HOLINESS
In
some churches, when you mention the word "holiness" the first they
mention is how a person dresses. Holiness is not about how we dress.
First of all, it’s not about our outward appearance that identifies us
as His. It is the LOVE of GOD that is IN us. It is the FRUIT of the
Spirit that identifies whose we are. A Christian is known for the Love
we have one for another, not by what we wear.
I remember in my life, I spent so much time concerned about the outward appearance, thinking that how I dressed was what made me holy. And because of this, the inside of me, and the work that needed done there, was neglected. I was always basing my salvation on my performance and holiness standards that I tried to uphold. I found that by doing this, I was forced to judge others when I knew it wasn’t right. I judged people. I thought I was better than them. I thought we were the ones that had the truth and no one else did. There was always so much finger pointing and gossip going on instead of love. God began to do "heart surgery" on me and I realized that by basing salvation on works and "holiness standards", I had a blockage there that was keeping the "fruit of the Spirit" from manifesting in my life. This is when God began to show me what true holiness is.
Holiness is not God asking us to be good but it’s an invitation to be His. To be holy is to be set apart in our spirit soul and physical body for God. We respond to His call, submit our will to His Word and ask the Holy Spirit to guide us.
Holiness is about ownership. We no longer own our lives. He does. He is the one who makes us holy. We cannot attain holiness through rules and regulations restricting us with legalistic rulings over tangible things (no cutting/trimming hair, no makeup or jewelry, strict dress codes, no TV, etc) to obtain inward purity.
Holiness is being set apart, whereas purity is how you conduct yourself because you are consecrated.
Holiness is beautiful. It is what shines in the darkness to remind us of how things should have been and what they one day will be.
-First holiness starts with God – not us. We enter the realm of holiness through the great mystery of the transaction Jesus calls being born again. (John 3:1-18 )
-The second part of the "holiness plan" – my part. While true holiness originates with God, He asks for my response as well. Initially, I am asked to receive His work of grace through faith in Jesus Christ. (Eph. 2:8-10; John 1:12; 3:16-17)
Holiness involves relationship, not following a set of rules. He calls us to live by faith, not sight. He gives principles to live by. The principles for life in His kingdom are often opposite to how the world lives – and even tells me I should live. Under His reign, God instructs me to bless my enemies while the world says to curse them. He declares that greatness is found in servant hood, not in grasping human power and control. God says my body is His temple and I am not to use it for immorality.
I have seen many, including myself at one time, who demonstrated the good appearance, yet no fruit was present. Christians are known by the fruit that manifests in their lives through the working of the Spirit of God. Our spirituality is not measured by how we dress, how much we pray, not how much we speak in tongues, nor how much works we do for the Lord. We are "clothed in Christ" and HE constantly reassures us by His unconditional love. Our identity is found in Him, not in some "holiness standards" set up by man. It is the condition of the heart that is important to God. It is like Jesus taught in His Word, we must first cleanse the inside of the cup and dish (heart) that the outside may be clean also. (Matthew 23:26) If your heart is pure, you will desire to be obedient to God’s way and WANT to do things pleasing to Him, not just because you HAVE to
I remember in my life, I spent so much time concerned about the outward appearance, thinking that how I dressed was what made me holy. And because of this, the inside of me, and the work that needed done there, was neglected. I was always basing my salvation on my performance and holiness standards that I tried to uphold. I found that by doing this, I was forced to judge others when I knew it wasn’t right. I judged people. I thought I was better than them. I thought we were the ones that had the truth and no one else did. There was always so much finger pointing and gossip going on instead of love. God began to do "heart surgery" on me and I realized that by basing salvation on works and "holiness standards", I had a blockage there that was keeping the "fruit of the Spirit" from manifesting in my life. This is when God began to show me what true holiness is.
Holiness is not God asking us to be good but it’s an invitation to be His. To be holy is to be set apart in our spirit soul and physical body for God. We respond to His call, submit our will to His Word and ask the Holy Spirit to guide us.
Holiness is about ownership. We no longer own our lives. He does. He is the one who makes us holy. We cannot attain holiness through rules and regulations restricting us with legalistic rulings over tangible things (no cutting/trimming hair, no makeup or jewelry, strict dress codes, no TV, etc) to obtain inward purity.
Holiness is being set apart, whereas purity is how you conduct yourself because you are consecrated.
Holiness is beautiful. It is what shines in the darkness to remind us of how things should have been and what they one day will be.
-First holiness starts with God – not us. We enter the realm of holiness through the great mystery of the transaction Jesus calls being born again. (John 3:1-18 )
-The second part of the "holiness plan" – my part. While true holiness originates with God, He asks for my response as well. Initially, I am asked to receive His work of grace through faith in Jesus Christ. (Eph. 2:8-10; John 1:12; 3:16-17)
Holiness involves relationship, not following a set of rules. He calls us to live by faith, not sight. He gives principles to live by. The principles for life in His kingdom are often opposite to how the world lives – and even tells me I should live. Under His reign, God instructs me to bless my enemies while the world says to curse them. He declares that greatness is found in servant hood, not in grasping human power and control. God says my body is His temple and I am not to use it for immorality.
I have seen many, including myself at one time, who demonstrated the good appearance, yet no fruit was present. Christians are known by the fruit that manifests in their lives through the working of the Spirit of God. Our spirituality is not measured by how we dress, how much we pray, not how much we speak in tongues, nor how much works we do for the Lord. We are "clothed in Christ" and HE constantly reassures us by His unconditional love. Our identity is found in Him, not in some "holiness standards" set up by man. It is the condition of the heart that is important to God. It is like Jesus taught in His Word, we must first cleanse the inside of the cup and dish (heart) that the outside may be clean also. (Matthew 23:26) If your heart is pure, you will desire to be obedient to God’s way and WANT to do things pleasing to Him, not just because you HAVE to
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