Holiness Matters

Micah J. Sturm

I am not a mechanic at all.

But something just wasn’t right.

The car was making weird sounds so we took it in to see an expert.

The expert said:

“What you’re hearing is the engine coming loose—the engine mounts are bad.”

“Engine mounts, also known as motor mounts, are designed to secure your vehicle’s engine and transmission to the subframe. They are also intended to absorb vibration and shock…”

“Keep in mind that motor mounts are responsible for securely holding a lot of weight, so they cannot be manufactured using cheap materials that lack strength and durability.”

When the heart of the car is not stabilized, everything is affected—the car gets out of alignment, the tires wear out prematurely, the ride is bumpy, the brakes have to work harder, and the list goes on.

It happens in the human heart too.

Something just isn’t right inside—it’s affecting everything.

We need the Expert!

“What’s happening is that our heart is ‘running’ for the Lord, but it’s not firmly fixed and stable.”

Our steps get out of alignment with His Spirit, we are rocked by the smallest bumps in life, we fail to slow down or stop as we ought, we’re just moving in every direction, we wear out too soon, and the list goes on.

“Their loyalty is divided between God and the world, and they are unstable in everything they do.”

James 1:8 NLT

The engine is the heart that’s been rebuilt by Christ and His work of grace in entire sanctification is the stabilizer of the soul!

“so that he may establish your hearts blameless in holiness before our God and Father, at the coming of our Lord Jesus with all his saints.”

1 Thessalonians 3:13 ESV

Thanks be to God!

Micah J. Sturm

We are all guilty.

Everyone needs forgiveness.

This is not debatable. Only one Human ever lived without sin—and it was not you or me!

The problem with the Church is that we’ve become way too comfortable with sin.

What we ought to abhor, we accept.

Behaviors we should stop, we celebrate

Things that need to be eliminated, we excuse.

“Whoever makes a practice of sinning is of the devil, for the devil has been sinning from the beginning. The reason the Son of God appeared was to destroy the works of the devil.”

1 John 3:8 ESV

Will Jesus forgive the sins we commit? Absolutely!

Can Jesus really “destroy” sin? Yes!

Christ came to erase our sins by forgiveness.

But He can make us more than forgiven sinners—He came to destroy sin’s grip on our hearts and lives!

Jesus, who is holiness housed in humanity, will house His holiness in humans!

He enables us to love what He loves, see how He sees, and live the way He wants us to live!

They’re miracles of grace—sins erased and Spirit-enabled!

Thanks be to God!

Micah J. Sturm

Reverence means “a feeling of profound respect mingled with awe, affection, and obeisance.”

The Bible is a belittled book by the world.

Belittle means to “dismiss as unimportant.”

A typical “Bible Study” has degenerated into “who’s bringing the doughnuts?”

At best, we have bent these sessions into endless self-centered prayer requests, a few lines of a heretical study guide that twists scripture around a personal agenda, and ends with the discussion of how to create more community by not focusing on the “controversial” parts of being a Christian.

When the Bible is abandoned, amended, or ignored by pastors and teachers, it has disastrous consequences.

We must have a high view of the Bible and treat its message and Author with reverence!

(1) Begin by taking the Bible to church with you. Our neighbors will know we’re not going on a Target-run when they see us with a Bible in our hands.

(2) Honor and respect those who faithfully preach the Word under the anointing of the Holy Spirit.

Cooperate, listen, and be open to how the Lord is leading the one who is leading the congregation.

Never be an obstacle or enemy to such a servant of the Lord! He’s the One who says, “Touch not my anointed ones, do my prophets no harm!” (Psalm 105:15 ESV)

(3) Then, set a time everyday when you open your Bible and read it prayerfully. It makes a difference!

Never put anything on top of a Holy Bible! No coffee mugs, no other books, nothing—except another Bible! (Personal pet peeve, sorry.)

Keep a hard copy of the Bible for personal study and devotions—pass it on to kids—a family treasure!

(4) Finally, obey the Word of God!

Bring life into line with what God says!

Stop doing and being the things He condemns! Start doing and being what He commands!

Why? Because the Word of God says so and we revere Him in all His holiness and love! Believe the promises of God!

It matters how we handle the Word of God.

“Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved, a worker who has no need to be ashamed, rightly handling the word of truth.”

2 Timothy 2:15 ESV

John 8:1-11

Micah J. Sturm

Here’s one of my sermon outlines that summarizes a familiar scene—Jesus responding to the charges made against the woman caught in adultery.

I. The scribes and Pharisees were not in the wrong by their desire to keep God’s Law.

They were wrong because their calloused hearts rejected the very Lawgiver who now walked among them.

