from death into life, Regeneration. That's why we must be gentle under pressure and kind even when we are pushed to the limits. We must be patient towards those who oppose us. We must be meek in telling people the truth. If we lose our temper, we may win the battle of words, but we will surely lose all of this. We may lose the person altogether.
That's why Paul says here have nothing to do with foolish, ignorant controversies. Timothy must know that they breed quarrels and nothing else. Now here's a summary of what Paul is saying. Avoid arguments. Always Be kind. Be ready to speak to anyone who will listen. Know what we are talking about. Be patient when we are attacked. Teach them the truth with a smile and trust God for the results. Trust God for the results.
Summary
What's the point of this morning's passage? The whole passage basically says that you must cleanse yourself of sin, and defilement and live a Godward life to be a person whom God uses. You must cleanse yourself of sin and live a Godward life to be a person whom God uses. If you'd like to be used by the Lord, actively deal with sin in your life, forsake it. Pursue everything that is noble and honouring to God and He will use you mightily.
Illustration
Let me end with this illustration here. The tallest building in the world is the Burj Khalifa in Dubai. Some of you may have seen it. It is 830 meters tall. It has 160 floors and is twice as tall as the Empire State Building in New York City. When you look at that huge structure, we see that before the construction began to rise up, workers spent one whole year digging and pouring massive foundation to support to support that huge building. And the foundation we are told, contains concrete weighing more than one lakh 10,000 tonnes. Did you hear that? The foundation of it contains more than one lakh 10,000 tons of concrete. And such a huge, tall building is safe because of the foundation that is solid. Do you have a solid foundation in the Lord? In order to be blessed by the Lord and to be used by Him, we must be grounded in the Word, confident in God, cleansed from all unholy habits and gentle with those who oppose us.
Reflection
Can we just close our eyes for a moment please? Let's close our eyes for a moment. Let's just focus on what we've been listening for the last three years, three days. The last three days the Lord has been speaking to us about, how we need to proceed and move forward on the way to becoming more and more like Christ. If you've this morning, as you've listened to the word, are thinking that I want to be truly used by the Lord, there is no other way but to cleanse ourselves from defilement, but to cleanse ourselves from sin and to reject all that is unrighteous, reject youthful passions and pursue all that is godly and righteous. Especially with those who call on the Lord with a pure heart. Would you in the silence of your hearts resolve this morning as we come to the end of this ABC for 2021.
Lord this morning I want to commit myself to you wholly you've been speaking to me over the last three days. Father forgive me of my sin. I've been living too long in sins that you don't like and that don't honour you. Father, I pray that you would cleanse me of my sin. Thank you for speaking to me this morning. That I have a responsibility as well to cleanse myself of my sin. And I have the promise from the word that you will use me as a vessel for honourable use. I'll be useful to the master of the house. Would you pray that prayer for the next couple of minutes? Amen.
Thank you so much for your patience and, May the Lord bless you all as you ponder on these issues.
Yesterday, we spoke about living in light of the Lord's return almost the same thing but from a different flavour touching a different flavour or looking at it from a different angle. So, we said that there is a kind of life that you and I need to live especially among the assembly believers but also to people outside where they look at us and say that this brother and this sister really is looking forward to the return of the Lord Jesus Christ. He believes in the imminent anytime return of the Lord Jesus Christ. He's waiting for him. His focus is up there. He's waiting for the blessed hope. And that's why he's living the kind of life that God wants us to live. That's the second day.
The third day today, we will look at it from a different angle in terms of how to be cleansed, so that we can be a useful vessel for the Lord. You and I must be on a journey of sanctification in the right direction to be used by the Lord. And all of us want to be used by the Lord in some measure in some capacity or the other and to some degree or the other. Right. We all want to be used by the Lord. And we want to see what kind of a life God uses this morning. So that we can this morning we exhausted from the word to live that kind of alive so that we can be a useful vessel in the hand of the master, a useful, honourable vessel in the hand of the master.
Illustration
Let me begin with an illustration today, just like the other days, and we will get ahead with the sermon by beginning with the illustration. There was a man by the name of Michael Blumenthal. Michael Blumenthal was a former chairman of Unisys company you would have heard of that multinational company called Unisys. So, Michael Blumenthal was a former chairman and he once talked about the mistakes he made in hiring people, especially for the top positions in his company. He said this that you have to try to make sure that the people you hire for the top positions in a company, have a clear sense of what is right and what is wrong.
