Holiness 2 Yes! We are holy

Any and every believer is already holy by virtue of the fact that he's been SET APART by God for Himself. God has already called us OUT of the multitude: we are holy unto the Lord. Living the 'APART life' is a different thing and it is called holy living. It is not BEING HOLY: it is LIVING HOLY.

For THE TEMPLE OF GOD IS HOLY (sacred to Him) and THAT [TEMPLE] YOU [THE BELIEVING CHURCH AND ITS INDIVIDUAL BELIEVERS] ARE. (1 Corinthians 3:17 AMP)

You cannot accept that you are God's temple and disagree you are holy. God cannot have an UNHOLY TEMPLE. He is the one who SANCTIFIES His temple.

This brings us to some popular misconceptions about sanctification. To sanctify means to make holy: to "holify"something. Whatever process it takes to make a thing holy is sanctification and the state is called sanctity or holiness.
Now if every believer is HOLY, it means they ALL have undergone the sanctification process. Therefore there is no unsanctified believer.

Elect 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. (1 Peter 1:2 KJV)
So you cannot be "Elect" or chosen without sanctification. His choice of you made Him call you APART.

But we are bound to give thanks alway to God for you, brethren beloved of the Lord, because God hath from the beginning CHOSEN you to salvation through SANCTIFICATION of the Spirit and belief of the truth (2 Thessalonians 2:13 KJV)
And now, brethren, I commend you to God, and to the word of his grace, which is able to build you up, and to give you an inheritance among all THEM WHICH ARE SANCTIFIED. (Acts 20:32 KJV)

So the believers are generally called "them that are sanctified"

Can you see that sanctification is not when after salvation you pray and pray and try your best to sin no more? Sanctified is rather who you are!

1Co 6:11 And such were some of you: but ye are washed, BUT YE ARE SANCTIFIED, but ye are justified in the name of the Lord Jesus, and by the Spirit of our God.

Yes, there are believers who commit sin! But God does not change the name He calls you even when you don't seem to live up to the honour of that name. He kept calling Abraham father of many nations even when He had no child. He'll maintain that name until you finally realize it and you're transformed by the renewing of your mind. The earlier you accept His verdict, the earlier you live up to it. He believes in you: you are HOLY unto Him.

But of him are ye in Christ Jesus, who of God is made unto us wisdom, and righteousness, and sanctification, and redemption:
(1 Corinthians 1:30 KJV)

Finally, you are not your own. Your Owner says you are holy. "Shall the thing formed say to him that formed [it], Why hast thou made me thus?". This holiness is not your own. Glorify God for it and live worthy of it.

But God has given you a place in Christ Jesus, through whom God has given us wisdom and righteousness and salvation, and MADE US HOLY  (1 Corinthians 1:30 BBE)

But God has brought you into union with Christ Jesus, and God has made Christ to be our wisdom. By him we are put right with God; we become God's holy people and are set free. (1 Corinthians 1:30 GNB)

You are God's children. He sent Christ Jesus to save us and to make us wise, acceptable, and HOLY. (1 Corinthians 1:30 CEV)

DID GOD “HARDEN” THE HEART OF PHARAOH? II What Actually Happened

In the previous post, we expounded on how it isn't God that hardens men's heart; how He never did that to anyone in history and will never do!
And that Pharaoh's isn't an exceptional case!
Forgotten John 3:16?

For God so loved some of the world except pharaoh?
God so loved Israel nation alone?
God so loved THE WORLD that He gave His only begotten son that WHOSOEVER… (no exception) believes…

But did Pharaoh believed?
No!!
(In the midst of troubles, pharaoh knows how to run to Moses, but at any respite, the true state of his heart - unbelief, shows. And regrettably we have such people amongst us too. Hmm..)

So was God to be blamed for his perishing?
No!!

Many want to know why pharaoh and the Egyptians perished in the sea but no Israelite was lost. You think God is a racist? It's not because God was against anything called Egypt. God is God of ALL who loves ALL and rich to ALL that call
[Is he] the God of the Jews only? [is he] not also of the Gentiles? Yes, of the Gentiles also: Rom 3:29

If In the same Egypt today, we have Christians, and Jesus the same yesterday, today and forever, our unchanging God, then it must be that generation of Egyptians that's having problems.


