The words, “holy” or “holiness,” are often used in Christian circles. They are common themes in our worship songs including classic hymns that sing “Holy, holy, holy, Lord God almighty,” or more contemporary hymns, “Holy, there is no one like You.” We affirm God’s holiness as we pray to him, and even as we talk about Him to others. We do recognize that God is holy, however, recognizing His Holiness is often where our reference of these words stops.
LIVING HOLY
Seldom do I hear the words holy or holiness in reference to humans. We are told in the Bible that our sins are separated from us as far as the east is from the west (Psalms 103:12). It almost seems, however, that we have also separated ourselves from holiness as far as the east is from the west.
The problem is that the Bible does not do that. The scriptures tell us, “We are to be holy, because He is holy” (1 Peter 1:16). We are also told to “Pursue peace with all men, and the holiness without which no one will see the Lord” (Hebrews 12:14). There are many more references in scripture that call us to live holy lives, yet somehow, we seem to have missed those verses.
As Christians, we are called to live righteous, holy lives. Of course, we are bound to struggle with temptation as we walk in a fallen world. So, the problem is not just that we fall short of the standard of holiness, but it is that we do not seem to be bothered by it at all.
Wholly Holy
Many Christians strive for holey-ness, rather than holiness, meaning our holiness is full of holes. In so many areas of our lives we are reflections of our society’s expectations, not our Savior’s, and we are not even concerned about it. We have decided the scriptures are either not relevant, or worse, just wrong in relating to how we talk & dress, what we look at or listen to, how we treat others, what we post on social media, how we spend our money, our sexual and racial ethics as well as the overall direction of our lives. However, everything in our lives should be informed and directed by the Scriptures.
We seem to be satisfied with a holiness that is full of holes. We need to strive for a holiness that is entire and complete, and extends to every area of our lives. May God help us to live out our calling as His people to live as wholly holy rather than holey holy for the glory of God!
As Lent commences on Ash Wednesday, we are entering a time of introspection and prayer leading to Easter. Let us reflect on the significance of death preceding resurrection, urging readers to embrace a daily practice of surrendering self in preparation for our spiritual transformation.