What
Is Holiness?
What is Un-Holiness?
These are the responses given to this first question. I did not comment on or change any comments and each writer is responsible for their own opinions. I'm sorry that I can't take the time to pass along any comments you'd like to make to individuals about their postings. And there is not an opportunity in this setting for responding to any of these comments.
But I hope you'll enjoy and benefit from hearing about other people's comments on this question.
To me, God's holiness is the most frightening weapon in His arsenal to reveal me
to myself, especially in comparison with Him. It comes to me quickly that He is
God and
My working definition/description of holiness is this: Holiness is
obedience to the highest that I know. (Ignorance is no excuse.) I think I picked
up this definition from Bill Gothard.
To me, it is the first principle of God, the bedrock of His character. If
He were not holy, there would be no flow of love, mercy, grace.
Unholiness is disobedience. It occurs by following my deceitful heart
and/or my nature to love darkness rather than light.
Russ
Holiness is something that I have been
struggling with grasping most of this past year. What does it mean to be holy?
Can I ever be holy? I think I have discovered that God requires me to "be
holy," but found that to be literally impossible without His help. Holiness
is to be blameless and pure in the sight of God. I am not pure, but I am
striving to be more like Him as I spend time with Him and His word.
Heather
Sanctification is not only a one-time
act; it is an ongoing process which will continue until the end of our lives.
Our holy God, who desires intimacy with us, seeks to mold, shape and conform us
to Christ’s image. In turn, as God’s children who desire to fellowship with
and to please our Heavenly Father out of our deep love for Him, we will want to
reflect His character by striving to lead holy and blameless lives. To be holy
is to be pure, morally perfect, and set apart from all sin. This goal is
highlighted in 1 Peter 1:14-16 (NIV), which states: "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.’" Our thoughts, words, attitudes, and conduct
should ideally be above reproach. As followers of Christ, our goal is to walk
with integrity, leading blameless, morally pure lives.
A specific way in which we can aim for holiness and purity involves
refraining from subjecting ourselves to worldly entertainment. In today’s
society, that can be quite challenging! A growing segment of television
programs, movies, reading material, and the world wide web seems to be spiraling
downward into a pit of moral depravity. Due to this sad state of affairs, I do
not watch much television anymore. However, one particular program I have viewed
on rare occasions is a rather entertaining, albeit off-color improvisation show
called, "Whose Line Is It Anyway?"
One particular evening as I entered my bedroom with the intention of
reading my Bible, I was drawn to the television instead. The television set had
been left on and "Whose Line Is It Anyway?" was in progress. Before I
know it, I was seated at the foot of my bed fully immersed in the mildly bawdy
entertainment. After several minutes, I had the uncomfortable feeling that God
was speaking to my heart. The thoughts that entered my mind were, You
need to turn this show off. I am calling you to a higher standard. You need to
be as pure and holy as I am.
Although uncertain
whether I had actually heard from the Lord or from my overly zealous
conscience, I replied in a whiny voice, "Well, Lord . . . this show
isn’t really that bad. I’m
sure watching it won’t hurt my Christian faith. Can’t I enjoy a little bit
of worldliness? And to be quite honest with you, Lord, I feel that you’re
putting unfair and unnecessary restrictions on me. (deep sigh) But, you know
that, without question, I will obey you if it is truly your voice that I’m
hearing. I’m just feeling kind of sulky at the moment, so please forgive
me."
I continued to watch the show for another fifteen minutes and then reluctantly
turned it off. With Bible in hand, I went downstairs and settled into a
comfortable recliner. I turned it open to Revelations, which I was in the midst
of studying, and began reading with utter amazement the commentary note
accompanying Revelation 2:6: "Balaam was a prophet who induced the
Israelites to carry out their lustful desires. When we want to take part in an
activity that we know is wrong, we may make excuses to justify our behavior,
saying that it isn’t as bad as it
seems or that it won’t hurt our faith [italics, mine]. Christ
has strong words for those who look for excuses to sin." Wow! I could
hardly believe what I had just read! God had certainly fed my pathetic excuses
right back to me! And now most assuredly, I had in hand my confirmation that the
Lord had indeed spoken to me in the bedroom.
In all honesty, even after this revelation, I was still having an
attitude problem in that I believed that God was being overly restrictive. I
prayed that He would help me to cheerfully submit to His will. I decided that if
I could see the situation from God’s perspective, submission might come easier
for me. So, I engaged in a little visualization exercise. I imagined myself
entertaining Jesus in my home. I invited the Lord to watch television with me.
