Tis not that I did you wrong Todd's Road Grace Church would
like to invite you to listen to a sermon by our pastor, Todd
Nyberg. We are located at 4137 Todd's
Road, two miles outside of Manowar Boulevard. Sunday services are
at 10.30 a.m. and 6 p.m. Bible study is at
9.45 a.m. Wednesday services are at 7 p.m. Nursery is provided for all services.
For more information visit our website at toddsroadgracechurch.com. Now here's our pastor, Todd Nybert. I've entitled the message for
this morning, Chosen to be Holy. We read in Ephesians chapter
one, verse four, according as he hath chosen us in him before
the foundation of the world, that we should be holy. Now, this is the state of everyone
that he has chosen before the foundation of the world. He did
so that we should be holy. If I asked you, do you feel holy? If you say yes, I fear that you
don't have any idea what holiness is. But if you say no, I do not
feel holy, I understand that response. I don't feel holy either. But if I asked you if God has
chosen you to be holy, can you be anything but holy? The answer
is no. Now, this is one of those spiritual
blessings that Paul wrote of when he said, blessed be the
God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ who hath blessed us with
all spiritual blessings in heavenly places in Christ. We have all
spiritual blessings, and one of the spiritual blessings is
holiness, chosen to be holy. Now, what is holiness? Well, God is holy. I'd like to read a passage from
Isaiah chapter 6 that I think speaks so powerfully of His holiness. This is where the seraphims cried,
holy, holy, holy. It's also repeated in Revelation
chapter 4. But beginning in verse 1, we
read Isaiah speak these words in the year that King Uzziah
died. Now that is significant. He said in the year that King
Uzziah died, I saw also the Lord. Now King Uzziah was a king in
Israel who had been blessed by God and he was a very successful
king and he was a good king. But the scripture says when his
heart was lifted up in him, he became proud. And he thought
that he could come into God's presence without a priest. He
thought he could offer up incense on his own. And what he was doing
by that, he was bypassing the Lord Jesus Christ. He was saying,
I can come into God's presence in my own merit. And when he
tried to do that, God turned him into a leper immediately. He was made to see that he was
nothing but sin. Now, Isaiah had always been impressed
with Uzziah, and he saw at this time that God is so holy, he
cannot be approached by a human being without the priesthood
of the Lord Jesus Christ. He's just holy. Now, in the year
King Uzziah died, I saw also the Lord sitting, not pacing
back and forth, worrying, but sitting, His work being finished,
sitting upon a throne in complete regal, royal control, controlling
everything from His throne. high and lifted up in his train. The skirts of his garment filled
the temple. Above it stood the seraphims. Now these are living creatures,
and each one had six wings. With twain he covered his face.
He, the seraphim, without seeing, could not look upon God because
of his holiness. With twain he covered his feet.
He was ashamed of his walk. Now, he didn't have any sin,
but he knew that if God didn't preserve him, he would sin. He
knew the only reason he didn't sin is because God kept him from
it. So he was ashamed of his walk. And with Twain, he did
fly ready to do his bidding. And one cried to another and
said, holy, holy, holy. LORD OF HOSTS, THE WHOLE EARTH
IS FILLED WITH HIS GLORY." NOW IF YOU ASK THE ASTRIDGE RELIGIOUS
PERSON, WHAT IS GOD'S CHIEF ATTRIBUTE? I DARE SAY THEY'D SAY LOVE. BUT
THAT'S NOT WHAT THE SERAPHIM SAID. THEY SAID HOLY, HOLY, HOLY. YOU KNOW IN WHAT GOES ON UNDER
THE NAME OF GOSPEL PREACHING, MEN Preachers say, God loves
you. I do too. Do you know the apostles
never spoke to an audience saying God loves you? Now, God's love
obviously is for his people in Christ, but a lost man does not
need to hear God loves you. A lost man needs to hear you're
under the wrath of God. God's love is in Christ. God's
mercy in Christ. He'll save those in Christ. But
I'm not to tell someone indiscriminately that God loves them. What did
the seraphim say? Holy, holy, holy is the Lord
God of hosts. Now, this word holy means separate,
other. It's his otherness. Holiness
means he is utterly unlike me and you. Now, I know this, whenever
men saw or got a glimpse of His holiness, it always evoked this
response. What did Isaiah say after he
saw the Lord high and lifted up? And he heard those seraphims
crying, Holy, holy, holy? Then said I, Woe is me, for I
am undone. Because I am a man of unclean
lips, and I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips. For mine eyes have seen the King,
the Lord of hosts." Now, this I know. If you and I ever get
a glimpse of the holiness of God, we're going to see ourselves
the way Isaiah saw himself, as undone, as cut off, as unclean. What did Daniel say when he saw
the Lord? He said, when I saw him, my comeliness,
that which I thought was beautiful, turned to corruption. Job said,
I've heard of thee with the hearing of the ears, but now mine eye
seeth thee, wherefore I hate myself and repent in dust and
ashes. David said, I was as a beast
before thee. When Peter saw who he was, he
said, depart from me, Lord. I'm a sinful man. You don't want
to have anything to do with somebody like me. Now, that's what happens
when people see God's holiness. They see their own sinfulness.
