Who Me? Holy?

Who Me? Holy?

God loved us and chose us in Christ to be holy.

Ephesians 1:4

His Spirit has made you holy. As a result, you have obeyed him.

1 Peter 1:2

You must live as God’s obedient children. Don’t slip back into your old ways of living to satisfy your own desires. You didn’t know any better then. But now you must be holy in everything you do, just as God who chose you is holy.

1 Peter 1:14-15

We use the word holy in some very unholy ways: “Holy cow!” we say as an expression of surprise. “That child is a holy terror” we say about an out-of-control child. But the Bible takes holiness very seriously. In fact, God has set holiness as the goal of our lives—the target we’re aiming for. God said, “You must be holy because I am holy” (Leviticus 11:45). So what does it mean to be holy?

Holiness involves doing what’s right, but it is much more than that. To be holy is to be set apart for God and to God. The evidence that we are becoming holy is that our thoughts, actions, and desires become more centered on God and what is pleasing to him.

When God says that he wants us to be holy, that doesn’t mean he expects us to be perfect here and now. He is moving us in that direction and will complete the process when he comes back for us. But even now, we can commit ourselves to becoming closer in reality to what he has already declared us to be through our connectedness to Christ: holy.

Some people think that because God is so generous with grace, holy living is optional—that God sets it out there but doesn’t expect it. But God’s grace is not a get-out-of-jail-free card for living apart from God. It makes us want to live lives that center around God and are pleasing to him. God’s grace empowers us to become holy like he is.

DISCUSSION STARTERS

What comes to mind when you hear the word holy or holiness?

Is holiness mostly about what we do, why we do it, or the way we do it?

What are some practical ways you can be holy in your everyday life?