For the week of February 23, 2026
MONDAY
Day One: Therefore…
Sermon Focus: Set your hope on God’s grace…be holy.
Truth: 1 Peter 1:13-16 says, “Therefore, preparing your minds for action, and being sober-minded, set your hope fully on the grace that will be brought to you at the revelation of Jesus Christ. As obedient children, do not be conformed to the passions of your former ignorance, but as he who called you is holy, you also be holy in all your conduct, since it is written, ‘You shall be holy, for I am holy.’”
Sermon Point: In light of all that Peter just wrote about…our new identity in Christ, that we’ve been born again into a living hope, our imperishable inheritance, the Holy Spirit’s sanctifying work in our lives, that we’ve been saved by grace through the gift of faith…therefore…we must DO something. We must be about the business of preparing our minds for action and being sober-minded. It’s a continual preparing and state of mind. All day, every day, responding in the middle voice – not being intoxicated by the things of this world or even by the things of self…but wholly focused on our call to serve the Lord.
Sermon Reflection: What practical steps do you take each day to prepare your mind for action and to be sober-minded?
Application: Never a day goes by that we don’t desperately need to be filled with the Spirit and strong in God’s strength. So right now, STOP. Before you do anything else, give thanks in all your circumstances, praise God, and humbly submit to all those around you out of reverence for Christ. And then put on the full armor of God (see Ephesians 6:10-20), so that you can stand strong in Him, for God’s glory alone.
Kingdom Prayer Focus:
- Thank God that He is the first mover in your life, that He chose you as one of His beloved children before the foundation of the world, that we can love Him because He first loved us, and that through the power of His Spirit, we can be holy as He is holy. Thank Him for assigning you to Four Mile, so that you can serve Him as part of His body.
- Ask God to move mightily in the Tri-State Region and Beyond as His Holy Spirit works through the body of believers at Four Mile empowering us to Go Make Disciples of all nations, baptizing in the NAME of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey all that Jesus commanded. May we do so in the knowledge that Jesus is with us, even to the end of the age.
TUESDAY
Day Two: Set Your Hope on THE GRACE
Sermon Focus: Set your hope on God’s grace…be holy.
Truth: 1 Peter 1:13-16 says, “Therefore, preparing your minds for action, and being sober-minded, set your hope fully on the grace that will be brought to you at the revelation of Jesus Christ. As obedient children, do not be conformed to the passions of your former ignorance, but as he who called you is holy, you also be holy in all your conduct, since it is written, ‘You shall be holy, for I am holy.’”
Sermon Point: After we get our heads right (because we’ve been born again to a new life in Christ), we must set our Hope fully on THE GRACE – & in this case it’s the future grace that will be brought to us at the revelation of Jesus Christ when we will one day be saved, glorified in His presence forever. What an encouragement it is to know that we can have this Hope! We can wait for our future salvation with joy and confidence. God’s Promise of past grace (we have been saved) – God’s Promise of present grace (we are being saved) – and God’ Promise of future grace (we will be saved). It’s all THE GRACE! That’s why we can have such certain Hope, now and always.
Sermon Reflection: How does God’s promise of future grace encourage and convict you to prepare your mind for action and to be sober-minded right now?
Application: Today, make a plan…even put it in your calendar…to do something you really enjoy – maybe it’s grab some coffee with a friend, or take a hike or meet some friends for dinner, or go to a concert. But make the plan – and then, as you look forward to it, be reminded of how we can also anticipate our future salvation with joy and confidence!
Kingdom Prayer Focus:
- Repent of the ways we all too often get caught up in and snared by the cares of this world – for setting our hope on the fleeting treasures of this world rather than on Christ alone. Pray that God would help us to cherish the grace that is ours in Christ and to be transformed into His likeness as we pursue Him with everything we’ve got.
- Praise God today for past, present, and future grace – not just in your life but in our corporate life as the body of Christ at FM. Ask Him to give us eyes to see His grace at work all around us today and that we would respond in gratitude and obedience.
WEDNESDAY
Day Three: Be Obedient
Sermon Focus: Set your hope on God’s grace…be holy.
Truth: 1 Peter 1:13-16 says, “Therefore, preparing your minds for action, and being sober-minded, set your hope fully on the grace that will be brought to you at the revelation of Jesus Christ. As obedient children, do not be conformed to the passions of your former ignorance, but as he who called you is holy, you also be holy in all your conduct, since it is written, ‘You shall be holy, for I am holy.’”
Sermon Point: So since we’ve been born again into new life in Christ, we can’t live like we did before we were born again. We’re now children of God – and we must be obedient ones. No longer are we to be conformed to the passions of our former ignorance, when we were worldly citizens. We were ignorant then; we didn’t battle the things of the evil one; we actually couldn’t battle him because we didn’t have THE GRACE yet. But now! We’ve received grace upon grace upon grace (past, present, and future) – how can our lives not be radically transformed? No, we must be obedient children because of THE GRACE that’s been poured out on us.
