Passage

[Philippians 4: 8-9]
"Finally, brethren, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is of good repute, if there is any excellence and if anything worthy of praise, dwell on these things. The things you have learned and received and heard and seen in me, practice these things, and the God of peace will be with you."


This is the 6th session of the Deficiencies of the body series.
Over several sessions, we are considering common deficiencies that we can find in our everyday lives.
Many believers say they are blessed by the messages and they are realizing deficiencies in themselves.
The contents concerning commonly accepted manners and politeness are quite extensive and they will help you to accomplish sanctification if you learn them thoroughly.
Now, how is filling up and making up for these deficiencies of the body related to sanctification?
After accepting the Lord, as believers begin increasing their faith, to some extent they begin to cast off evident untruths first.
Whenever such natures as anger, hatred, adultery, envy, and jealousy are outwardly manifested, we pray and fast to change ourselves.
We cast out the things that surface, but after our faith has grown up to a certain extent, it stops growing and we do not progress to higher levels of spirit.
At such times one of the easy ways is to realize ourselves by studying our parents or family members.
For example, if our family members had changed their minds easily, placed the blame on others for difficulties they suffered, or gossiped in the past, we can check if we have the same natures.
You can see through yourself as if you were looking into a mirror if you pray for the realization given by the Holy Spirit.
You are able to realize that you also have the same attributes. That is, although your frequency may not be the same as your family members who are not believers, you still tend to spread rumors or change your mind easily as well.
If one of your brothers has a temper that is easily agitated or he brags about his financial success, knowledge, or influential friends, then you can check if you have the same kind of temper or tendency to boast and brag in you as well.
Another way to easily realize effects of deficiencies in the process of sanctification is not to consider trivial shortcomings lightly.
These things too are related to the deficiencies of the body.
You should not just ignore little blemishes. If you can realize the fundamental fleshly nature of those blemishes, it will be easier for you to go into spirit.
For example, about keeping things in order, you might just think, "I do not keep things so squared away, but it's not really a big deal unless I make a great mess."
But if you want to go into spirit, you should not think like that.
Those who are orderly and clean in heart will naturally clean their surroundings, too.
If you maintain the things around you in an untidy and messy manner, it means your mind and thoughts are not in order. It means either you have a lot of fleshly thoughts or you do not have an orderly way of living.
Some people are different. They keep things in order very well, but if others make a mess, they get frustrated or angry at them.
Or, they ignore others saying those people are not properly educated.
This is not in accordance with the heart of the Lord, either.
You can advise them, teach them, or even put the things in order for them, but this too should not be done within your self-righteousness and personal frameworks. It should never be done in anger or with condemnation. You have to accept them with goodness and love.
Let me give you another example. Is there anybody who thinks, "So what if I am picky about the kind of food I eat, what does it have to do with sanctification?"
Those people should check if they have a biased nature, not just about food but in other matters as well.
Wouldn't a person with such a nature tend to be more fond of those people who agree with them, but dislike or avoid those who don't?
Have you cultivated the fruit of peace, and any option is OK with you? And have you cultivated an unbiased mind that you have no favoritism in words or actions?
You can also check whether, rather than eating from the dish you like first, you can pass it to others. You can check if you have cultivated the heart of sacrifice and service with which you can allow for good things for others even though you may not be able to enjoy them yourself.
If you pull a little thread on a seam, the threads will keep coming undone. Likewise, you can realize fleshly natures in the depth of your heart through the little deficiencies of the body.
I am delivering messages on the deficiencies of the body in many sessions so that those of you who long for spirit and whole spirit can realize the parts that you have to fill up and make good to become perfect.
I explained that people develop deficiencies of the body when they lack the knowledge, feelings, or experiences of actual deeds in their learning.
Continuing from the last session, I will now continue to talk about specific cases of deficiencies of the body.
Next in continuing with common courtesies, if you visit somebody's house or workplace without giving prior notice, it is an act showing lack of consideration for others.
When visiting others, if you look around the house as you like it is not good manners. Opening a bedroom door and looking around is totally unacceptable behavior.
If you throw away your trash in public places, or leave dirty stains or marks in bathrooms, it is not behaving like a beautiful bride of the Lord.
When I use a hotel or other forms of accommodation, I try not to leave any trace of having used the room.
I know the workers of the hotel will clean the room, but I feel sorry for them if I leave untidy traces.
But I don't try to clean the room with much effort.
I always make the bed and use and leave the bedroom and bathroom as cleanly as if I am at home, so it's not something difficult for me.
But some people do not clean their own houses properly. So, in such places as hotels, they make the rooms more dirty because there are workers who have to clean them.
Also, just because they don't pay for it, they use more electricity, tap water, and towels.
Those who have such deficiencies show those deficiencies without noticing them when they come to church before God.
For example, they do not use the bathroom or the dining hall cleanly, and they throw away trash anywhere.
