Excerpts from Sunday’s sermon
Psalm 139
There is absolutely no place to hide from God, God is everywhere. If we try to flee from him, he will still be there to lead and hold us.
Romans 13
Paul encourages us to die to flesh and live in the Spirit.
There are said to be 7 vices that result in sin that separate us from God. But thankfully there are also 7 Holy virtues that point us towards God and away from sin.
| 1 | Pride – arrogance, critical nature, contempt for others, selfishness, revolt against authority, and mockery. | We combat pride with humility – Be completely humble and gentle; be patient, bearing with one another in love. Ephesians 4:2 |
| 2 | Greed – says St. Thomas Aquinas is the denial of things eternal for the sake of worldly things. In other words, it is love of material things. It can lead to boasting, exploitation, fraud, and theft | Charity & love -1 Corinthians 13:4Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. |
| 3 | Lust –leads to derogatory language, inappropriate touching, sexual exploitation, and adultery. | Chastity- Matthew 5:28 Jesus stance is clear –“But I say to you that everyone who looks at a woman with lustful intent has already committed adultery with her in his heart”. 2 Timothy 1:7 For God gave us a spirit not of fear but of power and love and self-control. |
| 4 | Envy-is the sin of jealousy over the blessings and achievements of others. Leads to putting down someone because we are jealous of them, James 4 you desire and do not have, so you murder…fight and quarrel. | Gratitude – Be content with all the lord provides – thankful. Psalm 136:1 Ephesians 5:20 always giving thanks to God the Father for everything, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ. |
| 5 | Gluttony – drunkenness, overeating, over-indulgence, extreme love of one’s body and bodily comforts which leads to an egotistical nature and indifference to God and virtue, and addictions. | Temperance, self-control, moderation, discipline. Look to God as our joy and fulfilment. Titus 1:8 Ephesians 5:18 And do not get drunk with wine, for that is debauchery, but be filled with the Spirit, |
| 6 | Wrath – anger can lead to Irritability, seething, quarrelling, shouting, obscenities, cruel words, beating, pushing, malice hate, revenge, slander, passing judgement and ultimately murder. | Patience and love. 12 Therefore, as God’s chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience. Colossians 3;12 |
| 7 | Sloth – lazy resulting in impatience, taking offense easily, grumbling, giving up. Not giving time to prayer, bible study and worshiping God. Idle talk, improper jokes, and child neglect. | Diligence. Galatians 6:9 And let us not grow weary of doing good, for in due season we will reap, if we do not give up. Proverbs 13:4 – love it! The soul of the sluggard craves and gets nothing, while the soul of the diligent is richly supplied. |
To live in the Spirit, as Paul puts it, we must take an active role in battling temptations that draw us away from God.
Matthew 13
I have heard this parable described as ‘the parable of corruption among the kingdom community.’
It describes the work of an enemy who tried to destroy the work of the man who sowed good seed in his field. In real life it’s not always easy to spot the influence of evil and life is so much more complex. Evil is what makes good people do bad things.
Psalm 139 –
Our hope is to put our trust in the God who knows us intimately and loves us completely.
Matthew 13 & Psalm 139 –
Our hope is to acknowledge the influence of evil within and allow God to purge it from us before the day of judgement that is coming.
Paul’s letter to the Romans (chapter 8) –
Our hope is to acknowledge the guiding influence of the Holy Spirt, to lead Spirit filled lives. Amen.