STEPS TO HOLINESS

By: Tony Mel

Purpose: To be holy as the Lord commanded in 1 Peter 1:16

Verse: Romans 6:11-13 (KJV)

"¹¹Likewise reckon ye also yourselves to be dead indeed unto sin, but alive unto God through Jesus Christ our Lord. ¹² Let not sin reign in your mortal body, that ye should obey it in the lusts thereof. ¹³ Neither yield ye your members as instruments of unrighteousness unto sin: but yield yourselves unto God, as those that are alive from the dead, and your members as instruments of righteousness unto God."

Introduction: We can be holy, because the Bible tells us to be holy. God wouldn't waste his time if he knew that we can't be holy; however, there are three attitudes we must have in order to be on our way to holiness.

I. The three attitudes

   A. Reckon ourselves to be dead unto sin (verses 11-12)

      1. II Corinthians 5:27  "Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new"

         a. If we received Jesus Christ in our hearts, we must be mortified unto sin. We must not do the things we did before we were saved, because the Holy Ghost abides in us. God is a God of holiness and perfection, that means he won't allow a saint (a Christian) that is willing to be holy, to be alive unto sin.

   B. Not yielding our members for unrighteousness (verse 13a)

      1. Being careful with what we put before our eyes

        a. Psalm 101:3 "I will set no wicked thing before mine eyes: I hate the work of them that turn aside; it shall not cleave to me."

      2. Having no fellowship with fruits of darkness

         a. Ephesians 5:11 "And have no fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness, but rather reprove them."

   C. Yielding our members as instruments of righteousness (verse 13b)

      1. I Timothy 6:11 " But thou, O man of God, flee these things; and follow after righteousness, godliness, faith, love, patience, meekness."

         a. We must seek for the fruits of God, we must present our members as instruments of justice and righteousness, we must use our talents and special abilities to serve God. This is the most important attitude we must have to be on our way to holiness because on the first attitude, we learned we must consider/reckon ourselves to be dead unto sin, now when the theory's over, we must practice what the Bible says.

CONCLUSION

In the Hebrew language, the word "holy" literally means separate. When we are holy, we are separate. And as this verse says, if we are separate, and our business is not on the things of this world, God will receive us.

"Wherefore come out from among them, and be ye separate, saith the Lord, and touch not the unclean thing; and I will receive you." (II Corinthians 6:17)