And if someone has a high opinion of themself and their own righteousness
and their own merit, they've simply never seen his holiness.
They have no idea who he really is. Because if you and I ever
see the holiness of God, we're gonna see something of our own
sinfulness. Now, what is God's holiness? It's been called his moral perfections. But you know, I don't like that.
I don't like that at all. And here's why. It implies that
there's a standard of morality that God reaches. And there is
no standard. For one thing, moral is not found
in the Bible. And for another thing, God doesn't
have a law over his head that he's trying to keep. God doesn't
do something because it's holy. It's holy because He does it.
Holy, holy, holy is the Lord God of hosts. His holiness is
His infinite purity. He cannot sin. He's of purer
eyes than to behold iniquity. It's His inability, His holiness
is His inability to accept anything that is not just like Him. It's His love of righteousness,
and it's His hatred of iniquity. It's His wholeness. His holiness
is His wholeness. Now, this is how holy God is,
and I realize I'm speaking things that I see in the Scripture and
that I have some apprehension of, but it's just a little bit,
just a little bit. But even taking His name in vain
is a sin punishable by death, to not have the proper reverence
in using His name. Holy and reverend is His name. Thus saith the High and Lofty
One, who inhabiteth eternity, whose name is Holy. He's called
the Holy One of Israel. His Son is called the Holy One
of God. God the Spirit is called the
Holy Spirit. The Scriptures are called the
Holy Scriptures. We read of His holy covenant. Now, His holiness, if I was going
to Look at a scripture that most speaks of His holiness. I would
think of Psalm 22, verse 3. Now, in verse 1, these are the
words of the Lord from the cross. I know David said them, but David
said them because Christ said them. Christ cried from the cross. His middle statement, my God,
my God, why? Have you forsaken me?" The Lord
Jesus Christ at that time was feeling forsaken because He was
forsaken. He was feeling all the awful
wrath of God against sin. He was forsaken by His Father. And he says, why have you forsaken
me? And he doesn't ask this because
he doesn't know why. He knew he was made sin. He knew
that he was bearing the sins of God's elect and they actually
became his sin so that he became guilty of them. And God in justice
was forsaking him. But when he says, my God, my
God, why hast thou forsaken me? He says in verse three, thou
art holy. There's the holiness of God.
Even when sin is found in His own Son, He forsakes Him. Why? Because God is holy. His holiness separates Him from
all others. None is as holy as the Lord. We read in the book of Revelation,
And this is why idolatry is so evil. It's the humanizing of
God. Thou thoughtest, he said in Psalm
50, thou thoughtest I was altogether such a one as thyself. With whom
will you compare me? Or who is like unto me? This
is God in his utter holiness. Now, if you said, which is most
like God, an angel or a grasshopper? The answer is neither. No one
is like him. He's incomprehensible. There's
nothing to compare Him to. And before time began, this holy
God chose a people to be holy. according as he hath chosen us
in him before the foundation of the world, that we should
be holy. We read in Hebrews chapter 10,
verses 9 and 10, by the witch will, by God's will, we are sanctified. This is talking about every believer.
by the witch of will, we are sanctified, we are declared by
God to be holy through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ.
Now, God didn't just indiscriminately, arbitrarily say, you're holy. No, the sin was put away through
the offering of the body of Jesus Christ, and perfect righteousness
is given, and every believer is now holy by virtue of what
Christ did for them. Hebrews 10.14 says, By one offering
he hath perfected forever them that are sanctified. Ephesians
chapter 5 verses 25 through 27 says, Husbands, love your wives
as Christ also loved the church and gave himself for it that
he might sanctify and cleanse it with the washing of water
by the word that he might present it to himself a glorious church,
not having spot or wrinkle or any such thing, but that it should
be holy and without blemish before him. COLOSSIANS, CHAPTER 1, VERSES
20-22, HAVING MADE PEACE. THAT'S WHAT THE LORD DID, THROUGH
THE BLOOD OF HIS CROSS, BY HIM, TO RECONCILE ALL THINGS TO HIMSELF.
