BE HOLY

"As obedient children, do not conform to the evil desires you had when you lived in ignorance. But just as He who called you is holy, so be holy in all you do; for it is written: "Be holy, because I am holy." 1 Peter 1:14-15

We have so much to learn as His children. Even though our transformation has already begun, too many of us are very young in our development in Him. When we came to Christ and first surrendered to Him, He began a work in us that should be progressive. Yet we are often remedial and need to restart and surrender anew. We drift back into behaviors and thinking from when we were ignorant and even though ignorance is no longer our excuse, we still act as though we didn't know better. As we know this is childish. Maturing in Christ is not easy, but necessary.

God, after all expects and deserves us to make a true effort to be more mature and to be holy. We know of course that we can't be holy all the time. Holy not such as in perfect, but holy as in single-hearted and focused on who we are in Christ. Many if not every person in Scripture struggled with holiness. They too fought the fight that we fight to remain fully committed to Him. Though our old sin nature is defeated within us, it is awakened by the worldliness around us tempting us at our weakest points. This battle is very real and when we do not proactively make concerted efforts to conform ourselves to Christ and be constantly transformed by Him we fall into the trap of being conformed to this world and influenced by it.

So what do we do? We recognize and confess our predicament. We must live in this world without so much becoming part of it. We are set apart for Christ. It takes quite a bit of effort just to maintain much less to mature. We must be obedient like children and force ourselves to do right even when we are unmotivated or unwilling. Holiness is attainable in context. We must walk the talk. We must be vigilant and vibrant with our faith. That is why the Bible says to pray without ceasing and consistently uses the words 'in everything' and 'always'. As we begin this New Year and our humanity beats us up, let's be diligent about bouncing back faster and standing our ground firmer. Do not be overwhelmed by the word 'holy'. He who is in you knows exactly how to be holy. Seek Him. Hear Him. Love Him and obey Him. He who is in you is greater than he who is in the world (the devil). God help us to be more holy more often and far less, less holy less often.

In His Grip with you,
Pastor Fred

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