https://www.bible.com/events/49249500

Church of the Nazarene – East Rock

Holiness as Wholeness, Part 4

Holiness is living the abundant life.

Holiness as Wholeness

The idea behind this teaching series is that Holiness, rather than being a heavy burden of impossibility placed on believers, is a healing and freeing effect of Christ’s sacrifice. Holiness is good for us; it restores to us the design of God for our lives. The enemy wants us to believe it is a chain placed upon us, so we dread its requirements so that we’ll turn our back on it or roll our eyes at it. But, in essence, holiness brings all that we really want into our lives. It makes us whole with all of the attendant beauty of that idea. Holiness is not a requirement as much as it is a remedy. The Nazarene understanding of Christian Holiness or Entire Sanctification is freeing, not binding. Through this sermon series then, we want to see Holiness as Wholeness.

In John 10:10 Jesus says: “10 The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full.”

For Jesus, the good life is abundant, life to the full. And notably, it’s not something we acquire, it’s not something we can work for, it’s the life we receive from Him.

If Jesus brings us good and abundant life, why doesn’t my life with him seem more, abundant? Why doesn’t life seem more, I don’t know, “good”?

So often our experience is one of frustration, guilt, or shame because we can’t seem to pull it together, a seemingly unending cycle of failure and forgiveness, never seeing the victory in our lives. Rather than full of life, it’s just full of frustration.

I would propose to you today that the abundant life Jesus came to bring, only comes on the other side of our full surrender to him. The truth is, “abundance” in Christ is not about gathering it all in, but giving it all up.

There is great abundance in… SURRENDER.

John 10:9-10

I am the gate; whoever enters through me will be saved. They will come in and go out, and find pasture. The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full.

Those who enter life with Christ are first of all, saved.

Safe from the enemy. They are rescued and redeemed. They have freedom- to come and go- to live life. Jesus here isn’t promising material prosperity.

iii.He is saying that “in life with me, I will see to all your needs”. Perhaps not your wants, but you will know my hand in having what you need.

It’s a life full of freedom, marked by his presence, no matter what comes our way.

This is the good life that Christ offers.

Notice the contrast- with the enemy/the thief

“The thief only comes to steal, to kill, and destroy.”

The immediate context of this passage, the thief is likely pointing back to those false messengers and leaders that Jesus referred to in verse 8- but it does not fail to include the enemy of or souls- the devil himself.

He comes offering some sort of distorted life, but his motives are not pure.

1.He is greedy, selfish, and self-serving.

2.The thief, always takes and never gives.

3.The thief is full of lies and deceit. he confuses us about what a “good life” even is.

4. And he ultimately destroys.

The thief came to destroy, Christ has come that we might have life, and that to the full.

The life that he came to give is abundant, full, offering contentment.

The word for to the full or abundantly, it means a super-abundance, overflowing with more than what is needed or expected. It’s not merely filling the jar to the top; it’s filling it to overflowing. That’s the picture of the life that Christ came to give.

We have forgiveness of sins, freedom from shame and guilt. We have belonging in the family of God; we have a calling to take part in his kingdom work. His life is healing, restoring, and transforming- and most of all, it’s in an abundance.

“I have come that they may have life, and that to the full.”

here’s the truth for us today- the fullness of the life Christ came to give cannot be realized in our lives as long as we are in control.

Holiness is giving God full control of our lives. That’s how we can know the good life.

As long as we are still calling the shots, telling the Lord what we will and will not do or agree with- we are living our lives, with Jesus as an add-on. And that can never be a truly good life…

The abundant and holy life comes when we surrender our lives completely to God and begin living HIS life. On this journey, there are many critical moments, decision points along the way of sanctification. But there is coming a crisis moment in your life where you will have to decide. Am I going to give God control of my life- or am I going to keep control myself?

The abundant and holy life that Christ came to offer cannot be found by avoiding that crisis- we must go through it. That’s holiness friends. That’s what experiencing life to the fullest is all about.

The decision to say YES to Christ will change the trajectory of your life forever. You will experience an abundance in life like never before.