Selecting "Whose Line Is It Anyway?" (bad choice!), we settled down
into the comfy sofa for some laughs. As the show progressed and a suggestive
improvisation unfolded, I pictured myself growing extremely uncomfortable as I
squirmed in my seat and my face flushed hot with embarrassment. I thought, What
could have possibly possessed me to subject the pure and holy Lord to this sort
of entertainment? Next I visualized Jesus turning to me with a
furrowed brow and a questioning look in His eyes, as if to say: Why
did you select this particular program for me to watch with you?
Having no justifiable excuse, I imagined myself quickly grabbing the channel
changer and dial hopping to a more appropriate show, such as "Touched By An
Angel."
After running through this scenario in my mind’s eye, I finally had
clarity and insight and was able to see the situation from the Lord’s point of
view. God had used this particular television show as an object lesson and I now
realized its broader application. I needed to be judicious about my choices of
entertainment in general, whether it be television shows, music, reading
material, movies, or video rentals. In order to enjoy intimacy with the Father
while becoming more Christ-like, it was important for me to guard my heart and
mind by heeding the words of Paul in his epistle to the church in
Sue
Being Holy means learning to overcome evil with good. It means casting down
imaginations. It means being kind and quiet. It means listening to hear from the
Holy Spirit and then do what He tells us to do and sometimes that means being
quiet and praying a lot. It means caring for God's people and their needs. It
means being able to know and handle the WORD of truth carefully and gracefully.
It means bearing fruit - the fruits of the spirit. It means being able to hear
advise from others and not be on the defensive. It means Growing in The Grace
and Knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. It means giving others the mercy and
forgiveness that we want and need. It means thinking - "Well what would God
want me to do about this?" and then doing it :)
Unholiness - looks out only for oneself and does not care about the other
person or what the other person will become because of their unholy attitudes or
acts of disobedience. I think of Jealousy. I think it is one of the worst unholy
acts besides lying, cheating, and stealing. Of course we have pride and that
leads to a mess with no mercy. It means being too hard to forgive and too self
righteous to say that they are sorry.
Thea
What is holiness? Living in the
fullness of God's love that colors all my words and actions to
reflect Him.
What is unholiness? Living for self.
Pamela
I'm not an expert. However, to me
holiness is to love the Lord, Jesus with your whole heart and to love others as
yourself. It is to pray and have faith God will answer. It is also to do good
for others whenever you can. In other words living the best life you can in
Praise and Honor of Our Lord who loves us.
Unholiness--to me most people are redeemable. However, there are some
very bad people who have no conscience. I think the Bible says their conscience
is speared as in dead. They live unholy lives hurting other people and caring
only for themselves. Some are criminals. Others are just selfish, angry people
who dwell on the negatives of life.
Bea
I would love to pursue God's Holiness
this year! I was just reading in Genesis this morning, and Genesis 6:6 said that
God was grieved over the ungodliness of man. That one phrase, "God was
grieved" really gripped my heart...I found myself praying, "Father, I
don't want to grieve You or break your heart with my behavior...please help me
grow in my walk with You!" Kathy, I want to KNOW His Holiness in my life.
Gail
Count me in. God has been calling me to
extended periods of seeking for this New Year, and one of the things I’ve
learned has come through a personal study of the creation account. Over and over
God pronounced as good those things He had made SO LONG AS THEY WERE FULFILLING
THE PURPOSE FOR WHICH HE HAD MADE THEM. And that, after all, is true holiness.
Since the words “holy” or “sanctified” or “saint” basically refer to
someone or something that has been set apart by God for His purposes, we can
only be holy if we are fulfilling those purposes, rather than our own or those
imposed on us by others, regardless of the “good/bad” nature of those
other-than-God purposes. And so I am discarding “Kingdom busyness” for
“Kingdom business”—a major difference.
Kathi M
I am excited about your theme of
"holiness" for 2005. Yes, yes, yes, I always long to grow in holiness
and I would like to be a part of your "chat room" without a chat room.
As I read your wonderful articles it brought to mind one of the first women's
retreats I spoke at in 1991. My topic was holiness. I recall one of my points
was the Lord's conviction that I was to drive the speed limit, even if everyone
else was zooming past me. Just as you shared about your battle and now victory
with sugar, I believe holiness includes surrendering areas of our life that
control us and keep us distant from the Lord. I too find there is
freedom and intimacy with the Lord that comes from wholly yielding ourselves to
His holiness. I Peter
Cathy
Holiness is who God is. To live a holy
life is to live as though we are all of Christ, and none of us. The more we
allow God to infuse us (our hearts, minds, and souls) the more we are able to be
like Him- Holy. It is full surrender, which is not even possible without Him,
yet is what is required to live a life of holiness. Unholiness, therefore, is
anything that is not of God. Any thought, motive, or action that is not in
concert with who He is, His character, is unholy.
Cheri
Holiness is not perfection, but a
perfect intention to have relationship with God; to love, obey, please, and
praise Him.
