Perfecting Holiness in the Fear of God

Jim Butler2 Corinthians 6

Paul's charge in 2 Corinthians 6:14–7:1 to 'perfect holiness in the fear of God' rests on three covenant promises: the nearness of God, the favor of God, and the fatherhood of God. Because God has already fulfilled these promises in Christ, the imperatives to cleanse from all filthiness of flesh and spirit and to press on toward complete sanctification follow as the fitting response of those already redeemed, not as conditions for receiving grace. The sermon traces the biblical-theological root of these promises from Exodus and Leviticus through Jeremiah and Ezekiel to their fulfillment in Christ, and applies the call to corporate ecclesial fidelity and to individual decisions — especially the prohibition of marriage to unbelievers — governed by the fear of God rather than emotion.