The Path to Holiness
Do you ever feel like you just don’t measure up? You look around and it appears as if everyone is doing better than you. There was a time when comparing ourselves to those around us was referred to as “keeping up with the Jones”. I am not sure who the Jones were, but they must have had it all together. Now, with access to the world in the palm of our hands (smart phones) and platforms that seem to only show us the pretty parts of life (social media), if we aren’t careful, we are “keeping up with everyone”. Here is where the problem lies. As Christians, devotees to Jesus, we are only supposed to be keeping up with one person - Jesus! All the other stuff is just noise that will easily distract us from the true goal of a life that models Jesus.
Peter, the mouthy disciple that couldn’t get out of his own way, says “you (me and you) should be holy, for I am holy”. (1 Peter 1:16) He is referring to something God told His people hundreds of years before speaking through Moses in Leviticus 19:2. This is a reminder and a challenge, because we (me and you) have been made new in Jesus we are now set apart. We are different because of Jesus and we should be holy because we are holy. You should live a holy life because holiness lives inside you!
Striving to be holy can be a daunting task. The thing to remember is we are made in the image of God. A holy God! We are not asked to be or do something we cannot achieve. The pursuit of holiness begins with humility! Or humility leads us to holiness. I bet you are thinking something like, “Wow, that sounds absolutely impossible”. You are right. On our own this is impossible. But through Jesus we have been made new. We are full of the Spirit of the Living God and we do nothing on our own!
Titus 3:3-7 is a wonderful reminder of where we were and where we are now! “It wasn’t so long ago that we ourselves were stupid and stubborn, dupes of sin, ordered every which way by our glands, going around with a chip on our shoulder, hated and hating back. But when God, our kind and loving Savior God, stepped in, he saved us from all that. It was all his doing; we had nothing to do with it. He gave us a good bath, and we came out of it new people, washed inside and out by the Holy Spirit. Our Savior Jesus poured out new life so generously. God’s gift has restored our relationship with him and given us back our lives. And there is more to come - an eternity of life! You can count on this.”
The beginning of holiness is humility. Humility begins with a memory. A memory, which serves as a reminder, of where we once were and where we find ourselves today! It was nothing you or I did; it is all Jesus. Today, walk humbly in your God given Holiness! Be holy!