Brenda
When I think of holiness, I
remember the chapter from Isaiah when God took the burning coal and cleansed
Isaiah's lips. Holiness isn't possible without God, He is the ultimate holy one.
Holiness implies a cleansing not only of the outward but of the inward. A
cleansing peace of mind and spirit.
Sheila
Holiness (the most neglected teaching in
the church today) means to be set apart exclusively for God's use. (The vessels
in the temple were holy--sanctified,
set apart for worship alone). To be unholy is to be worldly, to do wrong things
OR to do the right thing in the wrong way or for the wrong reason. How do we
know when we lapse over into "unholiness"? Eric Liddell, in CHARIOTS
OF FIRE, said, "When I run, I feel His pleasure." That's the
"guiding light" for me. When I feel His pleasure, I know I'm on track.
When I feel His displeasure, I start looking around for the reason--usually with
me it's an unforgiving or judgmental spirit. You can't get much "unholier"
than that.
Kathryn
To me the definition of holiness is not so much what a person does or doesn't do
(legalism) as it is how they live their life, especially in a crisis or when
another person mistreats them--a waitress, a salesclerk, a boss, a co-worker,
and so on. It's a matter of attitude, of Christlikeness. Sometimes I'm
embarrassed when a group of writers goes out to eat after a conference. The
waiter/waitress sees us bow our head in prayer, then one of the writers treats
the staff in an unkind, unpolite manner. Holiness should be shown in our
everyday life, actions and conversation that people can see Christ in us. This
will win them more than a sermon.
Donna
I believe holiness is God. To achieve
true holiness is to be one with Him, however our human nature draws us to sin
and only through constant union with Jesus Christ and His sacrifice are we able
to enter into holiness. So why do I choose to give into the flesh and sin?
Because I get distracted, tired, sick and all the other human drawbacks but
along with that I get glimpses of holiness when my spirit aligns with Gods
spirit and that keep me striving for the perfect relationship with Him and
someday I will achieve that goal.
Unholiness is when we step away from God, turning our back on Jesus
sacrifice and making our own rules, justifying our sin and choosing to give in
to what we know is wrong. God in his mercy has given us a conscience and when we
sin we know it. Even writing this gives me crawly feelings down my spine. That's
how close sin is to us everyday. The Bible tells us to pray without ceasing I
believe that is our protection against unholiness.
Kat
As I sit here I'm thinking to myself,
just what is holiness and
unholiness? I don't know that I even know.
It's such an awesome concept I'm overwhelmed. It's so Godlike and I'm so
human like....there is this huge chasm between it and me.
I think of Moses coming down the mountain holding the two burning
tablets. And, I think I'm so far from holiness I can't even comprehend it so
I'll have to ponder it more.
Jennifer
I taught a series years ago on
"Holiness," so I know that the biblical sense of holiness is to be set
apart, with alternative meanings of untainted, unspotted, clean. On a personal
level it to me it means to live focused on and as unto the Lord, choosing to
walk in obedience.
Unholiness would then be the opposite--stained, tainted, unclean--not set
apart. Being not only in the world, but of the world. This result would occur
from choosing to live unfocused on the Lord, in disobedience, going
our own way...choosing to live according to a secular worldview instead of a
biblical worldview.
Golden
I was just in/out/in hospital for 9 mo.
with two serious surgeries. Holiness was the gal cleansing my body from
such impurities--or the male housekeeper who whistled "If I Only Had A
Brain" from Wizard of Oz as he swept and mopped--or the nurse who took care
of my ileostomy bags and poop all over everywhere. Oh, they were positively
holy, doing their jobs-and several of them as unto the Lord, ala Brother
Lawrence. Quite mean, lowly jobs that I would not choose to do.
Holiness was my husband on his knees crying and praying for me, and then
on his knees again helping me cope and manage my new, altered body as I vomited
and cried "I cannot do it" in our bathroom day after day.
Holiness is the kid who sticks up for the underdog on the playground as
bullies taunt 'n tease. Unholy are the ones who stand and gawk.
Holiness is the relief agencies/ Red Cross etc. who are in the trenches
helping God out in the world's disasters. Just a few thoughts--gosh, one could
carry holinesses on 'n on 'n on--well, PTL. I love watching for them--not so
much all the unholies...IE: on TV--in the mall--in books/mags/newspapers-freeway!
Oh my, it hurts my heart and my eyes but we are in this unholy world with the
holiness inside of us and His people, sigh... So I praise Him for that and will
do what He shows me whether it hurts or not.
Patti
Holiness begins by abiding in God
through Christ Jesus, covered by His grace, love, forgiveness and presence. In
response, the believer, filled with divine love, yearns to be obedient to God's
will moment by moment. Gradually, the Christian grows more and more in having
"the mind of Christ" and in Christ-like behavior.