Pharaoh and his army perished because of UNBELIEF.
Yes! Just Unbelief!
He never for once tremble to finally concede the Lordship of Jehovah and be saved. He constantly take the word of God by Moses for granted.

Hebrews 11 says
it all
It was FAITH that made the Israelites ABLE to cross the Red Sea as if on dry land; when the Egyptians tried to do it, the water swallowed them up. (Hebrews 11:29 GNB)

If any Israelite had not walked in that faith of the spoken word, such would also have perished because the destruction does not know the blood of an Israelite to be different from that of an Egyptian. The same was the case of the Passover destruction. "he that destroyeth the firstborn" cannot taste one blood and discover it tastes different from another. He destroyed all that did not BY FAITH keep the Passover (Hebrews 11:28)


In all of God's dealings with men, there had been only one problem, and it is hardening of heart. God cannot help this. So bad that Proverbs says

He, that being often reproved HARDENETH [his] neck, shall suddenly be destroyed, and that without remedy. Pro 29:1

Was pharaoh ever reproved? Yes! In fact,"OFTEN REPROVED".

So he says
Wherefore (as the Holy Ghost saith, To day if ye will hear his voice, HARDEN not your hearts, as in the provocation, in the day of temptation in the wilderness (Hebrews 3:7-8 KJV)

James explains what happened to Pharaoh this way
Let no man say when he is tempted, I am tempted of God: for God cannot be tempted with evil, neither tempteth he any man (James 1:13 KJV)
Let no man say when he is hardened "I am hardened of God" for God cannot be hardened to destruction neither hardeneth he any man

And he goes further to say
But every man is tempted, when he is drawn away of HIS OWN LUST, and enticed. (James 1:14 KJV)

That is, it's one's LUST that brings about what leads him to sin… did pharaoh ever lusted?

Yes!!

After he had allowed the Israelites to go, a thought came to him, he imagined what great wealth he will realize by attacking them, and knowing the Israelites never prepared for any such attack, they will be helpless: it will be an easy ride. He COVETED their riches. His mind was on the spoil. How do I know?

Moses said it!

The enemy said, I will pursue, I will overtake, I will divide THE SPOIL; MY LUST shall be satisfied upon them; I will draw my sword, my hand shall destroy them. (Exodus 15:9 KJV)

The Hebrew word used for "destroy" in that verse is a word that means to "occupy by driving out previous tenants", to "repossess" to "seize", to "rob", to "impoverish". It was all about his LUST for their wealth. Remember, "every man is tempted, when he is drawn away of his own LUST, and enticed."
Seest thou a man too greedy of gains, destruction awaits him.

"Then when lust hath conceived, it bringeth forth sin: and sin, when it is finished, bringeth forth death." (James 1:15 KJV)

He was hardened by his lust, the deceitfulness of sin. Oh sin is deceitful! (Pro 28:26; Isa 44:20; Oba 1:3; Rom 7:11; Eph 4:22; Jam 1:14). It appears catchy and safe, but don't ever go for it! It is deceit. You tell a man to receive Jesus, but he being deceived by his riches, wealth, accomplishments, social and academic status, feels there is no need for that. God never authors evil and let no man say when he sees evil, "the Lord has done this"

Holiness 1

Holiness does not necessarily mean doing good works (it produces good works though).

To be holy simply means to be "set APART", to be DIFFERENT, from others. To be sanctified simply means to be made holy, that is, set apart.

Whoever sets apart is the determinant of holiness. May be God, may be man.

Holiness is not primarily about the object, but ALL ABOUT the subject. How the holy object looks, does or conducts is NOT what determines whether it is holy or not. It's ALL ABOUT what the subject says. However if a thing is holy, it can affect conduct.

That's why the opposite of "holy" in the Bible is "common".

Eze 22:26 Her priests have violated my Law and profaned my sacred things. They didn't differentiate between what's sacred and what's common. They didn't instruct others to discern clean from unclean things. They refused to keep my Sabbaths. "'I'm constantly being profaned among them.

The first mention of the word "holy" in the Bible is in Exodus.

*[[Exo 3:5]] KJV* And he said, Draw not nigh hither: put off thy shoes from off thy feet, for the place whereon thou standest is HOLY GROUND.

