19 Nevertheless the foundation of God standeth sure, having this seal, The Lord knoweth them that are his. And, let every one that nameth the name of Christ depart from iniquity.
20 But in a great house there are not only vessels of gold and of silver, but also of wood and of earth; and some to honour, and some to dishonour.
21 If a man therefore purge himself from these, he shall be a vessel unto honour, sanctified, and meet for the master's use, and prepared unto every good work.
-Second Timothy 2:19-21 (King James Version)
Next week on Talkin' Scripture, we're going to start a series titled "This Old House...This New House). It's going to be a series about how our lives should not be the same as it was before Christ. That's a problem I think many of us suffer from. We come forward during an altar call, give your lives to Christ, repeat the sinners prayer, and then walk away. All too often, the church doesn't follow up with the new Christian, or doesn't offer any discipleship to help get the new Christian started right in their new life.
Paul says in verse 19, "Nevertheless the foundation of God standeth sure, having this seal, the Lord knoweth them that are his. And let every one that nameth the name of Christ depart from iniquity." Iniquity basically means sin. If we claim to be a born again believer in Christ, we must prove that claim by departing from sin. We can fool others around us into believing that we are a follower of Jesus, but God knows. If your life is unchanged from how it was before Christ, if you're still wallowing in the same sins you were before, if you're still running into the opportunity to sin-then I believe you need to reexamine your life. Paul makes it clear, in this verse, that those who follow Jesus are to depart from sin. Sin has no part in the life of a believer. He goes a little deeper in verses 20-21, "But in a great house there are not only vessels of gold and of silver, but also of wood and of earth; some to honour and some to dishonour. If a man purge himself from these, he shall be a vessel unto honor, sanctified, and meet for the master's use, and prepared unto every good work." We are meant to bring honor to God, not dishonor Him. Paul says we must purge (to rid ourselves of an unwanted condition) ourselves from the things that bring dishonor to God, then we shall be a vessel that will bring honor to God, a vessel that is ready for God to use, a vessel that is prepared for the work that God has called us to do.
The question is: are you ready to bring honor to God? Are you ready for Him to use? Are you prepared for the work that God has called you to? Or, are you still a vessel that brings dishonor to God? Think About It
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