This is Holiness

Tree of Life said:

What is Holiness? I'm sure some of you will only get this far before responding, but please hear me out a bit...

Holiness is devotion to God.

It is common to define holiness as “separation” or “separate from the world” or even “separate from creation”. Theologians then say that God’s being holy means that he is utterly distinct from creation. While this is true, it is inadequate. The reason for this is because holiness is an eternal attribute of God. God has always been holy and will always be holy. God was holy in eternity past before he ever created. If God was holy before there ever was a creation to be separate from, then holiness must be something more than separateness.

Defining holiness as “devotion to God” includes the idea of separateness but is also bigger than that idea. God from all eternity has always been devoted to himself in the inter-Trinitarian life of love. This also shows us what it means for anything or anyone to be holy. A holy day is a day that is specially devoted to God. A holy instrument is one that is devoted to some service of worship. A holy person is one whose life is devoted to God. This devotion to God is the root of all “practical holiness”, otherwise known as righteousness. True righteousness - heart righteousness - only comes from a heart devotion to God.

This taught me a very important lesson about the daily struggle of holiness. If holiness is devotion to God, then the fight for holiness is not primarily a fight against sin. Rather, it is a fight to delight in the Lord. In other words, the fight for holiness is a positive fight more than a negative fight. It is a fight for something rather than a fight against something. The good fight is not waking up every day and trying to avoid sin and temptation - always saying “no”. The good fight is waking up every day and striving to delight ourselves in the Lord - always saying “yes” to him.

Of course, this does not exclude saying “no” to the flesh and to sin. This actually shows us how we can have the power to say “no” to the flesh. We can only have the power to say “no” to sin if our hearts are full of delight in the Lord. One practical outworking of this principle may look like this. Let’s say someone struggles with temptation toward sexual sin. They’ve been working hard all week. They are stressed out and tired. And they find themselves up late at night working on the computer when suddenly they are tempted to look at sexually explicit material. How does one “fight” in this circumstance? The key is this: If you think that this is the moment when the fight begins, you’ve already lost. This is not to say that a person who finds himself or herself in this situation is doomed to sin. I overstate myself a bit to make the point that the fight begins much much earlier. The fight begins in a daily striving to delight in Jesus and not at the moment of temptation to sin. Holiness is a positive devotion to God, not merely a negative absence of sin.

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I like this emphasis on being vigilant and -striving in the right way- to be holy. And perhaps it can be taken a step further. What's the motivation for devotion to God? Is there a change in us or is this merely a practical idea and practice? Does it flow from gratitude in the heart of the believer? IMO holiness, righteousness, and justice are virtually synonymous and can be summed up with the term "love". Love, IOW, is the essence of justice for man, which is why the greatest commandments are what they are. To the extent that we love God with our whole beings, devotion and worship flow of their own accord, spontaneously. And the law is fulfilled as well because love fulfills it by its nature; so sin is absent/precluded IOW.

Tree of Life said:

What is Holiness? I'm sure some of you will only get this far before responding, but please hear me out a bit...

Holiness is devotion to God.

It is common to define holiness as “separation” or “separate from the world” or even “separate from creation”. Theologians then say that God’s being holy means that he is utterly distinct from creation. While this is true, it is inadequate. The reason for this is because holiness is an eternal attribute of God. God has always been holy and will always be holy. God was holy in eternity past before he ever created. If God was holy before there ever was a creation to be separate from, then holiness must be something more than separateness.

Defining holiness as “devotion to God” includes the idea of separateness but is also bigger than that idea. God from all eternity has always been devoted to himself in the inter-Trinitarian life of love. This also shows us what it means for anything or anyone to be holy. A holy day is a day that is specially devoted to God. A holy instrument is one that is devoted to some service of worship. A holy person is one whose life is devoted to God. This devotion to God is the root of all “practical holiness”, otherwise known as righteousness. True righteousness - heart righteousness - only comes from a heart devotion to God.

This taught me a very important lesson about the daily struggle of holiness. If holiness is devotion to God, then the fight for holiness is not primarily a fight against sin. Rather, it is a fight to delight in the Lord. In other words, the fight for holiness is a positive fight more than a negative fight. It is a fight for something rather than a fight against something. The good fight is not waking up every day and trying to avoid sin and temptation - always saying “no”. The good fight is waking up every day and striving to delight ourselves in the Lord - always saying “yes” to him.

Of course, this does not exclude saying “no” to the flesh and to sin. This actually shows us how we can have the power to say “no” to the flesh. We can only have the power to say “no” to sin if our hearts are full of delight in the Lord. One practical outworking of this principle may look like this. Let’s say someone struggles with temptation toward sexual sin. They’ve been working hard all week. They are stressed out and tired. And they find themselves up late at night working on the computer when suddenly they are tempted to look at sexually explicit material. How does one “fight” in this circumstance? The key is this: If you think that this is the moment when the fight begins, you’ve already lost. This is not to say that a person who finds himself or herself in this situation is doomed to sin. I overstate myself a bit to make the point that the fight begins much much earlier. The fight begins in a daily striving to delight in Jesus and not at the moment of temptation to sin. Holiness is a positive devotion to God, not merely a negative absence of sin.

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Well said!

I would go a step further and say that holiness, for us, is love of God and neighbor (Matthew 22:35-40). To love God and neighbor is to be holy (1 John 3; 1 John 4).

Tree of Life said:

The good fight is not waking up every day and trying to avoid sin and temptation - always saying “no”. The good fight is waking up every day and striving to delight ourselves in the Lord - always saying “yes” to him.

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Amen.

While all believers can battle with the flesh, the key to overcoming grievous sin is by seeking the Lord's help and by using those tools in God's Word to overcome it.