My first quick response is that holiness
is the compilation of characteristics that makes us more like God while
unholiness is the opposite, all those characteristics that are ungodly and
spring from the sinful nature like gossip, hate, drunkenness, lying, cheating,
stealing, and a host of others. Refer to Galatians
Barbara
To me holiness has always signified
being set apart for a specific godly purpose, like the temple in the Old
Testament with its accoutrements, along with the priests. In modern times, I
feel that Christians are “holy” – that is set apart for a specific godly
purpose, which is to have a relationship with the Lord, and to honor and praise
him in body, mind and spirit. Each of us also has purposes which are unique to
us (or gifts) that God has given to us. So when we do not fulfill those purposes
or use the gifts, we become unholy. I have never really thought about holiness
in relationship to myself, yet I definitely am a Christian, which would make me
holy. To carry this further then, when I sin or do not fulfill my godly purposes
I become unholy.
Jan
I
have been spending the past six months studying and writing on 'righteousness'.
I believe there is a correlation between holiness and righteousness. Right
relationship with God, unencumbered by our character defects, leads to holiness.
The concept is still in its infancy, but at the moment, I'm seeing holiness as
an outcome, not a primary objective. In fact, I'm working with the notion that
holiness cannot be achieved but is a gift..... Oh, being an alcoholic with about
29 years of sobriety, I understand all too well, the sugar.
Steve
Holiness is walking hand and hand with
God. Daily reading His word and praying. Sharing the Gospel with others.
Unholiness: we are not walking with God and we are missing all of the
blessings He has for us. Also, our ears and heart do not hear God leading us.
Betty
To me, holiness is revering and
respecting God in every way. I think all of us should be striving for holiness.
As to unholiness, turn on the TV. God is mocked, profaned and disrespected.
However, I am grateful for Christian television and I watch it when I can. Many
blessings on your new project.
Joan
Holiness is a light from within.
Unholiness is a darkness from within. Both can be sensed especially by small
children, animals and those in distress.
Sylvia
Holiness......is the type of
denomination in which I was raised. That defined it for me for a number of
years. However, in that sense, holiness was something that was impossible for me
to attain. It required lots of do's and don't's. I tried, Lord knows, I
tried, but I always came up short. Until one day the Lord helped me see that I
could never be "holy" in my own strength. I equated holiness with
perfection but in Heb. 10:14 (LB) I read: "for by that one offering He made
forever perfect in the sight of God all those he is making holy." I
realized that in God's sight I am perfect because he sees me through His Son,
Jesus. That didn't let me off the hook, but gave me the freedom to realize that
Jesus was going to be my guide, companion, teacher throughout life as He has
been given the responsibility to "make" me holy, and it will be a
lifelong process. I cooperate with him and he patiently, step by step, walks me
down life's path, teaching me lesson after lesson as I grow more like him. For
the commandment he gave us is "be ye holy, as I, the Lord am holy."
Can't do it in my own strength, but with the Spirit working in me, we are
focused on the goal.
Betty S.
Holiness -- it is action not words
it is the look of peace on a face
it is doing for others
it is love for all mankind--
following as Jesus led us
Unholiness -- pretending holiness and never realizing exactly what that
word means.
Durlynn
I know that a lot of holiness is doing
what God would have me do in my moment by moment life - the mundane and
magnificent moments alike. But not
just knowing what I should do--but in using that holiness to discern what HE is
doing in, with, and through me, too, in His holy grace. And yikes! My
holiness needs a lot of that grace! We both, Him 'n me, have our roles to play
and I don't want to miss my part, nor His, nor confuse the two 'cause I'm being
so self important, self centered. That's rather unholy, to be sure.
There's not so much a "how to be" holy as a just "Be ye
holy". Be separated from sin and connected to God. Can't have both and have
holiness. It's almost too simple, but there it is, for me.
Patti
The first thing I heard was that
holiness is growing closer in intimacy to the Lord and being transformed. I
also heard that more light is in us. That unholiness occurs as we move
farther from Him and the darkness grows larger. It happens so subtly that
we don't even notice and we think we are okay. If I hear more, I will send on. This
is very exciting.
Ker
God is the one and only
true holy One. In my own life holiness is becoming like Jesus Christ. No matter
what part of my life I study, whether my trials, successes, my heart, my mind, I
am convinced everything should be striving towards the goal of being more and
more like Him every day. Unholiness is when I fail to reach my goal, yet God is
always the God of second chances.
