The Jewel of holiness

One of the reasons holiness is so difficult to define is not so much that it is a difficult subject or a complicated one but because it is so multi-faceted. When you look at in in the light of the Holy Spirit it sparkles with an array of colours, each one beautiful in its own way. If you ask one person what is holiness, they might say, “It’s being like Jesus” Another might say, “It’s being empowered by the Spirit.” Another might say, “It’s being set apart for Jesus.” None of those definitions are wrong but they only present one aspect of the truth. If we only talk about holiness in terms of being empowered by the Spirit, we might miss an important truth about purity. If we only talk about being set apart for Jesus, we could think that holiness is only about what we do rather than the transformation that takes through the Holy Spirit to produce a fruitful Christ-like life.

Over the next few days I hope to post some thoughts on different facets of the jewel of holiness based on a recent series we did at Pill Corps. So here is the first,

Sanctification.
The words "sanctify," "saint," "hallow," and "holy’ all come from the same reek root hagizo or hagiazo (ha-geed-zo) which are to do with separation. In the Bible sanctification has to do with separation from something and to something.
In our life with God this is seen in at least two ways. It is to do with the nature of relationship we have with God itself and it has to do with what we do with our lives as a result of that relationship.
When two people make their vows at a wedding, we say they enter into the “sanctity” of marriage. We say this because we believe that because God ordained marriage and anything that has God’s stamp of approval upon sets it on a higher level than what mere mortals think is a good idea. But there is a sense in which the couple also sanctify their relationship. One of the things they promise to do is to “forsake all others” There is a separation from all other romantic relationships.

At the same time we know that a marriage is not much of a marriage if all the arrangement is that two people agree not to fall in love with anyone else.

Marriage is more than separating ourselves from other people. Marriage vows go on to state that each party will honour, love and commit to one another in sickness and health, till death us do part.
In the same way, God calls us into a sanctified relationship with himself. He calls upon us to forsake all other gods and to worship only him. The other gods in our lives we know are not just traditional idols but anything to which we give love, above him.

One of the things that we need to establish in our lives is how exclusive our relationship is with God. Although it is possible to have a sanctified relationship with God from the moment of our salvation, many Christians only realise as they start to walk in their new relationship with God, how many idols there have been in their lives and that they need to consciously sever the ties they have with them.

For the new Christian it is their guilt and condemnation that at first occupy their attention and often only later do they see the need for further cleansing. The realisation of this dawns upon many people gradually. Others become aware of it in a moment of revelation by the deep conviction of the Spirit. However the revelation comes, decisive action needs to be taken. Often the biggest revelation that people have, is that the god they most need to remove from their relationship with God is called Self or the Ego.

Lifestyle

The second challenge for the believer is that we are called to live a life of separation from the patterns of the world and to follow a pattern of life holiness which has Jesus Christ as the model
"I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service. And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God" (Romans 12:1, 2).

One of the things that has marked out the life of the Duke of Edinburgh, for nearly 60 years is that he has dedicated his life to be of service to the Queen. In doing so he put his own as a naval officer aside and commited himself to being his wife’s consort. Some would see that as a sacrifice, others would tell you that such is his relationship with the queen that it is something he would do gladly and with joy. However judging by the Fiona Bruce interview for his 90th birthday on BBC1 he will not tell you which it is.
Sanctification is about being useful in the service of God. To onlookers this dedication might look like sacrifice as in order to service God , some other pursuits may need to be left behind.

However for the Christian the desire to serve a God whom they love passionately makes it feel like a privilege. Their only concern is whether or not they are fit for purpose.
The truth is that they are not. In the OT objects set aside for worship were said to be sanctified. There were special ceremonies, a process by which they were fit for use. There is a need for them not only to be willing but also for them to be enabled.
Our lack of righteousness is a barrier to a relationship with God. But we know that that is where Jesus offers us hope. His shed blood covers our sin so that when God looks upon us, he looks upon us as if we were clean.

We sing about this in the second verse of the popular song “Before the throne of God above”

Because the sinless Saviour died
My sinful soul is counted free
For God the just is satisfied
To look on his and pardon me.”

But how can we really be of service to God has only provided a way for us to be declared righteous but not actually righteous? It would be like declaring someone competent for active service in the military when the reality is that they are unfit, or declaring a car has passed its MOT when its engine doesn’t work.

God has done more than provide a way for us to be declared righteous, when we are not but a way for us to be made righteous. Salvation is a work for us but it is also a work in us.

For true sanctification to be really a mark of a person then there is a need for an inward work of grace to stabalise a wayward heart, to cleanse a contaminated heart and to equip and unfit heart
Here is the promise. "And the very God of peace sanctify you wholly; and I pray God your whole spirit and soul and body be preserved blameless unto the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ" (1 Thessalonians 5:23).

he state of entire sanctification is a state of total devotion God. It is brought about by the baptism with the Holy Spirit, which cleanses the heart and fills it with the Holy Spirit who empowers the believer for life and service. Just as we are powerless to save ourselves we are powerless to be as pure and clean as we need to be. The transformation of the heart is the work of the Spirit. How do we obtain the power we need for this transformation? The answer is that our purity is received in the same way as our pardon. It is by grace, through faith.

The result of the act of sanctification is a holy heart. You may make mistakes and do the wrong thing occasionally, you may say the wrong thing at times -but your heart’s intent is only for good. It is pure. It is holy.

God bless

Carol