Consecrate Yourselves

"For I am the Lord your God. Consecrate yourselves therefore, and be holy, for I am holy. You shall not defile yourselves with any swarming thing that crawls on the ground." -Leviticus 11:44

     God is always up to something. Sometimes we see it and sometimes we decide not to. One of the most noticeable lessons I feel God is trying to convey to His people is living a life of Holiness. About a month and a half ago I felt God leading me to eventually teach on Holiness and after four weeks of being stirred on a certain message and verse, I was asked to teach the youth group. Given the curriculum I just thought the message from my heart was going to be put on hold and traded with another lesson. Well, as I looked at the lesson I couldn't help but notice that the Scriptural reference was the exact set I had been stirred about for multiple weeks. The set of Scripture was Isaiah 6. Where the Lord appears to Isaiah and Isaiah realized the Holiness of God and realized his sinfulness. Every time I would read the passage I would be filled with repentance and soon felt that relief of redemption. I would be up for hours praying and repenting for things that I had no clue was even apart of my life. I soon became acutely aware of the sins not the world, but the sins of the church. My heart breaking every time God spoke about the condition of His Bride. 
      I soon saw the weak points of the American church. I saw the label of American Church and wondered why we just aren't called the Church. I got the revelation that the label "American Church" is possessed because it does not have separate values than America itself. America is in my opinion one of the greatest countries in the world, but is lacking morality. The land that was founded on The Bible has turned its back on the roots and traded it for greed, corruption, lust, and deception. You can look coast to coast and really only see a select few churches that are Spirit-filled and deserve the title "Church" rather than the "American Church". I feel that title comes from the lack of Holiness that is possessed by its people. I am reading a book called " A Heart Ablaze" by John Bevere and it has section devoted to the misconception of Holiness. Bevere states that Holiness in previous centuries was represented purely by the physical. No make-up, short dresses, or anything that showed skins. However, today there is no difference between Christians and Heathens. You can put a Christian in a line-up and there would be no difference between the Atheists, Buddhists, Agnostics, and Muslims they stand in line with. Sadly, the lack of outward appearance of Holiness doesn't change on the inside. On the inside, as well, Christians are just as Holy as the ones they are trying to reach. This most of all breaks my heart and I'm confident God's too. 
      The one subject I felt God most grieved by is our perverse language and "jokes". I look at Christians, and myself am convicted, and see the topic of jokes and conversations is sexual. Yes, God created sex and all that shindig, HOWEVER, God specifically orders Christians to not degrade, pervert, and make sexual jokes. My eyes and heart has lately become open to it in myself and in the Church. The other night while praying about Holiness for the Church and to reveal the areas of my life that lack Holiness and I felt God just speak. I felt His still small voice say, " Do you know the Scripture that is most read but unapplied?" Shocked, I answered, "No". Then I saw Ephesian 5:4. For all of you (like myself in that moment) that are unaware of that Scripture it is , "nor should there be obscenity, foolish talk, or coarse joking, which are our of place, but rather Thanksgiving." Immediately after reading it I heard God say gently but firmly, " It is because My people lack and don't seek Holiness." My heart became heavy and those words have been ringing in my ears since. I became aware of the degrading of women amongst Christian men. I became aware that the Church would rather joke about it than confront or teach on it. Older Christians who have fallen to lust would rather joke and avoid it rather than empower teenage boys and girls with wisdom and accountability. 
        Just like Isaiah when he realized his sinfulness, God was willing to purify. Although God is disappointed and grieved, He is willing to purify and redeem from sin. I see the correlation of the Isaiah 6 and Holiness more than I thought there ever was. I feel in my spirit that God desires us to realize who He is and what He wants, be convicted of our wrongs, need and receive purity and forgiveness, and be put back on track to be "sent" and proclaim the Word of the Lord. In Leviticus 11:44, God says "consecrate yourselves", implying that we have a part in it. God honors our attempts to be Holy, but we have to consciously attempt to be Holy. I pray that Christians are challenged by this to live a more Holier life and just receive openly the areas of their lives God wants to morph and transform. 

"To know Christ is the way to grow in holiness. Christianity is not a religion of rules. It is the religion of the divine example. Try to follow the blessed steps of the most holy life. Take His advice. Ask yourself, in the moment of perplexity or temptation, what would He do if He were here? Nothing else will so surely lead us into the way of holy living. " -George Hodges