How You May Sanctify Yourself

Now this is the last of our series this morning on: The beauty of holiness. Now we have dealt with three successive themes which I will briefly review.

First of all that God is a holy God and that he demands holiness in his people.

Secondly that God has made full provision for his people to receive holiness. This provision is in seven aspects which are stated on the second outline: Christ, the cross, the Holy Spirit, the blood of Jesus, the word of God, our faith and our works.

Thirdly we saw how this provision works out in our lives. It commences with God's foreknowledge and his choice of us in Christ. Then the Holy Spirit moves in and begins to sanctify us even before we know salvation, draws us, separates us and reveals God and Christ to us.

Thirdly we are brought to the place where we hear the preaching of the Gospel. We're confronted with the cross and at the message of the cross we have to make a decision for or against. We have to receive or to reject. If we submit to the message of the cross then the blood of Jesus is sprinkled upon us and we are sanctified by that sprinkled blood. That little boy down there, would you stop rolling around please. Okay? Good.

Fourthly: After the blood comes the washing of water by the word. We are sanctified continually by this New Testament laver which is the word of God, a laver of brass, a mirror in which we look and as we look we judge ourselves and we are changed. As we look again in this mirror we behold the glory of the Lord and beholding the glory in the mirror we are changed by the Spirit into the likeness of that which we behold. Then we work out, by faith, and in our daily living the truth that we have learned in the word. Now in this final study I want to deal with the question: How you may sanctify yourself. An obligation which God's word places upon you. The Scripture says: Sanctify yourself. Let us begin, where I believe we should always begin, with the pattern of the Lord Jesus Christ. Uh, some of you probably do not understand that Jesus was the first one to be sanctified. Some of you might wonder how Jesus could be sanctified but if you will turn to John chapter 10 and verse 36 you will see this statement made by the Lord Jesus Christ. John chapter 10 verse 36. Now this is in the middle of a discourse of Jesus and I'm not going to go into the background because time does not permit but Jesus is talking to the Jews and he says this:

“Say ye of him, whom the Father hath sanctified and sent into the world: Thou blasphemest because I said, I am the Son of God?”

Jesus is speaking about himself and he makes these two statements: The Father sanctified me and sent me into the world. What does that mean? It means this and I put it there in the outline. God the Father chose Jesus for a special task which no one else could fulfill and set him apart for that task from all others, that's the sanctifying and sent him into the world to fulfill that task which was man's redemption. So we see there are three facts about Jesus, each of which is a pattern for our personal relationship with God. God chose Jesus, he sanctified him, set him apart and he sent him to fulfill a certain task. Now the sanctification of Jesus did not begin with Jesus, it began with God the Father. God the Father sanctified the Son but there came a moment in the earthly ministry of Jesus where he in turn had to sanctify himself to the purpose for which God the Father had already sanctified him. Now you'll find this in John 17, John 17 verse 19 speaking of those who believed on him, his disciples, Jesus said this:

“For their sakes I sanctify myself, that they also might be sanctified through the truth.”

Notice Jesus is the forerunner of sanctification. He sanctified himself that in turn we who believe in him might likewise be sanctified. What did Jesus mean when he said: I sanctify myself. He said: I recognize the Father's task, I recognize the Father's choice and by my own choice and decision I now set myself apart to the task which the Father has given me which is the redemption of the world through my sacrificial death on the cross. So the sanctification of Jesus began with the Father's choice but was made effective by the response of the Son. Now this is the pattern of sanctification. Notice what is stated about Jesus in his earthly ministry and each one of these statements that we look at is a pattern of what it means to be sanctified unto God. Psalm 40 verses 7 and 8 and these words are quoted in Hebrews chapter 10 and applied to Jesus but we will look at them in Psalm 40 verses 7 and 8. It says in Psalm 40 verse 6:

“Sacrifice and offering thou didst not desire, burnt offering and sin offering thou hast not required.”

