As I stood before the church this Sunday, my heart was overflowing with awe at the goodness and holiness of our God. I began by praising Him—not just for what He gives us, but for who He is. I shared with the congregation that I don’t praise God merely because He works in my life, though He surely does—but because He reveals His character, His grace, and His deep desire to transform us into His likeness.
I emphasized how God often desires to change something in us, even when that process is uncomfortable. Many of us, including myself, are naturally resistant to change. We prefer stability, familiarity, and the comforts of life—our homes, our beds, our routines. But I warned that the comfort of modern life can easily become a snare. These comforts can subtly draw us away from hungering and thirsting after God and His righteousness. As Jesus said in the Sermon on the Mount, “Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be filled.” That is the heart God is looking for—not a full, self-sufficient heart, but one that longs and aches for Him.
The Word God laid on my heart came from 1 Peter 2:1–3. But to truly grasp its power, we looked back at the context in chapter 1, where Peter speaks of our salvation being rooted not in perishable things, but in the imperishable Word of God. Because we have been born again by this eternal Word, we are called to a life that reflects that truth. That’s why Peter says “Therefore...”—because of what Christ has done, here’s what must change in us.
We unpacked five specific sins that Peter urges us to lay aside: malice, deceit, hypocrisy, envy, and slander. These are not just occasional struggles; they are heart conditions that poison our walk with Christ if left unchecked.
Malice: This is the hidden desire to do harm, or to think evil of others. Even if we never act on these thoughts, the fact that they live in our minds reveals something deeply wrong. The battlefield of the Christian life is not just in our actions—it’s in our thoughts. Jesus taught that what defiles a person comes from within. That’s why we need the Word and the Spirit to purify us at the level of the heart.
Deceit: I spoke candidly about the danger of pretending to be more spiritual than we really are. In our church settings, there’s often a pressure to appear holy, to perform. But God doesn’t want performances—He wants reality. It’s better to be broken and honest before Him than polished and fake before others. We must resist the temptation to seek the approval of men more than the approval of God.
Hypocrisy: Related to deceit, this is about wearing a mask—saying one thing and doing another. Jesus used this word most often for the Pharisees, who looked godly on the outside but were corrupt inside. Today, many Christians fall into the same trap. We know how to act, how to sound spiritual, but if it’s not real, it’s dangerous. Hypocrisy is spiritual acting, and it distances us from the presence and power of God.
Envy: I explained the subtle but corrosive power of envy—the longing to have what others have, whether it be possessions, positions, or even spiritual gifts. Envy often leads to bitterness, competition, and even secret joy when someone else fails. But love calls us to rejoice with those who rejoice, not resent them.
Slander: This one hit close to home. I confessed that this is a battle I personally face. It is frightening how easily words of criticism or judgment can come out of our mouths, especially when we justify them as “prayer concerns.” We must guard our tongues. Real love does not gossip—it weeps, it prays, it restores.
I connected these five sins to the call in 2 Timothy 3:13, which warns that evil people and imposters will go from bad to worse, “deceiving and being deceived.” I realized that when we choose deceit, we open ourselves up to deception. If we are not grounded in truth—if we don't live honestly before God—we may no longer recognize the truth when we hear it.
And that is dangerous. We’ve seen leaders fall. We’ve seen public downfalls. But I shudder to think how many more are falling silently, unexposed, because of a life of pretense. It reminds me that the size of our ministry, the applause we receive, the excellence of our programs—none of that impresses God. What He’s looking for is holiness. Truth. A heart that beats in sync with His.
I reminded everyone—and myself—that this isn’t about guilt or shame. It’s about returning to the sincere, pure spiritual milk of the Word. As Peter says, “like newborn babies, crave pure spiritual milk.” That hunger leads to growth. That hunger leads to maturity. That hunger leads to transformation.
And so I ended the message with a call—not a call to try harder, but to surrender. To lay aside the pretense. To ask God to remove the heart of stone and give us a heart of flesh. To confess, to repent, to long for the Word again. And to allow the Holy Spirit to purify us from within, so that His power might flow freely through us.
I believe God is preparing to move in our midst—but it begins with judgment and cleansing in His house. The revival we long for begins in our hearts. And so we prayed together, standing before God with open hearts, asking Him to do the deep work only He can do.
Amen.