Remember, “abundance” in Christ is not about gathering it all in, but giving it all up. There is great abundance in… SURRENDER.

Holiness and the Church of the Nazarene

Former Nazarene General Superintendent Dr. J.K. Warrick discusses the distinctiveness of the Nazarene Church with a focus on Holiness.

Updates on the new Waynesboro campus

God is inviting us to step out in faith to plant a Spanish-speaking campus in the Waynesboro community. Join us on the journey! Check out the link below for more information and for frequent updates throughout the journey.

Waynesboro

Giving at COTN

If you ever have questions or need help with online giving, please let us know: finance@cotnaz.org Thank you for your partnership in building the Kingdom of Christ as you impact others!

Giving

Establish COTN as Your Church on the App

In this YouVersion Bible app, we encourage you to set up COTN as your church. It’s a simple process and will open up opportunities to stay connected to us!

https://help.youversion.com/l/en/article/y03uerubo8-mychurch

http://bible.com/events/49247921

Church of the Nazarene – Harrisonburg

Holiness as Wholeness, Part 2/3

Holiness as Wholeness

The idea behind this new teaching series is that Holiness, rather than being a heavy burden of impossibility placed on believers, is a healing and freeing effect of Christ’s sacrifice. Holiness is good for us; it restores to us the design of God for our lives. The enemy wants us to believe it is a chain placed upon us, so we dread its requirements so that we’ll turn our back on it or roll our eyes at it. But, in essence, holiness brings all that we really want into our lives. It makes us whole with all of the attendant beauty of that idea. Holiness is not a requirement as much as it is a remedy. The Nazarene understanding of Christian Holiness or Entire Sanctification is freeing, not binding. Through this sermon series then, we want to see Holiness as Wholeness.

Holiness as wholeness means that the sanctifying work of God in the pursuit of holiness in our lives doesn’t just allow us to be in relationship with God, but cleanses, refreshes and heals our body and our mind…

The path of holiness is one that compels us to be in unity.

Genesis 1:26-28

Then God said, “Let us make human beings in our image, to be like us. They will reign over the fish in the sea, the birds in the sky, the livestock, all the wild animals on the earth, and the small animals that scurry along the ground.” So God created human beings in his own image. In the image of God he created them; male and female he created them. Then God blessed them and said, “Be fruitful and multiply. Fill the earth and govern it. Reign over the fish in the sea, the birds in the sky, and all the animals that scurry along the ground.”

To be fully human is to be in holy relationship with God, others, oneself, and all of creation.

Original Sin: We believe that original sin… is that corruption of the nature of all the offspring of Adam by reason of which everyone is very far gone from original righteousness or the pure state of our first parents at the time of their creation, is averse to God, is without spiritual life, and inclined to evil, and that continually…

Personal Sin: We believe that… personal sin is a voluntary violation of a known law of God by a morally responsible person… we believe that personal sin is primarily and essentially a violation of the law of love…

– Church of the Nazarene, Articles of Faith

Sin always results in death.

Romans 3:23-24

for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and all are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus.

Sin can be attractive, but it is always destructive. Sin will take your further than you were ever meant to go, and further than you may ever intend to go! It’s too great of a burden for us to hold.

Genesis 4:6-9

Then the Lord said to Cain, “Why are you angry? Why is your face downcast? If you do what is right, will you not be accepted? But if you do not do what is right, sin is crouching at your door; it desires to have you, but you must rule over it.” Now Cain said to his brother Abel, “Let’s go out to the field.” While they were in the field, Cain attacked his brother Abel and killed him. Then the Lord said to Cain, “Where is your brother Abel?” “I don’t know,” he replied. “Am I my brother’s keeper?”

Sin leads to death, but holiness leads to life.

Romans 6:19-23

Because of the weakness of your human nature, I am using the illustration of slavery to help you understand all this. Previously, you let yourselves be slaves to impurity and lawlessness, which led ever deeper into sin. Now you must give yourselves to be slaves to righteous living so that you will become holy. When you were slaves to sin, you were free from the obligation to do right. And what was the result? You are now ashamed of the things you used to do, things that end in eternal doom. But now you are free from the power of sin and have become slaves of God. Now you do those things that lead to holiness and result in eternal life. For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life through Christ Jesus our Lord.

