DECEMBER 7 - PERSONAL HOLINESS
READ 1 Peter 2
Spiritual sacrifice and personal holiness should be the Christian response to trials.
INSIGHT
A pilgrim is a wanderer. A sojourner is one who lives somewhere temporarily. Peter calls us pilgrims and sojourners in this world. We are no longer at home here; we are no longer a part of this world. Whatever we do should be evaluated in light of our true citizenship in heaven. As such, we live by the rules and values of heaven, not earth. Peter writes: "Beloved, I beg you as sojourners and pilgrims, abstain from fleshly lusts which war against the soul" (v. 11). When we violate the principles of heaven, it is not only God and His honor that suffer—we suffer.
PRAYER
The Lord has transferred us from the kingdom of darkness and made us citizens of the kingdom of light for which we praise Him:
My soul, bless the Lord!
Lord my God, you are very great;
You are clothed with majesty and splendor.
He wraps himself in light as if it were a robe,
Spreading out the sky like a canopy.
May the glory of the Lord endure forever;
May the Lord rejoice in his works.
May sinners vanish from the earth
And wicked people be no more.
My soul, bless the Lord! Hallelujah!
(Psalm 104:1-2, 31, 35).
Pause for praise and thanksgiving. Pray this confession to the Lord as you seek to keep your life free from sin:
You ignored the Rock who gave you birth;
You forgot the God who gave birth to you
(Deuteronomy 32:18).
Confess any sins that the Holy Spirit brings to your mind, and pray this affirmation to the Lord:
Everyone the Father gives me will come to me, and the one who comes to me I will never cast out (John 6:37).
As you make your requests known to the Lord, include:
Finally, offer this prayer to the Lord:
And they sang a new song: You are worthy to take the scroll and to open its seals, because you were slaughtered, and you purchased people for God by your blood from every tribe and language and people and nation. You made them a kingdom and priests to our God, and they will reign on the earth (Revelation 5:9-10).
Spiritual sacrifice and personal holiness should be the Christian response to trials.
INSIGHT
A pilgrim is a wanderer. A sojourner is one who lives somewhere temporarily. Peter calls us pilgrims and sojourners in this world. We are no longer at home here; we are no longer a part of this world. Whatever we do should be evaluated in light of our true citizenship in heaven. As such, we live by the rules and values of heaven, not earth. Peter writes: "Beloved, I beg you as sojourners and pilgrims, abstain from fleshly lusts which war against the soul" (v. 11). When we violate the principles of heaven, it is not only God and His honor that suffer—we suffer.
PRAYER
The Lord has transferred us from the kingdom of darkness and made us citizens of the kingdom of light for which we praise Him:
My soul, bless the Lord!
Lord my God, you are very great;
You are clothed with majesty and splendor.
He wraps himself in light as if it were a robe,
Spreading out the sky like a canopy.
May the glory of the Lord endure forever;
May the Lord rejoice in his works.
May sinners vanish from the earth
And wicked people be no more.
My soul, bless the Lord! Hallelujah!
(Psalm 104:1-2, 31, 35).
Pause for praise and thanksgiving. Pray this confession to the Lord as you seek to keep your life free from sin:
You ignored the Rock who gave you birth;
You forgot the God who gave birth to you
(Deuteronomy 32:18).
Confess any sins that the Holy Spirit brings to your mind, and pray this affirmation to the Lord:
Everyone the Father gives me will come to me, and the one who comes to me I will never cast out (John 6:37).
As you make your requests known to the Lord, include:
- Greater commitment to the Lord
- The work of specific Christian ministries
- Whatever else is on your heart
Finally, offer this prayer to the Lord:
And they sang a new song: You are worthy to take the scroll and to open its seals, because you were slaughtered, and you purchased people for God by your blood from every tribe and language and people and nation. You made them a kingdom and priests to our God, and they will reign on the earth (Revelation 5:9-10).
A Dogwood Church Discipleship Ministry Resource. © Walk Thru the Bible 2025.