BY HIM, I SAY, WHETHER THEY BE THINGS IN EARTH OR THINGS IN
HEAVEN, AND YOU THAT WERE SOMETIMES ALIENATED, AND ENEMIES IN YOUR
MIND BY WICKED WORKS, YET NOW HATH HE RECONCILED IN THE BODY
OF HIS FLESH THROUGH DEATH TO PRESENT YOU HOLY, UNBLAMEABLE,
and unreprovable in His sight. Every believer is holy because
God chose them to be holy. Every believer is holy because
Christ made them so. 1 Corinthians 1.30 says He's
made unto us wisdom and righteousness and sanctification and redemption.
And every believer is made holy in regeneration, in being born
again, In the new birth, they're given a holy nature, a nature
that comes from God. Peter called it in II Peter 1,
4, partakers of the divine nature. Revelation 20, verse 6, blessed
and holy is he that hath part in the first resurrection. The
first resurrection is when a sinner is raised from the dead and given
life. Blessed and holy is he that hath part in the first resurrection. Peter said being born again,
not of corruptible seed, but of incorruptible. by the Word
of God, which liveth and abideth forever." I love the way John
tells us in 1 John 3, verse 9. Whosoever is born of God doth
not commit sin. Now, I realize there are many
translations that say, well, he doesn't practice sin. Well,
that's not what this says. It says he doesn't commit sin,
period. The new man, that which is born
of God, doth not commit sin. For his seed, the seed of God,
that incorruptible seed, remains in him, and he cannot sin. He lacks the ability to sin because
he is born of God. Now, somebody says, I don't understand
this. Well, I don't either, but I believe it. It's what the scripture
teaches. I love what Peter said, once
again, in 1 Peter 3, 4, he speaks of the hidden man of the heart,
which is not corruptible. It's not subject to sin. It's
the hidden man. Somebody says, I can't see it.
I know you can't, it's hidden. but we know it's there. If God
has given me life, if he has birthed me into the kingdom of
heaven, I've been given a holy nature. So I am a holy brethren,
a partaker of the heavenly calling. As a matter of fact, that's what
saints mean. Saints means holy one. And you see, it's the holy nature
that sees the sinfulness of the old nature. You know, one thing
about God's people is every one of them see very clearly that
they're sinners, that they're evil. And it takes a holy nature
to see that. If you don't see that about yourself,
it's because you don't have a holy nature. A natural man can't understand
sin. He doesn't have a sense of sin.
You have to have a holy nature to be able to have any understanding
of what sin is. I love what Hebrews 2.11 said,
both he that sanctifieth, that makes holy, and they who are
sanctified, made holy, are all of one. Holiness comes by being
united, eternally united to the Lord Jesus Christ. Now, this
is mysterious, but it is revealed in the Scripture. Both he that
sanctifieth and they who are sanctified Both he who makes
holy and those who are made holy are all of one. If Christ is holy, I am holy. I think of what the Lord said,
I am the vine and you are the branches. Now, what a beautiful
illustration of union with the Lord Jesus Christ. The same stems
that go through the vine go through the branches. There is no connecting
point. They're one. All of God's people
are one with the Lord Jesus Christ. Therefore, holy as He is, so
are we in this world. Is He holy? So are we. Another
scriptural illustration would be Levi paying tithes. He's said
to have paid tithes when Abraham paid the tithes because he was
in the loins of his father Abraham. When Abraham paid tithes, all
of his descendants paid tithes. This speaks of union with the
Lord Jesus Christ. If he is holy, I am holy. First Corinthians 1.30 says he
is made unto us. sanctification. He's made unto
us holiness. Now when he says, be ye holy,
for I am holy, you can only be holy if you are holy. Now listen real carefully. You
cannot become holy because of something you do, nor can you
become more holy by something you do. nor can you become less
holy by something you do. You're holy because of this,
I am the Lord that sanctifieth thee. You're holy because God
made you holy. You were chosen to be holy. Christ
declared you to be holy by what He did for you. God the Holy
Spirit made you holy when He gave you a holy nature. You're
holy by virtue of being united to Christ. And you can't become
more holy or less holy. That's very important. Now, somebody
says, don't we grow? Yeah, we do. We grow in grace.
