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Trinity Community Church
Trinity Community Church
The Passion Project - Living In Glass Houses
What if the world could see your faith lived out—unfiltered and unhidden? In Living in Glass Houses, Pastor Tyler Lynde explores Nehemiah 11 and the powerful call for believers to live lives of visible holiness.
As Jerusalem’s walls were rebuilt, the city still needed to be filled with people willing to live there. While the leaders led the way, others had to be chosen by lot to repopulate the holy city. Tyler unpacks why so many hesitated: living in Jerusalem meant living under constant watch. It was a city set apart, and living there came with heightened expectations. The parallels to modern Christian life are striking—we too are called to live as a “city on a hill,” with our lives pointing others to God.
Holiness is not optional for the believer—it’s our identity. But it doesn’t begin with behavior; it begins with God. Tyler points to Isaiah’s vision in chapter 6, where the prophet encounters God’s holiness and is immediately undone. That same holiness still transforms today. As Scripture teaches, everything God is and does is utterly holy—and those who belong to Him are called to reflect that.
Drawing from 1 Timothy 4:12, Tyler breaks down five areas where holiness shows up: speech, conduct, love, faith, and purity. Holiness isn’t just about avoiding sin—it’s about becoming like Christ in every aspect of our lives.
But here’s the freedom: we don’t have to manufacture holiness ourselves. Tyler reminds us that Jesus, the only one to live a perfectly holy life, offers His holiness to us through the cross. And through the Holy Spirit, we’re empowered to live in a way that’s not just outwardly different, but inwardly transformed. Romans 8 says the same Spirit that raised Christ now lives in us—that’s the power we rely on.
Living transparently, with nothing to hide, isn’t about performance—it’s about reflection. When we live holy lives, others get a glimpse of Jesus. And in a world filled with pretense, that kind of authenticity is deeply compelling.
The question is: will we embrace our “glass house”? Will we accept the call to holiness, not as a burden but as an opportunity to shine with the light of Christ?
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Mark did an excellent job last week of showing us the renewal of the covenant between God and his people After the wall was finished and people came to a point of repentance and realizing their need for God again, and then this covenant was struck between them and God and, kind of springboarding off of that, today's message is called Living in Glass Houses Living in Glass Houses. So let's look at Nehemiah, chapter 11, verses 1 and 2, and that's what we're going to read Nehemiah 11, verses 1 and 2. Now the leaders of the people lived in Jerusalem and the rest of the people cast lots to bring one out of ten to live in Jerusalem, the holy city, while nine out of ten remained in the other towns, and the people blessed all the men who willingly offered to live in Jerusalem. Now there's a lot more in this chapter and there's about a gazillion names, okay, and we've made comments each week about the names and the pronunciation of the names.
Tyler Lynde:Why are the names listed for us in scripture, especially in the Old Testament? Well, there's a reason. The reason is because we can trace the line, the lineage of Jesus, all the way from Adam and all the way to Joseph and Mary and to Jesus himself, and so those names are very significant and important. Also, the people who were the people of God, the Jewish nation, were represented, are represented in those names and also, on top of that, these are individual people who are obedient to the call, and so they're given commendation, if that makes sense, in these different chapters. So I know we've been reading in our Bible reading plan through the Old Testament. We've kind of landed in Chronicles as of late a little bit, and there's a lot of names, a lot of names. But if you can think about it in terms of why they're there and how they draw a connection point between Jesus and even all the way back to the Garden of Eden, it's so important and so impactful. All right, so let's pray. Father, we thank you for this day, we thank you that you're here with us, thank you for your presence that is here. Lord, we ask you that you would continue to work and do what only you can do in this service Change our hearts, change our minds. Do exactly. We ask that your will would come to pass in every way in Jesus' name, amen, amen. So, if you don't know, I am a card-carrying member of. How do I say this? I'm a PK. I'm a PK. What is a PK? I'm a preacher's kid. I'm a pastor's kid. Not only that, but I have four children, and guess what they are? They're PKs as well.