That is setting aside the offerings of the mosaic law as being inadequate. The writer of Hebrews says: The law made nothing perfect.

Then comes Jesus, verse 7:

“Then said I, Jesus, Lo, I come: in the volume of the book it is written of me, I delight to do thy will, O God: yea, thy law is within my heart.”

When you are sanctified, doing God's will becomes your delight. You have to be able to say: I am coming Lord, it's written in the volume of the book, you have a task for me, I delight to do your will. Then look in John chapter 6 and verse 38, John 6:38, again Jesus is speaking and he says this:

“For I came down from heaven, not to do mine own will, but the will of him that sent me.”

Jesus specifically came, sent by the Father, to do the Father's will. He set himself apart, not to do his will but to do the Father's will. This is our pattern. John 14:9:

“Jesus saith unto him [that is Philip] ‘Have I been so long time with you, and yet hast thou not known me? He that hath seen me hath seen the Father.”

In doing the Father's will he revealed the Father. This is true of you and me. In doing the will of God we reveal God and then in John 17:4 Jesus says again speaking to the Father:

“I have glorified thee on the earth, I have finished the work which thou gavest to me, me to do.”

In doing God's will and finishing God's work Jesus also glorified the Father. This is the pattern: He came not to do his own will but the will of him that sent him. His delight was to do the Father's will. In doing the Father's will he perfectly revealed the Father and also perfectly glorified the Father. This is the end of sanctification. It is to do the will of God, reveal God and glorify God and we do it in that measure in which we follow the pattern of the Lord Jesus Christ. Now notice going on in John 17 and here's a reference that isn't in the outline but it's a good one. John 17 verse 18:

“As thou hast sent me into the world, even so have I also sent them into the world.”

In other words: The relationship between the Father and the Son is repeated in the relationship between Jesus and his disciples. Just as the Father sent the Son so the Son sends his disciples, the resa, the relationship is exactly parallel. Sanctification proceeds this way: The same relationship that existed between the Father and the Son must be reproduced between the Son and his disciples. For the Son in turn who was sent by the Father into the world now sends his disciples into the world. As thou hast sent me into the world, even so. Exactly in the same way have I also sent them and this is repeated in John chapter 20 and verse 21. John chapter 20, verse 21:

“Then said Jesus to them again: Peace be unto you. As my Father hath sent me, even so send I you.”

The Father chose Jesus, sanctified Jesus, sent him into the world. Jesus came not to do his own will but the will of the Father. He delighted to do the Father's will. In doing the Father's will he revealed the Father and glorified the Father. Now Jesus says in precisely the same way: As the Father sent me I am sending you. To do what? The will of Jesus. To delight to do his will in doing his will to reveal him and to glorify him.

Now let's look in Hebrews 2:11 and we see that this is applied specifically to the process of sanctification. Hebrews 2:11:

“For both he, that sanctifieth and they who are sanctified are all of one.”

Now you've got to get the right person to the right pronoun. He who sanctifies is Jesus. They who are sanctified are the disciples and the one from whom they all proceed is the Father. In other words: All sanctification proceeds from the Father. The Father sanctified Jesus, Jesus in turn sanctifies his disciples. The relationship that began in eternity between the Father and the Son is reproduced in time between the Son and his disciples. Our sanctifying ourselves is exactly parallel to the way in which Jesus sanctified himself. Our sanctification does not begin with us, it does not begin with our will, it does not begin with our choice, it begins with God's choice of us but we must respond to God's choice, we must respond to God's will in precisely the same way as Jesus did. This is our sanctification.

Now we come then to the second part of the outline which is your response to God's choice. Look at those scriptures there which make it so clear that God's choice initiated the whole process. John 15 verse 16 Jesus says very clearly to his disciples:

“Ye have not chosen me. The choice did not begin with you but I have chosen you.”

The choice began with 'me'. Just as the Son did not choose himself, the Father chose the Son, likewise the Son chooses you and me.

