Sincerity 1 Peter 2:1-2 CLICK TITLE FOR AUDIO

Sincere means: 1 without deceit, pretense [a false claim or profession], or hypocrisy; truthful; straightforward; honest 2 being the same in actual character as in outward appearance; genuine; real 3 not adulterated [Webster’s New World Dictionary].  I heard a preacher make reference to desiring the sincere milk of the word and it dawned on me that I really wasn’t sure what the definition of sincere was.  Nor did I grasp all of its implications. So, I looked up the word and checked its cross references and found something very interesting. Notice the:

Sincerity of God’s word – 1 Pet 2:2 – Peter is telling you that God’s words are true. Psalm 119:160 “Thy word is true from the beginning: and every one of thy righteous judgments endureth forever.” Get the word of God inside of you and you will be the same in actual character as in outward appearance.

Since the words of God are sincere, then likewise God also demands the:

Sincerity of our doctrine – Tit 2:7-8 – Since the words of God or pure, the doctrine of God must also be pure. 2 Timothy 3:16- 17 shows us that the word of God is profitable for doctrine. 1 Timothy 4:13-­16 shows us that we need to give attendance to doctrine and take heed to the doctrine. 2 Timothy 4:2-­4 shows us that in these days, people will not endure sound doctrine. We need to be faithful even if they are not.

Sincerity of our preaching – 2 Cor 2:17; Phil 1:16-18 – Our preaching needs to come right from the Bible exactly the way that it is written. It doesn’t need to be privately interpreted. It does not to be applied by us with verses used to prove our points. Preaching is not from philosophy or psychology and it is not motivational speaking.

Sincerity of our love – 2 Cor 8:8; Eph 6:24 – Our love for each other and for God needs to be real.  It is easy to say, “I love you.”  But something like giving proves it.  Do you doubt the widow’s love who gave all her living? Our love for God can be proven by our love for the brethren, as well.

Sincerity of our testimony – 2 Cor 1:12; Phil 1:10 – Our conversation is our testimony or our behavior. We need to live lives that are not in deceit or in pretense or in hypocrisy like the Pharisees. We need to be honest and we need to be real.  If you don’t have a good testimony right after you get saved, don’t worry about it.  Get the sincere words of God in you through reading, preaching, teaching and studying and your testimony will change and the change will be lasting and sincere.

Sincerity of our church – 1 Cor 5:8 – According to Paul, a little leaven leavens the whole lamp. If we start making allowances for adulterated music, watered down gospel preaching, tolerance of sin, the use of corrupted Bibles, the addition of perverted doctrine, etc. our church will become insincere and hypocritical. We cannot let that happen.

Conclusion: as the word of God is sincere, so we need to be sincere individually and as a church.