What Does It Mean to Be Holy?
“But as He which hath called you is holy, so be ye holy in all manner of conversation; Because it is written, Be ye holy; for I am holy.” (1 Peter 1:15 – 16) “And you, that were sometime alienated and enemies in your mind by wicked works, yet now hath He reconciled in the body of His flesh through death, to present you holy and unblameable and unreproveable in His sight: If ye continue in the faith grounded and settled, and be not moved away from the hope of the gospel, which ye have heard, and which was preached to every creature which is under heaven; whereof I Paul am made a minister (Colossians 1: 21-23). “And the Lord make you to increase and abound in love one toward another, and toward all men, even as we do toward you: To the end He may stablish your hearts unblameable in holiness before God, even our Father, at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ with all His saints.” (1 Thessalonians 3:12-13) While the sentences are incomplete, we have recorded the subject we need to address. The emboldened words are to draw your attention to the subject.
Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance defines “holy” from the above passages in this way: “sacred (physically pure, morally blameless or religious, ceremonially consecrated): - (most) holy (one, thing), saint.” Therefore, in all, we say or do (Colossians 3:17) we are to be HOLY. We are not to be abusive with our words, nor caustic in our actions. As the adage says, “Caution: Engage brain before putting mouth in gear!” Regardless of how well-intended our words or deeds are, if not HOLY they can and will offend! Notice that within the definition, Strong shows the word means, “morally blameless.” We can NOT express HOLINESS if our demeanor ridicules, belittles, and maligns the character of others.
As an illustration, think of the scribes and Pharisees. Jesus said of them, “All therefore whatsoever they bid you observe, that observe and do; but do not ye after their works: for they say, and do not.” (Matthew 23:3) They were hypocrites (Matthew 23:13-19). Read that passage! It is obvious their arrogance, their self-righteous character, their “I’m right, you’re wrong so do as I say, not as I do” approach was grossly in error as Jesus saw them! Do we think Jesus thinks any better of Christians who display the same character? I think not!
There is a difference between being “zealous for the Lord” and being caustic in your approach to teaching others about Christ and their need for salvation. Christians need to study how Jesus taught others. While He taught them as one having authority and not as the scribes, (Matthew 7:29) you will notice in your study that Jesus started with where His hearers were in their understanding; NOT where He wanted them to be! He never started with condemnation! It was three years after He began to teach before he called the scribes and Pharisees “hypocrites.” Before that, He was patient with them and all others! Frustrated with their lack of faith and obedience? Yes, but He NEVER expressed that frustration to the weak and insecure of faith!
We think of the rich young ruler who came to Jesus asking what he must do to inherit eternal life (Matthew 19:16 – 22; Mark 10:17 – 22). Was Jesus caustic in His statement, “Yet one thing thou lackest: sell what you have, give to the poor, and come and follow Me.” No! His statement says, “You lack one thing … obedience to Me.” He didn’t condemn. He answered the young man’s question. He was HOLY in His demeanor!
Often, it isn’t WHAT we say, but HOW WE SAY IT. Paul warns of this when he writes, “Let your speech be always with grace, seasoned with salt, that ye may know how you ought to answer every man.” (Colossians 4:6) When words are blurted out without thought, understanding, and compassion for the hearer, then we can ask, “Where is the grace?” Grace is the provision of something needed that the receiver of grace cannot provide for himself. If he needs correction, Paul said to correct in the spirit of meekness (Galatians 6:1), and simultaneously consider YOURSELF lest you be tempted! Put yourself in the position of the recipient: would YOU want to hear what you say, or see what you do? (Matthew 7:12) If not, why say it or do it to others? You, as a Christian, have the commandments to be HOLY!
Holiness is not something Christians exhibit only in worship services. It is not merely a “characteristic” of our lives. Notice Paul’s statement to Colossae: “To the end He may establish your hearts UNBLAMABLE IN HOLINESS BEFORE GOD.” At work, school, or in simply casual places where you meet folks you know, HOLINESS is what they all must see and hear from us. As Paul also said in the passage of our study, “The Lord make you to INCREASE and ABOUND in love toward another.” Holiness exudes love – not bitterness or hatred toward the people we’re trying to reach. Yes, they may be in gross error, but rather than “beat them over the head” with what they are doing wrong, approach them as YOU would wish to be approached – YOU might be wrong in something as well (Galatians 6:1)!
What is the meaning of HOLY? Simply put, being as much like Christ as we can be! How critical it is to our complete understanding of His word to not only know WHAT He said, but HOW HE SAID IT, and likewise not only what He DID but HOW HE DID IT. For some Christians, that knowledge of holiness is lacking! We’re too quick to point the finger of guilt and too slow to realize three more point right back at ourselves! Let’s work at being HOLY as God is holy, and in so doing, glorify God for the increase of love toward one another!