Introduction
The Bible is full of passages showing the Holiness
of God. The Bible is also full of passages that
encourages and commands Christians to be Holy. In the same light, Jesus, who
was by nature God, was holy throughout His life on earth. Therefore, if we say
we have accepted Jesus as our saviour, then, we should be holy. You cannot have
Jesus and be sinning because 1Jn. 3:9
says “Whosoever is born of God
doth not commit sin; for his seed remaineth in him: and he cannot sin, because
he is born of God”.
1Pet.1:15-16 says: He who
called us is holy, so we should be holy in all manner of conversation. Ecclesiastes 3 states there is
time for everything, but there is no time to be holy because it is always,
constant and forever we should be holy.
What is true holiness?
Holiness may also mean righteousness. Holy also
refers to that which is “set apart” for God’s use.
To explain further, when God told Israel to be holy
in Leviticus 11 and 19, He was instructing them to be distinct from the other
nations. God gave them standards to live by so the world would know they
belonged to Him wherever they are. Similarly, Christians are God’s chosen
people. In 1 Peter 1:16, God is talking specifically to believers to be
Holy. As believers, we are "set apart" from the world unto the Lord.
We should live by God's standards, not the world's. 1 Peter 2:9 describes believers as “a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a peculiar
people; that ye should shew forth the praises of him who hath called you out of
darkness into his marvelous light. James
1:27 defines our type of religion.
What does it mean to be Holy or who is a holy person?
1) Holiness is the habit of being of one mind with God as Scripture describes. It is the habit of hating what He hates, loving what He loves and
measuring everything in this world by the standard of His Word. He who most
entirely agrees with God, he is the most holy man
2) A holy man will endeavour to shun every
known sin and to keep every
known commandment of God. He will
feel what Paul felt in Rom. 7:22, when he said, "I delight in the law of God after the inward man”.
3) A holy man will strive to be like our Lord Jesus Christ. He will not only live the life of faith in Him and draw from Him all his
daily peace and strength, but he will also labour to have the mind that was in
Him (i.e. to please the Father) and to be "conformed to His image"
(Rom. 8:29). Your aim will to bear with and forgive others, to be unselfish, to
walk in love, to be humble as Christ did. He will be a faithful witness for the
truth, He would continually deny Himself in order to minister to others, and he
will be bold and uncompromising in denouncing sin. The holy man will, in all
situations ask himself- "What would
Christ have said and done, if He were in my place?"
4) A holy man will live in the fear of God. I do not mean like a slave, who only works
because he is afraid of punishment, but rather the fear of one who wishes to
live and move as if he was always before his father's face. As a Christian, you shouldn’t sin because
fellow believers are around But you will
not do these things because God does not like them irrespective of who is there
or not
5) A
holy man will follow after spiritual mindedness. He will endeavour to set his affections entirely
on things above rather than hold onto things on earth. He will aim to live in
this world like a stranger travelling to his home. He communes with God in
prayer, study the Bible and live it. Some of us are so much concerned with
worldly things that Christ has become secondary in our lives. E.g. grabbing and
coveting properties, pleasures, etc. is our major worry rather than godliness.
I am not saying that with
holiness there is no presence of indwelling sin butthe holy person hates sin,
mourns over it, asks for forgiveness and forsakes it.
But, why is it so important for every Christian to be holy
The Christian is constantly in battle but the word
of God clearly commands in Lev. 19:2 and 1Pet.1:16, that we should be holy. Why
then is holiness so important? Because:
1. God commands that the Christian should be
holy (1 Peter 1:14-16; Lev.
11:44-45; 19:2; 20:7).
God said, “You shall be holy, for I am holy.” A holy
God calls for a holy people. Therefore as Christians, our character shall
be holiness. In fact, the
purpose for which Christ died for us, is to be holy.
Therefore a Christian who sins is a child sinning against His Father (1 Jn.
3:2-3).
2. People who live holy lives are a blessing to
others (Galatians 5:13). Consistent holy behavior is a powerful testimony of
God’s saving grace. There are many people who claim to be Christian and yet
their lifestyles are far from what a true Christian’s lifestyle should be- still fornicating, stealing, cheating,
committing adultery, etc. No! You have to be holy, to lead others to
Christ.
3. “Without holiness on earth we shall never be prepared to enjoy
heaven.” Heb. 12:14 says-“Without
holiness no one will see the Lord”. “And now, little children, abide in Him, so
that when He appear, we may have confidence and not shrink away from Him in shame
at His coming” (1 John 2:28). Because Jesus Christ shall return, we can and
should keep our lives pure. If you want your name to appear in the book of
life, live a holy life. Hell is real but the decision not to be there lies with
you today.
How can we attain Holiness?
If you want to be Holy then you must begin with Jesus
Christ. He is the beginning and the end of all holiness. The way to be holy is
to come to Him by faith and be joined to Him. If we want to be holy then:
·
We
must make every effort to abstain from sin. 1 John 3:9 states
that “no one
who is born of God will continue to sin, because God’s seed remains in him; he
cannot go on sinning, because he has been born of God”. We have be leave the old self and take on the new
creature (2 Corin. 5:17). Because of survival, we do not consider the
importance of holiness. It is good to be prosperous, but we should not let this
take the place of the fact that we must be holy whether rich or poor.
· We should not conform to our former lusts. We must keep off all things that cause us to sin.
i.e. any lifestyle, friends, groupings that will hinder our spiritual
growth.
· We should
obey God’s Word. The standards of holiness are set down in God’s Word.
We are to be obedient towards His commands as set down in His Word. Today, some
Christians choose which word to obey and which not. We call it enjoyment of
life. Remember, holiness is “setting
apart”. Obey God’s word and have eternal life. Remember 2corin. 5:10.
Conclusion
Let me ask everyone here
a personal question: Are you holy?
I do not ask whether you attend church regularly; If Christ appears right now
and asks you to tell him why He should allow you into heaven, what account of
holiness are you going to give?
Some say, "It is impossible to be so holy and
live in this life at the same time: I answer, “You are mistaken”. It can be
done! Don’t let the world deceive you because Holy people are always not like
the world around them- they are a
separate nation, a peculiar people; and you must be so too, if you want to
be saved! Noah and Lot are humans like you and I, but they lived holy lives in
their time to escape the wrath of God. You can also live it as God expects of
us today
Finally,
Holiness only results from a right relationship
with God. If you have not placed your faith in God's Son, Jesus alone to save you
from your sins, then your pursuit of holiness is in vain. The world will
deceive and fail you but holiness will give you eternal life. Brethren, Be holy, for our God is holy.
Amen!
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