Sermon Reflection: In what areas of your life are you still living according to your former ignorance? How are you still trying to straddle between the wide, dark path and the narrow, well-lit one?
Application: Identify a specific sin with which you are currently wrestling – find a Scripture that speaks to it and set some reminders on your phone to read it several times throughout the day. When you do, pray for the Holy Spirit to strengthen you to turn away from your sin and desire His holiness.
Kingdom Prayer Focus:
- Repent of the ways we scorn God’s grace by choosing sin and self instead of Truth and holiness. Ask God to help us hate our sin as much as He does…pray that He will give us a hunger and thirst for righteousness.
- Thank God for loving us so much that while we were yet sinners – trapped in our own ignorance – Christ died for us! Thank Him that in Christ, we have freedom – we’re no longer slaves to our sin. Through His Spirit, we become slaves of righteousness, which is true freedom, for God’s glory alone.
THURSDAY
Day Four: Be Holy
Sermon Focus: Set your hope on God’s grace…be holy.
Truth: 1 Peter 1:13-16 says, “Therefore, preparing your minds for action, and being sober-minded, set your hope fully on the grace that will be brought to you at the revelation of Jesus Christ. As obedient children, do not be conformed to the passions of your former ignorance, but as he who called you is holy, you also be holy in all your conduct, since it is written, ‘You shall be holy, for I am holy.’”
Sermon Point: Peter cannot say it more clearly: we are to be holy, just as Jesus is holy. Holy in the original language means pure, blameless, consecrated, and worthy of veneration. If we’ve been born again, we will want to be fully devoted to God, knowing that we’ve been set apart for His purposes. Our lives are no longer about worldly power, influence, manipulation, getting our way, lust, money, or being cool. Rather, we are to be holy, because the One who called us is holy. But we don’t make ourselves holy. That is the work of the Holy Spirit. He convicts and counsels us every day, continually pointing us back to the Straight Edge of Truth and making us more like Christ.
Sermon Reflection: Do you long for holiness in your life, through and through? Or are you satisfied with half-hearted obedience?
Application: That sin that you identified yesterday – now identify a specific step toward obedience and holiness that you can take today as you seek to be a fully devoted disciple of Jesus Christ.
Kingdom Prayer Focus:
- Praise God for His holiness today. Stand in awe of a how a holy God would choose to come near to us in Christ – to enter into the mess of our sin and darkness – to pay the price for our wretchedness – and fully forgive and fill us with Himself by grace through faith. What a great God we have!
- Ask the Holy Spirit to convict you in any way you are grieving or quenching Him. And then pray that He helps you remember to be filled with Him (giving thanks, praising, submitting) instead – it’s only with His power that we can be holy in all that we do.
FRIDAY
Day Five: Be Holy…Because I Am Holy
Sermon Focus: Set your hope on God’s grace…be holy.
Truth: 1 Peter 1:13-16 says, “Therefore, preparing your minds for action, and being sober-minded, set your hope fully on the grace that will be brought to you at the revelation of Jesus Christ. As obedient children, do not be conformed to the passions of your former ignorance, but as he who called you is holy, you also be holy in all your conduct, since it is written, ‘You shall be holy, for I am holy.’”
Sermon Point: What Peter is writing about here isn’t a new thing at all. Israel had heard this command for centuries (see Leviticus 19:1-4). That means that THE GRACE that has finally come to the believers in Asia Minor – and to us – does not stand counter to anything we find in the Old Testament. No, it fulfills it! From beginning to end, all of God’s Word hangs together to reveal the Father’s gift of salvation by virtue of THE GRACE that comes to us through faith. There is no more amazing gift!
Sermon Reflection: When someone looks at your life, are they able to tell that you’ve been set apart for holiness – and that you’re grateful for such an amazing gift?
Application: Buy someone a gift today (a pack of gum, a cookie, a flower…doesn’t have to be extravagant) and when you give it to them, tell them how thankful you are for the greatest gift you’ve ever received – salvation by grace alone through faith alone in Christ alone.
Kingdom Prayer Focus:
- Praise God today for His Word! Thank Him for all those who have gone before us – who worked to write it down, preserve it, translate it, and spread it. Pray that FM would truly become a people of the Word – that it would dwell in us richly and propel our lives toward faithful obedience for God’s glory alone.
- Ask the Holy Spirit to strengthen your belief in the Father’s faithfulness and goodness and to help you walk in holiness (obedience). Pray that FM would revere the holiness of God and that our faith (belief and behavior) would be deepened as we all keep taking our next steps toward Christ, day by day.