In the Bible we are chal\u00adlen\u00adged again and again to be holy. To live holy means to live a tru\u00adly ful\u00adfil\u00adling life. Peo\u00adp\u00adle are then in the pro\u00adcess of sanc\u00adti\u00adfi\u00adca\u00adti\u00adon when they live more and more accor\u00adding to the con\u00adfer\u00adred sta\u00adtus of \u00absaint\u00bb. The more we con\u00adtem\u00adp\u00adla\u00adte the glo\u00adry of God, the more we see the migh\u00adty love and the more we beco\u00adme holy.<\/p>\n
The LORD<\/span> says: \u00abYou shall be holy, for I am holy\u00bb (Exodus 19:2 LUT<\/span>). Is \u00abbeing holy\u00bb even worth stri\u00adving for? Or is it old-fashio\u00adned, out\u00adda\u00adted and not com\u00adpa\u00adti\u00adble with a modern world? Unfort\u00adu\u00adna\u00adte\u00adly, the word is deva\u00adlued and has nega\u00adti\u00adve con\u00adno\u00adta\u00adti\u00adons in our lan\u00adguage. To live holy means first and fore\u00admost: to live accor\u00adding to our natu\u00adre and pur\u00adpo\u00adse. I do not have to be holy in order to plea\u00adse God, but I can find a holy life in order to be as hap\u00adpy as God is. In his holi\u00adne\u00adss, God pos\u00ads\u00ades\u00adses the hig\u00adhest, joy-giving and most inspi\u00adring qua\u00adli\u00adty of life. He wants to share this life with us and for this reason he calls us to enjoy the free\u00addom of holi\u00adne\u00adss. Nathan S\u00f6der\u00adblom: \u00abSaints are peo\u00adp\u00adle who make it easier for others to belie\u00adve in God.\u00bb \tWhat fee\u00adlings does the call to be holy trig\u00adger in you? In the Bible, we are repea\u00adted\u00adly chal\u00adlen\u00adged to be holy. To live holy means to lead a tru\u00adly ful\u00adfil\u00adling life. Peo\u00adp\u00adle are in the pro\u00adcess of sanc\u00adti\u00adfi\u00adca\u00adti\u00adon when they live more and more in accordance with the con\u00adfer\u00adred sta\u00adtus of \u00absaint\u00bb. The more we con\u00adtem\u00adp\u00adla\u00adte the glo\u00adry of God, the more we see the tre\u00admen\u00addous love and power of God.<\/p>","protected":false},"author":24,"featured_media":7584,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","wpfc_preacher":[23],"wpfc_sermon_series":[90],"wpfc_sermon_topics":[],"wpfc_bible_book":[],"wpfc_service_type":[12],"class_list":{"0":"wpfc_preacher-matthias-altwegg","1":"wpfc_sermon_series-heilig-heilig-heilig","2":"wpfc-sermon-single","3":"post-7571","4":"wpfc_sermon","5":"type-wpfc_sermon","6":"status-publish","7":"has-post-thumbnail","8":"hentry","11":"wpfc_service_type-gottesdienst"},"acf":[],"sermons_blog_filters_topics":"\t\t\t\t
\nThrough touch
\nIn the New Tes\u00adta\u00adment, peo\u00adp\u00adle who fol\u00adlow Jesus are eit\u00adher cal\u00adled disci\u00adples, Chris\u00adti\u00adans or saints. The Bible uses the term \u00absaints\u00bb to make it clear to us: We have beco\u00adme com\u00adple\u00adte\u00adly dif\u00adfe\u00adrent through the decis\u00adi\u00adon to fol\u00adlow and through faith in Jesus Christ. Some\u00adthing com\u00adple\u00adte\u00adly new has begun, becau\u00adse by the grace of God we have beco\u00adme capa\u00adble of lea\u00adding a new, dif\u00adfe\u00adrent life than befo\u00adre. In the famous pray\u00ader for his disci\u00adples, Jesus says: \u00abYou do not belong to this world any more than I do\u00bb (John 17:16 NLB<\/span>). To be holy means to be in this world, but not to belong to it.
