Do You Have High Standards?

This weekend at true north we addressed a serious issue of how we live our Christian faith out in our daily lives. How we think and act in ALL we do...

Philippians 4:8-9 says, "Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things. 9Whatever you have learned or received or heard from me, or seen in me—put it into practice. And the God of peace will be with you."

To think literally means to calculate or to put through an equation. That means in everything we do we should be looking at the Lord's standards and putting it through the wringer so to speak to see if it is edifying and beneficial.

1. Have HIGH standards about what you think about (v 8)
-True: correspond with reality/fact
-Noble: respectable, others see or find quality in it
-Right: according to God's standard is it appropriate or righteous?
-Pure: clean, not immoral
-Lovely: pleasing, nice, not dark
-Admirable: or good reputation, something you wouldn't mind others knowing or seeing you doing or thinking about
-Excellent/Praiseworthy:Quality, of some value, not worthless

2. Live up to your Christian Examples (v 9)
-Who is it in your life that you look up to and are trying to be like?
-These Christian examples should be in your lives regularly and you should seek to study their lives and imitate them. Like Paul and Timothy.
-In 1 Corinthians 11:1 Paul says "Follow my example, as I follow the example of Christ."

3. Don't Fall Into Worldly Influences (v 4:18-19)
-The world will take you down!
-Don't fall into temptation
-Guard yourself from yourself!

What are these worldly influences?
-Don't be conformed to the evil patterns of thinking- Romans 12:2
-Don't be corrupted by bad company- 1 Corinthians 15:33

We as Christians need to be DIFFERENT then the world. Our standards need to be the LORD and not our fellow brothers and sisters in the Lord or even worse the world!! Do we live differently? How high are our standards. Let us put everything we do whether it be the movies and TV shows we watch or the music we listen through through God's filter and glorify Him in everything.