What makes the ground holy? Is it that ground is always doing good works? In fact, the mountain must have previously been stained by footprints and dungs of animals in the jungle. So how did the ground suddenly become holy?
Because God is now on it, and He has set it apart FOR HIMSELF.

You get the idea?

We pick a book believed to contain the word of God, we set it apart. It becomes HOLY BIBLE.

Some other people set theirs apart too and call it HOLY QURAN.

Does it mean that the Quran is good? Does it mean it doesn't contain blasphemous words? Does it mean Quran or Bible is rapturable? It is holy because we set it apart.

Similarly, a man becomes HOLY the day God by His Spirit steps in into Him to dwell. He is set apart by God. Therefore God tells him to remove stains because he is ALREADY holy, (and NOT IN ORDER TO BE HOLY).

*[[Act 10:15]] ISV* Again the voice came to him a second time, "You must stop calling unclean what God has made clean."

Hopelessly Saved!

*[[Joh 4:13-14]] KJV* Jesus answered and said unto her, Whosoever drinketh of this water shall thirst again: 14 But whosoever drinketh of the water that I shall give him shall NEVER THIRST; but the water that I shall give him shall be in him a well of water springing up into everlasting life.

Some say this water is symbolic for the "spirit within", some say it's salvation. Both are good by me anyway.

But did Jesus say the drinker shall Never thirst again?
wow!
means "shall never run out of supply"
wow!

And this water is salvation...

hmm...

And the drinker can never run out of supply...

meaning my salvation cannot fade off...

or let's say the water means "Spirit within",
the Spirit within can never leave me
wow

or what do you think that water represent?
the word of God?
then it means the word of God will always abide in me and NEVER leave. What assurance of salvation is more than that?

Or what does it mean?
At least I know it cannot be something negative. And it must be something that woman lacked at that time the word was told her. Also it cannot be good husband, happy home, good job, prosperity or other physical things because this talk is spiritual.

no matter how you interpret it, you'll keep getting more assured.

but the water that I shall give him shall be in him a well of water springing up into everlasting life.

And know this, you have drunk that water!

When?
*[[1Co 12:13]] KJV* For by one Spirit are we all baptized into one body, whether we be Jews or Gentiles, whether we be bond or free; and have been all MADE TO DRINK into one Spirit.

You drank this thing!
or rather you were made to drink...

And now your belly is full...

And you cannot vomit it.
Your belly must be swelling everyday because it springs up unto everlasting life always.

Just like they do in cults, they make their members swallow some things or drink, and they are told that they have sworn an oath with the devil and no turning back: all deceit albeit. Ours is sure and true. God can deliver you from them, but who can deliver you from God's oath. once saved by Jesus, it's an eternal mistake. You're immediately sealed (Eph 1:13) so you can be irretrievably lost in Christ. You're joined, married or rather, ALLOYED to the Lord (1Cor 6:17), and the Lord will never divorce. In God's law it's the man that divorces, not the woman. He's the man, you're the woman. Jesus has bought your soul, spirit and body. The earlier you resort to your fate, the better for you. Start planning to put on the new man now. Start learning to walk in the Spirit: praying hours in tongues, learning to preach Bible and not only to read, getting ready for persecutions etc because you're SURE going to land in heaven before Him. Lest when He's rewarding others, you're just watching and regretting by then. Your destiny is sealed already since you cannot vomit the water of life you already were made to drink. Yes like Paul does say, you too are now a prisoner for Christ: crucified with him bearing His mark on your body. Oh!
You're gone forever! Hell finally lost you. Say bye to the world quickly. The Lord wants to use you. Think more about your new home because you're now married undivorceably. HOPELESSLY SAVED!

DID GOD “HARDEN” THE HEART OF PHARAOH?

Like I do say to people, you cannot know God by studying any book whatsoever: whether bible or whatever. God is not in books: God is in Jesus. This explains why you may go to bible schools and never really know Jesus. I did not say studying bible or theology is bad, but unfortunately God is a spirit and spiritual things are spiritually discerned.

All things have been entrusted and delivered to Me by My Father; and no one fully knows and accurately understands the Son except the Father, and no one fully KNOWS AND ACCURATELY UNDERSTANDS THE FATHER EXCEPT THE SON and anyone to whom the Son deliberately wills to make Him known.  (Matthew 11:27)

This means one cannot know the Father (God) except he has met with the knowledge of the son (Jesus).

