To listen to Nancy’s answer recorded on Moody Radio, click below.
John Piper said, “God is separated from all that is not God and is in a class absolutely by himself. God, like the rarest diamond in the universe, is absolutely unique and infinitely valuable. His holiness, therefore, most essentially consists in his absolute uniqueness and therefore the infinite value of his beauty and his excellence. He’s above all things. He’s distinct from everything that is not God, and therefore, he is of infinite and of absolute worth.”
Holiness is not only a possibility for the Christian; holiness is a requirement.
To be “holy” means to be “set apart for honorable use.” While we were once slaves to our flesh, disobedient, and lived for our passions and pleasures, God, our Savior saved us from the penalty of sin, cleansed us and set us apart for righteousness. If we have believed in Christ for salvation, we have been washed by the regeneration of the Holy Spirit and set apart from the world for godliness.
“I appeal to you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship. Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.” (Romans 12:1,2)
“Therefore, preparing your minds for action, and being sober-minded, set your hope fully on the grace that will be brought to you at the revelation of Jesus Christ. As obedient children, do not be conformed to the passions of your former ignorance, but as he who called you is holy, you also be holy in all your conduct, since it is written, “You shall be holy, for I am holy.” (1 Peter 1:13-15)
We must pursue holiness in our thought life, speech, and in our activities. Holiness, in a sense, becomes a part of our DNA. Our lives need to mirror Jesus meaning, as we live out Christ, we become people who care for the needs of others sacrificially. We work, through our prayer life and reading of scripture, and the work of the Holy Spirit in our lives, to establish new healthy patterns of life and not revert by to our former lifestyle.
“Therefore, if anyone cleanses himself from what is dishonorable,[he will be a vessel for honorable use, set apart as holy, useful to the master of the house, ready for every good work.” (2 Timothy 2:21)
Cultivating a lifestyle of holiness does not mean that we must draft a list of do’s and don’ts to live by. We are free from the letter of the law which kills and now live according to the dictates of the Holy Spirit. Now we become followers who are seeking God’s will for our lives. God has called all of us to love Him and to love others as Christ loves us. It is the most significant way to share the reality of Jesus our Savior.
“Beloved, let us love one another, for love is from God, and whoever loves has been born of God and knows God. Anyone who does not love does not know God, because God is love. In this the love of God was made manifest among us, that God sent his only Son into the world, so that we might live through him. In this is love, not that we have loved God but that he loved us and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins.” (1 John 4:7-10)