We did not come to Christ because we chose Christ first, Christ chose us, then we responded to his choice. For me it is a most solemn realization that I didn't choose Jesus, Jesus chose me and he chose me for a specific task which no one else can do. If that doesn't make you feel responsible you don't have a sense of value. Now in Ephesians 2:10 the same truth is brought again and further developed. Ephesians 2:10:

“For we are his workmanship, God's workmanship.”

The Greek word is 'poiema' which gives us the English word 'poem' and I think the suggestion is: We are God's masterpiece. Isn't that thrilling? Actually that is the truth as I understand Scripture the church is the masterpiece of all God's created activity in all ages. The summit of everything, the masterpiece of all that he's ever accomplished is you and I but I don't feel proud about that, I feel humble. We are his masterpiece, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God hath before ordained and it means ordained before the foundation of the world, that we should walk in them.

You understand that God chose us, he created us, he formed us, he sent us and he sent us each one with a specific work to do. I cannot say this too emphatically to every believer in Christ here: God has some good work that he chose for you to do before the world was ever founded. How solemn it is and how important it is that you find the work that God has for you to do. Jesus said, we quoted it before: I have not chosen you but ye, uh, ye have not chosen me but I have chosen you that you should go and bring forth fruit and that your fruit should remain. The only kind of enduring fruit that we can bring forth is the fruit that is the expression of God's choice. If you go around busy in your own efforts and will and strength to do what you wish to do all you'll bring forth is wood, hay and stubble and in the day of God's judgment it will be burnt up in front of your eyes. The only enduring thing that you can do for God is the very thing that God chose you to do. He created you in Christ Jesus unto good works which God before ordained that you should walk in them.

So your responsibility is not to decide what you should do. It's to find out what God has already decided for you to do and here, I must say, we have a departure from the practice of contemporary Christianity because most contemporary Christianity consists in holding committee meetings to decide what we ought to do. I've been in a mission, it was a good mission, oversea and I've never been in so many committee meetings in so few years in all my life. I used to say to my brethren: We stagger out of one crisis just in time to stagger into the next. We sit and decide what we ought to do and that is not what we should be doing. It isn't we who make the decision. What we find out is what God has already decided. That's what matters. Now how do you do this? I want to make this as practical as you, as I can possibly do it. I believe the, the clearest answer that I know of is found in Romans chapter 12, Romans chapter 12. I'm going to read the first six verses and then expound them to you systematically. Romans chapter 12 verses 1 through 6:

“I beseech you therefore.”

Now you've probably heard me say: When you find a 'therefore' in the Bible you want to find out what it's there for and this 'therefore' follows on from Romans chapter 11 which speaks about the unsearchable riches of the knowledge and wisdom and grace of our God. In the light of this revelation of God's grace, his unsearchable wisdom Paul then says: Now the only logical and reasonable response that you can make is to present your body a living sacrifice. We'll read it:

“I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service.”

It's the least that you can do in the light of what God has done. It's not fanaticism, it's not extremism, it's reasonable and logical that you should do that. Verse 2:

“And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God.”

Verse 3:

“For I say, through the grace given unto me, to every man that is among you, not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think; but to think soberly, according as God hath dealt to every man the measure of faith. For as we have many members in one body and all members have not the same office, function or duty: So we, being many, are one body in Christ and every one members one of another. Having then gifts differing according to the grace that is given to us, whether prophecy, let us prophesy...”

And so on. And it mentions seven different, possible gifts. Now this is the logical order and I want to unfold it for you.