Tyler Lynde:Right, and then we have another generation, which we just spent a few days with in Florida, and I've discerned. My daughter, hannah, came up with a great wisdom on a Wednesday when we were all attempting to do the next thing. That comes with a house full of people and a bunch of little kids, right, and she said. Somebody said to her use the word vacation, and she said oh no, this is not a vacation, this is a trip. There's a difference between a trip and a vacation. I didn't discern that before now, but now I know. A trip is something that has an agenda, where everything moves according to a certain you know, movement, and it's basically. Everything was based upon the grandchildren, which was amazing. We enjoyed every minute of it, right. And then we went to Mark's wedding and we drove home. We got home about 11 o'clock last night. So I'm praying that my filters are all in place and then I'm able to fire on all cylinders and say all the things that I feel like God wants me to say this morning.
Tyler Lynde:But I also want to give you a little bit of context as to what this week has held for us. It was amazing. We loved it so much and we had a good time. Amy and I had a good time. We rode in silence for a while in the car. It wasn't because we were angry with each other, it was just because it was still. It was still and it was quiet. We were trying to take a nap just for a few minutes one day, and Emma, one of our three-year-olds, somehow escaped the room where she was supposed to be napping, and so she made her way. I don't know how she knew which room was ours, but she made her way down to her way down to our room. And hey pops, hey Mimi, what you doing? Open the door. So it was like oh, here we go, we're on a trip, anyway.
Tyler Lynde:So what am I saying by me being a preacher's kid and my kids being PKs and then their kids being KPKs, which are kids of preacher's kids? That's a new one that I've just coined this morning, so you can use that one if you'd like to use it. What does that have to do with anything that we're talking about this morning from this passage? Well, how many of you know that the general public doesn't necessarily have a positive outlook on PKs. In fact, a lot of times, pks are looked down upon because what they're crazy, they're wild. They do all of this stuff Well, and sometimes that's warranted. Sometimes it is like that right, and we understand that General public doesn't know something, though, about this group of people, and I want to make you aware. If you're not a card carrying member, I want to bring you into our world a little bit.
Tyler Lynde:Like it or not, our lives are on constant display. Those who have the name pastor or preacher in front of their last names, or however it is, we live in glass houses. Our lives are on full display. People get a front row seat to the good, the bad and the ugly, because we do live in proverbial glass houses. And for most people and probably for most of my life, to be honest, I have had a little bit of resentment in my heart about that. It's like why, why is it me that? Why do we have to live in that way? Why is it that everybody gets to be exposed to our lives and all of the things that happen in our lives? And my children, especially, have asked that when I tell particular stories about our lives and about our family, you know I've had to learn as their adult children now that sometimes I need to run a story past them to make sure that it receives their approval level before I share it with the entire congregation and the world that's watching via the World Wide Web, right? But most people who have experienced the phenomenon of being a PK speak of it in negative terms, based on feeling unfairly judged. Unfairly judged, unfairly judged. But as I thought about this this last couple of weeks, I realized that the forced openness of my life has been used as a sort of protection mechanism for me to keep me considering the long-reaching effects of my life and my choices. So here's a thought that I have for us today, and you don't have to receive this, you can just consider it, ponder it, whatever it is that you want to do, but maybe it would actually be better if all followers of Jesus lived in glass houses. Maybe it would be better, maybe the world would be better off if every believer in Jesus Christ lived in a glass house.
Tyler Lynde:In our passage today, the children of Israel were being asked to place themselves in sort of a similar position the work that Nehemiah had begun and been called by God to do was basically completed. Right, the walls had been repaired, the gates were hanging in place, people had been placed on guard, there was worship that was going on in the city, all of the leaders had been chosen and placed in different realms of authority. Most importantly, the word of God had been proclaimed again and put in its proper place in the community. The people had repented and turned back to God. The covenant between God and his people had been officially made again. The only thing left to do was to repopulate the city of Jerusalem. That's all that was left.
