Old Testament Scripture Reading: Psalms 17:1 – 6 (KJV)
Psa 17:1 A Prayer of David. Hear the right, O LORD, attend unto my cry, give ear unto my prayer, that goeth not out of feigned lips.
Psa 17:2 Let my sentence come forth from thy presence; let thine eyes behold the things that are equal.
Psa 17:3 Thou hast proved mine heart; thou hast visited me in the night; thou hast tried me, and shalt find nothing; I am purposed that my mouth shall not transgress.
Psa 17:4 Concerning the works of men, by the word of thy lips I have kept me from the paths of the destroyer.
Psa 17:5 Hold up my goings in thy paths, that my footsteps slip not.
Psa 17:6 I have called upon thee, for thou wilt hear me, O God: incline thine ear unto me, and hear my speech.
New Testament Scripture Reading: 1Peter 1:3 – 7 (KJV)
Rom 12:1 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.
Rom 12:2 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.
Rom 12:3 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.
Rom 12:4 For as we have many members in one body, and all members have not the same office:
Rom 12:5 So we, being many, are one body in Christ, and every one members one of another.
Transforming Power Statements:
1) Sanctification is not only a “New Testament” reality, however, the reliance on God’s Word and His gift of the Holy Spirit make the process a more certain reality for the believer; however, even in the Old Testament, believers like the Psalmist David, were called to live a separated life and be dependent on God’s forgiveness and acceptance as well as meditating in His Word to produce the sanctification which honors God.
2) As the Apostle Paul begins to come to a conclusion to the Epistle to the Romans, he admonishes us all to consider the supreme mercies of God in the provision of His perfect Son Jesus, and to be renewed in the spirit of our minds through communion, spiritual fellowship and study of the Word of God day by day and week by week!
3) With being able to walk with the confidence that God has invested in each of us who believe in Christ Jesus, not only His Son, but His Spirit and His Word which are the means by which we can all become transformed by the renewing of our minds, and through the fellowship of His Saints!