II. Selfish motives led the Pharisees and scribes to “edit” God’s Law and use it as a weapon to destroy lives rather than as a mirror that reveals just how sinful sin really is.

III. Jesus responded to their persistent pleas for Him to adjust God’s Law by leveling the ground on the sin issue–“her” sin, their sin, and all sin was still sin.

They dropped their rocks and kept their sin.

IV. Jesus never condemns anyone who stands before Him humiliated by their sin!

V. Jesus never condoned her sin. The One who is holy love loved her enough to tell her to stop sinning and gave her a new life.

The Church must do likewise.

Micah J. Sturm

Holiness matters because God is holy and has called us to be holy.

How we handle the holy is vitally important.

“And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, by whom you were sealed for the day of redemption” (Ephesians 4:30 ESV).

How have we grieved Him?

Disregarding His Word…

“the Bible really doesn’t mean that”

Demanding our own way…

“I want what I want, how I want it, when I want it”

Dabbling in wickedness…

“it’s harmless…you’re just outdated”

Disobedience…creates Distance…and then comes Denial.

This is the task given to the people of God:

“And they shall teach My people the difference between the holy and the unholy, and cause them to discern between the unclean and the clean” (Ezekiel 44:23 NKJV).

Lord, help us to know the difference between holy and unholy.

Guide us in how to honor Your holiness with humble hearts and reflect You in a filthy world.

Micah J. Sturm

Spiritual maturity is measured in the moments—not just the miles.

What I mean is, “old” does not always equal “mature” and “young” doesn’t always equal “immature.”

The speed at which one matures varies.

Growth can be accelerated or stunted.

Entire sanctification, by the purifying fullness of Christ’s Spirit, kills the weeds of sin and fertilizes the soil of the heart creating fruit unto holiness.

Constant care is necessary for healthy growth.

The goal is to provide blessing to another—the fruit of the tree, the beauty of the flower, the life that reflects the Lord.

Maturity is modeling my Master moment-by-moment until my moment is complete.

Philippians 3:12-21

Micah J. Sturm

Paul is watching the church struggle.

The complexities of the world combined with constant combat against the deceiver created concern for their stability.

“But I am afraid that, as the serpent deceived Eve by his craftiness, your minds will be led astray from the simplicity and purity of devotion to Christ.”

2 Corinthians 11:3 NASB1995

The word “SIMPLICITY” means:

“uncomplicated”

“freedom from pretense”

“the quality of being without unnecessary or extra things”

“the absence of embellishment or showiness.”

I understand Paul’s concern.

I’m praying for simplicity in the Church.

Here’s some simple questions:

Have you confessed and forsaken your sins? Are you born from above? Do you know Jesus?

Have you sought the cleansing of your heart by the fire of His Holy Spirit? Does the Lord really have all of you? Is the fruit of His Spirit evident in your daily life?

Are you backsliding?

Are you getting closer to Jesus or are you drifting further away from Him?

Where are your burdens?

We are carrying a lot of unnecessary stuff and it’s heavy. It drains us of strength, prevents real progress, and poisons possibilities.

Jesus wants you to unload it all on Him.

Oswald Chambers said, “Simplicity is the secret to seeing things clearly.”

It’s really simple—stability and power are found in the simplicity of being totally consumed with Christ.

Micah J. Sturm

Give me generic products any day!

They are just as good and cost less.

There are two exceptions: Peter Pan peanut butter and Windex glass cleaner.

They are worth every single penny because I can tell the difference!

The Collins Dictionary says, “generic products do not have a brand name and do not legally belong to a particular company, so any company can manufacture them. Generic also means not having a trademark; without individual character or distinctive characteristics; (lacking in precision): fuzzy, indefinite; see also Thesaurus:vague—not clearly defined; containing uncertainty; lacking clarity.”

A generic gospel is robbing us of the real joy and thrill of “the Name Brand!”

Thanks be to God, when I walked into the Church of the Nazarene in 1984, there was no trace of generic Christianity there!

We were called unto holiness without apology and it was magnetic!

“…whoever keeps his word, in him truly the love of God is perfected. By this we may know that we are in him: whoever says he abides in him ought to walk in the same way in which he walked” (1 John 2:5-6, ESV).

May the Church refuse to be generic and return to the distinctive qualities that are our trademark: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control—the Spirit of Christ—holiness!

Give me that kind of Christian any day…because there is definitely a difference!

Micah J. Sturm

Dear Christian,

I rejoice that you have been born from above by the grace of the Lord Jesus!

This new life is a divine trail of transformation.

Everything is different now…well, almost everything.

There’s something you need to know.

We were all born sick—hearts poisoned by sin—declaring our independence from God and His way. So, we left Him out of our lives and went our own direction—doing and being whatever we desired.