Tyler Lynde:And if you remember, back in Nehemiah 7, it said that there was a call that went out to the entire Jewish nation, those who had been returned from exile for people to come and move back to Jerusalem. It's a great place. I don't know if they had billboards or you know how they marketed it or advertised it, but here's the reality. The only people, or the majority of people, who chose to move back voluntarily were the leaders. People who chose to move back voluntarily were the leaders. Were the leaders. Not many of the normal people or the regular people. The followers, those who would do the work actually moved back to Jerusalem just on that first request, that first ask for there to be volunteers there had already been, like I said, that call. The leaders responded there weren't many others who seemed willing, and I wondered why was it that they weren't willing initially? Why was that? So what did they do? The decision was made to cast lots which, under priestly direction, was believed to reveal God's will right and as a result of this, one out of every 10, which is a tithe a 10th percent of the people were chosen and agreed to move in from the countryside, from the areas that were surrounding Jerusalem.
Tyler Lynde:So again, there may have been many reasons that people were reticent to jump on the moving train and to realize the amount of work that would be required of them in Jerusalem. Maybe the perceived threat of enemy attacks was on their list of reasons not to move to Jerusalem. Maybe it was, you know, moving away from their comfort zones. We have our space here. We're allowed to have chickens, wild chickens, running around the yard. You know there are no HOAs. I think we just I think we're comfortable living outside of the walls of Jerusalem. There's going to be something more required of us if we move within those walls, within those walls.
Tyler Lynde:So, as I was reading this chapter over and over again and trying to discern from the Lord what it is that I could say from these two verses and the rest of the verses that were names, here's what I felt like the Lord shared with me. It may have been difficult for people to choose to return on their own accord because of what would be required of them when it came to holiness. When it came to holiness, we're going to talk about holiness this morning. So take a deep breath, it's going to be okay. It's interesting to me the songs that were sung this morning, and even the last song. We were talking about holiness and they didn't know what we were going to share this morning. But God knew and he has it in order, right. So let's take one phrase out of those first two verses and let's kind of land there for a few minutes.
Tyler Lynde:Jerusalem, the holy city. Jerusalem, the holy city. The name Jerusalem means possession of peace or place of peace, city of peace. Very few times in the Bible is there a description of a place where the word holy is applied to it. Do you realize that there are very few places in the Bible at all where a place is called holy. There are a few, there are a few, and this one indication concerning Jerusalem is a big one. There's an indication here. There's something that we need to dig into a little bit deeper. What does holy mean? Let's look at that. Holy means set apart, consecrated and pure. To be holy is to be set apart, it is to be consecrated. It is to be set apart. It is to be consecrated, it is to be pure.
Tyler Lynde:In order to understand holiness, we have to go to one place only, and where is that? We have to recognize that God is holy. God is holy. If you want to understand holiness, you cannot understand it outside of God himself. God's holiness is not just a part of who he is or what he does. It's the very essence of who he is. God is holy.
Tyler Lynde:Neil does a great job of expressing this by saying that God is other. There's an otherness to God that is not easily explained, that is not easily understood. We all who have basked in his presence, who are children of his, we have enjoyed that, we have understood that, we have experienced it in our lives the otherness of God. But it's hard to explain or to understand unless you have been touched by him or experienced him or moved on by him, if that makes sense. It's not just something that you can hear about and be able to fully understand. Right the expression God is holy.
Tyler Lynde:It seems impossible to fully define the characteristics of God, but it has to do with his absolute perfection. God is absolutely perfect in every way. How many of us believe that every decision God makes is absolutely perfect? It's a loaded question, because sometimes he chooses to say no to a prayer that we really want him to answer in a certain way. But is God absolutely perfect? He is, he's absolutely perfect and he's absolutely trustworthy. That's who he is.
Tyler Lynde:He is completely absent of even a trace of sin. There's not a trace of sin. He doesn't even have the trace of sin. There's not a trace of sin. There's not, there's not. He doesn't even have the ability to sin. He is above it and beyond it. He's greater than sin. He is high above any other and no one can compare to him. No one can compare to him. Everything that God thinks, everything that he desires, everything he speaks, everything he does is absolutely holy in every way. This is who God is. God is holy. He's holy in every attribute and every action. He's holy in justice. He's holy in love. He's holy in mercy. He is holy in power. He is holy in sovereignty. He is holy in wisdom. He is holy in patience. He is holy in anger. He is holy in grace. He is holy in faithfulness. He is holy in compassion. He is even holy in faithfulness. He is holy in compassion. He is even holy in his holiness. God is holy. We have a representation of this in Isaiah.