First step: In the light of God's mercy, in the light of God's grace revealed in Christ there is only one logical and reasonable response that you can make. It's stated in verse 1: You present your body to God and I mean your body. You present your body to God just as really as Jesus presented his body to God on the cross. You present your body a living sacrifice. Why does Paul say a living sacrifice? He's thinking of the Old Testament where before an animal was offered on the altar it was first killed and then laid dead upon God's altar but he says: You are not killed but you place your body on the altar still alive but it's just as much on the altar, it's just as real a sacrifice and it's just as really your body that God requires as it was the body of the sheep or the ox in the Old Testament. The only difference is: In the Old Testament the body was killed and then placed on the altar, in the New Testament you take your physical body and place it on the altar of God's service, the place of sacrifice, the place where your own life, will and choice ends and God's will and choice begin. This is the only reasonable response that you can make to God's mercy. Notice Matthew, keep your finger in Romans 12, notice Matthew 23:19 which contains a wonderful secret about sanctification. Matthew 23:19, uh, we'll read verse 18 just to get the context. Jesus is pointing out the foolishness and inconsistency of the rabbinic teaching of the Jews in his days and he says:

They say: Whosoever shall swear by the altar, it is nothing; but whosoever sweareth by the gift that is upon the altar, he is guilty. In other words: It doesn't matter if you swear by the altar, then you can get away with it, you don't have to keep what you swear but if you swear by the gift that's on the altar then you're guilty. Isn't that ridiculous. And Jesus says:

Ye fools and blind: for which is greater, the gift, or the altar that sanctifieth the gift? Now there's a tremendous secret. It's the altar that sanctifies the gift. The gift doesn't sanctify the altar. The altar sanctifies the gift. When does your body become sanctified? When you place it on the altar and not until. It's the altar that sanctifies the gift and any time you take your body off the altar your sanctification is broken. It's only contact with the altar that sanctifies the offering that is placed upon it. If you want your body sanctified you must deliberately place it on God's altar and keep it there. All right, go back to Romans 12. Now the result of placing your body upon the altar is a change in your mind. This isn't the way the natural man would reason. He .. : I'll change my mind first and then act with my body but God says: No, give me your body and I'll change your mind. Verse 2:

As a result: Be not conformed to this world. Don't continue to live and act like the people of this world but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. You will get a new mind, your mind will be changed, your thought processes will be changed, your values will be changed, your standards will be changed, your ideals will be changed, your ambitions will be changed, your whole way of thinking will be changed. When? When you place your body on the altar, then the Holy Spirit will begin to sanctify you and change the way you think and listen: With this renewed mind you will prove what is the good, acceptable and perfect will of God. To prove means to find out in experience God's will for your life. Until you place your body on the altar your mind is not renewed and until your mind is not renewed you cannot find out God's will for your life. It is only the renewed mind that can understand the will of God. The Bible says: The carnal mind, the unregenerate mind, the unrenewed mind is enmity against God. A mind that is at enmity with God cannot ascertain the will of God. That's why multitudes of believers are floundering around uncertain of God's will. They have never been renewed in their mind because they have never placed their body on the altar and only the renewed mind can find out in experience what is the will of God. And notice the will of God is in three successive phases. It's good. God never wills never evil for you. The devil will tell you that if you sacrifice your life to God you're going to suffer, you're going to give up things, you're going to loose things, things are going to be pretty hard. That's a lie. The will of God is good.

Secondly: It's acceptable. When you come to appreciate it, you'll enjoy it, you'll accept it.

Thirdly: It's perfect. It includes every detail and aspect of your life. There are no accidents, there are no omissions, there's nothing that's unprovided for in the will of God. It is a perfect provision for you to do what God has called you to do. All right. Now when you are renewed in your mind the next result follows which is found in verse 3:

I say, through the grace given unto me, to every man that is among you, not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think. Pride does not belong in the renewed mind. You don't any longer puff yourself up and make yourself the center of everything. It's not my will but thine be done.

You have to think soberly, according as God hath dealt to each one a measure of faith. When you are renewed in your mind and you enter into the will of God you make another wonderful discovery: That God has given you precisely the measure of faith that you need to do his will.

