Why Be Holy?

 

We hear a lot in our world today about physical and mental fitness, but often we don’t think about our spiritual fitness. Obviously, spiritual fitness is the most important due to the eternal implications of having ourselves right with God. Spiritual fitness means striving to be holy. I wrote about holiness in two prior blogs, Creating Holy Habits, a “what do I do to be holy approach” and “Happy or Holy,” which looks at the differences in happiness and holiness. In this blog, I am looking more at the “Why” of holiness. 

We don’t strive to be holy to help us feel better about ourselves. We don’t seek holiness to become better than others. We seek holiness because God commanded us to be holy and it is the first step toward spiritual health. In I Peter 1:14-16, the disciple wrote “As obedient children, do not be conformed to the former lusts which were yours in your ignorance, but like the Holy One who called you, be holy yourselves also in all your behavior; because it is written: ‘You shall be holy, for I am holy.’” That quote comes from Leviticus 11:44 but it is interesting that God repeats those words in the next verse. “For I am the Lord who brought you up from the land of Egypt, to be your God; so you shall be holy, because I am holy.” He wanted us to get the point. In I Peter 1 Paul extols the glories of our salvation. Beginning with verse 13 the emphasis changes to exhort Christians to strive for holiness as a reflection of our salvation. When we are holy, our salvation becomes more obvious to others. The entire chapter can be viewed here  I Peter 1. 

These passages tell us three things. 

First, we are to be obedient children. As our Father, He wants the best for us and His best starts with our obedience. We are to pattern our lives after the One whose name we bear. Remember the name we bear is “Christian.” Each Christian should pattern his or her new  life after Him. Conforming to the world is denying our heavenly character. Those things are behind us.

We are not to conform to the lusts of the world. I am reminded of the old hymn by Albert Brumley. “This world is not my home, I’m just a passing through. My treasures are laid up somewhere beyond the blue; the angels beckon me from heaven’s open door, and I can’t feel at home in this world anymore.” Indeed, this world is not our home. 

Second, we should strive to be like God. Admittedly, it is not possible for us to be exactly like Him, but we are called to try. There is a saying in baseball that before the first game, every team is undefeated. Through a long season, no team can emerge with a perfect record. But that doesn’t stop them from trying to win each game. It’s  the same with God. We should always try to emulate Him. Seeking to be more holy. And we are not alone, He will help us become more holy. That is His great desire. Bottom line, we are to be holy because He is. Holiness is a goal that should always be before us.

I’ve been reading a work of fiction set in the South. Many of the characters in the book come to realize how much like their ancestors they have become. God is our Father, we should strive to be like Him. Our lives should reproduce the holy character of the One who called us. To be godly means to be Godlike. God is holy in all His ways. In this life we will never be as holy as He is, but we should be holy because He is. Our holiness derives from Him.

Third, we can’t do it alone. Any measure of holiness that we achieve is empowered by the Holy Spirit indwelling within us. In the Leviticus passage previously quoted, the Israelites did not have the power of the Holy Spirit, as it had not been given. After the resurrection of Christ, the Holy Spirit came. Acts 1:8 reads “you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you.” That day came as related in Acts 2:2-4 as the followers were gathered together in one place. “And suddenly a noise like a violent rushing wind came from heaven, and it filled the whole house where they were sitting… And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit.” 

Anyone familiar with the Old Testament knows that the Israelites struggled. They repeatedly sinned, repented, then fell back into their old ways. As New Testament saints, we are both more privileged and responsible than these Old Testament saints. We are privileged to have the Holy Spirit indwelling within us. But that indwelling creates for us a higher level of responsibility. The Holy Spirit is our paraclete. A paraclete is a helper, an advocate, a counselor. The Spirit is given to help us in our quest for holiness. With the coming of the Holy Spirit, the ideal of holiness becomes an everyday quality in our lives.

That is the “Why” of holiness. That’s what God desires, even demands, of us. “Be ye holy for I am holy.” How do we become more holy? There is no one “magic solution,” but holiness will include incorporation of spiritual disciplines in our lives. This will likely look different for each of us but should include two elements.

We Need a Quiet Time with God. How can you get to know someone better unless you spend time with them? With God, that comes in the form of daily prayer and Bible study. There are many tools available to help us form and continue these disciplines in our daily lives. 

We Need Regular Attendance at Church.  Don’t be a CEO member (Christmas and Easter Only). When you share a common bond with others your natural desire is to be with them. Jesus put this in the form of a command when He said “ I give you a new commandment: love one another. As I have loved you, so you also should love one another. This is how all will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another” (John 13:34-35).  This is not really a new commandment, it refined Leviticus 19:18 “You shall love your neighbor as yourself. I am the Lord.” Instead of loving our neighbor as ourselves we are to love our neighbor as Jesus loves them.” 

The bottom line is well expressed in a song sung by many Christian artists which includes the lyrics  “Holiness, holiness is what I long for. Holiness is what I need. Holiness, holiness is what You want from me.” Please God. Pursue holiness. What do you need to do to further your quest for God’s Holiness?

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To learn more about a new life in Christ, click here.

All scripture references are from the New American Standard Bible unless otherwise indicated.

Photo credits to clker-free-vector-images and johnhain on Pixabay and to stockcake.