Core Four – The Call of God’s People to Be Holy

The Greek definition: [hagiazo] NT Grk; holy

The Hebrew definition: [qodosh] OT Hebrew; holy

1 Peter 1:13-16

Therefore, preparing your minds for action, and being sober minded, set your hope fully on the grace that will be brought to you at the revelation of Jesus Christ. 14 As obedient children, do not be conformed to the passions of your former ignorance, 15 but as he who called you is holy, you also be holy in all your conduct, 16 since it is written, “You shall be holy, for I am holy.” ESV

1 Peter 2:1-5

So put away all malice and all deceit and hypocrisy and envy and all slander. 2 Like newborn infants, long for the pure spiritual milk, that by it you may grow up into salvation— 3 if indeed you have tasted that the Lord is good. 4 As you come to him, a living stone rejected by men but in the sight of God chosen and precious, 5 you yourselves like living stones are being built up as a spiritual house, to be a holy priesthood, to offer spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ.

Introduction

In chapter 1:15, Peter asserts the second of four essentials: be holy in all your thoughts, in your words, and in your behavior and actions. He justifies his assertions of this command “to be holy” on the basis of his readers’ relationship with God – both as His children (1:17) and as believers (1:21).

Peter is consistent with what he has been taught and in his understanding of the OT writings (1:10–12), as he directly quotes to his readers from the Old Testament in the Book of Leviticus, regarding the instruction God previously had given His chosen people. He presses the point that the new birth given by God the Father (1:3) directly indicates a decisively altered way of life. This way of life is characterized by the new knowledge of God in and through Yeshua – Christ Jesus. Peter constructs a very concise (3-point premise) for God’s New Covenant expectations for this new and living way:

• Be holy as the obedient children of God that you now are (1:14a)
• Do not being conformed to your previous ignorant desires (1:14b);
• Be holy in all your behavior not just some of it (1:15)

Peter is Petros as he presses hard for obedience to the God whose holy character is expressed in the books of Moses, specifically the Old Testament Book of Leviticus.

• “I am the LORD your God; consecrate yourselves and be holy, because I am holy.” (Leviticus 11:44)
• “Speak to the entire assembly of Israel and say to them: ‘Be holy
• because I, the LORD your God, am holy.” (Leviticus 19:2)
• “Consecrate yourselves and be holy, because I am the LORD your
• God. Keep my decrees and follow them. I am the LORD, who makes
• you holy.” (Leviticus 20:7–8)
• “You are to be holy to me because I, the LORD, am holy, and I have
• set you apart from the nations to be my own.” (Leviticus 20:26)

What is the holiness Peter is asserting upon his readers? Their holiness is to correspond/connect/tether (κατά, kata) to the holiness of the One who has called them out of darkness and into the light. The Light is He whom Peter has already identified as God himself. In this context, to be holy indicates that Christians must conform their thinking and behavior to God’s revealed character and in this way set themselves apart from unbelieving society as consecrated to God. The character of God was first revealed through the covenant God made with the people He had chosen for Himself – Israel. The moral aspect of that covenant was summarized in what we commonly call the Ten Commandments (Exodus. 20:1–17 and Deuteronomy 5:1–22).

As he was inspired of the Holy Spirit to write, Peter (with all certainty), taught that living in right relationship with God demanded a loving obedience to these ancient but entirely relevant commandments. By living in covenant with God, ancient Israel would be set apart from the cultural, political, and religious ways of the world. God’s ways are distinct from the ways of a fallen world, and he does not deal with the world on its terms or according to its self-prescribed narrative.

Isaiah 55:8-11

For My thoughts are not your thoughts, nor are your ways My ways, declares the LORD. 9 “For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are My ways higher than your ways and My thoughts than your thoughts. 10 For as the rain and the snow come down from heaven, and do not return there without watering the earth and making it bear and sprout, and furnishing seed to the sower and bread to the eater; 11 So will My word be which goes forth from My mouth; It will not return to Me empty, without accomplishing what I desire, and without succeeding in the matter for which I sent it. NASB

As a result, God’s people are to identify with Him by being set apart and by relating to the world on the terms that God determines according to His will. God’s revelation of his character in the old covenant paled in comparison with the revelation of his character as a living human being in the person we know as Jesus Christ. So, Peter’s command in 1:15 that his Christian readers be holy was a call to live in obedient relationship to Christ that by definition would set them apart from the customs and values of unbelieving, pagan society.