One almost certain sign that a christian is not in the will of God is this: That he's continually struggling for faith. If you are having a continual struggle to faith it's almost sure you're trying to do something that God doesn't want you to do because when your mind is renewed you discover God's will, you also discover that God has given you precisely that measure of faith which is needed to do the thing that God wants you to do.

Now God has got for each one of us a certain measure of faith. The measure of faith corresponds exactly to the job he has for us to do. Many, many years ago my wife left a good position and home in Denmark, as a single woman went out to Palestine, rented a little room in Jerusalem and started to take in children. She had no promise of support from any church or institution. When she took the first little dying baby she had about six dollars in her purse and no promise of more but through twenty years she maintained that home and those children. They never wanted food or clothing.

Now many, many times I have thought to myself: I could never have done that but you see God didn't ask me to do it, ha, and my wife has said to me many times: I could never do it now, ha, but then God isn't asking her to do it now. But when God asked her to do it he gave her the faith to do it. And when you're doing the thing that God wants you to do God will make sure you've got the faith to do it. If there's a struggle for faith it's almost a certain indication that you're not fully in line with God's will.

You know when I'm moving in the will of God I do things that surprise me, do you do that? I mean, I make commitments that astonish me. If I stop and think what I've done I begin, my heart sinks. But I didn't even have time to think about it. You see walking in the Spirit is not a sort of set of rules. Do I put my left leg forward now or my right, it's a natural flowing, it's effortless.

One of the things about the Holy Spirit I like is, he's compared to olive oil. Have you ever seen olive oil? It's never jerky, hahaha, it flows more smoothly than anything else I know and when we move in the Spirit there is a smooth, sweet flow, there's not a lot of effort, an agony.

All right, verses 4 and 5, the next stage. We discover that we are members of a body. The body is the body of Jesus Christ and everyone of us is a member. Now when I am renewed in my mind and I find that I have the right proportion of faith what's the next thing that happens? I find my place in the body.

I discover what God wants me to be: A thumb, a toenail, an eyelash, a nose, an ear, a kidney whatever it may be. I suddenly find that I've got a specific place and a specific function in the body and I cannot be happy till I'm in the place and doing the job that God wants me to do. It isn't for you to choose your place in the body. The Scripture says: God has set the members in the body as it pleased him.

Now another sure cause of frustration in the life of the believer is trying to be a member that God didn't set you to be. See my hand operates beautifully when I want to make a hand out of it but if I want to treat it like a foot I run into all sorts of problems and if you are having continual problems, the indications are that you're a foot trying to be a hand, or a ear trying to be a nose.

You've not found your place in the body and you won't find your place in the body till you're renewed in your mind and you won't be renewed in your mind until you put your body on the altar. You can't get around that altar. There's no way pass the altar.

All right, the last stage. When you have found your place in the body, praise God, you begin to discover that you're exercising the gifts needed to do that job.

Now I fully believe in what brother Wendel preached last night that we need the gifts of the Spirit, that we are to covet earnestly the best gifts and what brother Bum, Mumford says many times: The gifts are not toys, they're tools, they're essential.

But friend you don't grab for some gifts floating through the air because you think it looks nice. You find what your job is and then you find that you've got a certain gift that enables you to do that job. The gifts are related to your place in the body. Till you find your place in the body you will never really be able to exercise spiritual gifts the way you should.

So let's go through the, the process once again, then we'll move on to our conclusion. Starting Romans chapter 12 verse 1 again, what's the first step: You present your body on God's altar and keep it there.

Number two: As a result you are renewed in your mind. You begin to think differently, you reason differently, you evaluate differently, you're changed in your inner attitudes and relationships. Thinking differently you find out God's will for your life.

Finding God's will for your life you discover that God has given you precisely the measure of faith needed to do his will. Having that measure of faith in operation you find your place appointed by God for you in the body and you begin to function as what you were intended to be in the body.

Finding your place and fulfilling your function you discover that the gifts that you need come into operation to enable you to do the job that you could not do without those gifts.