John 14:7-9  If ye had known me, ye should have known my Father also: and from henceforth ye know him, and have seen him.  (8)  Philip saith unto him, Lord, shew us the Father, and it sufficeth us.  (9)  Jesus saith unto him, Have I been so long time with you, and yet hast thou not known me, Philip? he that hath seen me hath seen the Father; and how sayest thou [then], Shew us the Father?

Putting together the words:
Statement 1: Nobody knows God but Jesus.
So, you don't know God!
Statement 2: if you can know Jesus, you need not itch to know the God anymore because "he that hath seen me hath seen the Father".

The two statements put together means therefore that, no knowledge of God as claimed by us until we met Jesus is true. "no man knows the Father". Note: NO MAN! NO MAN!

So if the disciples had been claiming they know God before they met Jesus; maybe some of them have been scribes and Pharisees with big bibles preaching and teaching the people in the cathedrals about God from the Holy Scriptures; they should be shocked to hear this from Jesus that "no man knows the Father except the Son". Then it means what they actually have known is inaccurate, untrue.

Philip really wished he just met God one on one like many of us have desired too today. "introduce us to God! One of these nights call us together and tell the Father to come down and let 's just see His face". But Jesus quenched that holy thirst, because in Christ Jesus the thirst for God is quenched (John 4:14, 6:35). "he that hath seen me hath seen the Father". That is, there is no knowledge of the Father outside Jesus. Be complacent when you meet Jesus: He is full representation of the Father. Be satisfied with His revelation of the Father.

No man has ever seen God at any time; the only unique Son, or the only begotten God, Who is in the bosom [in the intimate presence] of the Father, He has declared Him [He has revealed Him and brought Him out where He can be seen; He has interpreted Him and He has made Him known]. (John 1:18 AMP)
No one has ever seen God. The only Son, who is truly God and is closest to the Father, has shown us what God is like. (John 1:18)
His Son is the reflection of God's glory and THE EXACT LIKENESS OF GOD'S BEING (Hebrews 1:3 GW)
God's Son has all the brightness of God's own glory and is LIKE HIM IN EVERY WAY. (Hebrews 1:3 CEV)
He is THE SOLE EXPRESSION OF THE GLORY OF GOD [the Light-being, the out-raying or radiance of the divine], and He is the perfect imprint and very image of [God's] nature (Hebrews 1:3 AMP)

Ever since I discovered this, I seek no other revelation of God outside Him, not from a prophet, not from a Moses, not from a David, and (sorry to say) not even from a Paul but by looking at Jesus. Only Jesus reveals the Father. His character and that of God are the same. He is not gentler than the Father. He is not slower to anger than the Father. He that hath seen him hath seen the Father.

If in the past, because you have not met with a person, you have had many descriptions, read many books, watched many fictitious movies, hear many reports about the person; now when you have the exact copy, do you still go back to the many books of description of the person? Jesus is the exact likeness of the Father; a sufficing knowledge of God.

Now this clears the ground about which to believe when two scriptural portions seem contradictory (though no contradictions in scriptures but interpretations differ and authors'  revelations excel another). All that existed before Jesus, Jesus claimed "no man hath seen the Father", therefore except you will not believe Jesus' word is true, none of those men ever saw God. Whatever they had must be visions, dreams, voices etc of God which is nothing compared to the "exact likeness of the Father".

Moses truly wrote:
And I (GOD), behold, I will harden the hearts of the Egyptians, and they shall follow them: and I will get me honour upon Pharaoh, and upon all his host, upon his chariots, and upon his horsemen. Exo 14:17 

As though, God had wicked plans, as though God's heart can devise mischief, as though God killed Pharaoh innocently. But we know that the thoughts of God are thoughts of peace and NEVER evil (Jer 29:11). He will NEVER be a part to that.

These six [things] doth the LORD HATE: yea, seven [are] an ABOMINATION unto him: A proud look, a lying tongue, and hands that shed innocent blood, An HEART THAT DEVISETH WICKED IMAGINATIONS, feet that be swift in running to mischief… (Proverbs 6:16-18 KJV)

The Lord hates these things, so how will He ever try them?