“Biblical holiness entails the righteousness of Christ in us, justice in our character, and separation from the habit and intention of sin as a sign of our love for God. . . . We are strongest when we know how to separate from ways of the world while staying fully engaged with the world.” 

(Jobes, Karen H.. 1 Peter (Baker Exegetical Commentary on the New Testament) (p. ii). Baker Publishing Group. Kindle Edition.)

The Christian’s morality would be defined by, and derived from, the character of God (Who God Is) as revealed in Scripture and ultimately inthe  life and person of Jesus Christ. Cambridge professor of Theological Studies J. de Waal Dryden writes, “The world projected in 1 Peter is a moral universe, with God Himself the central character of the meta-narrative, defining the contours of that morality. Within that moral universe, Christian ethical norms become virtually self-evident.” 

What is clearly seen initially in these verses is that Peter is defining the call to be holy by pointing out the opposite of what he means: “Do not be conformed as previously to the desires of your ignorance” (1:14). In other words, to be holy requires a change in one’s way of life from before, when one’s behavior was determined by unrestrained impulses to sin, even in—and perhaps especially in—ways accepted by society. God’s call that has brought Christians to Christ is also a call to deny those sinful impulses and abstain from certain social customs and practices, ironically, making one a stranger within one’s own culture and society. Verses 14–19 present several contrasts between the former and the current state. We can come back to look at these contrasts later. This is a good transition point to provide straight-forward and real talk to bring a practical and biblical definition to what it means “to be holy as I am Holy.”

Understanding Biblical Meaning – To Be Holy as I Am Holy

At our Bible teaching church in Peoria, AZ, we don’t skirt around the difficult topics. I am asking you to hear me today on this Peter’s passage and this viable command and call to biblical holiness. Hear me, not as it relates to anyone or anything other than you and your soul. In this highly accessible world we have limited access to certain essential commodities and knowledge. The limitations I speak of are regarding absolute and objective truth, and then the courage to seek it, find it, and then live in it and with it. Most of what we need in regard to objective and absolute truth has been culturally marginalized, minimized, emasculated, and weaponized against anyone or any mission that dares embrace and stand for it. We are exploited emotionally and psychologically and then being held hostage by the abundance of our appetites for what we desire and by our love for, and pursuit of, hedonism (pleasure).

Let us consider the matter of “being holy as He is holy.”  What Peter was saying then – must be said now. The call to being holy is our remedy, not our enemy. The restorative nature of holiness is what can heal families, save communities, and correct cultures. I believe I might have chosen a subject more popular and pleasant – and I am sure I might have found one more easy to handle. But with great conviction, I deeply believe that at our Bible teaching church in Peoria, AZ, we could not have chosen a call and command that is more connected with what is happening in now in real-time. We could not be talking about anything more profitable to our souls. So let’s start with this…

Hebrews 12:12-14

“Therefore strengthen the hands which hang down, and the feeble knees, 13 and make straight paths for your feet, so that what is lame may not be dislocated, but rather be healed. 14 Pursue peace with all people, and holiness, without which no one will see the Lord.”  NKJV

You must admit it gives most of us reason for pause to hear the Word of God saying “Without holiness no man will see the Lord.” The goal today, by God’s help, is to examine what it means to be holy within the context of Peter’s assertion, and to provide good cause and just reason as to why it is so intensely needful. In conclusion, we must point out the only way in which this biblical holiness can be reached. In the introduction, we have already looked at this subject from a doctrinal position. It is time now to present “to be holy” in a more plain and practical point of view.

What Does it Mean “To Be Holy as He is Holy” Mean?

It is a hard question to answer. Not because there is a shortage of Scriptures on the subject. My concern would be that I would say what must be said, and not what simply what can be said. My heart is not to harm, hurt, or confuse but rather to teach truth, and teach it with love. My heart is to share that much needed Word from the Lord that sadly is being left from the pages of this great and wise Book. Truth – Wisdom – Hope…and our future left unnoticed, intentionally ignored, deceptively deconstructed, and quite honestly, just not preferred by the men and women who lead, teach, influence, and communicate the principles and precepts of our great Christian faith.

(I.) Holiness is the habit or practice of being of one mind with God and His will – according His mind as described in Scripture. It is the daily practice and habit of agreeing in God’s judgment —hating what He hates,—loving what He loves,—and measuring and processing everything in this world by the standard of His Word – not the narrative of men. He who most entirely agrees with God, he is the most holy man.