We also have to be sure that those people have a willingness to be truthful, the courage to say what they think is right. When it is right. Even if politics stand against everything that they're doing. This was the quality he said that should be really at the top. And then he went on to make a very interesting comment, and we need to listen to this. He said I was too often impressed by the intelligence and the substantive knowledge of an individual and did not always pay enough attention to the question of how honest, courageous, and good a person was before I hired the person. Did you hear that? He said he was often too impressed with the intelligence and knowledge of an individual and did not pay attention to the character of the individual before he actually hired that person.
What kind of life does God want?
Hold that illustration to the back of your minds. As I asked you this question. All of us are called to minister and serve the Lord to some degree or another, in some capacity, or ministry or another. But have you ever thought about what kind of a life you need to live for the Lord to use you? Have you given a thought about what is the kind of life that you and I ought to live, for the Lord to use us?
Probably there are some of you young people desiring to be used by the Lord in an enormous way. It's a good thing. It's a good desire. Maybe you want to be a godly elder some 20 years down the line, and shepherd the flock of God under your care. Maybe you want to be an evangelist very soon, and work full time for the kingdom and make a difference in the kingdom of Christ. A good desire. Perhaps you desire to be a Bible teacher, who people will listen to, as you bring gems and insights from the Word of God. Or perhaps you want to be fruitful in whatever you're gifted with, and whatever you think God has called you to do. These are all great desires.
But I want you to know this morning, that there are qualifications to be used by the Lord. There are qualifications to be used by the Lord. So, we need to ask some serious questions this morning. What are the qualifications I need to have to be used by the Lord to bless others? How can the Lord use me to bless others and what are the qualifications that I need to have? Or a better question would be, what kind of life should I live for the Lord, to use me in his service? What kind of life should I live for the Lord to use me in his service? Thankfully, all these questions have been answered well by the Apostle Paul.
In his second letter to Timothy, Paul is writing to his co-worker that is Timothy, to stand strong in the face of opposition from false teachers. Paul had left Timothy in charge of the church in Ephesus, giving him instructions to deal with the heretics there who had become leaders of the church. Now, he was in a dungeon suffering in chains. It was a cold dungeon. He was about to be executed. Paul was. So, he's writing this letter to encourage Timothy to be strong in the face of difficulties that are going to come. Paul wants him to know that God can use him if he will make himself available to God. Paul wants Timothy to know that God can use him if Timothy would make himself available to God.
Character over Deeds
Hear me, please and let's be honest about this. Some of us would rather be admired for what we do than what we are. Isn't that true? Some of us would rather be admired for what we do in terms of the tasks that we do and accomplish than what we are as people. But Paul is telling Timothy here, that character, what you are is of utmost importance in the Christian faith. What you are is more important than what you do, all be it some great and wonderful things in the assembly. What I am is more important than what I do. So, what you are, is of supreme importance. What is your character like? is of supreme importance this morning.
So, Paul here instructs Timothy on how to be an instrument that God will use for His glory, how to be an instrument that God will use for His glory. So, today's passage will reveal to us two things that you and I must do. We've been seeing two things in each sermon. Today, it's gonna be two things as well. Two things that you and I must do, to be the kind of person to have the kind of life that God uses to bless others. Paul discusses these two features in Second Timothy chapter two, verses 20 through 24.
We'll just look at verses 20 through 24, or perhaps we might stop at verse 23. Let me just check I think we look at verse 24. Okay, let's just read till verse 23. I don't have I don't want anybody to read it aloud. As usual. What we'll do is we'll go step by step verse by verse, but we'll just look at verses 20 through 23, four verses here. So, follow along in the outline, please, as we look at this passage, and see what the Lord has to speak to us this morning. In verses 20 and 21.