They even leave their children's uneaten, dropped and spilled food where it falls. Some people even change children's diapers and just leave them in the nursery rooms.
Even in the world, when they go to mountains or resort areas, they are supposed to carry out their own trash.
So, should you not only pick up the trash discarded by other people in the sanctuaries, but never leave any of your trash there?
Even though they do not intend to act rudely before God, they do not realize that they are being rude before God because they just don't have a proper sense of social etiquette.
You might also be blocking the way for other people or cars when several of you walk on a narrow road or on sidewalks abreast of each other.
If you have consideration for others, you would naturally make some space for others to pass by.
If you are not careful enough when you walk on a narrow passage and bump into somebody and you do not even apologize; when you push through others or push them out of your way to make your way just because you are busy; or if you just park your car anywhere on the street disrupting the flow of traffic, these are all examples of actions far from holiness.
Some people park their car next to others' cars on the sides of the streets, so those cars cannot get out.
Even though they leave their number and others call them, they just take their time and go slowly to their car and just take off, without even apologizing.
How frustrated you must cause those people to become!
If you long for goodness, you cannot do such things.
What you should especially remember is that each of your behaviors around the church and around my residence will directly affect the glory of God and the image of the church.
It is important not to act rudely before God, and we must not be rude to unbelievers, either.
We have to give glory to God by doing good rather than giving hard times to people around you.
In restaurants or in public places, I heard some church members call each other, "Pastor, Elder, Deacon, or Deaconess," with a loud voice.
When you do, the unbelievers will immediately realize you are believers.
But then, if you show any unfavorable behaviors, how embarrassing it is!
I mentioned that I used to wear a cross shaped badge, but I stopped wearing it.
When I began to wear it, many others also put on the same badge.
But even with the badge, they do some things that were not gracious at all.
The unbelievers expect the believers to be godly and beautiful, even though they themselves are not living such lives.
Therefore, you should become the light and salt of the world.
Your words and behaviors should be worthy to be praised as people who are noble and different from others, even by the worldly people.
In fact, most of the things that I am explaining are not really about our faith or the manners of the Lord. They are rather basic, socially acceptable, public manners.
Some of you might wonder why I am explaining these things in a sermon.
But as I mentioned, the manners of the Lord and the manners of the world are not completely different.
The brides of the Lord who are blameless should also have the proper manners in the world.
The basic concept of etiquette and public manners is to seek the benefit of others.
The specific details of proper manners might be different according to time and region, but the unchanging point is the respect for others.
It is the heart to avoid causing any harm or public nuisance for others, and once more, it is to seek others' benefit first.
Those believers who long for spirit and whole spirit should obviously have these manners, too.
Brothers and sisters, if I want to visit your house right after this service, would you be able to welcome me gladly?
Or, would you say, "Senior pastor, please, not right now. Please, will you wait a few moments..." and then hurriedly clean your house?
Not just your room, but how are the conditions of your desk, on top of the vanity table, dressers, or bookshelves?
You've heard so much now about how to put your things in order through many messages, so I believe you have a habit of putting things in order by now.
Some people have something to drink and then leave the bottles and glasses on the table.
After they eat, they don't even close the lids of the containers and leave the dishes on the table. Some people don't wash the dishes for days.
After opening the dressers or drawers, they don't close them properly and they are left partially open.
After washing their faces, they leave water all over the bathroom. After they wash their hair, their hair is all over the floor.
Their used towels, the under-clothing that they changed and even the coat they wore yesterday are piled on top of each other on the bed, couch, or the floor.
The closet must have the clothes arranged according to the season and their use, but all kinds of clothes are mixed up and it's difficult for them to match the jackets and pants.
If your house is so untidy, how can you clean up the room of your heart?
Even if you pray that you want to go into spirit and cultivate sanctification, you ought to feel some kind of qualms about it.
Some people forget their things like umbrellas, clothes, and backpacks. These people also forget their appointments with others.
They are also likely to forget their promises with God they made in their prayers.
God cannot trust such people.
Would men of spirit leave their belongings anywhere and forget the things they have to remember?
If you keep on forgetting things, you should not just blame it on your memory. You can change it if you try with prayers.
Even though you are busy with a lot of work, you should have a peaceful mind and pay attention to the voice of the Holy Spirit that talks to you and tells you the important things.
Some people break their promises even though they haven't forgotten them.
The other party may be waiting and preparing without any other scheduled business for days, but such people just call off the meeting right before it without notice.
They want to postpone the meeting for trivial reasons such as not feeling well, having other business to take care of, or because they just don't feel like it.
There are people who call after the appointment has passed and say that they are sorry that they weren't able to come.
Of course, there might be some unavoidable reasons.
But if it happens frequently and not just once or twice, people around him will not trust him anymore.
They consider his words lightly because they feel his words change too often. They might also change their promises that they made with him.