'You shall be holy, for I the Lord your God am holy.' (Leviticus 19:2)
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” (1 Peter 1:15-16).
Holy is not a word we really use much today. When we do, it is either meant as an insult or is completely meaningless. “Oh, he is so “holier than thou,” meaning, he is so self-righteous and judgmental.
Clearly not intended as a compliment. “Holy cow” or “holy smokes” or “holy guacamole” — exclamations where “holy” is rendered completely meaningless.
What do you think of when you hear someone who is called holy? What picture comes to mind? Speaking for myself, “holy” carries with it an image of angels and halos. Saints — with a capital “S.” Sacred, religious people on their knees — heads bowed; hands folded in prayer.
But what does it really mean to be holy? The word holy and its derivatives are used over a thousand times in the Bible. We even find the Apostle Peter quoting the Book of Leviticus, repeating God’s command to us — “Be holy because I, the Lord your God, am holy” (1 Peter 1:16; Leviticus 19:2).
So, how do we all do on being holy day-to-day? Oh sure, we may go along smoothly for a bit (maybe an hour or two?) but then…real life seems to hit us in the face. We hit the inevitable bumps in the road of life and suddenly we don’t feel so holy.
A diagnosis. A lost job. A divorce. The death of a loved one. And so much more can interfere with our perceived holiness. In fact, we don’t feel holy at all — we feel…lost. Abandoned. Alone.
Other times, it doesn’t even take such dramatic events. It can be as simple as trying to get through to customer service while listening to a heartless machine on the other end while we seek help — “representative?” “Representative!!”
When someone finally does come on the line, we are already agitated and unfriendly. Or maybe we get cut off by some rude “jerk” on the way home…from church. Hardly holy.
God is indeed perfect and holy and asks us to be the same. It seems an impossible task. But, like so many other things, God does not ask of us what he is not willing to help us accomplish.
We must remember what Jesus taught us: “Jesus looked at them and said,‘With man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible’” (Matthew 19:26).
But maybe too, it is important to understand God’s expectations. Maybe we need to talk about what is meant by “holy.” If so, perhaps we indeed can realize that it is possible to be holy as He is holy.
What Does it Mean to Be Holy?
In the original Hebrew, the word used for “holy” was “kadash.” The root word means “to cut, or to separate.” The word “holy” means a layering of things, but in simple terms, kadash means to be set apart for a specific purpose. Different.
In the Bible, when people have a vision of God, they fall down in humility and repentance. Oh, woe is me! I realize how shabby I am next to him; how far different he is from me and how far different from what I thought him to be.
Whatever we may think of God, he is much more. He is more powerful, more loving, more gracious, wiser, and better than we could ever imagine. He is the creator of all things.
He sustains all things, and he will redeem all things. He is right in all he does, perfectly just even in his anger, and loving towards all he has made. He is light and in him is no darkness at all.
This holy God calls people to follow him and, by doing so, he makes them holy, through his Son and his Spirit. Yes — the Holy Spirit. He sets them apart for His purposes and makes them different. He expects them to be different, expects them to be his image.
How Can We Live Holy Like God?
From our perspective, only a tiny handful are saints. But in the Bible, every Christian is called a saint — a holy person.
To all in Rome who are loved by God and called to be his holy people… (Romans 1:7).
Paul includes all the church, all who love God — all of them are called to be saints, holy people.
To the church of God in Corinth, to those sanctified in Christ Jesus and called to be his holy people, together with all those everywhere who call on the name of our Lord Jesus Christ — their Lord and ours… (1 Corinthians 1:2).
It’s not just the Christians at Corinth who are called to be saints, but all those everywhere who call on Jesus.
(I pray that you) may have power, together with all the Lord’s holy people, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ… (Ephesians 3:18).
In the Book of Acts, Luke makes clear that people were attracted to what was plainly a people set apart. They were different than everyone else. More loving — of God, of Jesus, and of each other. As a result, they acted differently. Lived differently. Set apart from the rest of the world.
It is a different day. But shouldn’t non-believers be able to look at Christ-followers today and see something uniquely different from the rest of the world?
If we are simply the same as the world, except for what we say we believe — why would they choose to also follow Jesus? Shouldn’t they be seeing us and asking, “What have they got they I don’t have?”
Becoming Holy as God is Holy
Quite simply, we belong to God. He has called us — you. Chosen you and set you apart for His purposes. You are different now. You are not living for yourself; you are living for him. You are set apart. Holy.
Therefore, as God’s chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience (Colossians 3:12).
In other words, as God’s chosen people, as his saints, we are to do this. Act like this. Live like this. Being holy means, we live differently than others.
Being set apart for God means that we live a life for God — to be holy in all we do, through the Holy Spirit. Be holy because God is holy. God has called you his own and set you apart and made you holy — different. Now we are to live it out.
You are holy and you are becoming holy. Already, but not yet. It is a fact that you are holy, and it is a process — you are becoming holy.
And by that will, we have been made holy through the sacrifice of the body of Jesus Christ once for all (Hebrews 10:10).
We have been made holy. It is done. You are a saint; you are a holy person.
For by one sacrifice, he has made perfect forever those who are being made holy (Hebrews 10:14).
And it’s a process. You already are holy, so be holy in all you do.
You are to become what you already are — Holy.
For further reading:
What Does it Mean God Is Holy, Holy, Holy?
Does God Expect Us to Be Perfect?
What Is the Refiner’s Fire in Christianity?
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