Shirley
For me, holiness means living as God
desires--separated from living with worldly values. Holiness means to
be connected totally to God. He created us in His image. We need to strive to be
like Him. I wonder, often, how can I be like God? Yet, He says we must be holy
as he is holy. At this point in my life, I think becoming holy is a life-long
mission. Unholiness means to go our own way, do as we please, with little
or no thought or concern for the future, for eternity. It is separation
from God.
June
I personally do not "feel" holy, though intellectually I know
Christ is my righteousness (a word I'm equating with holiness at the moment). It
is a difficult concept to understand that because someone else has a certain
quality, and I have aligned myself with that person, therefore I, too,
have that quality. It is especially difficult to understand that concept since I
myself will not ever prove capable of displaying that quality by
my own effort.
If I separate the ideas of righteousness and holiness and assume
righteousness is something Christ pursues on my behalf and holiness is something
I pursue on His, then I can begin to "measure" my holiness and
"feel" a certain level of holiness. I don't see in Scripture, though,
that God particularly appreciates our "measuring" ourselves.
So I feel "stuck" in knowing what to think about holiness. I'm
an action person rather than a thinker, and action people like for life to be
measurable. I could sing a new song: "Give me that black-and-white
religion . . . . "
In general, I'd like to pursue the disciplines to find holiness. Maybe
Foster's classic could be called Celebration
of Holiness. Then I could say, "I've fasted for this amount of
time," or "I've prayed for this many people." But Foster is clear
in his insistence that the disciplines should be pursued because of a longing
for God, not a longing for holiness.
Is holiness an idol? Is holiness a natural result of pursuing God, and an
unnatural and improbable result of pursuing holiness?
What is the difference, I've wondered, between being holy and being a
prude, between keeping oneself pure and following rules? Attitude, I
suppose, but that's a hazy answer.
"'All things are permissible,' but not everything is
beneficial," God says (Paul writes). It occurs to me as I type that maybe
holiness is the pursuit of the beneficial, and maybe "beneficial" is
what is excellent
and praiseworthy and good and honorable.
And maybe, if I pursued the beneficial to find God, in finding Him I
might lose sight of myself, I might decrease as He increased, and become
holy in His sight without knowing it.
But I suspect -- and fear -- that in the end I would return ever and
always to self and to pride, that I would be Moses telling the people that *I*
was the one who brought the water from the rock, and that *I*
fed them in their starvation. Such a small slip of the tongue, and Moses
died in sight of the Promised Land. I see him with his hands
outstretched, forty years of hearing "Are we there, yet,"
dying within
sight of the goal.
Holiness seems illusive to me. My husband says that whenever he begins to
deliberately pursue God, he is attacked so severely by Satan that he
feels afraid to pursue God. He has much less trouble with sin when his
relationship with God is just "steady as she goes" then when he's
actively looking to enrich that relationship. I know what he's saying.
So holiness is an intimidating subject. It would be easier to discuss
something measurable. Last year I read a certain number of devotional books,
prayed a certain number of hours, cried with a certain number of friends, served
a certain number of people in difficult circumstances. Let's discuss those
numbers. Let me tell you the numbers so that I can take confidence in the lesser
numbers of one person and hold my ears against the higher numbers of another.
Gather comments and thoughts, then. Show me how to find the lovely
garment of holiness without the unsightly underclothes of pride and self.
Holy = God. He alone is holy. We can strive to imitate His holiness, but will
always fall woefully short. Holiness is a process not a destination. Holiness
has restrictions, involves denying self, and working toward taking on God's
characteristics. Holiness is the road less traveled.
Unholy = the natural man/woman, those living life on their own terms, in
their own strength, and denying the need for salvation or fellowship with
God.
"And a main road will go through that once deserted land. It will be
named the Highway of Holiness. Evil-hearted people will never travel on it. It
will be only for those who walk in God's ways; fools will never walk
there." Isaiah 35:8 (NLT)
Candy
To me holiness is offering my best to
the One I love.
It is accepting that the blood of Christ
purifies me so that I can stand before God.
Janet
I'm reminded of the scripture which
reads:
" Strive to live in peace with
everybody and pursue that consecration and holiness without which no one will [ever]
see the Lord. " Hebrews 12: 14 (Amplified)
Clearly, holiness is a prerequisite for being in God's presence.
According to Strong's dictionary "see" in this context means to gaze
upon with prolonged earnest and continued inspection. This indicates fellowship
and intimacy.
In Isaiah 6 God reveals Himself to the prophet who falls down and
confesses his sin, expecting judgment because "my eyes have seen the King,
the Lord of hosts," (v 5). This reiterates the scripture in Hebrews. God
then takes the initiative and purges Isaiah of his sin, something he could not do himself, and proceeds to call
him to ministry.
