International Gospel Hour

Jeff Archey: How grateful to be set apart from this old hedonistic world, friends, but even greater that through the Christ we are set apart or sanctified with a purpose. Now stay with me today, our study is just ahead from the International Gospel Hour.

Jay Webb: Hi, this is Jay Webb for International Gospel Hour. Welcome to our broadcast today. For over 90 years, Churches of Christ have proclaimed God's word through our broadcasts. Just ahead is another Bible-based lesson with Jeff Archey of International Gospel Hour. Let's begin.

Jeff Archey: Well, thank you always to our Jay Webb, and greetings and hello everyone. We've got a great study just ahead, but I want to say something very quickly and right off the bat, I want to send you something absolutely free. Now, if you're new to our broadcast, know this: if we offer something, we will offer things to you that are absolutely free.

We do not solicit money from our listeners nor our viewers, and we love adding folks weekly to our broadcast. I want to thank you, so please be at ease when you listen to the programming from the International Gospel Hour. We're not going to ask for your money, but we do want to ask for your time and allow us to share from many of our great encouragers in our labors and some free offerings of materials. I'm going to give you one as we begin today. Here is our Jay Webb.

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Jeff Archey: Now come, friends, and let us consider the prayer life of Christ. You know, Jesus was a man of prayer. Mark 1:35 tells us that in the morning, rising up a great while before a day, he went out and departed into a solitary place and there prayed. As Jesus was ministering and serving daily, he paused for prayer, as we see from Luke 5:16. He withdrew himself into the wilderness and prayed.

And then at the end of the day, Jesus prayed, as Luke 6:12 tells us, he went out into a mountain to pray and continued all night. Daily prayer was quite evident in the life of Christ. With that said, let's take our attention to a prayer of Christ. In John 17, we see that beautiful prayer, and in verses 14 through 18, he says, "I have given them your word."

Jesus is praying to his Father, and he is referring to his apostles. "I have given them your word, and the world has hated them because they are not of the world, just as I am not of the world. I do not pray that you should take them out of the world, but that you should keep them from the evil one. They are not of the world, just as I am not of the world. Sanctify them by your truth. Your word is truth. As you sent me into the world, I have also sent them into the world."

Jesus is praying for his apostles, those who had walked with him, those he had chosen, and we note from this reading, this part of the prayer, the desire of the Christ to keep his apostles sanctified. I mean, here's a harsh reality from the world or those against Christ: they're going to be against his servants too. Notice Jesus in verse 15, "Keep them from the evil one."

Sanctify, or set them apart, for a purpose that is done through the truth, the word of God. So let's look a little deeper at this section of the prayer as we think about set apart living. You know, set apart living is powerful. The words "sanctify" and "sanctified" bring forth such definitions as innocence, modest, clean, clear. From the original language, we get the English word "catharsis," meaning a cleansing or a purifying, getting rid of impurities.

Sanctified gives one power and strength for our hearts. Matthew 5:8, "Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God." To be sanctified gives power and strength to our minds and thoughts. Philippians 4:8, to think on those things that are good, that are pure. Sanctified gives power and strength to all believers. 1st Timothy 4:12, that strength in word and in conversation or lifestyle, in charity or love, in peace and so on.

And sanctified gives us action, for in James 1:27, pure religion, religion that sets you apart for a purpose. "Pure religion and undefiled before God and the Father is this: to visit the fatherless and the widows in their affliction and to keep oneself unspotted from the world." You see, set apart or sanctified living is powerful. In this day and age, to be sanctified or set apart, it must be a strong desire and is necessary to be pleasing to God.

Through the Christ, one can rid oneself of the spiritual impurities that will fog our hearts and lives. It has that power, dear friends, and that set apart living. You see, not only are we set apart, but set apart for a purpose. Let's build on this. Let's go back to verse 15 of John 17, the latter part, "but that you should keep them from the evil one." So you see, set apart living is powerful, but it is also assuring.