Tyler Lynde:Isaiah, this young prophet, this young man who would speak for the Lord, has this experience with God and his holiness in chapter six. Let's look there. At Isaiah, chapter six, verses one through seven. In the year that King Uzziah died, I saw the Lord sitting upon a throne. Can you imagine this? Isaiah is given a vision or some kind of entrance point into the very throne of God where he envisions this. I saw the Lord sitting upon a throne, high and lifted up, and the train of his robe filled the temple. Above him stood the seraphim, each had six wings. With two he covered his face and with two he covered his feet, and with two he flew. I mean, steven Spielberg has nothing on heaven, am I right? Yeah, we had a Star Wars mention. We'll just go all the way with it today.
Tyler Lynde:And one called to another and said holy, holy, holy is the Lord of hosts. The whole earth is full of his glory and the foundations of the thresholds shook at the voice of him who called, and the house was filled with smoke. Imagine Isaiah seeing these things. He's experiencing this in living color as he's given a glimpse of God in his glory. And what is his response? Did he climb up in God's lap and give him a hug? Did he high-five him? Did he say yo, what's up? Maybe he could have done that? God understands. But what did he do? He said woe is me, for I am lost, for I'm a man of unclean lips and I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips, for my eyes have seen the king, the Lord of hosts. Then one of the seraphim flew to me having in his hand a burning coal that he had taken with tongs from the altar, and he touched my mouth and said behold, this has touched your lips. Your guilt is taken away and your sin atoned for.
Tyler Lynde:Did you know that the experience that the Jewish people are having in repopulating Jerusalem was partially as a result of Isaiah's prophecies? Did you know that Jesus and the story of Jesus as he lived in this life and died, the way that he died and rose from the dead, was partially prophesied and spoken of in the book of Isaiah. From this point in Isaiah's life, every word that he spoke came to pass. But what was required of him? It was required of him to be encountered by a holy God. My friends, god is holy. We cannot encounter God's holiness and remain the same. Do not tell me that you and Jesus have an understanding and go on living like the rest of the world and still claim to be a Christian. God is holy and if we experience his holiness, we cannot remain the same. We must change. How many of you know he's not going to change? He's proven that he is not going to change. So who's going to do the changing we are? So not only is God holy, but wherever God is instantly becomes holy. Wherever God dwells is holy.
Tyler Lynde:Let's not forget that the rebuilding of Jerusalem was not as much about walls and gates. What was contained within those walls? The temple. The temple was contained within those walls. One of the biggest parts, it was the heart of the city of God, this holy city. The temple was there. This is where God had chosen to put his name and his presence. And once a year, the high priest over the nation of Israel, on Yom Kippur, the day of atonement, would be allowed and privileged to go into the holiest place, the holy of holies, where the Ark of the Covenant sat with its mercy seat and the two angels that were shrouding it on one side or the other. All of this representative of Jesus who came to bring mercy to us. Amen. And so the high priest would come and he would repent of his own sins and the sins of his family and the sins of the entire nation, and he would get to experience, just for a few moments in time, once per year, the presence of a holy God.
Tyler Lynde:Wherever God is is holy. Not only is God holy and wherever he dwells is holy, but also the people of God are called to holiness. It's one thing to say God is holy, he is other, he's different, he's set apart, he's sanctified, he's all of those things. But I am not. You see, israel was God's chosen nation, god's chosen people, his special people, and consequently they were given standards that God wanted them to live by, so the world would know that they belong to him. There needed to be a separation, a distinction between the nation of Israel and the rest of the world. Why in the world is there so much war in the Old Testament? Why in the world is there so much death and destruction? You know, the main reason is because God wanted to separate out to himself a holy nation, a holy people who could represent him to the world. And what did he know about these people? If they were allowed to be surrounded by and trenched in the cultures of the rest of this world, what would they do? They would be compromised. They would give in to the things that they saw around them. Sorry for this tickle in my throat.
Tyler Lynde:So did God shroud all of this the holiness that he required of them, or did he make it pretty simple and pretty plain? He actually wrote it on two tablets, didn't he? Let's just quote those together, if you remember them. If not, they're on the screen in modern language. So let's just say them together.