God did not appear to Isaiah because he was holy and therefore worthy,
but because he knew the fear of the Lord and repented. Confession and repentance
invited grace. Grace applied resulted in holiness: i.e. brought him into the
right standing with God. How marvelous that this is the God of the Old
Testament, before the atoning blood of Christ was shed, who forgives and
restores! Father God's heart is to have fellowship and restore intimacy.
Holiness defines God: "Holy, holy, holy is the Lord of
Hosts..." (Isaiah 6:3) When Jesus hung on the cross, bearing our sin, he
was forsaken: a holy God cannot have communion with sin. ("My God, my God,
why have you forsaken me?" Mark
Christ paid the debt, wiped it out, so that we can receive salvation as a
free gift. One glimpse at the cross and we realize that there is nothing we can
add, "our righteousness is like filthy rags" (Isaiah 64:6).
The state of holiness which enables us to stand in the presence of a just
and righteous God is not attained by doing but by being.
It is grace appropriated without any merit - if our doing (i.e. deeds
of righteousness) could accomplish holiness, Christ's death would have been
superfluous.
Our “doing” then flows out of our “being”:
restored intimacy and fellowship creates a desire to live holy lives
inspired by the Holy Spirit inside us.
Therefore, when the Spirit is grieved
because of sin (Ephesians
Joan R.
Holiness to is all
about being set apart; going against the "trends" of today's culture;
following His commands in His strength; letting others see the Fruit of Spirit
in me; and loving God with all my heart, soul, mind and strength.
Unholiness to me is knowing what God commands and choosing not to do it.
Unholiness is also choosing not to spend time with Him so that He can work on
changing us into His image.
Lesley
What is holiness? It's
a living relationship, a spiritual organism vs. a static entity or state that
somehow is achieved. It is allowing the life of Christ to permeate our being,
the Spirit-filled life vs. sinless perfection or some special sanctification.
What is unholiness? Life lived as though
divorced from God: Life lived in the power of self and the value system of the
Evil One!
Albert
Holiness is trying to also be like Jesus
and do the things he would like for you to do. Love your enemies and help other
people like Jesus did.
Holiness is attempting to walk close to God every day. Acknowledge
what you did wrong and strive to be righteous by all your actions and deeds.
Marilyn
Holiness is God's essential nature--that
which makes Him separate or set apart from all else--that attribute of
God which is the same as His righteousness and sinlessness. Holiness
is purity, absence of evil, stain, blemish, or imperfection.
Unholiness is man's essential nature after the fall--that which separates
him from God--that attribute which is sin, imperfection, pride, desire for
self-promotion, self-satisfaction, and self-centeredness--antagonism towards and
rebellion against God. Man is so unholy that the Bible teaches that even
his so-called "righteous acts" are as filthy rags in God's sight.
Man has no hope of holiness, apart from his salvation in Jesus Christ. When he
receives Jesus as Savior and Lord, Christ's holiness is imputed to man as
righteousness. Man receives Jesus’ righteousness and is made acceptable to
God, Who is holy. Through abiding faith in Christ, we may behave holily, but
only as we surrender to Him on an ongoing basis.
Once after a time of rebellion and sin, I wrote a prayer to God in my
journal, asking Him to forgive me, wash me clean, and cover me in His holiness.
In this instance, mud was the metaphor for my sin, and snow, God's purity. That
prayer follows:
"O God, as I took a late afternoon walk around the lake, delicate
snow doilies dissolved to teardrops. I had the impression You were weeping over
all the sin in the world and my sins, in particular. As snow mists moistened my
face, I felt Your tears cleansing each sin confessed.
“Then it struck me. As a sheer, inexplicable act of grace, Your tears
froze into an exhaustive blanket of woolen white. All I could see in every
direction was white upon white, snow upon snow, grace upon grace, forgiveness
upon forgiveness.
“Not one inch of the world’s mud or my own muddy tracks were
detectable. Snow completely buried the ground and my sin. I was
engulfed—nearly blinded by the white light of Your holiness and love!
“O God, upon returning from my walk, imagine my utter amazement
immediately and serendipitously to open my Bible to this verse!
"Come now, and let us reason together," says the Lord,
"Though your sins are as scarlet, they will be as white as snow; though
they are red like crimson, they will be like wool." (Isaiah 1:18)
“Father, thank You for this wonderful confirmation that You have
completely forgiven me, covering me in your snowy robes of righteousness.”
When I first thought of holiness I
thought of like the pope, somebody that has a title of holiness--"your
holiness'', so it would be somebody that supposedly is close to God (not that I
think the pope is closer than you or me).
Chuck
Your Email about holiness came as I was
reading in Genesis 17. When Abram was 99, God appeared and said:
"I am God Almighty; walk before me and be blameless" (perfect in KJV).