People say to me sometimes: "Brother Prince how shall I enter into the exercise of spiritual gifts?" And I always answer them something like this: If all you want to do is sit in church and sing hymns you don't need any spiritual gifts to do that but if you're willing to take your place in the body and begin to minister as God has set you in the body God will never let you down. Almost without your trying or struggling you'll find these gifts begin to come into operation.

Get out on a limb for God, put yourself in a place in his will and service where you can't do the job without the gift and God will see you get the gift.

God gave me the gift of discerning of spirits when I was first baptized in the Holy Spirit but I used it very little for many years until I came to the place where I was helping people who needed deliverance from evil spirits. The gift almost atrophied in me because I didn't use it. What's the good of having a gift if it is not functionally useful. You must find your function. The gift follows the function not the function the gift.

All right, now we assume that you've taken these steps, you've discovered that God has a special plan for your life, a special work for you to do. Isn't that thrilling? Doesn't that make Christianity exciting. You don't get excited about that I think there's something wrong with you. As far as I'm concerned that's what makes Christianity exciting. It also makes it very real, very earnest, very important.

Let me read my outline: As God's will and purpose are progressively revealed to you, and bear in mind it's progressive, you don't see it all at one time, as you walk in obedience more and more light and revelation come to you. The way to greater light is to obey the light you already have.

As God's will and purpose are progressively revealed to you, you shape your whole conduct and life to fulfill God's purpose. Everything in your life is shaped towards the end of fulfilling God's purpose. God's purpose becomes your solemn goal and ambition. You become like an athlete.

Let's look at two statements of Paul. Acts 24:16, Acts 24:16, Paul says this:

“Herein do I exercise myself, to have always a conscience void of offense toward God, and toward men.”

Paul exercised himself, the word is used of athletes, he disciplined himself, he controlled his reactions, he watched his attitudes and relationships to other persons, he was determined to have always a conscience void of offense toward God and men. Never would he be in a wrong relationship to any other person, God or men.

You know what I believe? I believe it takes exercise. If you don't make it your aim you'll not achieve it. I must say as far as I know myself: It is my sincere endeavor to avoid offense to God or men. If I offend people it is not deliberately and if I do it by foolishness I repent.

I have learned that Christianity is based on personal relationships. Did you know that? The proof that you're a christian is not the doctrine you believe, it's the relationships you have. Christianity is a religion of personal relationships. You cannot be right with God if you're wrong with your neighbour. There's no way to do it. And you cannot be right with God and men unless you exercise yourself to do it.

If it took exercise by the apostle Paul it'll take exercise by you and me. The other statement of Paul is in first Corinthians chapter 9, first Corinthians 9 verses 24 through 27:

“Know ye not that they which run in a race run all, but one receiveth the prize? So run, that ye may obtain.”

Run to win.

“Every man that striveth for the mastery in athletic contests is temperate [or self controlled] in all things.”

He disciplines his body in every area, isn't that right?

“Now they do it to obtain a corruptible crown, a laurel reap, but we an incorruptible crown laid up for us in glory.”

Paul said in Philippians:

“I press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus.”

Verse 26 says:  

“I, therefore run, not as uncertainly.”

I know what I'm running for, I have a goal, I have a mark, I have an objective, I'm not .. , uncertain, up one day and down the next, headed to the right one moment and to the left another, I run a steady course because I got a mark set before me.

I fight not as one that beateth the air. I don't lash out with my blows at random, I aim to hit the devil. Verse 27:

“I keep under my body and bring it into subjection.”

Notice your body is got a part in this. You cannot let your body rule you and be an overcoming christian. My good friend Don Basham, with whom I work closely, about two years ago God showed him that he was in some measure the slave of his stomach and he never eats breakfast now at all. Been with him in many places. He's lost a good many pounds in weight and without even seeking it he was healed of a long standing physical complaint and he said this to me, he said: I don't allow my body to tell me when to eat, I tell my body when to eat. There's a lot of difference.

