EVERYTHING WE NEED: A Command to be Holy

“I am the Lord your God; consecrate yourselves and be holy, because I am holy” (Leviticus 11:44 NIV1984). God told Moses to speak those words directly to the Israelites. More than just the Ten Commandments, they were given instructions that would affect every aspect of their lives. They were told to be holy, just like God. It was not a suggestion; it was a command.

Peter gave us the same words — “As he who called you is holy, so be holy in all you do; for it is written: ‘Be holy, because I am holy’” (I Peter 1:15,16).

The question then is, “What can we do to become holy like Him?” The truth is there is nothing we can do on our own that will make us holy.

The good news is we are already holy! It became our position in Christ once we were saved. Peter said, “You are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people belonging to God, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light” (I Peter 2:9).

Since that is settled, the command to be “holy” must mean something different. Yes, it does. As God’s chosen people, we have been “set apart” for His service. “For by grace you have been saved, through faith — and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God — not by works, so that no one can boast. For we are God’s workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do” (Eph. 2:8-10).Performing good works will not save us nor will it make us holy. God is holy. He is perfect, our example, and our lives should emulate Him in every respect. Paul said, “I urge you…in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God — this is your spiritual act of worship” (Rom. 12:1). We become holy as we surrender our lives to God.

Cultivating personal holiness requires discipline. We will fail, but when we confess our sin and focus our eyes once again on Jesus, we will mature spiritually and glorify His name. Christ “died for all, that those who live should no longer live for themselves but for him who died for them and was raised again” (II Cor. 5:15).

Being holy is not having a “holier than thou” attitude. It is not something we boast about. It is being humble in spirit. Paul said, “Your attitude should be the same as that of Christ Jesus” when “…He humbled himself and became obedient to death — even death on a cross” (Phil. 2:5,8).

“…Make every effort to add to your faith goodness; and to goodness, knowledge; and to knowledge, self-control; and to self-control, perseverance; and to perseverance, godliness; and to godliness, brotherly kindness; and to brotherly kindness, love. For if you possess these qualities in increasing measure, they will keep you from being ineffective and unproductive in your knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ” (II Peter 1:5-8).Exhibiting these characteristics is responding to God’s call to holiness.

We are not perfect. Paul admitted that he had not obtained his desired goal to be more like Christ, but he said, “…I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me… I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus” (Phil. 3:12-14). We, too, must press on. “…Now we are the children of God, and what we will be has not yet been made known. But we know that when he appears, we shall be like him, for we shall see him as he is” (I John 3:2).