See, God loves us so much that He’s been chasing us from the beginning so that He might rescue us and heal our hearts.

The very moment you heard Him talking to you was His love gripping your heart.

Sin ruined you, but He rescued you!

Turning away from all the rebellion and trusting in Jesus, He erased all the sins you had ever committed and made you a brand new person!

But you’re still behaving too much like YOU.

The Bible describes the symptoms:

“It is obvious what kind of life develops out of trying to get your own way all the time: repetitive, loveless, cheap sex; a stinking accumulation of mental and emotional garbage; frenzied and joyless grabs for happiness; trinket gods; magic-show religion; paranoid loneliness; cutthroat competition; all-consuming-yet-never-satisfied wants; a brutal temper; an impotence to love or be loved; divided homes and divided lives; small-minded and lopsided pursuits; the vicious habit of depersonalizing everyone into a rival; uncontrolled and uncontrollable addictions; ugly parodies of community. I could go on. This isn’t the first time I have warned you, you know. If you use your freedom this way, you will not inherit God’s kingdom.”

Galatians 5:19-21 MSG

The new you in Christ and the old you are trying to occupy the same heart—and it won’t last long.

One of you has to die…one of you will die.

The Lord lets us decide which one will rule our hearts, but it cannot be both.

Please do not stop short of the possibilities that are yours in Jesus!

“God’s Spirit makes us loving, happy, peaceful, patient, kind, good, faithful, gentle, and self-controlled. There is no law against behaving in any of these ways. And because we belong to Christ Jesus, we have killed our selfish feelings and desires. God’s Spirit has given us life, and so we should follow the Spirit.”

Galatians 5:22-25 CEV

Christian, you brought Jesus your sins and He forgave you—making you brand new!

Now, bring Him YOU so He can heal your heart—ruling there without competition!

This is what the Bible calls HOLINESS—entirely His, pure hearts, filled with His Spirit, perfect (complete) love, sanctified, and only One in charge!

I am praying for you to experience this depth of God’s miraculous grace in your own heart and life! It’s available to you because He loves you!

Don’t turn back! Keep going!

His servant,

Pastor

Golden Calves Among God’s People

Micah J. Sturm

The people of God had been surrounded by images and practices of the gods of Egypt for hundreds of years. One of the Egyptian deities was in the form a bull named Apis and they believed it possessed the powers of nature and prosperity. Everyone in the land was influenced by the bull.

“Apis…represented the core cultural values and understanding of all Egyptians…eternity itself and the harmonious balance of the universe” (Ancient History Encyclopedia).

It’s easy to be overcome by the bull surrounding us and not realize that we’ve been shaped more by bull than by the one true God.

Six weeks after leaving Egypt they arrive at Horeb. God had rescued them from bondage in a miracle of His grace. He provided victory over their enemies, gave them bread from heaven and water from a rock.

Now they stand at the foot of Mount Horeb (Sinai) where the powerful presence of God descended to set them apart by His very Word.

It is here at Horeb that we find God’s people are still full of bull—the Egypt they’d left behind still lingered within them.

(1) They refused to wait on God (Exodus 32:1)

(2) They returned to practices from which they were delivered (Exodus 32:1)

(3) They looked for someone who could be manipulated to promote their agenda and demands (Exodus 32:1)

(4) They spared no expense in order to get what they wanted (Exodus 32: 2-4)

(5) They slapped God’s name on their sin and celebrated it as progress (Exodus 32:5)

(6) They lost the favor of God—He was ready to destroy them (Deuteronomy 9:19).

(7) They were “unrestrained” and “out of control” with self-sanctioned behaviors that went unaddressed by the religious leaders (Exodus 32:6)

The bull was in their hearts before it came out of the fire.

A life given to bull always leads to death—3,000 men died when God purged the bull from His people (Exodus 32:28).

It is still the will of God to cleanse our stubborn and bullheaded hearts that are bent on having our own way!

Let Him slaughter our bull and fill our hearts with His Spirit.

What golden calf have we set up in place of the Lord? The bull has got to go!

Holiness kills the bull!

The Cambridge Dictionary defines the informal use of the word “bull” as, “complete nonsense.”

Vocabulary.com says “bull” is, “make believe with the intent to deceive.”

Many people are still under the influence of bull—the complete nonsense of idolatry, hypocrisy, and deceit. We are bullheaded, stubborn, and bent on having our own way.

This is the essence of carnal, unspiritual, and bullish hearts.

I pray that holiness people will once again respond to God’s clarion call—“Who is on the Lord’s side?” and live beyond the bull!

“Called from the world and it’s idols to flee,

Called from the bondage of sin to be free!”