Yes, there is evil in the world because of the one in the world, that is Satan, the old devil himself. He's called the prince of the world, but in John 12:31, Jesus said the prince will be cast out. In John 14:30, Jesus says that he has nothing on him. John 16:11, the prince of the world is already judged. We know of his fate, and it's not a winning side.

He's called the spirit that works in the children of disobedience, Ephesians 2:2. That is so true, friends. You can tell people are of the devil by the way they act. He's called the god of this world, and "god" there is in the lowercase. He's called the god of this world; he blinds the minds of them that believe not, 2nd Corinthians 4:4. Why does he do that? Well, let the verse continue: lest the glorious light of the gospel should shine unto them.

You see, one is set apart living from evil, one is set apart from evil living shall I say, but let's remember: the followers of Christ are in the world, but we're not to love the world. 1st John 2:15-17, "Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world. If any man loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life is not of the Father but is of the world. And the world passes away and the lust thereof, but he that does the will of God abides rather forever."

Romans 12:2, we're not to conform to this world, but to be transformed by the renewing of our minds. And we are reminded, those that wear the armor of God, the followers of Christ, Ephesians 6:10-18, that indeed, friends, we have on that armor because we are in warfare with the world. But you know, we have a lot of assurance that we're on the winning side. We have assurance that our Father is there.

You see, set apart living, that's powerful. It's assuring. I'll give you a third one. This one truly helps. Set apart living is guided. We have a lot of resource to keep us powerful and assured. I take us back to verse 17, "Sanctify them through thy truth. Thy word is truth." Set them apart for your purpose, Father. Thy word is truth.

In 1st Peter 3:15, Peter tells those Christians, "But sanctify," there it is again, "sanctify the Lord God in your hearts and be ready always to give an answer to every man that asks you a reason of the hope that is in you with meekness and fear." We're able to give those answers of the hope that is within us. When somebody says, "Why do you have hope in Christ?" Oh, that opens a great door.

When someone says, "Tell me about the Church of Christ. Tell me about his church." Oh, that opens a door. "Tell me about your salvation." That opens a door. Over 125 times in scriptures, we find the word "sanctification," "sanctify," and "sanctified," and how the word is truth that sets us apart. It's truth that we can know, John 8:32.

And in 1st Timothy 2:3-4, "For this is good and acceptable in the sight of God our Savior, who will have all men to be saved and to come unto the knowledge of the truth." Friends, do not let anybody, do not let any other religious broadcast—yes, I stated it—don't let any other religious broadcast tell you you cannot know the truth when God has made it possible through his beautiful word.

Friends, you take out all the long names that you and I read in scripture; the average word is about five letters long. Easy to understand, and God's word is simple, and my, how it is acceptable and accessible. You see, set apart living, sanctified living, set apart, it's powerful, it's assuring, and it's guided. To God be the glory.

Friends, before we wrap up our broadcast, I'm going to defer once again to our Jay Webb. We have another free gift for you: a great Bible study, a great booklet we've just recently added to our offers here at International Gospel Hour. Here is our Jay Webb with those details.

Jay Webb: Our free gift today is From My Heart To Yours, a wonderful booklet that speaks of such topics as God, Christ, sin, salvation, and the church we read of in scripture. You may call 855-444-6988 and leave your name, address, and just say "Heart Book." You may also go to our website at internationalgospelhour.com, click on the contact tab, and leave us the same information: name, address, and type "Heart Book" in the message box. Reach out for your free study booklet today.

Jeff Archey: The prayer of Jesus Christ from John 17 teaches so much, friends, and it reminds us of the life of sanctification through Christ and through his word and our obedience. That set apart living that changes our lives for the good. Before we can be faithful unto Christ, we must be obedient unto Christ.

His command of faith in John 8:24, his command of repentance in Luke 13:3, the command of confession in Matthew 10:32 and 33, his command of baptism, Mark 16:16. Let us pursue Christ today. We'll continue these studies together at another time, but thank you for joining me on the International Gospel Hour. I'm Jeff Archey, and friends, keep listening.

Jay Webb: Thank you for listening to our broadcast today, and we hope you continue onward with your search and study of God's word. Please join us next time and visit our website at internationalgospelhour.com.