The scripture says grow in grace in the knowledge of our Lord
and Savior, Jesus Christ, and we grow in the fruit of the Spirit,
but you can't become more holy or less holy if you're holy.
Holiness is what God has made you, and it doesn't know any
degrees. As a matter of fact, if you're
a believer, you will be no more holy in heaven than you are right
now. every believer is holy." Now
this shows how, what a drain the flesh puts on us, that sinful
nature, because we certainly don't feel that way. But nevertheless,
it's true. You're as holy now as you will
be in heaven. I think this is interesting.
The only time the word holier is used in Scripture. It's in
Isaiah 65 when God speaks of those who say, holier than thou,
stand back from me, I am holier than thou. That's where that
phrase came from, Isaiah chapter 65. People use it all the time,
a holier than thou attitude. And God says concerning that
person who says, I'm holier than thou, These are a smoke in my
nose. God despises this attitude. It's completely contrary to the
gospel. Now, here's an interesting fact.
Only once did a holy man walk upon this earth without a sinful
nature. Who is that? The Lord Jesus Christ. And do you know why he walked
upon this earth? Nobody got it. Nobody got it. They didn't understand.
You see, the natural man has no understanding of holiness. The natural man really has no
understanding of sin. It takes a holy nature to recognize
holiness. Now, a holy God requires his
people to be holy and to regard him as holy. And everybody who
is holy will regard him as such. Now, I'd like to read you a passage
of scripture from Leviticus chapter 10, verse 3. Then Moses said
unto Aaron, This is that the Lord spake, saying, I'll be sanctified
in them that come nigh me. I'll be regarded as holy, and
before all the people I'll be glorified. And Aaron held his
peace. Now, why did Moses say that? Well, let's look at the
first of this chapter. And Nadab and Abihu, they were the sons
of Aaron. took either of them, his censer,
and put fire therein, and put incense thereon, and offered
strange fire before the Lord, which he commanded them not."
You see, there was only one fire that was to be recognized, the
fire from off the altar. And they thought, well, we're
sincere. Our hearts are right. We don't have to go to the altar
to get fire. This fire will do. And what they were doing was
saying the sacrifice of Christ is not utterly necessary in everything
in this instance being offered up and being accepted by God.
It can only be accepted because of the sacrifice of Christ, not
because of our sincerity, not because of any moral goodness
in us. You see, they were recognizing
the holiness of God. The only way he can be approached
is through the sacrifice of the Lord Jesus Christ. And they thought
this could be bypassed, and there went out fire from the Lord and
devoured them. And they died before the Lord
because they saw no need. Now, understand this. The only
way you truly regard him as holy Remember, Peter said, Sanctify
the Lord God in your hearts. Regard Him as holy. The only
way you regard Him as holy is by looking holy to Christ. You look nowhere else but Christ
as the only way you can come into God's presence. That's what
a holy person does. An unholy person sees no need
for this. They think this is splitting
hairs. That's because they have no understanding of the holiness
of God. If you have any understanding
of the holiness of God, you're gonna know that the only way
you can approach him is through Christ. Hebrews 12, 14 says,
follow peace with all men and holiness, without which no man
shall see the Lord. Pursue peace with all men and
pursue holiness. If I am holy, I will pursue holiness. That's what people with a holy
nature do. They pursue holiness. They hate
their sin, and they pursue holiness. Peter said in 1 Peter 1 15, As
he which is called you is holy, so be ye holy in all manner of
conversation. For it's written, Be ye holy,
for I am holy. Now, I entitled this message,
Chosen to be Holy. I think it's interesting that
the enemies of grace who do not like election, they say, well,
election is Not for holiness, it's against holiness. Oh, that's
not the case at all. Election, God's electing love
of his people before the foundation of the world is the very fountain
of holiness. Holiness comes because you were
chosen in Christ before the foundation of the world. And what a spiritual
blessing this is, holiness. God can look at every believer
and embrace them as holy, unblameable, and unreprovable in His sight
because they are holy, unblameable, and unreprovable in His sight. What a blessing to be holy. I'd like to invite you to services
at Todd's Road Grace Church where service begins this morning at
1030, this evening at 6. We'd love to have you come out
and hear the gospel. We have this message on DVD and
CD. If you call the church right
or email, we'll send you a copy. This is Todd Diver praying that
God will be pleased to make himself known to you. That's our prayer.
Amen. To request a copy of the sermon you have just heard, send
your request to messages at toddsroadgracechurch.com. Or you may write or call the
church at the information provided on the screen.