\nThe call to holi\u00adne\u00adss means living more and more in accordance with the sta\u00adtus con\u00adfer\u00adred on us as \u00absaints\u00bb, brin\u00adging the available hor\u00adse\u00adpower to the ground. We find the\u00adse words as a direct call in the Holy Scrip\u00adtures a total of eight times, five times in the Old Tes\u00adta\u00adment and three times in the New. One of the\u00adse calls is in the Ser\u00admon on the Mount: \u00abBut you should be per\u00adfect, just as your Father in hea\u00adven is per\u00adfect\u00bb (Matthew 5:48 NLB<\/span>). For the Jewish lis\u00adten\u00aders, it was clear that Jesus was refer\u00adring to the call from Exodus 19:2 to be holy. In the Ser\u00admon on the Mount, Jesus sets a very high stan\u00addard for his fol\u00adlo\u00adwers, so that the reac\u00adtion can almost only be: I can never do that!
\nImme\u00addia\u00adte\u00adly after this tea\u00adching unit, Jesus uses a sto\u00adry to reve\u00adal the secret of beco\u00adming holy. At the time of Jesus, it was for\u00adbidden by law to touch a leper. Anyo\u00adne who did so was con\u00adside\u00adred a leper and was excluded from the com\u00admu\u00adni\u00adty of healt\u00adhy peo\u00adp\u00adle, at least for a time. At that time, lepers had to live out\u00adside the town limits and call atten\u00adti\u00adon to them\u00adsel\u00adves by shou\u00adting \u00ableper, leper\u00bb if anyo\u00adne approa\u00adched them. The clean were not allo\u00adwed to touch the unclean. When the leprous man asks Jesus for heal\u00ading, Jesus over\u00adturns the rule wit\u00adhout fur\u00adther ado: \u00abJesus touch\u00aded him. \u00abI will do it,\u00bb he said. \u00abBe well!\u00bb And in an instant the man was hea\u00adled of his ill\u00adness\u00bb (Matthew 8:3 NLB<\/span>). Jesus is the human face of the holy God. Through cont\u00adact with Jesus, a per\u00adson beco\u00admes who\u00adle, who\u00adle, com\u00adple\u00adte and holy. S\u00f6ren Kier\u00adke\u00adgaard: \u00abIt is important to get as clo\u00adse to God as possible.\u00bb
\nThrough love
\nShort\u00adly befo\u00adre his death on the cross, Jesus pray\u00aded: \u00abI pray not only for the\u00adse disci\u00adples, but also for all who will belie\u00adve in me through their word\u00bb (John 17:20 NLB<\/span>). Jesus prays not only for his fri\u00adends who are pre\u00adsent, but for all tho\u00adse who will put their trust in him in the future. \u00abI pray for them all, that they may be one, just as you and I are one, Father \u2013 that they may be one in us, just as you are in me and I am in you, and the world may belie\u00adve that you have sent me. I have given them the glo\u00adry that you have given me, so that they may be one as we are one \u2013 I in them and you in me, so that they may all be per\u00adfec\u00adted into unity. Then the world will know that you have sent me and will rea\u00adli\u00adse that you love them as you love me.\u00bb (John 17:21\u201323 NLB<\/span>).
\nIn his pray\u00ader, Jesus men\u00adti\u00adons two keys to sanc\u00adti\u00adfi\u00adca\u00adti\u00adon: Glo\u00adry and love. It is almost unbe\u00adlie\u00adva\u00adble, but true: God loves all fol\u00adlo\u00adwers of Jesus \u2013 in quan\u00adti\u00adty and qua\u00adli\u00adty \u2013 exact\u00adly to the ext\u00adent that He loved His only Son Jesus! When we belie\u00adve in Jesus Christ, God loves us not as we deser\u00adve, but as Jesus deserves.
\nMar\u00adtin Lloyd Jones once said: \u00abThe\u00adre are many pro\u00adblems and dif\u00adfi\u00adcul\u00adties in the Chris\u00adti\u00adan life. More and more it seems to me that most of them ari\u00adse from the simp\u00adle fact that we do not reco\u00adg\u00adni\u00adse, under\u00adstand and app\u00adre\u00adcia\u00adte what the real truth about us Chris\u00adti\u00adans is.\u00bb Or to put it ano\u00adther way: if we real\u00adly grasp the truths of the Bible in the depths of our hearts, our who\u00adle lives would be revo\u00adlu\u00adtio\u00adnis\u00aded. The fact that God\u2019s love for us is infi\u00adni\u00adte, eter\u00adnal, infal\u00adli\u00adble and unchan\u00adging is not just an abs\u00adtract truth, but can beco\u00adme a life-chan\u00adging force.