If Jesus is the "exact likeness of the Father" and Jesus and the Father are one, if Jesus does as He see His Father doing and Jesus never hardens and will never harden, then it means the Father will never do so.
Joh 5:19 The Son can do nothing of himself, but what he seeth the Father do: for what things soever he doeth, these also doeth the Son likewise.

Still doubting this? Why did Moses wrote so?
Ok, have you heard these words from Jesus before?
You have heard in the law [of moses] that so and so… but I [Jesus] say… (see Matthew 5)

Or words like,
Moses wrote that because so and so… but in the beginning it was not so…?

Hmm… I'm not teaching to cast doubts on any portion of the bible because ALL SCRIPTURES is given by the inspiration of God not the devil (2Tim 3:16-17), so believe the scriptures; but you must UNDERSTAND that none of the holy men of God ever saw God and so could only write by prophecy. Now we understand that the Giver of prophecy to be perfect, the gift perfect, but the medium imperfect, the language imperfect, the translation and other human factors which are always imperfect may have distorted the message from its original intent. But thank God we have the Lord himself now;\: Jesus who is not to speak as "thus saith the Lord" but himself the Lord; not as a messenger altering message but the message himself: the Word of God pure, clear and direct.

Lastly let me show you this, that the authors of a book may sometimes make errors in presenting a single account/incidence
2Sam 24:1 And again the anger of the LORD was kindled against Israel, and he moved David against them to say, Go, number Israel and Judah.

The above verse says, it was God who moved David to sin; and the same God was angry that David sinned. Hmm… Does that conform to what we see in Jesus?

Now the same account but different author
And Satan stood up against Israel, and provoked David to number Israel.  (1 Chronicles 21:1 KJV)
The author of chronicles helped us to see that truly, it was Satan who did this and not God. Established!

You must be blushing by now. Wow!

Similarly, see the story Moses wrote that it was God that hardened the heart of pharaoh by another account, in this same bible

Wherefore then do ye harden your hearts, AS THE EGYPTIANS AND PHARAOH HARDENED THEIR HEARTS? when he had wrought wonderfully among them, did they not let the people go, and they departed? (1 Samuel 6:6 KJV)

Got that?
Even the philistines knew that all God did was that He "wrought wonderfully among them" in healing them many of the times of the plagues brought by "he that destroyeth" but they obstinately hardened their hearts.

God doesn't harden men's heart. Men do by themselves because of one thing: it's called the "deceitfulness of sin".
"But exhort one another daily, while it is called To day; lest any of you be HARDENED through the DECEITFULNESS OF SIN. (Hebrews 3:13 KJV)

The Validity of Romans 9:11-15

(For the children being not yet born, neither having done any good or evil, that the purpose of God according to election might stand, not of works, but of him that calleth;)
12 It was said unto her, The elder shall serve the younger.
13 As it is written, Jacob have I loved, but Esau have I hated.
14 What shall we say then? Is there unrighteousness with God? God forbid.
15 For he saith to Moses, I will have mercy on whom I will have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I will have compassion.
[Rom 9:11-15]

If the above scripture is anything to go by,...

1. God does not need you to do good or evil (neither having done good or evil), to pass His verdict of righteousness (or otherwise) on you. Think on this. #Unbeatable

2. The purpose of God according to election is always independent of works
"...not of works, but of him that calleth"

3. God does not in later times need works to justify a man. Once He has started to justify without works, so will He continue. If He started to be kind without works, He'll so continue. Because we see in the life of the Jacob He loved, that He remain loved unto the end even though Jacob's life was a questionable one. However, this tenacious love of God changed this man at last. Who shall separate us from the love of Christ?...

4. "What shall we say then? Is there unrighteousness...", God is not after what you or other people will say, He's after how to work out His own counsel.

That is, controversially or uncontroversially, whom God has loved, He has loved! (the gifts and calling of God are without repentance)

5. " ...unrighteousness with God?" Do you call that unrighteousness? No! it's not unrighteousness.

It's sovereignty.

Or say, VETO POWER

Peradventure you become God tomorrow, you can try to change that.
"I will have mercy on whom I will have mercy..."

