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Our Pursuit Of Holiness

 

The following is a summary of a Summer Sunday Smorgasbord Class that I recently taught.

In 1 Peter 1:14-16 we read: “As obedient children, do not conform to the evil desires you had when you lived in ignorance. But just as he who called you is holy, so be holy in all you do; for it is written: ‘Be holy, because I am holy.’”

At its core, the word holy means “set apart.” So, what does this mean for my day to day life here in 2016?

For me to be holy means that every area of my life acts as a good and accurate reflection of Jesus Christ, who is himself the very image of God.

Read that again, and give special consideration to these two words: every area.

Though sobering, the very, very good news of the gospel is that by believing in the Son of God, we are clothed with the righteousness of Jesus Christ, and in this way we have been made acceptable to God. So while on the one hand we are told in Hebrews that “without holiness no one will see the Lord,” on the other hand we are told in the same chapter that “by one sacrifice he has made perfect forever those who are being made holy.”

So our focus, then, pertaining to the call to be holy, is this: Resolve to fully participate with God in the process of “being made holy,” all for the glory of God! Every hardship, every discipline, every trial, every disappointment, every conflict—God will be faithful to use, and is presently using all of these opportunities to make us holy, to help us accurately reflect Jesus Christ, and to perfect in us the image of God.

How wonderful to know that through all of life’s circumstances, God is working for our good, for the fulfilling of this purpose in us! Our pursuit of holiness aligns with what we recently learned from Romans 8:28-39!

So, as you pursue a life of holiness, take this to heart:

1. Rest in the blessed assurance that “by one sacrifice he has made perfect forever those who are being made holy.”

2. Resolve to fully participate with God in the process of “being made holy.” Do this by looking at all of your hardships, disciplines, trials, disappointments, and conflicts, and while in the midst of them, asking God this: Help me to understand how this is making me holy, and help me to yield to the work of the Holy Spirit and to participate fully in the work that you’re doing in me.

3. Search the Scriptures for comfort and for strength as you discern and participate in God’s work in you, and make it your practice to memorize and to meditate on those portions which are of particular help to you.

4. Tell others of the work God is doing in you! Tell both believers and unbelievers!

Joe Kulesza
Elder