Tyler Lynde:Number one you shall have no other gods before me. Number two you shall not make for yourself an idol. Three you shall not misuse the name of the Lord, your God. Four remember the Sabbath day by keeping it holy. Five honor your father and your mother. Six you shall not murder. Seven, you shall not commit adultery. Eight, you shall not steal. Nine, you shall not give false testimony against your neighbor. And ten you shall not give false testimony against your neighbor. And 10, you shall not covet. This was God's requirement of his people when it came to holiness.
Tyler Lynde:How many of you know, jesus was asked a question by somebody who was seeking knowledge. They wanted to know what is the greatest commandment, and how did Jesus answer them? We find it in Matthew 22, where he says you shall love the Lord, your God, with all your heart, with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the great and first commandment, and a second is like it you shall love your neighbor as yourself. On these two commandments depend all the law and the prophets Love the Lord, your God, with all your heart, soul, mind and strength, and love your neighbor as yourself. How many of you know that if you do those two things, the Ten Commandments will be obeyed? Because the Ten Commandments are really broken into two categories loving God and loving people. Loving God and loving people, and that's what Jesus said. Let's narrow it down to these two things.
Tyler Lynde:By the way, we're going to be starting, in the month of June, a new sermon series on the Sermon on the Mount. And I'm so excited about this as we read the words of Jesus, because he kind of one-ups. If you think we can get away from the Ten Commandments, he one-ups them quite a bit because he not only talks about the doing of something, he talks about the motivation or the heart behind things. And if there's any doubt for us as modern believers concerning God's directive concerning holiness, let's read 1 Peter, 1, verses 13 through 16. Therefore, preparing your minds for action and being sober-minded, set your hope fully on the grace that will be brought to you at the revelation of Jesus Christ.
Tyler Lynde:As obedient children, do not be conformed to the passions of your former ignorance. But, as he has called, you is holy. Who is holy? God is holy. You also be holy in all your conduct. Since it is written, you shall be holy, for I am holy. This is the word of God in the New Testament. Under the new covenant, we are called, as followers of Jesus Christ, to walk in holiness. We are called to live in glass houses. It's not a bad thing, it's a good thing. And my life verse is found in first Timothy and in it Paul lays out for his son, timothy, an example, a very practical way to look at what it means to live a life of holiness.
Tyler Lynde:1 Timothy 4.12,. Let no one despise you for your youth, but set the believers an example in speech, in conduct, in love, in faith and in purity. That is what it looks like to live out a holy life. Let's talk about these five things just quickly.
Tyler Lynde:Holy speech, holy speech, friends. What we say, what we say matters. What we say matters. How horrible would it be for me to be in a job for three years as a pastor? Obviously, but in a job for three years and for nobody know that I'm a Christian, because they can't tell any difference from my pattern of speech. I tell the same jokes that everybody else tells. I use the same words that everybody else uses. I am out of control when it comes to what I say. Do we use our speech to build up or to tear down? To bless or to curse? To speak truth or to speak lies? To witness or to deny Jesus Christ? These are our options, just a few of them. These are our options, just a few of them. We are called, as followers of Jesus Christ, to use holy speech. Do not be conformed to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. I'll never forget.
Tyler Lynde:I was in an accident one time. It had snowed really bad and there was still ice on the roads, but it was like 60 degrees and I was delivering pizza and I was driving my brother's Jeep, because it was a four-wheel drive, and I had gotten pretty confident because all the roads were clear and all of a sudden I came around a corner and it was covered over, shaded, by trees that were along that road, and I found that vehicle sliding across the road directly towards another vehicle and I found myself screaming out a word that I don't remember ever using before, at least out loud. I said bleep. I was honestly more devastated by the word that came out of my mouth than the accident itself. The gentleman got out of the truck. Nobody was hurt, everything was good and he looked at me and he said you have insurance? I said yes, sir, I do. He said good, I need a new truck.