Get Rid of Anything Dishonourable in your Life
You will see the first thing that you must get rid of anything dishonourable in your life, to be used by the Lord for His glory, to bless others. You must get rid of anything dishonourable, sinful, in your life. Sanctification, we've been talking about sanctification this morning the Lord wants to speak to us from His word very clearly. That if you want to be a vessel that God would use to bless others for His glory in a way that pleases Him. You and I must get rid of anything dishonourable in our lives. You and I must cleanse ourselves of anything and everything that dishonourable in our lives. And Paul explains this by saying two things about it. And let's look at them one by one. First, he says there are different vessels used for different purposes. Look at verse 20, please, chapter two of Second Timothy and verse 20. Let me read the verse for you. And we will explain the verse as well.
A. Different Vessels for Different Purposes
Now in a great house, there are not only vessels of gold and silver, but also of wood and clay, some for honourable use, some for dishonourable use. Now listen here, please. There is an imagery that Paul is setting up here. And the imagery is of a large house, some translations have it as a great house. So, it is no ordinary house, and deliberately the Spirit of God put that as a great house or a large house. And then there's a reference to vessels of gold and silver. There's vessels of gold and vessels of silver in that house. It certainly suggests that the house belongs to a very wealthy owner. Now how many of us would know people who have vessels of gold and silver? If they do, they must be extraordinarily wealthy?
The description shows that the house here stands for the church. And Paul is introducing this image to discuss about the mixed nature of the church, mixed nature of the Assembly of God. There are vessels of gold and silver in the assembly, as well as vessels of wood and clay. If you remember, in First Timothy chapter three, verse 15, Paul depicted the church as a household. It's a community in which all members have various responsibilities. In this passage that we are studying right now, the images of the building in which the members of the household would dwell. And the real reason why Paul is introducing the image of the house is to describe the articles within the house. And Paul is using a clear contrast here. There are not only vessels of gold and silver, but also of word and clay.
Now the Greek term used for vessels can describe a range of articles commonly used in a house, put to common use in a house. Before I move further, let me make a couple of observations please, and listen to me very carefully here. The first observation, the household articles are distinguished one from another on the basis of the material with which they are made. The household articles are distinguished on the basis of the material that they are made. Gold and silver. They are vessels made of that. And then there are vessels made of wood and clay.
Now, like I said earlier, gold and silver vessels could be descriptive of the owner's wealth. They will things by which the wealthy wealthy people were known. In this case, gold and silver vessels refer to the various bowls and plates that would decorate the table of the wealthy people. In contrast to these vessels or implements made of gold and silver or vessels of wood and clay. Since you can easily obtain such implements. These items are not of much value, we know that they're not very valuable. And they were typically put to common use everyday use. That's the first observation.
The second observation is this. The initial classification of the articles leads to that distinction based on the purpose. He first talked about the metals with which the articles are made and then he went on to draw the purpose of each article based on the metal that they've been made with. He says there are some for honourable use some for dishonourable use. Paul is pointing out that in every large house, there are bowls or plates used for different purposes. For instance, all of us are most of us at least have good dinner sets that we bring out from the closet for special occasions. Then there is the ordinary dinnerware that we use on a daily basis. And we also have garbage cans in our home and most people, sensible people put garbage cans away from the common view of people who enter the home.
What is Paul's point here? He is saying that within the church, different people have different purposes, or potentials. Some who are associated with the church, some who are associated with the church are truly born again. Then there are others who profess to be believers, but they're actually not. They are not truly born again. They are vessels of dishonour. And Paul is saying that no one should be a vessel of dishonour. No one should be a vessel of dishonour. So, there are different vessels use for different purposes.
B. Lord Will Set Apart for Himself, Anyone Who Lives A Clean Life
Second thing the Lord will set apart for himself, anyone who lives a clean life, the Lord will set apart for himself anyone who lives a clean life. Look at Verse 21. Therefore, if anyone cleanses himself from what is dishonourable, he will be a vessel for honorable use, set apart as holy useful to the master of the house, ready for every good work. Now, this is a beautiful verse and I want all of you to read it again. Let me read that for you here and pay attention please, to what Paul is saying in God's word.
Therefore, he says, verse 21, if anyone cleanses himself, from what is dishonourable he will be a vessel for honourable use, set apart as holy, sanctified, useful to the master of the house, ready for every good work. Isn't that a beautiful promise? The household imagery that Paul gave now opens up into a general invitation for all of us to respond. What does Paul say? If anyone cleanses himself from that which is dishonourable, he or she will be a vessel for honourable use. Clearly, Paul is presenting all of us with a choice. Do you want to be a gold or silver vessel? Used for honour? Or will you be achieved clay pot used for dishonour?