I also believe true holiness is also rooted in one's Soteriology, as well. Improper Soteriology will lead a person to never overcome grievous sin in this life. In fact, most seek to justify the idea that they can sin and still be saved (Even among those who claim that holiness is important to them and they strive to live holy and devoted to the Lord). But they are playing holiness on their own terms and not on God's terms.

Ways to overcome sin by God's Word and with the help of Jesus:

#1. Remove yourself from sinful environments.
Remove yourself from sinful environments (if possible) and or get rid of things that cause you to sin. In Genesis: Joseph had literally ran away from the temptation of sexual sin (Genesis 39:11-12). One of the commands in the New Testament is: "Flee fornication." (1 Corinthians 6:18) (Note: Paul says that what he had written should be regarded as the commandments of the Lord - 1 Corinthians 14:37) (KJV). Sometimes this running away is merely a means of escape. God provides a way of escape for us to run to so that we can bear the temptation and get through it. For 1 Corinthians 10:13 says, "There hath no temptation taken you but such as is common to man: but God is faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able; but will with the temptation also make a way to escape, that ye may be able to bear it."

#2. Pray to God so as not to be tempted.
Pray to God so as not to be tempted. It is part of the Lord’s prayer for you to pray so as not to be tempted into sin (Matthew 6:12). God will guide and protect you if you are serious in praying for this. "Watch and pray, that ye enter not into temptation" (Matthew 26:41). In fact, fasting will help you with this, as well. Being enslaved to sin is a demonic influence. While being enslaves to sin does not mean a Christian is possessed by a demon, we learn that certain demon possessions could not be driven out only by prayer and fasting (Matthew 17:21). So if demon possession at the most intense level can only be healed (by the casting out of the demon) by both prayer and fasting, then it is a sure bet that fasting and praying to overcome sin will also help a believer overcome sin (Which is a demonic influence).

#3. Obey God’s righteous ways.
Obey God’s righteous ways. The more you love God and love others and obey His Word and stay in His Word and pray, the more you will not even have a chance to sin or do the wrong thing. But the more you walk in God's Word by the Spirit you will not fulfill the lusts of flesh. "Walk in the Spirit, and ye shall not fulfil the lust of the flesh." (Galatians 5:16). "But put ye on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make not provision for the flesh, to fulfil the lusts thereof." (Romans 13:14). "But now being made free from sin, and become servants to God, ye have your fruit unto holiness, and the end everlasting life." (Romans 6:22).

#4. When you are tempted, quote Scripture.
When you are tempted, quote Scripture. When Jesus was tempted by the devil, He quoted Scripture to defeat the devil (Matthew 4:4) (Matthew 4:7) (Matthew 4:10). So when some specific sin is bothering you, find all the verses you can that are victory verses over that particular sin. A good general verse (Especially if you are tempted to look at women in lust if you find yourself in public around a lot of people) is, “The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want.” (Psalms 23:1). You can say these verses to yourself silently under your breath (with nobody hearing).

#5. Ask for prayer from other God fearing Christians.
Ask for prayer from other God fearing Christians or Godly Christians to help you to overcome certain sins. The Scriptures say, bear ye one another's burdens and thus fulfill the Law of Christ. So seek true fellowship and ask for their help. In 1 John 5, we see Christians praying for a believer who is struggling to overcome a sin (that they are confessing). "If any man see his brother sin a sin which is not unto death, he shall ask, and he shall give him life for them that sin not unto death." (1 John 5:16). A faithful Christian shall ask God to give their fellow Christian life (victory) in overcoming their sin that they are confessing (i.e. sin that is confessed is not a sin that leads unto death).

#6. Hide God’s Word in your heart.
Hide God’s Word in your heart. Memorize Scripture. David said he hid God’s Word within his heart so that he may not sin against the Lord. "Thy word have I hid in mine heart, that I might not sin against thee." (Psalms 119:11).

#7. Confess of your sins.
Confess of your sins. 1 John 1:9 says if we confess our sins he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.

Many Eternal Security Proponents will say that King David was saved while he committed his sins of adultery and murder. Yet, they will also double speak and talk about how you have to live holy, too. But they really do not believe in living holy as the Bible talks about it because the Bible talks about how grievous sin can separate a person from God unless they repent (seek forgiveness with the Lord). For if we say King David was saved while he committed his sins of adultery and murder, we are teaching others that they can also be like a King David and go out and murder and commit adultery and be saved, too (As long as they confess of it later).

Tree of Life said:

Please take this hogwarsh over to "Debate Non-Christian Religions" or "Controversial Christian Theology".

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It's not hogwash. It's the truth; And sometimes the truth hurts or it is offensive. If there is no upholding of a standard of holiness to be right with God, then people are not really going to live holy in this life.

Tree of Life said:

Total sanctification is not a Christian doctrine and is not permitted to be promoted in Christian only forums.

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I am not talking about "Total Sanctification" here. I am talking about holiness (or Sanctification) in regards to putting away grievous sin and I am not talking about "Sinless Perfectionism" (the putting away of even minor transgressions of faults). Not all sin is the same. For there is a sin not unto death (See 1 John 5:16-17). There are commands mentioned in the Bible that are not attached with dire after-life consequences (Like Matthew 5:11-12). Baptism is not a command that leads to spiritual death if one does not obey it in this life (See 1 Peter 3:21). Granted, a believer is going to want to obey all things in the Lord, but the point here is not all sins condemn a person. For do you believe going 5mph over the speed limit on the high way in a non-construction zone is a sin that leads to spiritual death? How about not taking the garbage out that one week when you knew you should have? I do not believe God will condemn us for imperfections of character. God usually clearly tells us what sins lead to spiritual death.

Tree of Life said:

I wish not to address you any longer on this matter.

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I understand.

May the Lord bless you (even if we disagree strongly on this matter within Scripture).