What is the body in your life? Is it the servant or is it the master?

Paul said:

“I keep my body under control...”

The picture is taken from an athlete. You know that any athlete in the world today that's going to succeed has got to exercise the most tremendous, consistent discipline and self control. Isn't that right? No person can participate in the Olympic Games unless he's disciplined in the whole of his physical body and Paul says the same applies to us. We've got to have a mark and we've got to de, devote and direct our whole energy and determination toward achieving that mark.

I was once a very keen ballet fan and I have known a good many ballet dancers and I was once friendly with a lady who's one of the leading dancers of the world. I knew her when she was a girl of sixteen and I know why she became a prima ballerina because I know that everything in her life was subjected to the one aim of being the best dancer she could ever be. The things she ate, the friends she cultivated, the books she read, the exercise she took: All was subjected to one supreme ambition which she achieved.

I've known a lot of other ballet dancers that never made it to the top. They lacked that single minded determination and that willingness to subject everything to that one goal. Exactly the same applies in Christianity. When we see the mark, when we realize that God has got a task for us to do that no one else can do then our response must be a single minded dedication to fulfilling the task of God.

This is sanctification. I sanctify myself by deliberate choice of my will I set myself apart, first to God, second for the task that God has for me and nothing in my life is going to be allowed to stand in my way or to keep me from fulfilling that task. Anything that comes between me and the fulfillment of my task is unholy for me. It may not be unholy for you but it is unholy for me.

That's why we cannot judge all others in every respect. There are things that I cannot do that you might be free to do because I know the task that God has given me. He called me many, many years ago, deliberately and specifically to a certain ministry and I have systematically shaped and molded my life over something like twenty five years to fulfill that ministry.

I have to be very, very careful about the books that I read. I used to be a great reader. Today I read very few books except the Bible because whatever gets into my mind comes out of my mouth. I just have no other way. I cannot think about a thing without speaking about it, I'm just built that way. Therefore I have to be very, very, very careful that I don't start thinking about things that I don't want to speak about.

I'll tell you I do not clutter my mind up with a lot of unnecessary furniture. I keep it as clear as I can. Now you might be able to meet rent, read many books that God would say 'no' to me. We are not to judge one another.

Sanctification friends is not a set of rules, it's not: You mustn't go here, you mustn't eat this, you mustn't drink that, you mustn't listen to the radio or watch the television or go to the movies. Blow all that. Sanctification is a, hahaha. Sanctification is a single hearted devotion to God and to your task, amen, glory to God.

I think that's enough. Now wait a minute now. We've got about three minutes left and I never let three minutes go unused. Furthermore I promised God that I would never preach a message like this without people giving an opportunity to respond. It's not fair.

So sit quietly for a moment, don't be busy with other things or other people, just for another two minutes and I want to put this question to you: Have you ever presented your body to God?

Have you ever deliberately, without reservation said: "God, here's my body, you have it, it's yours". Because that's the beginning of the whole process that I've described and if you've never done it without emotion or display, would you decide to do it right now. If you would and this is a sincere decision that you'll abide by, I'd like you to stand to your feet. Now some of you've done it. You do not need to do it again. Some of you are not certain, don't do it till you're sure but if you really mean it, this is just as solemn as signing your name on an application form to become a member of the United States Olympic team, it's a commitment to a way of life.

All right, would you lift one hand with me and say:

"Lord Jesus Christ, I did not choose you but you chose, me for a specific task, that you want me to fulfill. I now accept your choice, I present my body to you, a living sacrifice. Renew me in my mind, and make known to me, your will for my life, and as you reveal this to me, I will set myself apart, to you, and to your task, by your grace, in Jesus name. Amen."

Now just thank him and praise him. Thank you Jesus, thank you Lord, thank you Lord, thank you Jesus, praise your wonderful name, praise you.