\nJohn Owen, Dean of First Church at Oxford Uni\u00adver\u00adsi\u00adty, was con\u00advin\u00adced that we can\u00adnot trans\u00adform our\u00adsel\u00adves through our own strength, through more inten\u00adsi\u00adve endea\u00advour, through trai\u00adning our will. No one beco\u00admes honest, gene\u00adrous, for\u00adgi\u00adving or cou\u00adra\u00adge\u00adous by tri\u00adal and error alo\u00adne. When\u00adever we do some\u00adthing becau\u00adse we have to, we reap a super\u00adfi\u00adci\u00adal chan\u00adge that does not last. If a doc\u00adtor exhorts a busy busi\u00adness\u00adman to work less for health reasons, it will bear litt\u00adle fruit. The man will remain a work\u00adaho\u00adlic until he loves some\u00adthing more than money, suc\u00adcess and power.
\nCer\u00adtain peo\u00adp\u00adle can hard\u00adly get over rejec\u00adtion or betra\u00ady\u00adal. Shame and anger come up again and again. As long as our repu\u00adta\u00adti\u00adon and human appr\u00adoval are the most important things to us, this will not chan\u00adge. It will only work if we start to love Jesus more. When we love Jesus more than money, we beco\u00adme gene\u00adrous. When we love Jesus more than power, we begin to ser\u00adve. When we love Jesus more than our repu\u00adta\u00adti\u00adon, we will be able to for\u00adgi\u00adve. In Isra\u00adel, the\u00adre has been a power strugg\u00adle bet\u00adween poli\u00adti\u00adci\u00adans Net\u00adan\u00adya\u00adhu and Gantz for years. Now, after the ter\u00adro\u00adrist attack, they came tog\u00ade\u00adther to stand united against the ene\u00admy. Some\u00adthing had to hap\u00adpen that was grea\u00adter than their dif\u00adfe\u00adren\u00adces in order to find unity.
\nWhen God\u2019s love real\u00adly tou\u00adch\u00ades us, we no lon\u00adger have to chan\u00adge or sanc\u00adti\u00adfy our\u00adsel\u00adves, but want it, we desi\u00adre it with all the fibres of our being. Then it will hap\u00adpen permanently.
\nBy looking
\nWith the second key word in his pray\u00ader, Jesus shows us how we can recei\u00adve this love: \u00abFather, I want tho\u00adse you have given me to be with me so that they can see my glo\u00adry [\u2026]\u00bb (John 17:24 NLB<\/span>).
\nGlo\u00adry comes from the Hebrew word kabod and encom\u00adpas\u00adses the fol\u00adlo\u00adwing ran\u00adge of mea\u00adnings: weight, strength, power, abili\u00adty, honour, fame, glo\u00adry, digni\u00adty, sple\u00adndour. Glo\u00adry is mani\u00adfes\u00adted holi\u00adne\u00adss, the radi\u00adance and fla\u00advour of holi\u00adne\u00adss. See\u00ading Jesus in his glo\u00adry instant\u00adly trans\u00adforms us into the per\u00adfect new crea\u00adti\u00adon: \u00abMy dear fri\u00adends, we are alre\u00ada\u00addy the child\u00adren of God now, and we can\u00adnot even ima\u00adgi\u00adne what we will be like when Christ returns. But we know that when he returns we will be like him, becau\u00adse we will see him as he real\u00adly is\u00bb (1 John 3:2 NLB<\/span>). Then it will be a full bath in God\u2019s glo\u00adry. But Jesus says that we can alre\u00ada\u00addy see his glo\u00adry in this life! \u00abI have given them the glo\u00adry you gave me [\u2026]\u00bb (John 17:22 NLB<\/span>). That\u2019s why John Owen says: \u00abThe ulti\u00adma\u00adte goal of being human is to see His glory.\u00bb
\nWe are sanc\u00adti\u00adfied when God\u2019s love rea\u00adches us by behol\u00adding His glo\u00adry. The glo\u00adry of God can\u00adnot be seen with our natu\u00adral eyes. The eyes of our heart must be ope\u00adned to see it. It is a spi\u00adri\u00adtu\u00adal pro\u00adcess in the power of the Holy Spi\u00adrit. That is why Jesus prays for it. Paul does the same. He prays that the church in Ephe\u00adsus will be able to grasp the breadth, length, height and depth of God\u2019s love (Ephe\u00adsi\u00adans 3:18). This is the basis for God\u2019s work in us: \u00abThrough the migh\u00adty power at work within us, God can do infi\u00adni\u00adte\u00adly more than we could ever ask or even hope\u00bb (Ephe\u00adsi\u00adans 3:20 NLB<\/span>).