You can change but the change must start in your heart. And let me say this, you will never change until you want to change, you will never change until you want to change. Paul here is emphasizing our responsibility in our sanctification, in cleansing ourselves, and that's why he says if you cleanse yourself from all that is dishonourable, you have a responsibility, my dear brother and sister to cleanse yourself of the defilement, the defilement of sin, so that you will be a vessel for honourable use.
Let me give you an illustration here to drive home the point suppose you invite some of your friends over for dinner. You want to serve them food from a garbage can, will you? If you were to do that, that'll be the end of your friendship to be sure. Garbage cans are used for storing waste that you intend to throw out. But you serve a meal using some nice dinnerware. Especially if you're calling some good friend’s home. That's the same thing with the Lord as well. He operates on the same principle. There are gold and silver Christians who by virtue of their character are very useful to the Lord.
Then there are men and women who are clay pot Christians, who are not very useful to the Lord, not useful to the master. Now when you look at the gold and silver Christians, these are men and women of integrity, who take their faith seriously, who walk in the Spirit, demonstrate the character of Christ in all that they do. But like I mentioned, and like Paul is emphasizing here, there's also wood and clay Christians who lack that character, and therefore they are not very useful to the Lord. They are perhaps filled with a waste product of life. And the Lord cannot use them. They're not fit for noble purposes. They're not useful to the master.
Let me talk to you directly here. As I speak to myself. You may be an angry person, but you don't have to stay that way. You may have given to lust, but you don't have to stay that way. You may always be criticizing people. Maybe you're a critical person, but you don't have to stay that way. You may be a person with bad temper. You don't have to stay that way. You may be a person with sinful secret habits. You don't have to revel in them. You can change. Paul says here, if a man cleanses himself. If a man cleanses himself, you can change but the change must start in your own heart.
And let me say that you will never change until you want to change. And the good news is no one needs to stay that way. No one needs to stay where they are. You may cleanse yourself of your low living and if you do, you will be like gold and silver Christians whom the Lord uses to bless others. If you have been living in the garbage can of life. You don't have to stay there. This is the wonderful news that we have this morning. From the gospel of Jesus Christ. And it can be truly life changing. If you and I can take this very seriously. But the point is, do you know that not every person wants to change?
Not every person wants to change. Sometimes we get so used to our anger. We get so comfortable in our sarcasm. We get so accustomed to our compromise that we can't imagine anything better or different. I believe the most important thing for any of us to do is to cry out to the Lord to change us right now. Can you do that? Can you do that? After we finish the sermon? Or perhaps even as you're listening to me right now from God's word, can you cry out from your heart? Lord, I need your help. I need your help to change. I want to cleanse myself, but I need your help.
The psalmist says this poor man cried and the Lord heard him and he saved him out of all his struggles. Cry out to the Lord asked for his help. Admit that you're powerless to change tell the Lord that without him. You will always be stuck right where you are. And I promise you, God will never turn away those who cry out to Him in sincerity and in humility. He will change you into a vessel for honourable use. And Paul uses certain descriptions that are beautiful here. Look at the description that Paul gives of a vessel that the master wants to use. Set apart as holy. Look at the phrase set apart as holy. When you have separated yourself from wickedness you are devoted to the Lord. Set apart unto God. Sanctified, set apart. Holy, a beautiful phrase.
Second thing he says you're useful to the master of the house. The word usefulness simply means that you're able to do what the master is asking you to do. Suppose you're sitting in a restaurant, and the waiter gives you a plate on which there's still a morsel of food eaten by the previous customer. Even to think of it is so dirty, isn't it? What would you do? You would rightly demand for a clean plate. The dirty one is not useful. So same thing with the Lord. A dirty vessel is not useful to the Lord. When we cleanse ourselves of sin, and defilement, we become useful to the master of the house.
Third description that Paul gives is that we are ready for every good work, ready for every good work. Authentic faith produces beautiful service to the master. Genuine faith produces beautiful service to the master. The cleansed to vessel is always waiting for the master to pull it out of the shelf and put it to honourable use. You're ready for every good work. So, to be useful to the master, you and I must cleanse ourselves of all that is dishonourable and the Lord this morning is giving us a choice.