"Blameless" or "perfect" in Hebrew is from tamin, meaning
"perfect, plain, whole, complete." It was used of Noah, a "just
man and perfect in His ways." The walk these early men had with God seems
to me to illustrate holiness--they had a wholeness of walking BEFORE God.
Unholiness would be a brokenness of walking AWAY from God. I haven't time to
search it through other passages, but their simple and implicit trust in God
(Noah for the flood, Abram for the promise) reveal some edge of this big idea of
holiness.
Jeanne
I believe holiness is a combination of
several things. Holiness is a quality, a behavior, and more than that it is a
lifestyle that all believers should desire. Indeed, we are called to holiness;
to live a holy life. Scripture says God is holy and being created in the image
of God we have the within us the potential to live holy lives. To be holy means
to be set apart; to be separated from that which is unholy.
We must seek after holiness. It does not come automatic. In fact, it
does not come naturally. It must be developed and persevered. Most of all
holiness must be chosen with a desire to be pure in heart, mind, body, and
spirit. We must choose daily to live a holy life. Colossians 3:1 - 17 gives
a clear definition of living a holy life, not only as individuals but as
brothers and sisters in Christ.
In the context of ministry, holiness is serving from a perspective of
realness and authenticity. There is truth in our words; we are honest. There is
integrity in our lives; our beliefs line up with our actions on a consistent
basis. We live and model what we believe and what we speak with no pretending or
seeking of personal praise or glory. We have clearly defined morals and
principles based in Scripture which guide our decisions and thoughts. Our
motivation of service flows from a sincere desire to display Christ to others so
they may come to Him.
A tall order? Yes. Therein lies the grace of God as we pursue righteous
and holy living.
Unholiness
It sounds simplistic to say unholiness is the opposite of the
characteristics mentioned above. However simplistic though, that is the reality.
It is also the reality that apart from Christ living in and ruling our lives we
will, as human beings, be unholy. We will be dishonest. We will be self-serving.
We will lack self-control. We will fail each other.
Thank God for his grace, mercy and the blood of Jesus Christ!
I must have some Scrooge leftover from a
strange Christmas filled with unexpected trauma. It is easier to think of the
second question: What holiness isn't. It isn't walking around
with folded hands and downcast eyes and a supercilious smile on one's face -
like a plaster saint with a thin-lipped mouth and satiny shallow flawless
complexion with nary a smudge on her flowing robes. Neither is holiness
portrayed by the rotund figure with hands folded over a paunch that belies any
self-denial, except that of bathing and washing a coarse robe and cowl tied with
an old piece of rope. At another time, I could go on and on with the nots
but I just can't maintain the disparaging profiles.
They
are replaced so quickly with the is's. My Poppa turning the dog-eared pages of an old
prayer book written in Latin with nicotine-stained fingers and a beatific smile
on his face. A retired Navy Chief in the uniform of his country, marching
proudly down the aisle on Veteran's Day to join in communion, his back bent to
the shape of the cane he uses to support well-worn "sea
legs" and stopping on his way back from the altar to greet fellow
parishioners with a gentle smile and a pat on the shoulder with the cane-free gnarled
hand. An aunt who greeted all my phone calls with "What's on your good
mind?" My mother, who called me "Merry Sunshine" all my life! I
could go on and on with other like these I have been so blessed to know.
Well,
Kathy, you may be sorry you asked - and oh, how reluctant I was to answer
this "challenge." You planted a seed - now it's a regular pea patch. A garden
filled with the "Beatitude Varieties."
Pat
Holiness is Jesus' essence in us.
Holiness comes by the Holy Spirit, when we are wholly connected to Him. Holiness
is Jesus' holiness; ours is but filthy rags.
Holiness that we experience we cannot see. Only others looking at us can,
when they see Jesus in us.
To eat or not to eat sugar (or drink coffee which I do - too much) or any
other self denial is discipline, a demonstration of deeper cleansing within. It
is part of the new life in Christ, but it is not holiness.
Jesus is Holy -- we are to be holy as He is Holy -- filled with Holy
Spirit -- listening for the Lord -- doing only what He requests.
Holiness is the light of Jesus shining through us as we surrender to Him,
deeper and deeper.
Karen.
Holiness is having such a great love for
God that it spills out of my heart onto others. It is having and continually
seeking the Presence of the Lord all the time.
Holiness is not acting outwardly "holy" so that others cannot
touch me. It is not separating myself from the daily interaction of close
relationships of those around me. It does not create arguments or divisions, but
promotes peace.
Gail
The topic of holiness is so daunting
for me. Truly daunting. I can hardly comprehend it and don't see how I can even come
near to being holy. It's just something, to me, that seems way out of my
grasp. It's even kind of scary as I know I'll never measure up. I know God
is holy and that we can stand on holy ground and that we can come boldly
before his throne, so I'm going to have to let this one sit and see what God
does in helping me grasp it.
