We hear little mention of it these days, but it is still a requirement to see God. The concept of “holiness” has become taboo in many circles, a dirty word if you will. Many mistakenly equate it with legalism and traditionalism and therefore exclude it from their preaching, teaching, and sadly their life. Some feel as though holiness is a replacement for grace, and therefore shun any movement toward the subject, feeling as though they will somehow tarnish God’s unmerited favor. But grace and holiness are mutually inclusive; you cannot have one without the other, at least on God’s end.
It is true; there is a self-promoting brand of holiness that leads to arrogance and conceit, and even false salvation. Andrew Murray warned of this when he said, “There is no pride so dangerous, none so subtle and insidious as the pride of holiness.” But such was not the brand of our Lord; neither should it be ours. We are instructed to “be holy” even as the Lord is holy. True holiness, the kind exhibited by Christ, flows from a spirit of humility, not hatred.
What is Holiness and How Do We Measure It?
Holiness is a divine attribute that can only be imparted to us and through us by our standing and position in Christ. An unsaved person cannot be holy; and a saved person can only be holy as he surrenders his will to the regenerating power of the Holy Spirit. Therefore we measure our holiness not by how stark or different we are from the world (the world is always changing their standards); rather we measure our holiness with the alignment of Scripture, and our resemblance to Jesus. Jerry Bridges said, “Many Christians have what we might call a cultural holiness. They adapt to the character and behavior pattern of Christians around them. As the Christian-culture around them is less or more holy, so these Christians are less or more holy. But God has not called us to be like those around us, He has called us to be like Himself.”
Ultimately, holiness is adapting to the character of God. To be like Christ is the ultimate goal of life (this one and the one to come). We cannot separate His love, forgiveness, and mercy from His Holiness. As a matter of fact, we are recipients of the former because of the latter. Redemption from God is established because He is holy. No one seems to argue that fact- an unholy God could never warrant nor bestow grace. Yet, when it comes to separation from the world, we major on His grace, but minor on the very holiness from which His grace flows. We want salvation without separation, we want conversion without consecration, we want harmony without holiness.
Why is There Little Emphasis Concerning Holiness?
Many reject holiness because they feel it is too weighty and constricting. If we embrace righteous living, some contend, we are forced to relinquish joy and worldly bliss; but the reality is, we do not know joy until we discover holiness. We mistakenly pursue happiness and never find it, because true happiness is the byproduct of the pursuit of righteous living. Many who feel that holiness will restrict them will never find contentment at all because of the very thing they refuse. Unless you intend to live holy, you will never attempt to be holy; and thus living without it, you’ll never know the joy of living with it.