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Signs of True Christianity: Being Holy
12 years ago
When the Bible talks about God's holiness, it really means one of two concepts. One concept, and often the one that people immediately think of, is that of God's moral purity. When we say that God is holy, in this respect, we mean that he Is so completely in tune with Himself and His nature of perfect goodness, that he always does what is right and good. Even more than that, unlike us, he never has to be encouraged to act justly or to “be good.” Goodness and purity are God's natural (and really, His only) way of doing things.
The second concept of holiness in the Bible is a bit more abstract and difficult for us to fully understand. God's holiness is also a description of how he is completely “Other” to our realm of experience. The Ancient polytheists had gods that were really nothing more than human beings with superpowers, limited to some set of rules of the universe outside their control – whether it be fate or death or even governmental bureaucracy. The Living God, however, is completely outside the scope of our minds and hearts. God is completely transcendent over all he has made, different in a radical way that is scary and almost frightening because it's outside our comprehension.
As an aside: That's not to say that we can't ever know anything about God, or that He's completely out of our reach. Independent discovery of God and His nature and attributes is impossible, but often God kindly chooses to reveal himself in various ways – culminating in His Son, Jesus Christ (Hebrews 1.1-2). But it still remains that while we cannot know God exhaustively, we can know him comprehensively.
When referring to people and things, these same two concepts come into play, just in slightly different forms. So how is a Christian holy? Again, holiness as moral purity is easiest to see. Holy people love deeply; they tell the truth. Holy people know how to control what they say and think (James 3.2). They live at peace with others and with themselves (James 3.13, Romans 12.18), keep away from sexual immorality and are humble. But these really are just some of the behaviors that flow from holiness.
Holiness has less to do with “acting right” than it does with being holy. Which is where the second idea of holiness comes into play with us human beings. Just as God is completely other and in his own category to himself, “holiness” carries with it the concept of separation. God has called his people holy, apart from and distinct from anything they do. Because we already are God's holy people, he tells us to act holy. (Be holy, I am holy)
But this isn't some sort of sequestering or quarantine. When God sets us apart (makes us holy), he does so for a purpose because he wants to use us in a special way, as his own. In a mundane way, we make things “holy” all the time. Do you have a computer that's only for your personal use? Do you have a home office for your business? Then in relation to you your computer or home office is “holy.” It's set apart for a special use. Would you want your significant other being intimate with others? No, because part of that relationship involves being set apart for only each other.
So what does this all mean in practical terms? Someone who is a child of God has a life that is marked by love and holiness. What is a holy life?
We can think of Christian holiness as consisting of three inter-related parts: a humble and complete affirmation of what God says about sin and its cure, a self-effacing but joyful devotion to God and his glory, an ever-increasing desire of and success in the pursuit of a godly character and ethics.
The Christian begins her walk with Jesus with an accurate view of herself as a still sinning sinner who knows that God is justly and rightly angry at sin. This conviction is brought, and used by the Holy Spirit to bring repentance as the she becomes just as revolted as God is with her sin, abandoning that sin to walk with God. This is an essence of the Gospel, and mark of holiness from which the others flow from.
Next, holiness involves a humble and joyful devotion to God and to His glory. This can take a bit of explaining. You see, the essence of sin is regarding something or someone other than the Living God, as God. When a person enters of life of repentance and trust in Jesus, the appeal of sin is torn down and God performs heart surgery – changing out a heart that's hard and at war with God with one that loves God - allowing for the person to see God as the beauty He really is. The Christian's rallying cry mirrors Psalms 73.25-26. And because pleasing God is the most important priority now, all talents and resources, abilities and time are used to serve Jesus and His People (1 Cor 10.31).
It may seem counter intuitive, but the third aspect of holiness is that the holy one gets “holier.” The Christian considers his life and decides to obey and follow Jesus, since the world and sin aren't as appealing any more (1 Peter 1.16). While his obedience isn't perfect, it touches all aspects of and is a regular and consistent part of his life; this obedience is voluntary not forced or because he is ultimately unwilling to do so, and it also endures until the end. This is the moral and ethical side of holiness that is easiest to see. In becoming joined to Christ, it becomes a battle and a fight to put down the remaining bits of rebellion that God allows to stay. Some parts of this are “natural” and just grow stronger if one doesn't impede it (Galatians 5.22-23). Other parts are a sometimes painful struggle. Every day, the fight for holiness involves picking up the Cross and dying to self (Matthew 16.24-25). He reaches and strives, out of love and gratitude to be more like Jesus, the one who saved him.
That's not to say that the moment to moment obedience is always won or clear. Great Christians have and can fall into serious sin, but it's like calculus: the direction of a particular point on a line isn't an indication of the overall direction. The Christian's holiness isn't just a one time thing, but a direction, an overall trajectory that points to Jesus.
Being a Christian is more than saying a prayer or filling out a church membership card. While our good works are not meritorious, they are necessary. That's just theologian-speak for “holiness comes from a holy heart.” While it doesn't make you holy, it shows that you are.