(II.) One who is seen as holy will work intently to avoid every known sin, and to keep every known calling and commandment. They will have a visible love for the ways of God and an obvious bias of their mind toward Him. There is a healthy desire to do His will, a greater concern of displeasing Him rather than of displeasing the world. One who is holy will feel what Paul felt when he said, “I delight in the Law of God after the inward man” (Romans 7:22), and what David felt when He said, “I esteem all Your precepts concerning all things to be right, and I hate every way that is false” (Psalm 119:128).

(III.) One who is considered holy will strive to be like Jesus. They will not only live a life of faith in Him, and look to Him for not only daily peace and strength, but will also work to have the mind that was in Him; “For those whom He foreknew, He also predestined to become conformed to the image of His Son” (Roman 8:29). It will be his goal to be patient with others, and to forgive others, even as Christ forgave us. To be unselfish, even as Christ pleased not Himself, to walk in love, even as Christ loved us, to be lowly-minded and humble, even as Christ made Himself of no reputation and humbled Himself. One who is holy will remember that Christ was a faithful witness for the truth, that He came not to do His own will, that it was His meat and drink to do His Father’s will, that He would continually deny Himself in order to minister to others, that He was meek and patient under unwarranted insults, that He thought more of godly poor men than of kings, that He was full of love and compassion to sinners, that He was bold and uncompromising in denouncing sin, that He did not seek the praise of men, when He might have had it, that He went about doing good, that He was separate from worldly people, that He continued instant in prayer, and that He would not let even His closest relatives stand in His way when God’s work was to be done. These are the things a holy man or holy woman will try to remember. By these virtues he or she will endeavor to shape his course and path in life. He or she will take to heart the saying of John, “He that says he abides in Christ, ought himself also so to walk, even as He walked” (1 John 2:6), and the saying of Peter, that “Christ suffered for us, leaving us an example that ye should follow His steps.” (1 Peter 2:21). Happy is he who has learned to make Christ his “all,” both for salvation and example! We could save a lot of time, and prevent a lot of sin, if we would regularly ask ourselves the question, “What would Christ have been, if He were in my place?”

(IV.) One who is thought of as holy will follow after meekness, long-

suffering, gentleness, patience, kind tempers, government of his tongue. He will put up with a lot. Resist and abstain from a lot. Joyfully overlook a lot, and be cautiously slow to talk of themselves and their own rights and expectations. There is a bright example of this in the behaviour of David when Shimei cursed him, and of Moses when Aaron and Miriam spoke against him (2 Samuel 16:10; Numbers 12:3).

(V.) To be holy means to follow after self-restraint and self-denial. To give sincere effort to resist and manage the desires of his or her flesh, to crucify his or her ungodly affections and lusts, to curb one’s passions, and to pump the brakes on carnal inclinations so that they do not have opportunity to get started and hurt the ones we love. Here is the Word from the Lord Jesus to the Apostles, “Take heed to yourselves, lest at any time your hearts be overcharged with surfeiting and drunkenness, and cares of this life” (Luke 21:34), and that of the Apostle Paul, “I keep under my body, and bring it into subjection, lest that by any means when I have preached to others, I myself should be a castaway” (1 Corinthians 9:27). In other words – reel it in, have a little discipline, and when and where it is appropriate – keep your negative thoughts to yourself – keep your unruly mouth shut – keep your eyes on Jesus and your faith and affection towards Him.

(VI.) To be holy means to follow after love and brotherly kindness. Endeavor to follow the golden rule of doing to others as you would have them do to you. Be full of affection and care towards your brothers, towards their property, their character and reputation, their feelings, and most certainly their souls. “He that loves another,” says Paul, “has fulfilled the law” (Romans 13:8). He will detest all lying, slandering, backstabbing, cheating, dishonesty, and unfair and unethical business dealing, even in the smallest and simple things.

(VII.) To be holy means to follow after a spirit of mercy and generosity towards others. Do not waste all the day doing nothing. One who is holy will not be content with doing no harm—he will try to do good. He or she will strive to be useful in his day and to their generation, to lessen the weight of spiritual wants and misery around them, as mush as possible. Such was Dorcas, “full of good works and alms and deeds, which she did…) Not merely purposed and talked about doing it, but did it. This the heart of the Apostle Paul – “I will very gladly spend and be spent for you,” he says, “though the more abundantly I love you the less I be loved” (Acts 9:36; 2 Corinthians 12:15).