“You ought to live holy and godly lives as you look forward to the day of God and speed its coming” (2 Peter 3:11-12).
Some 229,000 miles into space lies the amorphous chunk of rocks and minerals we call the moon. Unlike the sun, that is a boiling mass of gases and fire, the moon is dark and cold. It’s lifeless, yet who would be convinced of that fact on a night when the full radiance of the sun is reflected from it to our world? But the light of the moon is only a reflection that comes from a far more powerful source, the sun.
In a very real sense, what I have just described is a picture of how God’s children reflect the nature and character of their Heavenly Father, but it’s an imperfect picture. A mirror reflects a true image—nothing more, nothing less. But God’s children are more like hunks of phosphorescence that have absorbed something of the original radiance, and then illuminate corners of darkness.
God is love, and when the mark of the Divine has touched your life, you become more loving as well. But there is a characteristic of the Father, which is often overlooked, one which far surpasses love in its Biblical order of importance: the holiness of God. “Like father, like son” we say of the baby who resembles the image of the birthing father, and in the scope of God’s order, the same things should be true of His real children.
More than 525 times in the Bible you’ll find the word holy or holiness, expressions usually found in reference to God; but seldom do you hear sermons or messages explaining the importance of holiness in our lives or showing us how to incorporate this into daily living. To the contrary, we tend to think of people who are “holy” as weird or strange, and we determine to be nothing like that at all.
First, understand that holy describes God as someone who is neither corrupted nor defiled by sin. Holiness describes what God is—pure, loving, just, kind, all knowing, all-powerful. They’re all wrapped up in that single word.
So, how is this imparted to your life today? The New Testament explains it pretty clearly as it says, “We have been made holy through the sacrifice of the body of Jesus Christ, once for all” (Hebrews 10:10). In simple terms, the connection between God and our lives is Jesus Christ. When He touches your life, you become like the Father. But beyond that, we are to separate ourselves from that which is contrary, or different, to what God is. “Put on the new self,” writes Paul, “created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness” (Ephesians 4:24). He also instructed that we are to “purify ourselves from everything that contaminates body and spirit, perfecting holiness out of reverence for God” (2 Corinthians 7:1).
If you want to know what holiness is, look at the life of Jesus Christ. In simple terms, give yourself to Him and say, “Lord Jesus, You live Your life through me!” When you walk away from wrongdoing, you’re putting into practice this very concept. That’s why Peter says so plainly, “You ought to live holy and godly lives as you look forward to the day of God and speed its coming” (2 Peter 3:11-12).
Remember, the Bible says, “Make every effort to live in peace with all men and to be holy; without holiness no one will see [God]” (Hebrews 12:14). And in so doing that, you have embarked on the quest for true holiness. The kind that God says is important in our lives. The kind that comes only through a connection with God. Think about it, friend.
Resource reading: Hebrews 12.