Jennifer
I have had people from all walks of life
give me what they think of as holiness in their lives. It is interesting. I
really never gave that word much thought. But I have studied 25 scriptures and
asked questions...my thought about what it is to me hasn't changed much. My
thoughts on Holiness are very simple. We receive holiness, faith, and perfection
under the blood and become spiritually alive at the 2nd birth...then the work
starts...growing and maturing. I am holy, because God in me is holy. That
doesn't make me perfect humanly speaking. Just able to grow into it by the time
we reach heaven. Ephesians teaches that salvation is the earnest money down for
a home in heaven. The rest of it ...we make payments with our lives. What we do
with Jesus.
This is my belief and opinion.
Linda
My
first and foremost thoughts about Holiness is that when we are born again, have
the breath of life activated in our spirits by the Holy one...we become Perfect
under the Blood of Jesus. Like when we are born physically...we have the
potential to become. As we study and experience and Grow in the Lord...we
mature. Faith, Holiness, being Spiritual, and
God the Father, Son and Holy Spirit is HOLY. We become His children. He
teaches us, prunes us to grow to be LIKE HIM. Sometimes it takes trials,
Miracles, prayer and most definitely TIME to get us where He wants us. Nothing
is wasted or unusable. Everything we go through or experience God uses to teach
and prune us...to get us where we need to be. Only our will stands in His way.
Linda
Holiness: God is holy - without sin. He
has told us to be holy, i.e. I Peter 1:15. There are so many scriptures about
holiness that it would take awhile to check them all; but my first response is
that holiness is Christ likeness.
Of course in this life
we will never reach sinless perfection but we should desire to be more Christ
like every day.
Although Christ has
taken my sins and imputed to me His righteousness, I have a long way to go to be
as holy as I ought to be, or as I would like to be. That's where sanctification
comes in. Philippians 1:6 is my life verse, "Being confident of this very
thing, that He which began a good work in you will perform it until the day of
Jesus Christ."
You also asked about
unholiness. Of course it's the opposite of holiness. Anyone who is unrighteous
is unholy. Of course there's more, but it would take more time than I have to
respond.
Millie
In a nut shell holiness is having
nothing in your life (or on your record) that defiles. (With God doing the
"classifying") Unholiness is having ANYTHING in your life or on your
record that defiles. (For holiness it's all or nothing, with unholiness it's
anything at all.)
According to Strong's Exhaustive Concordance, holiness is the translation
for several Greek words that could mean total purity of your record,
or your behavior, or that you are selected or set aside for some one's use only.
(As in some "dedicated" property, or, as in HIS holy angels ...HIS
holy mountain ... HIS holy prophets)
Harold.
Holiness is yielding to the will of God
as I understand it. My understanding comes from reading the Word, spending time
with the Lord and fellowshipping with other Christians who desire to know Him
like I do.
"Be ye holy, for I am holy," saith the Lord does not mean that
I am ever going to achieve His level of holiness but it does mean that I
continue to yield and strive to have the mind of Christ in all that I do and to
check my actions according to His Word.
To me, unholiness means to live contrary to the Word of God whether in
word or deed.
Brenda
I pulled out my Strong's Concordance to discover what the Greek
and Hebrew words translated "holy" mean. One of the most commonly used
words in the Old Testament means "sacred; sanctuary; set apart as dedicated
to God exclusively for the presence of God." I especially like the last of
these three. To think that we can dedicate ourselves to God and stand in His
presence is beyond amazing.
The other most commonly used word for "holy" in the OT means
"sacred; consecrated; to show oneself consecrated; to set apart,
consecrate, dedicate; by extension: pure, innocent, free of impurity." Wow!
Only God can do that. We can
surrender our lives to Him, but only He can bring about these kinds of results.
The most commonly word used in the New Testament means "holy (moral
quality); consecrated (ceremonially acceptable to God); saints."
Any reference to holiness leads me to the passage in I Peter 1:13-16. In
the NIV it reads: “Therefore, prepare your minds for action; be
self-controlled; set your hope fully on the grace to be given you when Jesus
Christ is revealed. 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 is is written: "Be holy, because I am holy."
This passage by itself gives us much to consider.
So as we embark on the journey together, I look forward to your insights
and words of challenge. I pray that I, too, will encourage others to "be
holy as He is holy."
May the Lord abundantly bless each of you as you grow in "the grace
and knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ."
Stephanie
I'd say, since Jesus Christ is our
example of pure holiness, that living as He would is "holiness."
Unholiness would be living as the world lives, without the power of the Spirit
to live as Christ.
Jo
I guess I would say
that holiness is a supreme goodness recognized through divine action.
Unholiness is an ugly disregard for this sacred quality.
Helen