WALKING WORTHY...The Goal of Holiness!

I beg you....walk worthy of your calling
(Ephesians 4:1)

I guess I just can't shake this topic of holiness!  This morning I turned to one of my favorite devotionals, In Touch, Dr. Charles Stanley and my fingers went directly to a reading from earlier this week,  Responding to God's Holiness, Isaiah 6:1-8.

Then while studying my Sunday school lesson, I found that our second unit for the quarter is a study on holiness, and the lesson passage again is Isaiah 6:1-8.   I don't believe in coincidences and although I had planned to take a break this week from the blog (recuperating from an outpatient procedure), I feel compelled to share just a few more biblical insights gained from my study.

An old song says:  What the World needs now is Love, Sweet Love, but I beg to differ.  Three college shootings in as many weeks, continued gun violence, war breaking out consistently all over the world...What the world needs is HOLINESS!

I explained last week that holiness had nothing to do with clothes, rituals, or isolating oneself from sin and sinful things but had everything to do with a right relationship with God! (2 Cor. 5:21).  Simple faith in Christ puts us in the right position; but it's the practice (how we respond to it) that's missing and where we're failing to make the greatest impact on our surroundings. 

• Keeping Sacred Things Sacred. In a world where the number of twitter followers and Facebook friends are used to validate your worthiness and likability, it's hard not to try to fit in!  But by virtue of the fact that you're a Christian, you must maintain separateness! Sanctification, another word for holiness, means to be "set apart"from the world and unto God!  Keep social media in it's proper place! Refuse to malign God's name or allow others to use your page to dishonor God, to propagate sexual filth, or to post pictures that desecrate the body, (God's Holy temple). Sanitize and Sanctify your posting and let it be known that you will not allow your page to be used for maligning, trolling, or perversions of any kind.

•  Refrain from texting, scrolling, posting, viewing messages while in church!  I've been      shocked at the conduct of even so called mature Christians, who during praise and worship, and the preaching of God's Word, could not resist the lure of, bings and bongs of incoming messages, long enough to hear God speak!  Don't be fooled with placing your bible or program over your telephone or pretending you're looking up scripture from a bible app.  We know what you're doing!

• Beware of Personal Style in Dress and Speech. I'm not double-talking here.  I know I just said that holiness wasn't about what you put on!  It's not, but it can reflect your insecurities and vulnerabilities.  What you wear and how you speak portrays what you think about yourself. Clothes can be a costume to hide behind or a uniform to identify what you really are deep in your heart!  I'm over women of all ages who profess to be Christians (Holy women) who think it's okay to dress provocatively, in the name of trendy styles.  The root word for provocative is to provoke, to excite, to stir up,  an action or a feeling.  Let's face it, if you must dress or talk in a way that draws attention to yourself, you are saying you have no confidence in your God-given gifts of a pleasing personality, natural charm, and ability to converse wisely.  You deny God's ability to make us content with His masterpiece created and rooted in godliness (Ephesians 2:10). 

•   Don't be fooled by Popular Culture.  I've written about these disgusting shows before:  Preachers Wives, Preachers Daughters,  Preachers of L.A. (thank God it's cancelled), Impastor, and now a new one Preachers Exes. Shows that exploit every facet of unholy Christian behavior one can imagine for the benefit of dollars and entertainment.  No!  Holiness does not mean Sinless, but a saint growing, pursuing, and practicing a lifestyle of holiness does not put on display their struggles.  They are humbled by them and like Isaiah, feels chastened in the presence of a Holy God. 

The Goal of Holiness is this from these powerful Scriptures: Romans 12:1 -2 and Ephesians 4:1--3.

1. Presenting your bodies as a living sacrifice Holy and acceptable unto God

2. Conforming not to the world but being continually transformed with a new mind

3. Walking worthy of the calling to which you have been called 

Persevering with all humility, gentleness, and patience, eager to  maintain the unity of the Spirit

in the bond of peace!

UNTIL NEXT TIME...

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