\nEven mar\u00adke\u00adting capi\u00adta\u00adli\u00adses on the fact that we ulti\u00adm\u00adate\u00adly want what we see. Our sanc\u00adti\u00adfi\u00adca\u00adti\u00adon, the trans\u00adfor\u00adma\u00adti\u00adon into the exam\u00adp\u00adle of Jesus Christ, pro\u00adgres\u00adses when we behold God\u2019s glo\u00adry. \u00abThe veil has been lifted from all of us so that we can see the glo\u00adry of the Lord as in a mir\u00adror. And the Spi\u00adrit of the Lord works in us so that we beco\u00adme more and more like him and incre\u00adasing\u00adly reflect his glo\u00adry\u00bb (2 Corin\u00adthi\u00adans 3:18 NLB<\/span>).
\nA well-known New York pas\u00adtor told the sto\u00adry of C.H. Spur\u00adge\u00adon, who expe\u00adri\u00aden\u00adced God\u2019s love and glo\u00adry so inten\u00adse\u00adly that he some\u00adti\u00admes had to ask God to take back His glo\u00adry becau\u00adse he could no lon\u00adger stand it. And then the pas\u00adtor said: \u00abAnd if Spur\u00adge\u00adon could expe\u00adri\u00adence that as a Cal\u00advi\u00adnist, then we can all expe\u00adri\u00adence it.\u00bb Cal\u00advi\u00adnism is con\u00adside\u00adred to be very ratio\u00adnal and doctrinaire.
\nThe more we con\u00adtem\u00adp\u00adla\u00adte the glo\u00adry of God, the more we see the migh\u00adty love and the more we are chan\u00adged. Ger\u00adhard Tes\u00adtee\u00adgen said: \u00abTo pray is to look at the omni\u00adpre\u00adsent God and let him look at you.\u00bb Con\u00adtem\u00adpla\u00adting God is not a was\u00adte of time, but the secret of per\u00adso\u00adnal trans\u00adfor\u00adma\u00adti\u00adon into his image.
\nThe big ques\u00adti\u00adon is: do we take the time to look at the omni\u00adpre\u00adsent God? One hel\u00adpful offer is Pray23, which takes place next week in the lounge of the youth cent\u00adre. We need to prac\u00adti\u00adse being still for a lon\u00adger peri\u00adod of time and gazing at God\u2019s glory.
\nJesus\u00bb pray\u00ader in John 17 makes one thing clear: the access to the\u00adse pri\u00adce\u00adl\u00adess tre\u00adasu\u00adres of God\u2019s glo\u00adry and love is Jesus. The pro\u00admi\u00adse of see\u00ading His glo\u00adry, expe\u00adri\u00aden\u00adcing His love and being chan\u00adged into the image of Jesus is for tho\u00adse \u00abwho belie\u00adve in me\u00bb (John 17:20). Faith is not just belie\u00adving some\u00adthing is right, but put\u00adting the weight of your life on Jesus Christ. It is the best thing you can do!
\n
\nPos\u00adsi\u00adble ques\u00adti\u00adons for the small group
\nRead the Bible text: John 17:20\u201326<\/p>\n
\n\tWhat does it mean to be holy? How do we beco\u00adme it?
\n\tGod loves Jesus\u00bb fol\u00adlo\u00adwers in the same quan\u00adti\u00adty and qua\u00adli\u00adty as He loves Jesus. What does this mean?
\n\tBy behol\u00adding the glo\u00adry of God, we expe\u00adri\u00adence this love. What does it mean to see God\u2019s glo\u00adry? What does it take? What hap\u00adpens through it?
\n\tPray for each other for the power of the Holy Spi\u00adrit to expe\u00adri\u00adence the breadth, length, height and depth of God\u2019s love!<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"