Sanctification is God’s response to sin.

Updates on the new Waynesboro campus

God is inviting us to step out in faith to plant a Spanish-speaking campus in the Waynesboro community. Join us on the journey! Check out the link below for more information and for frequent updates throughout the journey.

Waynesboro

Giving at COTN

If you ever have questions or need help with online giving, please let us know: finance@cotnaz.org Thank you for your partnership in building the Kingdom of Christ as you impact others!

Giving

Establish COTN as Your Church on the App

In this YouVersion Bible app, we encourage you to set up COTN as your church. It’s a simple process and will open up opportunities to stay connected to us!

https://help.youversion.com/l/en/article/y03uerubo8-mychurch

Church of the Nazarene – East Rock

https://www.bible.com/events/49245979

Holiness as Wholeness, Part 3

Holiness as Wholeness

The idea behind this teaching series is that Holiness, rather than being a heavy burden of impossibility placed on believers, is a healing and freeing effect of Christ’s sacrifice. Holiness is good for us; it restores to us the design of God for our lives. The enemy wants us to believe it is a chain placed upon us, so we dread its requirements so that we’ll turn our back on it or roll our eyes at it. But, in essence, holiness brings all that we really want into our lives. It makes us whole with all of the attendant beauty of that idea. Holiness is not a requirement as much as it is a remedy. The Nazarene understanding of Christian Holiness or Entire Sanctification is freeing, not binding. Through this sermon series then, we want to see Holiness as Wholeness.

Often we can struggle to see what the big deal is about a little sin.

“It’s fine, God isn’t THAT concerned about it.”

We imagine that we have control over it, that we can call the shots, quit when we want, that it’s not a big deal. But that’s not what the bible says about sin.

Jesus said “I tell you the truth, everyone who commits sin, is a slave to sin.”

Paul says in Romans 6 “The wages of Sin is Death”…

On our own we tend to have a very different and often less severe of an outlook about sin than what the bible gives.

As we continue with part 3 of our series, we will seek to understand the serious and destructive nature of sin in our lives. Without a proper understanding of sin, it is easy to miss the urgency of seeking holiness.

The great lie of sin is that it is harmless, or even that the pleasure it can sometimes bring will actually help us. Whether we would say it or not, when we choose sin, we are saying that we know better than God.

Romans 6:19

I am using an example from everyday life because of your human limitations. Just as you used to offer yourselves as slaves to impurity and to ever-increasing wickedness, so now offer yourselves as slaves to righteousness leading to holiness.

Paul is referencing back to a metaphor he began in verse 16 of being a slave.

For the Apostle Paul, we only have two choices. We are either offering ourselves to God leading to righteousness or we are offering ourselves as slaves to sin leading to death.

There is no spiritually neutral position. Every single person you meet, including yourself, is serving one of these two- Either God or sin- there is no option C.

Notice that Paul says you USED to offer yourselves as slaves to impurity. Paul is presenting a picture of the Pre-Christ life, and in so doing, he gives us the real true nature of sin.

He says “You offered yourself”

Sin was and is a choice.

It’s a conscious decision. It doesn’t just happen; we don’t just end up there. We choose it, we go along with it.

“You offered yourself as slaves”

Sin has an imprisoning, enslaving power over us.

So often we think sin will bring us freedom and autonomy, but it really brings enslavement and bondage. The exact opposite of what it promises.

“Slaves to impurity and to ever-increasing wickedness”

The idea of “ever-increasing wickedness” describes the insidious, cumulative impact of sin, like a cancer growing within on its way to total destruction.

The old saying “Sin will take you farther than you want to go, keep you longer than you want to stay and cost you more than you want to pay.” It’s true, because sin is never static. It’s never neutral. It’s always growing, always grasping for more, always binding and blinding us to its real nature.