So, are you ready to be on the favoured side of God? or you want to serve as Esau, labouring in the heat of the day and yet missing the blessing?
God's favour is His righteousness with which he seals ALL THAT BELIEVE.

Rom 3:22 Even the righteousness of God which is by faith of Jesus Christ unto all and upon all them that believe: for there is no difference:

BBE But to him who without working has faith in him who gives righteousness to the evil-doer, his faith is put to his account as righteousness. (Rom 4:5)

Believe in Jesus and enjoy His FREE righteousness.

The Law is not evil

Several times Paul in his teaching of we not being under the law, have often have to correct any emerging notion of the law being evil.

Please follow this Bible event story carefully

[[1Co 5:1]] It is reported commonly that there is fornication among you, and such fornication as is not so much as named among the Gentiles, that one should have his father's wife.

What did you read there? Amongst these church members, there are people who are involved in the practice of sleeping with their own very step mother. Ha! How do you see that act? Worst grade of fornication, you might say. Hmm..

[[1Co 5:2]] And ye are puffed up, and have not rather mourned, that he that hath done this deed might be taken away from among you.

They, instead of frowning seriously at the act, were "puffed up" - proud. They were not humbled, neither were they ashamed. Maybe they never really see anything that bad in it. Christians! Church that has pastors, elders, and every setting.
Hmm...

The entire church lived and enjoyed the company of this brother. He worships with them, and there was no shame or perhaps, guilty conscience.

Hmm...
In fact, they were boastful because verse 6 says,
"Your glorying is not good"

Could this be ignorance? Could it be that they do not know this is in fact horrible? May be.

Note that, nowhere in the new testament is this "clearly spelt out" as a sin. Not even Jesus' "Gospels". Oh! They don't even have these epistles or Gospels books anyway. Where in the Bible will you find sleeping with one's step mother as a sin? Not even the simple "ten commandments"

Lev 18:8 The nakedness of thy father's wife shalt thou not uncover: it is thy father's nakedness.

Lev 20:11 And the man that lieth with his father's wife hath uncovered his father's nakedness: both of them shall surely be put to death; their blood shall be upon them.

Deu 22:30 A man shall not take his father's wife, nor discover his father's skirt.

Deu 27:20 Cursed be he that lieth with his father's wife; because he uncovereth his father's skirt. And all the people shall say, Amen.

So Paul got to know this as sinful because the scriptures (not just widespread societal condemnation) say it is, and this statement came from the law. Yet it's still true we are not under the law.

So, is the law useless? Is it a waste really?

See this again.

[[1Co 9:9-10]]
For it is written in the law of Moses, Thou shalt not muzzle the mouth of the ox that treadeth out the corn. Doth God take care for oxen?
Or saith he it altogether for our sakes? For our sakes, no doubt, this is written: that he that ploweth should plow in hope; and that he that thresheth in hope should be partaker of his hope.

He quotes from the law of Moses and instructs the church with it. He admonishes us to keep that instruction in the law. This is only one of several examples where the law is referred to and an admonition is extracted. For your information, every instruction we have in the epistles have the law of Moses as source.

The law may have made sin to "abound" to death; it may have caused so great blindness and religion: yet it can be to our benefit today if we use/apply it "lawfully".

But we know that the law is good, if a man use it lawfully (1 Tim 1:8)

The earlier verse says, "For our sakes, no doubt, this [law] is written"

Rom 7:12 Wherefore the law is holy... and just, and GOOD

Rom 7:16 ...I consent unto the law that IT IS GOOD

So we ought to thank God for the holy law. It is by it we know this is right or this is wrong, even though it cannot make anyone do the right it presents. By it we can admonish the brethren. By it, we can know what's MORALLY acceptable and what's not. By rightly dividing, we can show ourselves approved unto God. By it we can show any erring brother or sister proofs. This is part of the 'all scripture' that is profitable for doctrine, reproof, correction and instruction in righteousness (1 Tim 3:16-17). We should not resort to senses or experience or personal opinions or cultural perceptions to discern right or wrong, scriptures (Genesis to Malachi) guided the Bible time Church. Paul used it. Peter used it. Jesus used it. The law is not evil. The law is not error, it's people's interpretation that may be erring. Today we behold Christs life out of the law. The law is good, However, it must be used "lawfully".