The second concept of holiness in the Bible is a bit more abstract and difficult for us to fully understand. God's holiness is also a description of how he is completely “Other” to our realm of experience. The Ancient polytheists had gods that were really nothing more than human beings with superpowers, limited to some set of rules of the universe outside their control – whether it be fate or death or even governmental bureaucracy. The Living God, however, is completely outside the scope of our minds and hearts. God is completely transcendent over all he has made, different in a radical way that is scary and almost frightening because it's outside our comprehension.
As an aside: That's not to say that we can't ever know anything about God, or that He's completely out of our reach. Independent discovery of God and His nature and attributes is impossible, but often God kindly chooses to reveal himself in various ways – culminating in His Son, Jesus Christ (Hebrews 1.1-2). But it still remains that while we cannot know God exhaustively, we can know him comprehensively.
When referring to people and things, these same two concepts come into play, just in slightly different forms. So how is a Christian holy? Again, holiness as moral purity is easiest to see. Holy people love deeply; they tell the truth. Holy people know how to control what they say and think (James 3.2). They live at peace with others and with themselves (James 3.13, Romans 12.18), keep away from sexual immorality and are humble. But these really are just some of the behaviors that flow from holiness.
Holiness has less to do with “acting right” than it does with being holy. Which is where the second idea of holiness comes into play with us human beings. Just as God is completely other and in his own category to himself, “holiness” carries with it the concept of separation. God has called his people holy, apart from and distinct from anything they do. Because we already are God's holy people, he tells us to act holy. (Be holy, I am holy)
But this isn't some sort of sequestering or quarantine. When God sets us apart (makes us holy), he does so for a purpose because he wants to use us in a special way, as his own. In a mundane way, we make things “holy” all the time. Do you have a computer that's only for your personal use? Do you have a home office for your business? Then in relation to you your computer or home office is “holy.” It's set apart for a special use. Would you want your significant other being intimate with others? No, because part of that relationship involves being set apart for only each other.
So what does this all mean in practical terms? Someone who is a child of God has a life that is marked by love and holiness. What is a holy life?
We can think of Christian holiness as consisting of three inter-related parts: a humble and complete affirmation of what God says about sin and its cure, a self-effacing but joyful devotion to God and his glory, an ever-increasing desire of and success in the pursuit of a godly character and ethics.
The Christian begins her walk with Jesus with an accurate view of herself as a still sinning sinner who knows that God is justly and rightly angry at sin. This conviction is brought, and used by the Holy Spirit to bring repentance as the she becomes just as revolted as God is with her sin, abandoning that sin to walk with God. This is an essence of the Gospel, and mark of holiness from which the others flow from.
Next, holiness involves a humble and joyful devotion to God and to His glory. This can take a bit of explaining. You see, the essence of sin is regarding something or someone other than the Living God, as God. When a person enters of life of repentance and trust in Jesus, the appeal of sin is torn down and God performs heart surgery – changing out a heart that's hard and at war with God with one that loves God - allowing for the person to see God as the beauty He really is. The Christian's rallying cry mirrors Psalms 73.25-26. And because pleasing God is the most important priority now, all talents and resources, abilities and time are used to serve Jesus and His People (1 Cor 10.31).
It may seem counter intuitive, but the third aspect of holiness is that the holy one gets “holier.” The Christian considers his life and decides to obey and follow Jesus, since the world and sin aren't as appealing any more (1 Peter 1.16). While his obedience isn't perfect, it touches all aspects of and is a regular and consistent part of his life; this obedience is voluntary not forced or because he is ultimately unwilling to do so, and it also endures until the end. This is the moral and ethical side of holiness that is easiest to see. In becoming joined to Christ, it becomes a battle and a fight to put down the remaining bits of rebellion that God allows to stay. Some parts of this are “natural” and just grow stronger if one doesn't impede it (Galatians 5.22-23). Other parts are a sometimes painful struggle. Every day, the fight for holiness involves picking up the Cross and dying to self (Matthew 16.24-25). He reaches and strives, out of love and gratitude to be more like Jesus, the one who saved him.
That's not to say that the moment to moment obedience is always won or clear. Great Christians have and can fall into serious sin, but it's like calculus: the direction of a particular point on a line isn't an indication of the overall direction. The Christian's holiness isn't just a one time thing, but a direction, an overall trajectory that points to Jesus.
Being a Christian is more than saying a prayer or filling out a church membership card. While our good works are not meritorious, they are necessary. That's just theologian-speak for “holiness comes from a holy heart.” While it doesn't make you holy, it shows that you are.
What's sad is that the world doesn't accept the answer that everyone makes mistakes and even a christian can falter from time to time. What instead they do is say "See? Even he sinned! Its proof that Christianity is false and don't work!". No matter how many times we say that we too are sinners and can and do make mistakes.
Maybe that's where we are going wrong. Focusing on what the world says about things instead of what God says. Focusing on the whole instead of the individual.