“So now offer yourselves as slaves to righteousness leading to holiness”

Christ has come and broken the power of sin, he has given us freedom, and as Christians we are to respond. Just as we used to sign up for sin, we need to sign on to righteousness, to saying yes to Christ.

Rather than leading to death, choosing to offer ourselves as slaves to God leads to holiness

Romans 6:20-21

When you were slaves to sin, you were free from the control of righteousness. What benefit did you reap at that time from the things you are now ashamed of? Those things result in death!

As you think about your life before Christ, what benefits did you reap from it? How did that go for you? Paul is inviting us to remember…

Paul has gone to great lengths illustrating the destructive enslaving power of sin that used to dominate our old life.

He has pointed to Christ and the forgiveness and life we can have in him.

He has brought up old memories for us of sin form our old life. We literally have experienced everything he’s talking about.

But all of that teaching, all of that personal experience, and yet, so often we will underestimate the seriousness of sin in our lives, we invite it back into our lives. We still undersell it, minimize it, ignore it, we dabble with it, we put off dealing with it until later.

Rather than choosing to pursue holiness with as much fervor as we used to pursue sin, we pursue Christ and holiness up to the point that it gets inconvenient, or it gets hard

And friends, we will never, ever find the true wholeness and healing pursing God half-heartedly. We will never know holiness as wholeness, without taking sin seriously.

Romans 6:22-23

But now that you have been set free from sin and have become slaves of God, the benefit you reap leads to holiness, and the result is eternal life. For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.

In Christ, we have been set free from not only the penalty of sin, but it’s power is broken as well. Sure, Christians experience temptation, Christians can still sin, but in Christ we are free not to. That’s the invitation of Holiness.

To make the conscious decision to see him as Lord of your life, to be his slave. To give up your right to yourself, to give up your ways of thinking, and completely surrender to him. Yes, our outward practices, but also our inner most self.

The invitation to take sin seriously, to be holy, is to pray beyond the external actions that plague our lives. It’s to ask the Lord to deal with us at a heart level. To give us freedom and power in the innermost parts of who we are.

And this victory, this cleansing, this power over sin in our lives is available in Christ Jesus.

You don’t have to be a prisoner of sin any longer. There is freedom to be found in Christ.

Holiness and the Church of the Nazarene

Former Nazarene General Superintendent Dr. J.K. Warrick discusses the distinctiveness of the Nazarene Church with a focus on Holiness.

Updates on the new Waynesboro campus

God is inviting us to step out in faith to plant a Spanish-speaking campus in the Waynesboro community. Join us on the journey! Check out the link below for more information and for frequent updates throughout the journey.

Waynesboro

Giving at COTN

If you ever have questions or need help with online giving, please let us know: finance@cotnaz.org Thank you for your partnership in building the Kingdom of Christ as you impact others!

Giving

Establish COTN as Your Church on the App

In this YouVersion Bible app, we encourage you to set up COTN as your church. It’s a simple process and will open up opportunities to stay connected to us!

https://help.youversion.com/l/en/article/y03uerubo8-mychurch

http://bible.com/events/49241752

The Call

Who are we called to be?

As the church, as those who claim to love Jesus, to follow Him, to trust Him…who are we called to be?

To those that we like and those that we don’t?

Those who look like us, speak the same language, and those who don’t?

To our neighbors and those on the other side of town, to those on the other side of the world?

The picture this morning begins with two individuals who knew Jesus very well, in fact, Jesus chose them each specifically.

Of all the people who Jesus would have invited to be his disciples, he chose these two. And yet their inclusion and participation in the kingdom of God speaks volumes to us today.

Matthew 10:1-4

Jesus called his twelve disciples to him and gave them authority to drive out impure spirits and to heal every disease and sickness. These are the names of the twelve apostles: first, Simon (who is called Peter) and his brother Andrew; James son of Zebedee, and his brother John; Philip and Bartholomew; Thomas and Matthew the tax collector; James son of Alphaeus, and Thaddaeus; Simon the Zealot and Judas Iscariot, who betrayed him.

Zealots were an aggressive political party who had such a deep concern for the Jewish people that they would despise anyone who sought peace with Rome or tolerated them in any way.

