Jim Van Gelderen: So notice what the passage says here. This is where we just need to spend a few moments, because there’s really one major point I want to make. There are a few other things we’ll see.

But one major point. Look what it says in verse seventeen. But the wisdom that is from above is first pure, then peaceable.

The word pure. Here, friend, is one of the words that comes out of the Holy Family. In other words, there’s a lot of words holiness, holy.

There’s sanctification words. And it comes out of that Greek family of words. So the idea obviously is pure in the sense of holy.

Now I’m going to just be dead honest with you, friends. It is amazing to me to today how I believe the holiness of God is being diminished. It’s being put aside.

I even in God’s people, even in Bible believing churches, holiness is an issue that’s being put aside. But I will tell you, friend, if you study the Bible at all, you will see that one of the major themes of the Bible is that God is holy. Exodus fifteen, verse eleven.

Who is like unto thee, O Lord, among the gods, who is like thee, glorious in holiness, fearful in praises, doing wonders. Leviticus twenty, verse twenty six, and ye shall be holy unto me, for I, the Lord your God, am holy and have severed you from other people, that ye should be mine. First Samuel chapter two and verse two.

There is none holy as the Lord, for there is none beside him. First Chronicles sixteen ten. Glory in his holy name.

Let the heart of them rejoice that fear the Lord. Psalm seventy eight, verse forty one. Yea, they turned back and tempted God and limited the Holy One of Israel.

Isaiah forty verse three and one cried unto another and said, Holy, holy, holy is the Lord of hosts, and the whole earth is full of his glory. Isaiah fifty seven, verse number fifteen, thus saith the high and lofty one that inhabits eternity, whose name is holy.

I dwell in the high and holy place with him also, that is, of a humble, a contrite, and a humble spirit, to revive the spirit of the humble and to revive the heart of the contrite ones. First Peter chapter one, verses fifteen and sixteen but as he which hath called you is holy, so be ye holy in all manner of conversation, because it is written, be holy, for I am holy. Revelation four, verse number eight.

Holy, holy, holy, Lord God Almighty, which was and is and is to come. My friend, I have just scratched the surface over and over in the Bible. God tells us, tells us that God is holy.

If you’ll notice, the Holy Spirit is called the Holy Spirit. He’s not called the loving spirit. He’s not called the long suffering spirit.

He is not called the Gentle Spirit now, although he is all of those. God chose to call him the Holy Spirit. And I will tell you today we talk about God like he’s our just some flippant friend and we do not give him reverence.

I’m telling you, God is holy. We put his name on a bumper sticker, drag it through the muck and the mire. And I am telling you, friend, God is holy.

His name is holy. And we forget today that our God is holy. Thrice before the throne it says, Holy, holy, holy is the Lord God Almighty.

In Psalm chapter twenty two, Jesus prophesied as saying, My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me? And I will tell you. Years later, when Jesus hung on the cross, he said those very words you say, preacher, why?

Why would God the Father in heaven turn his back on God the Son? I’ll tell you why. The Bible says in Isaiah fifty three, the Lord that’s God in heaven lead on him.

That is Jesus Christ, the iniquity of us all. But the third verse of Psalm twenty two says this, but thou art holy, and I will tell you the only time in all of eternity that God the Father turned the back on God the Son was when your wicked sin and my wicked sin was laid on Jesus Christ. I’m going to tell you why.

Because God is holy. And when Jesus became sin for us, when he took your wicked sin and my wicked sin, God the Father had to turn his back and forsake his son. You know why?

Because he is holy. And I’m telling you, today, all across this auditorium, there are dear Christians who have fallen into the trap of loving this world. And the truth is, you do not live like God is holy.

He says, be holy. Why? For I am holy.

You watch bed scenes on some favorite movie. You look at actresses who have immodesty and you lust after their bodies. And I’m telling you, friends, God is holy.

I’m talking to people today who turn on the television and you watch some television show where God’s name is taken in vain, dragged through the dirt, and you don’t think a thing about it. I’m. Listen, the problem in this auditorium is, is that we.

We do not believe that God is holy. The problem today is not legalism. And the problem is not today with people with standards who trust their standards to be holy.

That’s not the problem. I travel this country. The problem today is not standards.

The problem today is lack of them. And I will tell you a friend, a standard is simply an application of the Bible. If you apply the Bible, it’s a standard.

And if you don’t apply the Bible, then you don’t have standards. But you’re unbiblical too, because the Bible was written to be applied. We got people watching garbage on the television, jamming out on any kind of junk they want to.

And the truth is, anybody tries to live holy and follow Jesus, they’re the first to mock him and make fun of him. I’m telling you, friend, the problem today is Christians all across this room. The truth is you love the world.

I’m telling you why. Because you don’t love Jesus. Because when you love Jesus, you care less about what this world offers.

He doesn’t have anything. I’m just simply saying, friends, God is holy and I don’t believe when we get to heaven, God’s going to say, you know, I think you were too holy. I’m going to say, if he’s going to say anything.

He said, I think you were too affected by the world love. Not the world, neither the things that are in the world. You say, what are you talking about?

Revelation nineteen and said to the mountains and rocks, fall on us, and hide us from the face of him that sitteth upon the throne, and from the wrath of the Lamb. For the great day of his wrath is come, and who shall be able to stand. I’m telling you, friend, he’s going to be feared.

He. You may not fear him now, young person, when you treat your parents like trash. But there’s coming a day when you will.

You may not fear him now when you watch what you want to on your internet pornography and you look at your dirty pictures and I’m talking about men in this room who do. But there’s coming a day when you will. You may not fear him now when you go out and get drunk, but there’s coming a day when you will.

He will be feared. The truth is, some of you kids out here, you don’t want to be separated. You like your Hollywood movies too much.

You like your music too much. That you know is compromises with the world. I want to tell you something, friend.

You. Why don’t you start meeting with God for a little while? Maybe you’d find out that Jesus really is awful.

Precious.