Tyler Lynde:At that point I wanted to use another word, but I refrained from doing that. Now I did. I talked to the Lord about that for quite some time and I had another incident, not maybe three years later, it wasn't the same, I wasn't in an accident, but it was similar and I screamed out, jesus, and I was like I had to pull over and just take a praise break for a minute, you know, because what we say matters. Oh, you're just being religious, tyler. Come on, you're just being religious. Okay, what we say matters Holy conduct, how we live, matters. The way that we live our lives. Are we genuine or are we counterfeit? Are we generous with our lives or are we selfish? Are we Christ-like or do we resemble the world that's around us? The way that we live our lives makes a difference. It matters. Can you imagine if the entire Christian world would live their lives in such a way to portray the holiness of God to the world around them? We cry out for America, but are we willing to do our part?
Tyler Lynde:The third one is holy love, loving God and loving others, as Jesus said. Do we walk in forgiveness or do we grow ever more bitter? Are we a worshiper or are we detached? Do we love, are we filled with compassion towards others or are we just overly critical? Well, they deserve it. They put themselves in that place. Do we have right relationships that are built on love and trust, or is everything counterfeit? We are called to walk in love and to be holy in love.
Tyler Lynde:The fourth is faith. Holy faith. We are to have an unshakable trust in the Lord Jesus Christ. Do we believe or do we doubt? Do we pray or do we worry? One of the greatest forms of unbelief is worry. Man, I feel like I'm going to need a vacation after today. This is heavy stuff. Do we share our faith or do we remain silent? We are called to be people who walk in holiness of faith, in holy faith.
Tyler Lynde:And finally, holy purity. What does purity mean? Pure thoughts, pure attitudes, pure motivations, the reason why we do the things that we do, the reason why we say the things that we say, the reason why, the reasons, the motivations, the attitudes of our heart. Do we love others or do we lust after them? Do we submit to godly authority or do we rebel? Are we filled with holy purity? My friends, this is the call.
Tyler Lynde:This was the call to the nation of Israel. This was the call that, I believe, caused there to be resistance, to move back into those walls of Jerusalem, to understand that you were going to be watched, that you're going to be plugged in and to volunteer positions that you're going to be having to defend, that you're going to be praising all of the time. You're going to be involved in the reading of the word, all the time You're going to be involved in the core, the very center, most part of everything that God was doing in the earth at the time. That sounds exciting until you count the cost. Remember, jesus said to his disciples you got to count the cost of being a follower of Jesus. You must deny yourself. Take up the cross daily and follow me. What is that cross about? That cross is about saying no to the things that we want to say yes to, and saying yes to the things that we want to say no to those things that are in alignment with what God wants. That is a cross to bear Holiness is not for the faint of heart.
Tyler Lynde:Israel had a real problem and, to be honest, we do too. Without Jesus, you wonder why in the world did they get it right for a while and then they got it very wrong? They got it right for a while and then they got it even worse wrong, and then it got back and forth and back and forth. Why is that? Why is that recorded like that? Back and forth and back and forth? Why is that? Why is that recorded like that? Why do the apostles of Jesus and the disciples and all of the New Testament books show us examples of failings? Because if we could get it right, we wouldn't need Jesus.
Tyler Lynde:Jesus, the Jewish nation, was to represent God and his holiness, but they couldn't do it all the way. They couldn't do it to perfection. They couldn't perform the way that God wanted them to perform. They had to do the best they could with what they were given, but they, they needed to fail. They needed to fail, they needed to fail. That's the whole point. The reason we don't like glass houses is because we know our own failures. We want to cover them up, like Adam and Eve in the garden.
Tyler Lynde:But, my friends, here's the good news Jesus, the Holy One, makes us holy. Jesus is the only human who has ever lived a completely holy life on this earth. He died as a spotless sacrifice, taking upon himself our unholiness and making a way for us to be reunited to God, our Father. He was always pure in his speech. He was always right in his love. He was always correct in the way that he believed. He always lived a pure life. He lived his life as an example to all of us.
Tyler Lynde:For us, holiness can only come from one place. It cannot come from us willing it. It can't come from us having a 21-day plan. It can't come from us striving or beating ourselves up enough or doing more and more and more. It cannot come from external. It cannot come from us behaving in a certain way. Holiness comes to us as a direct result of our right relationship with God, by putting our faith, hope and trust in Jesus Christ. He is holy and he makes us holy. If we have not yet placed our hope and faith and trust in jesus christ to save us from our sins, then our pursuit of holiness is in vain. You will not get there on your own. There is no path to holiness outside of Jesus.
