Holiness Matters

Micah J. Sturm

Being born makes me a member of the human race, but will I be humane?

Enrollment in school makes me a student, but will I learn?

Getting hired makes me an employee, but will I work?

A wedding ceremony makes me a spouse, but will I have a marriage?

Leaving the hospital with a baby makes me a father, but will I be a daddy?

Receiving Christ into my heart makes me a Christian, but exactly how Christian will I be?

Jesus said, “Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but the one who does the will of God who is in heaven” (Matthew 7:21).

“If you love me, you will keep my commandments. And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Helper…” (John 14:15).

“By this my Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit and so prove to be my disciples” (John 15:8).

Paul preached, “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control…and those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passion and desires. If we live by the Spirit, let us also walk by the Spirit” (Galatians 5:22-25).

As a boy I heard a preacher say, “Sitting in a church house makes you no more a Christian than sitting in a hen house makes you a chicken!”

Christ’s Church is not a structure, a denomination, or a code. It’s where the crucified and risen Jesus transforms lives and sends them out to be His reflection.

There are depths of God’s grace we have not experienced, there are possibilities we have not imagined, and the Lord invites us to be more like Him!

Let all Christians crave Christlikeness!

May we move out of the minimum requirements and into the maximum possibilities!

Micah J. Sturm

“Where do you stand on [insert any issue here]?”

My response:

“On an island between two worlds.”

At least that’s how I feel like responding.

Our culture divides over everything and the Church blindly joins in the fight.

Unity cannot come from divided hearts.

“Love” without boundaries is insufficient for our need. But holy love makes all the difference.

Holy love centers on Christ Jesus, not on us.

Holy love calls us to come just as we are, but refuses to leave us the way we are.

Holy love creates humility in the heart, replacing all pride.

Holy love is not learned by lecture or gained by effort, it is a supernatural gift of God gushing from His Spirit in continual waves of grace.

Whatever the issue, holiness is life that is controlled by love moment-by-moment.

That’s where I stand.

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!