Do you want to be a vessel of wood and clay that cannot be put to good use? If you, are you don't have to stay that way? And the Lord this morning with the help of the Spirit is asking us to change. We can cleanse ourselves and become vessels of gold and silver. Ready for every good use by the master of the house. Don't you want to do that? So, in verses 20 and 21 we saw that we must get rid of anything and everything that is dishonourable in our lives, Sanctification, sanctification.
Escape Youthful Desires and Run after Godliness
Then there's a second thing that you and I must do to be the kind of person that the Lord uses to bless others and that is in verses 22 and 23. We'll just stop at verse 23. And these verses say that you must escape youthful desires and run off to godliness. You and I must escape youthful desires and run after godliness. You and I must make sure that we are not impulsive. But we are following the path that brings honor to the Lord. We are following the path that brings honour to the Lord. And Paul says three things about it. And I want you all to listen to me carefully please.
A. Runaway from Youthful Desires
First thing he says run away from youthful desires. Look at this first part of verse 22. So Flee youthful passions, so Flee youthful passions. Paul now goes on to show what this looks like in practice. And he gives two commands, flee and pursue, flee and pursue. We'll look at them one by one. What does Paul want Timothy to flee from? He says flee youthful passions, flee youthful passions. Now, it is certainly a reference to sexual temptation. But it's not just that. It also refers to all the headstrong passions of the youth that lead them into anger, arrogance, pride, envy, and the need to win at all costs, the desire to win power, and at all costs. We must flee that inner desire that makes us want to be in control of our little corner of the universe. We have to flee those things says Paul.
So, Paul was telling Timothy, that while it is right to defend the faith against serious error, and to stand firm on the central doctrines of Scripture, there's a right way to go about it. There's a wrong way to go about it. And later on, he will explain to us what the right way is. Here he is warning against the wrong way. And Paul is telling Timothy, not to be arrogant about how much you know, and impatiently blast others in error. He's asking him not to be quarrelsome, and self-assertive. Flee youthful passions, Flee youthful passions.
Illustration
You know a brother in Christ, to go to his work every day, he had to drive past a ginormous billboard. This is in the US, a ginormous billboard by the side of the road. It had a dirty picture on it. It was very inappropriate. So, he had to drive past this on his way to work. This is a true story that a brother shared and as he was driving past, he looked at the picture on a couple of days, and he said, I couldn't get that out of my mind. For almost half a day at work, I couldn't work and then he realized this. The only way to avoid it is not to take that road at all. He used to take a completely different route. Now going a different route for him in in the traffic of a city, which is a lot in the US. It will take an extra 15 minutes, he said in his commute, and it's valuable to him. But then he understood there was no other way to get rid of such a passion that was raging in his heart as he was driving past a billboard. So from that day on, he made it a point to take that extra 15 minutes for his commute, take another road and get to work and get back home and never drive that way where there's a billboard by the side of the road.
And I want to see this young people very often, instead of fleeing these kinds of passions, we slouch away slowly, hoping that the passions will catch up sometime. That Paul is saying, Timothy, don't let that happen. Don't let that happen. Flee youthful passions, flee, youthful passion. There is no other way to be used by the Lord to bless others for His glory. Second thing, Paul is saying run after what is upright. Look at the second part of verse 22. and pursue righteousness, faith, love and peace along with those who call on the Lord from a pure heart.
B. Run after what is Upright
First thing, Paul said Timothy flee from something and then he's giving him another command which is to pursue after something. What does Paul want Timothy to pursue? He says pursue righteousness, pursue faith, pursue love and peace along with those who call on the Lord from a pure heart. Sanctification, sanctification. The order is crucial here. In order to pursue the right things. You have to flee from the wrong things. You can't pursue good and evil at the same time.
One will always win out and usually it is evil that wins the day. Beware and be careful, flee youthful passions and pursue what is the righteous. And what is of faith, what is of love, and what is of peace, along with the assembly of God's people who call the name of the Lord with a pure heart. The word pursue here is a very interesting word in the New Testament. Especially in this context, it is to go after something with all your heart, run hard after something. And Paul is commanding Timothy to run hard after four aspects of godliness. Look at the verse.