Tyler Lynde:I've had several conversations with people recently who have said there's many ways to get to God. How do we know that this is the right one? It's because he said it was. I am the way, the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except by me. Jesus is the way, not a way, not one of many. This is not my religion. This is a relationship with a living Savior. So, in order to live holy lives, let's make sure, first of all, that we are born again believers. And you can do that today. You can respond to the Holy Spirit awakening you to this truth and you can say Jesus, save me, change my heart, change my mind. I am a sinner, I'm not deserving of your grace, but I need it, I desperately need it. I want to change, change me, change me.
Tyler Lynde:Our position in Christ, if we are truly believers, automatically sets us apart from the rest of the world. Look in 1 Peter 2, verses 9 and 10. But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for his own possession that you may proclaim the excellencies of him, who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light. Once you were not a people, but now you are God's people. Once you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy. This is our story, this is our song. This is our story. This is our song, this is our testimony. Once I was lost, but now I am found.
Tyler Lynde:You see, under the old covenant, god dwelt in temples made with hands. But how many of you know, in the new covenant it's very different. No longer does he live in temples made with hands. But how many of you know, in the new covenant it's very different. No longer does he live in temples made with hands. He lives inside of us as followers of Jesus Christ, because we are filled with the Holy Spirit of God. The what the Holy Spirit of God.
Tyler Lynde:You see, the Holy Spirit enables us to live holy lives. It's not just that Jesus makes us holy. We still get to live here in this life in glass houses, not just for the church to look and to view our lives, but for the world around us to see a difference. He lives on the inside of us. We can rely on him to convict us, to challenge us, to equip us to act like Jesus. If anybody knows how to act like Jesus, it's the Holy Spirit. How many of you know, jesus did no miraculous works here in this life until he was filled with the Holy Spirit, and so he passed that same thing onto us.
Tyler Lynde:Romans 8 describes it like this If the spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, he who raised Christ Jesus from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through his spirit who dwells in you. So then, brothers, we are debtors not to the flesh, to live according to the flesh, for if you live according to the flesh you will die, but if, by the spirit, you put to death the deeds of the body, you will live, for all who are led by the Spirit of God are sons of God. The Holy Spirit enables us to live holy lives. He equips us. How many of you have had the Holy Spirit warn you? How many of you have had that thing in the pit of your stomach? That's not just something that's in your natural character or nature to be able to discover. That's the Holy Spirit, softly, gently at first, tweaking you. Hello, hey, tyler. Nope, we don't go there. Does the Holy Spirit talk to you like that? Sometimes it feels like he's talking to me like that. Nope, we don't go there, we're not doing that. But I want to, I really, really want to. Nope, we're not doing that, don't go there.
Tyler Lynde:Ultimately, we live in glass houses so that the world might see Jesus going back to Nehemiah. In that last part of those verses it says and the people blessed all the men who willingly offered to live in Jerusalem. It's funny, the willingly offered part After they cast lots and the lot fell on them and their name was called out and they were brought before the people and they said oh, we'll go. Yep, send us, we'll go. Would you mark down? I volunteered to go to Jerusalem Tyler's on the first trip, all right, but the world around them, the world around them, the world around them, applauded them, recognized in them something was different, something had changed. Something was different. Something had changed, something was new. And I guarantee you that the nine out of ten that remained in their places of comfort looked in those glass houses in Jerusalem and they said to their children act like that. They said to their grandchildren you hear the song that they're singing. Sing that song Now, their great-grandchildren. You hear the declaration of scripture, the word of God that's being proclaimed in Jerusalem. The word of God is being proclaimed in Jerusalem. Let's proclaim that in our home, too. It matters. We who are followers of Jesus, with all of the advantages that that brings, have even more opportunity to show the world around us who Jesus is by living holy lives that are constantly being transformed by the work of the Holy Spirit. By the way, one of the most holy acts that you can perform is an apology Fathers apologizing to their children for becoming too angry, mothers or wives apologizing for a lack of patience. Neighbors yes, neighbors.