They fiercely opposed anything and anyone that diminished their culture, religion or their desire for self-government.

Among the zealots there were those extremists who turned to terrorism and assassination. This group became known as the Sicarii or ‘the dagger men’. They were known for their hidden daggers ready to strike down anyone friendly to Rome.

And yet Jesus chooses one of them? A zealot?

Jesus Calls Simon

Matthew 9:9-13

As Jesus went on from there, he saw a man named Matthew sitting at the tax collector’s booth. “Follow me,” he told him, and Matthew got up and followed him. While Jesus was having dinner at Matthew’s house, many tax collectors and sinners came and ate with him and his disciples. When the Pharisees saw this, they asked his disciples, “Why does your teacher eat with tax collectors and sinners?” On hearing this, Jesus said, “It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick. But go and learn what this means: ‘I desire mercy, not sacrifice.’ For I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners.”

Of all the people Jesus could choose, he chose him? Matthew, a tax collector?

Tax collectors were hated by everyone. The Jews, their own people, reviled them because they collaborated with the enemy. They worked for Rome and carried out their orders.

But even worse, tax collectors like Matthew gained wealth by padding their own pockets, demanding more than what was due, and keeping it for themselves.

They represented the enemy, and got rich by over-taxing their own people.

And yet Jesus chooses him, “follow me”.

Jesus Calls Matthew

So why in the world would Jesus choose both of them to be His followers?

First, He loved them. Jesus had a way of seeing through the exterior, even when it was controversial or unpopular. He demonstrated the love of God – He IS the love of God.

But there’s an even more compelling reason: why did Jesus choose Matthew, Simon, among others? Why did he choose two individuals who clearly stood in opposition to one another?

To demonstrate the incredible power of this prayer in action: ‘May they be one, Father. Make them one’

John 17:20-21

“My prayer is not for them alone. I pray also for those who will believe in me through their message, that all of them may be one, Father, just as you are in me and I am in you. May they also be in us so that the world may believe that you have sent me.

Jesus prays that these disciples, this rag tag group, which included two of the more opposite and different people you could imagine, would be ONE.

And He prays the same for us today…”that ALL of them would be one”

Updates on the new Waynesboro campus

God is inviting us to step out in faith to plant a Spanish-speaking campus in the Waynesboro community. Join us on the journey! Check out the link below for more information and for frequent updates throughout the journey.

Waynesboro

Giving at COTN

If you ever have questions or need help with online giving, please let us know: finance@cotnaz.org Thank you for your partnership in building the Kingdom of Christ as you impact others!

Giving

Establish COTN as Your Church on the App

In this YouVersion Bible app, we encourage you to set up COTN as your church. It’s a simple process and will open up opportunities to stay connected to us!

https://help.youversion.com/l/en/article/y03uerubo8-mychurch

Today we are on week two of our series Holiness as Wholeness.

The Bible tells us that we were created in God’s image. We are called to be holy because God is holy. We need to not only reflect the heart of God as far as loving people, but also, we need to reflect the character of God and have the mind of Christ pursuing holy character and behavior.

1 Thessalonians 5:12-24

12 Now we ask you, brothers and sisters, to acknowledge those who work hard among you, who care for you in the Lord and who admonish you. 13 Hold them in the highest regard in love because of their work. Live in peace with each other.

14 And we urge you, brothers and sisters, warn those who are idle and disruptive, encourage the disheartened, help the weak, be patient with everyone.

15 Make sure that nobody pays back wrong for wrong, but always strive to do what is good for each other and for everyone else.

16 Rejoice always, 17 pray continually, 18 give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.

19 Do not quench the Spirit. 20 Do not treat prophecies with contempt 21 but test them all; hold on to what is good, 22 reject every kind of evil.

23 May God himself, the God of peace, sanctify you through and through. May your whole spirit, soul and body be kept blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.

24 The one who calls you is faithful, and he will do it.

Today’s message is on Holiness. Let me say Verse 23 again: 23 May God himself, the God of peace, sanctify you through and through. May your whole spirit, soul and body be kept blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.