Pursue Righteousness
First, he says, pursue righteousness, Pursue righteousness. This is a general term that refers to a right behaviour that is in conformity with the standards of God's Word. God's word is not vague about how you and I should live. It gives us the commandments of God very clearly, which are for our good. Go after it. Go after it with all your heart. Pursue it with all your heart. David, in Psalm 40 verse eight he exclaimed, I delight to do Your will. Oh, Lord. So, David explained to the delight to do your will, oh, Lord. Your law is within my heart. I do like to do Your will. Oh my god. Your law is within my heart. Actually, Hebrews chapter 10 puts those words in the mouth of Jesus. And if you're going to be like Jesus, and if you're growing to be like Jesus, you're growing in the delight of pursuing righteousness from the heart. Pursue righteousness. Go at it. And go after it with all you've got, with all your heart.
Pursue Faith
Second thing Paul says, pursue faith, pursue faith. The Greek word the original word may mean faithfulness. We should be pursuing faithfulness which is all too rare these days. It means that you are trustworthy. You're honest, you're reliable. If your elder walks up to you in the assembly and gives you a job to do, you can be counted on to do it. Faithfulness, pursue faithfulness. But the word also can mean faith. We are to pursue faith. Faith is related to your concept of how you look at God. What you think about God, is he mighty? Does he hear the prayers of His people and act on their behalf? Do you trust him to do far more than you're able to in your own strength, working through you? Pursue faith, pursue faithfulness.
Pursue Love
Thirdly, Pursue love. Now, you may say, Well, Brother Revanth, I'm just a naturally loving person. I'm sorry to disappoint you, no you're not. That's why Paul is commanding, Pursue love. We're not naturally loving people, we're naturally selfish people. And Paul has to clearly command us pursue love. That requires getting your focus off yourself and onto others, so that we begin to treat others just as we would want to be treated. It means giving our time to listen to somebody who's hurting. It means befriending somebody who's lonely in the assembly, or even outside. Sometimes it means having the courage to go and talk to a brother or sister who was in sin with the sole aim of restoring him to the Lord. It means being patient, being kind, being considerate, and not being easily provoked. Pursuing love means investing constant efforts to love others as you love.
Pursue Peace
Fourthly, pursue peace along with those who call on the Lord from a pure heart. Now, peace doesn't automatically happen. You have to pursue it deliberately. Sometimes with much effort. It is debatable whether the comma must be inserted after peace. You know scholars’ debate about it. This is just technical issue. With the comma after the peace the sentence means that you should join with other believers in the common pursuit of peace. Without the comma there, the idea is that you should pursue peace with other believers. And the other believers here are described as those who call on the name of the Lord with a pure heart, regardless of what it is, the idea is that you and I must pursue peace with others.
Pursue peace with others. You need God's people come alongside you. If you're going to pursue single mindedly love, faith, peace and righteousness, you need the help the encouragement and the example of God's people. We are not here creating Lone Ranger's in the assemblies, we need one another. And it's in the context of the local assembly, that there is mutual accountability. There is a mutual example and mutual exhortation that we can give to one another. And Paul here is saying, I want you to pursue this with all who call on the Lord from a pure heart. He's using the word pure, which is related to the verb cleanse, we use the word cleanse before, and thus it refers to a heart that has been cleansed from sin.
And the implication of this command is that even though Christians, all of them call on the name of the Lord out of their hearts that have been cleansed from sin, they still have conflicts and misunderstandings with each other. And therefore, we as Christians need to pursue peace with one another. We need to pursue peace; we need to strive towards having peace with one another. The world's way of dealing with misunderstanding so conflict is to nurse hurt feelings is to spread gossip about others, is to stand up for your rights. God's way of dealing with it is to go is going directly to the one who's offended you and seeking reconciliation with that person. And Jesus said this, it is important that even if you're going to worship, leave your worship there. And first be reconciled with your brother or sister. Recognizing this is difficult, but we must recognize it and pursue peace. Run after what is upright, run after what is upright.
C. Resist Foolish and Ignorant Speculations
Thirdly, and lastly, Paul says resist foolish and ignorant speculations, resist foolish and ignorant speculations. Look at verse 23. Have nothing to do with foolish arguments, ignorant controversies, you know that they breed quarrels. The final condition for being used by God involves how we deal with those who do not know the Lord. That's part of our sanctification process as well. Paul begins with a negative, he uses two terms here, foolish and ignorant. Foolish. The word foolish describes words and arguments which produce nothing useful. Ignorant literally means stupid, uneducated.
