II Corinthians 7:1 (NKJV)  1 Therefore, having these promises, beloved, let us cleanse ourselves from all filthiness of the flesh and spirit, perfecting holiness in the fear of God

Perfecting Holiness Today we introduce our theme for 2018 “Perfecting Holiness” comes from II Corinthians 7:1 We will have lessons on the first Sunday of the month that will be centered around our theme

Perfecting Holiness As we introduce our theme today, our goal will be to simply help us understand the text We will look at II Corinthians 7:1 and hope to understand what Paul means by this phrase This should guide our understanding of where we want to go in 2018

Context Of The Text One of the first places to being in seeking to understand a Bible passage is the context Any verse can be taken out of context and used to mean whatever a person intends “A text without context is just a pretext for whatever you want it to mean”

Context Of The Text II Corinthians 6:11-13 Paul had been very open with them, spoken openly and loved them openly Sadly, they had not returned the favor to Paul, as some had doubted him and not defended the attacks against his apostleship

Context Of The Text II Corinthians 6:14-18 Paul tells them that they should not be “unequally yoked together with unbelievers” There is a thought of oxen being yoked together, they must be similar if they are to work together in a positive way

Context Of The Text The Christian cannot be equally yoked together with pagans (which is what the Corinthians struggled with) Did Christ make a deal with Satan, or team up with Him in His work? What agreement does the Christian have with the non-Christian?

Context Of The Text The church is the temple of God, it is where He dwells We are His people, He walks among us “Therefore” we are to come out from among the world and separate ourselves from them, not touching that which is unclean

Context Of The Text It’s a very simple concept that God wants us to separate ourselves from the world and find ourselves one with Him “do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed…” (Rom. 12:2) He is our Father and we are His sons and daughters

Our Text II Corinthians 7:1 “Therefore, having these promises, beloved, let us cleanse ourselves from all filthiness of the flesh and spirit, perfecting holiness in the fear of God” Paul says it begins with cleansing ourselves from all “filthiness of the flesh and spirit”

Our Text This will allow us to ultimately do what Paul commands here “perfecting holiness in the fear of God” Perfecting – to bring an activity to a successful finish; to complete, to finish, to end, to accomplish

Our Text Holiness – moral purity; sacred; pure; dedicated to being like God Our aim and goal is to be like God, not like the world Paul is admonishing the Corinthians (as well as us) to bring to completion our quest to be like God

Our Text The idea is one that carries with it dedication It will not happen suddenly or overnight or just within a few weeks or months We must be sold on the idea of pushing ourselves to become more and more like our God each and every day (Phil. 3:12-14)