Tyler Lynde:I had this experience this week. I had somebody, while we were on our trip, sent me a note via Facebook Messenger one of my neighbors that I had apparently scraped up against his fence with my lawnmower. Now I got, to be honest, I don't remember hitting that fence. But if he believes I hit that fence, I need to go the extra mile. And so I said to him I need to go the extra mile. And so I said to him you dirty, rotten, I'll talk to you when I get home. I got two friends, smith and Wesson. No, no, no. That's how we want to act. That's how we want to act. That's how we want to react. I said you know, if there's even a chance that it was me that did that, I want to just sincerely apologize. And I said I want to make it right. If there's something I can do to purchase, if there's some work that I can do to help get it right, let me know. I want to be a part of that and I'm sorry that that happened and I will be fastidious and, trust me, there will be a swath of weeds between that fence and my lawnmower, from this point forward and forevermore, and I will be okay with that.
Tyler Lynde:We live in glass houses, and it's a good thing. How else is the world going to know? Well, jesus would just appear in all of his spirit. We get to be the light, finishing up in Matthew 5,. Nor do people light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a stand, and it gives light to all in the house In the same way. Let your light shine before others so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father, who is in heaven.
Tyler Lynde:We don't do good works in order to earn something from God. We aren't holy in order to be able to say we're holy. Holiness is a gift of grace from God, but we are required to walk in it. We are required by God's grace to walk in it. We have everything that we need for life and godliness. It's all been given to us, but we still have to choose, as part of our sanctification process, to say yes to the things that God says yes to and to say no to the things that God says no to. Jerusalem, the holy city, knoxville, the holy city, the lined home, the holy city, and on and on and on.
Tyler Lynde:Would you stand to your feet with me, father? We thank you that you are holy, that you are set apart, that you are other. And yet, in your faithfulness, you did not want to leave us as unholy and destined for hell, and so you sent your Holy Son to do the work that only he could do. And you gave us the ability, by the Spirit of God, to say yes to you and to your call to believe on the Lord, jesus Christ, and be saved. And you also filled us with your spirit. And you constantly fill us and fill us again and again and again with your spirit, not just for power, not just for benefit, lord, to equip us to be obedient to you. And so, father, I pray that you would help all of us to embrace glass house living, to embrace the fact that you have called us to be other, that you have called us to live like none other on earth, no other religion, no other foundation but Christ and him crucified. And so, father, we pray that you would enable us, this week, to make the changes in our patterns of speech.
Tyler Lynde:Lord, would you deal with us in the way that we conduct our daily lives? Lord, would you deal with us in the way that we conduct our daily lives. Would you help us, lord, to put our faith in you in ever-growing ways? Lord, would you help the love that we read about in 1 Corinthians 13 be real to us, first of all as recipients from you. And also, lord, would you help us to transfer that love to others? And, father, would you also make us pure, refine us in refiner's fire, not to destroy us, but to make us holy?
Tyler Lynde:Lord, we know that your desire is to return for a church without spot or blemish. And, lord, we confess to you that there's no way that we can make that happen outside of you, and so we ask you for your help. We ask you for your help. Lead us and guide us. Turn up the volume on the conviction of the Holy Spirit in our lives. Help us to view things differently from this day forward.
Tyler Lynde:And, lord, for those who don't yet know you, I pray that today would be the day of salvation, that they would put their confidence in you. They would recognize that, even though maybe they've been in church a lot of times or they've read the Bible before, maybe they just have realized today they've never dedicated, consecrated their lives to you. Pray that today would be their day. We also pray for those that are not here today, that we're all crying out to you, for the prodigals, lord, those who have tasted of the goodness of God and yet find themselves running hiding. Lord, would you cause them to come to their senses, to return to the God of their salvation and to be restored? We give you glory and honor for everything that you do, but, most importantly, for who you are, and I pray, lord, for a blessing upon each and every person. Pray that you would keep us in every way. We ask that you would cause your face to shine upon us and be gracious to us. Lift up your countenance upon us and give us peace In Jesus' name, amen.
