By TIMOTHY L. MELTON
Pastor of Cherokee Pentecostal Holiness Church
(Transcribed by Myra Colgate)
References: 2 Timothy 2:21, Galatians 2:20, 1 Peter 3:15, Hebrews 10:38, 11:6, 1 Thessalonians 6:23
I have set myself apart for God. If a person has set themselves apart for God, suddenly, the things of this world shouldn’t bother us. They just seem to fly by. It isn’t going to wreck one’s day because there’s a God in Heaven who’s already doing most all for us. One begins to realize our economy isn’t just the number of dollar bills in one’s pocket, but it’s also some of the riches of God’s Glory. My healing isn’t by the doctor or what he or she knows, my healing is by Jesus’ stripes He was given. He’s sitting at the Right Hand of God the Father. How do I know all of this, one asks? He has set me apart.
Purge yourselves and one becomes vessels of honor. Sanctified and met for the Master’s use. He will take hold of a person and begin to use them, granted with power and authority.
Does one want to become useful in the powerful hand of God? He had prepared people for every good work. That means some of us have been looking around and have been saying, “Why doesn’t God use me for this?” Could it be it’s because one isn’t ready for that work yet?
Here’s what He said, “When one starts getting sanctified, then, I start preparing them for every good work.”
What does this tell me? It tells me I’m not alone. There’s a God who’s willing to help get it done! I’m very glad! I’ve been working all these years. My wife can say, “I’m better than I’ve ever been, but I’ve still got a way to go. I’m not trying to do this all by myself and hoping to remain blameless.”
In Galatians 2:20; “I have died to myself. I am crucified with Christ, yet I still live.”
When one hears “Christ” think “Anointed”. It turns out it’s no longer me, but Christ who lives in me. Who is Christ? When one hears Christ, hear Anointed, Jesus, the Anointed One. Putting something in a vessel, we wouldn’t want to give anyone just an empty chocolate box with no chocolates in it. It’s not me, but the Anointing inside of me! It’s God in me. I live by the Faith of the Son of God. If I take another step, it’s because He ordained it. If I get out of bed, it’s because He woke me up.
What about those who don’t serve the Lord? They take steps and they get out of bed? Yes, they do, by the grace of God. Do you know while one is still dead in sin, the devil still tried to kill you, and yet, you didn’t die? Your own testimony is powerful. Don’t ever be ashamed of your yesterdays. I’m not ashamed of what I was. I’m not proud of it, but I am not ashamed of it. Do you know why? It’s because I was still a sinner, and I did what sinners do. I sinned until Jesus came along and turned it all around. I am now a saint of the Most High God.
I didn’t say that about me. He said about me, and you. You’re a vessel of honor. The Bible talks about vessels of dishonor, when one lives like hell, but God’s not calling us to live that way.
The world has dumped all this garbage on the inside of people. I lived that way long enough. Through sanctification God can take a vessel that nobody cared about. But God now has turned it all around. His Glory is poured out on the inside of you and God says, “You, I can use! I can use you everywhere and I can use you unto every good work! Why? Because you are full of His Glory! He’s giving you opportunities to house His Glory! He loves you! Did He not say your body is the Temple of the Lord? Whether or not you feel like it. You are the Temple of the Lord. Wherever one goes, the presence of the Lord goes with you. Sanctify yourselves and all the promises of God become yours.
