July 3, 2011 ~ Pastor Leslie Crockett, Jr.

1.  1 Peter 2:4-12 ~ As you come to him, the living Stone—rejected by humans but chosen by God and precious to him—you also, like living stones, are being built into a spiritual house to be a holy priesthood, offering spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ. For in Scripture it says: “See, I lay a stone in Zion, a chosen and precious cornerstone, and the one who trusts in him will never be put to shame.” Now to you who believe, this stone is precious. But to those who do not believe, “The stone the builders rejected has become the cornerstone,” and, “A stone that causes people to stumble and a rock that makes them fall.” They stumble because they disobey the message—which is also what they were destined for. But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God’s special possession, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light. Once you were not a people, but now you are the people of God; once you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy. Living Godly Lives in a Pagan Society. Dear friends, I urge you, as foreigners and exiles, to abstain from sinful desires, which wage war against your soul. Live such good lives among the pagans that, though they accuse you of doing wrong, they may see your good deeds and glorify God on the day he visits us.

• We need to be spiritual sacrifices - like Christ when He prepared to go to the cross for us: "not My will, but Your will be done. We must deny the flesh & follow Christ, worshiping God in spirit & in truth so that we may be called righteous; for when we cry & the Lord will hears!

2.  2 Corinthians 5:17-21, 6:14-18 ~ Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come: The old has gone, the new is here! All this is from God, who reconciled us to himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation: that God was reconciling the world to himself in Christ, not counting people’s sins against them. And he has committed to us the message of reconciliation. We are therefore Christ’s ambassadors, as though God were making his appeal through us. We implore you on Christ’s behalf: Be reconciled to God. God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God. Do not be yoked together with unbelievers. For what do righteousness and wickedness have in common? Or what fellowship can light have with darkness? What harmony is there between Christ and Belial? Or what does a believer have in common with an unbeliever? What agreement is there between the temple of God and idols? For we are the temple of the living God. As God has said: “I will live with them and walk among them, and I will be their God, and they will be my people.” Therefore, “Come out from them and be separate", says the Lord. Touch no unclean thing, and I will receive you.” And, “I will be a Father to you, and you will be my sons and daughters, says the Lord Almighty.”

• Christ will get rid of the old so we can become new! We can then submit & obey God, becoming & offering sacrifices to Him that are pleasing & acceptable. If God sacrificed His son & the Son sacrificed Himself for us (remembering He did NOTHING wrong to deserve the punishment He endured), we should be overjoyed to offer sacrifices to & become sacrifices for the Kingdom of God.

3.  Ephesians 2:18 ~ For through him we both have access to the Father by one Spirit.

• When we submit to God, sacrificing ourselves to Him, he invests His power in us through His spirit. We are powerful because of Him!

4.  Romans 12:12 ~ Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer.

• We must be joyful in the hope that God will never leave us or forsake us! We must wait patiently even through affliction because we know our faithfulness through prayer will see us through!

5.  1 Corinthians 2:10 ~ these are the things God has revealed to us by his Spirit. The Spirit searches all things, even the deep things of God.

• The only way to know the things of God is by His spirit; the only way to receive His spirit is through submission to Him which allows the Holy Spirit to dwell in us.

6.  Colossians 3:16 ~ Let the message of Christ dwell among you richly as you teach and admonish one another with all wisdom through psalms, hymns, and songs from the Spirit, singing to God with gratitude in your hearts.
 
Hebrews 13:15-16 ~ Through Jesus, therefore, let us continually offer to God a sacrifice of praise—the fruit of lips that openly profess his name. And do not forget to do good and to share with others, for with such sacrifices God is pleased.

• We must worship God with songs, hymns, praise always, making a joyful noise unto Him!