So, you can see that false teaching is full of arguments and controversies. And he says don't waste time in foolish and ignorant or stupid arguments. Sometimes people will just say things, to see if they can get us angry. They will try to stir up trouble by pushing our buttons. Most of us no such people and some of us may be close to such unbelievers. Paul's advice is very simple for us. And it's easy to follow as well. Don't let them do it. Don't let them get you riled up. So that you lose your control. You lose your cool, and you blow up and you say things that you ought not to be saying. Don't yell back at them. If they yell at you. Don't curse those who curse you. Don't intimidate those who try to intimidate you.
In other words, you and I are not to match the tactics of those who oppose us and ridicule our faith. They are unbelievers. We must keep our cool all the time and at all costs. One reason for this is very practical and hear me please you cannot argue a person into the kingdom of God. You cannot insult a person into becoming a Christian. You can't intimidate them into accepting Christ as Saviour. It is quite possible that you do all these things and turn them away from the kingdom. But you can never argue them or insult them into the Kingdom.
Salvation is a miracle of God that takes place in the human heart. Only the Spirit of God can bring the soul from death into life, Regeneration. That's why we must be gentle under pressure and kind even when we are pushed to the limits. We must be patient towards those who oppose us. We must be meek in telling people the truth. If we lose our temper, we may win the battle of words, but we will surely lose all of this. We may lose the person altogether.
That's why Paul says here have nothing to do with foolish, ignorant controversies. Timothy must know that they breed quarrels and nothing else. Now here's a summary of what Paul is saying. Avoid arguments. Always Be kind. Be ready to speak to anyone who will listen. Know what we are talking about. Be patient when we are attacked. Teach them the truth with a smile and trust God for the results. Trust God for the results.
Summary
What's the point of this morning's passage? The whole passage basically says that you must cleanse yourself of sin, and defilement and live a Godward life to be a person whom God uses. You must cleanse yourself of sin and live a Godward life to be a person whom God uses. If you'd like to be used by the Lord, actively deal with sin in your life, forsake it. Pursue everything that is noble and honouring to God and He will use you mightily.
Illustration
Let me end with this illustration here. The tallest building in the world is the Burj Khalifa in Dubai. Some of you may have seen it. It is 830 meters tall. It has 160 floors and is twice as tall as the Empire State Building in New York City. When you look at that huge structure, we see that before the construction began to rise up, workers spent one whole year digging and pouring massive foundation to support to support that huge building. And the foundation we are told, contains concrete weighing more than one lakh 10,000 tonnes. Did you hear that? The foundation of it contains more than one lakh 10,000 tons of concrete. And such a huge, tall building is safe because of the foundation that is solid. Do you have a solid foundation in the Lord? In order to be blessed by the Lord and to be used by Him, we must be grounded in the Word, confident in God, cleansed from all unholy habits and gentle with those who oppose us.
Reflection
Can we just close our eyes for a moment please? Let's close our eyes for a moment. Let's just focus on what we've been listening for the last three years, three days. The last three days the Lord has been speaking to us about, how we need to proceed and move forward on the way to becoming more and more like Christ. If you've this morning, as you've listened to the word, are thinking that I want to be truly used by the Lord, there is no other way but to cleanse ourselves from defilement, but to cleanse ourselves from sin and to reject all that is unrighteous, reject youthful passions and pursue all that is godly and righteous. Especially with those who call on the Lord with a pure heart. Would you in the silence of your hearts resolve this morning as we come to the end of this ABC for 2021.
Lord this morning I want to commit myself to you wholly you've been speaking to me over the last three days. Father forgive me of my sin. I've been living too long in sins that you don't like and that don't honour you. Father, I pray that you would cleanse me of my sin. Thank you for speaking to me this morning. That I have a responsibility as well to cleanse myself of my sin. And I have the promise from the word that you will use me as a vessel for honourable use. I'll be useful to the master of the house. Would you pray that prayer for the next couple of minutes? Amen.
Thank you so much for your patience and, May the Lord bless you all as you ponder on these issues.
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