What Do You Think About Holiness?

Holiness is sometimes tagged as “clothesline religion. However, holiness goes deeper than outward modesty in what we wear. Holiness, and true modesty, are more about the heart than the clothes.

What DO you think about holiness?

• What is the definition of holiness?
• What is biblical holiness?
• Does God care about holiness?
• How do I live life based on God’s will for my own holiness?

Because God speaks of holiness extensively in his Word, the Holy Bible, I believe all of these questions are worth thoughtful consideration.

Who Am I?

Before I dive further into the topic of holiness, it seems right to provide insight on who is writing this and why I might be qualified to do so: I am a mom x 5, a grandmother x 12, and I have 50-years’-worth of experience realated to child care, teaching, and parenting.

More important than this, I am not new to God’s Word. I believe I have read the Holy Bible through more than 43 times, plus I was blessed to graduate from the local satelite Excel Bible College Course, a three-year program of studies, through Texas Bible College. Since first beginning this Christian walk in early 1980, it’s been my practice to read the Bible daily, prayerfully studying to gain understanding. Why? Because God wants us to know what we believe and why. Also, because I fell in love with God’s Word! It was the Word of God that told me of God’s love for me and showed me his pure, holy nature. God’s Word, my relationship with him, and excellent teaching from my elders, have been my primary parenting guides.

This post is coming to you from the caring heart of an elderly sister, a child of God who wants to pass on to you the precious treasures God has given to me over the years. Putting aside personal opinions, my goal in this post is to guide you as you think about holiness. I hope you will think about how holiness relates to what you do in your daily life and, even more importantly, why you do them.

What IS Holiness?

Let’s start with defining our topic: Webster’s Dictionary* states that “holiness” is the “state of being holy”. “Holy” is defined as: “dedicated to religious use; belonging to or coming from God; consecrated; sacred.” Additional information for this entry states [something or someone] “regarded with or deserving deep respect, awe, reverence, or adoration.” Regardless of the bad rap some people give holiness, none of that sounds negative to me. I tend to think most people would like the idea of being regarded with respect.

* “Holiness”, n. Also, “Holy, adj”; Webster’s New World Dictionary of the American Language, Second College Edition, Simon and Schuster, New York, Copyright (last listed) 1986.

What Does God Think About Holiness?

Now let’s dive into a few references to the topic of holiness from the Word of God which can shed light on God’s thinking about this topic:

• I Peter 1: 15, 16 The apostle Peter enjoins us, “But as he which hath called you is holy, so be ye holy in all manner of conversation; because it is written, Be ye holy; for I am holy.” When Peter said “because it is written”, he referred to old testament scripture. Here we have an instance when a new testament preacher quoted an old testament scripture as one of the reasons for us to be holy. He did not state this as if we are to obey a law. Peter stated this in such a way as to make it clear that this is a matter of Principle: Since we are God’s people, we are to be holy like our God. ♥ [This is one of those “Picket Fences” things! I love God for giving us clear Principles as boundaries to live safely within while we enjoy this lush “Watermelon” life of abundance in God’s kingdom. You may notice more Picket Fences things in this and other posts on this website. If you find any, I’d love for you to comment, letting me know what you found and where!]
• I Peter 2:9 How God sees his people: “… ye are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, an holy nation, a peculiar people; that ye should show forth the praises of him who hath called you out of darkness into his marvelous light”. To God, we are his chosen royal priests, holy and peculiar (i.e., unusual or special). No matter what people think of me, or even what I think of me, it is simply wonderful knowing my God thinks well of me. I am, or rather, WE ARE accepted in the beloved!
• Hebrews 12:14 God’s people are to “Follow peace with all men, and holiness, without which no man shall see the Lord”. Hmmm…I wonder if some read over this too quickly to let it sink in. To paraphrase the part of this verse related to holiness, only to clarify without changing the meaning, it says: No man shall see God without holiness. I want to stand before God at the end of my life and hear him say “Well done”. From this passage of scripture as well as many related others, I take it that one of the requirements for this to happen is that I have lived a holy life, separated unto God and his purposes.

There are many, many references to holiness in the Bible; too many to include in this post. You might find it interesting to look up scripture passages, using a concordance, for holiness. If you take your time, prayerfully seeking God for understanding as you do, it may be a delighful surprise to discover how fun and engaging this kind of activity can be!

How In The World To Be Holy?

Knowing that God calls us to be holy like him, what could this look like in our daily lives? This post won’t offer you an exhaustive list of ideas, nor an in-depth narrative on how to live. I believe that is the place of a God-called pastor. However, as an older sister in Christ, here are some things I have seen people do who are sincere in their desire to please God. These are things that have proven to be part of the abundant life God promises those who live a holy life for him, acknowledging God in all their ways:

1. Keep you heart and mind on Jesus throughout your day. Think about things that you know will please him. Philippians 4:8 says “…whatsoever things are true…honest…just…pure…lovely…of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things.” How hard is that?! One way to do this is by memorizing passages from the Word that mean something special to you. If memorizing seems too big a hurdle for you, you might find it’s easy if you put the words to a simple tune! This is how I’ve taught Bible verses to children through the years; making up a tune or using a commonly-kown children’s tune to sing the scriptures. Another way is to talk about how God has moved upon situations you have prayed about, or simply about his love for the one you are speaking to. And another way, one that I have used for many years, is to pray the promises of God, speaking them aloud as part of my prayer for a loved one or situation. God is so very kind that he tells us to do things that BLESS US!
2. Pray: Pray. Until. Something. Happens. PUSH your way through the crowded responsibilities, distractions, tiredness, and noise, into the holy presence of the living God who loves you like no other! When things go wrong, pray. When things go wonderfully well, share them with God in prayer and thanksgiving. When worried, cast your cares upon God in prayer. When sick, pray for God’s healing touch to restore your health. When someone wrongs you, pray for yourself to fully forgive them, and pray for them to see there is a better way. Be quick to lean into prayer throughout the day. Pray with fervency, abandon, intellect, emotion, and in the Holy Ghost. The effectual, fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much! (James 5:16b) Prayer is your lifeline to God and to all the abundant blessings he has in store for you!
3. Sing of God’s goodness, mercy, faithfulness, and whatever blessing comes to your mind, all the day long. God doesn’t care if you are a “good singer” or not. God cares that you sing; that you love him so much that you just can’t keep quiet about how much you love him and how good he is!
4. Faithfully attend every Church service your local congregation holds, as much as possible. Sacrifice to make this happen, make the effort to really hear what God says through the songs, testimonies, and message given, commit yourself to follow through on what you have received (put it into shoe-leather, like the old timers used to say), and then determine to stay for a bit of fellowship afterwards. All in your household need this fellowship as much as any other aspect of being together with other believers of this precious truth and faith. Sometimes it’s the most simple smile, or hug, or “Nice to see you” that pulls us up from the blues; or allows us to pull someone else up!
5. There is an old saying that I really like: JOY is spelled, Jesus first, Others second, Yourself last. I’ve found a very special kind of joy by being thoughtfull of those around me, caring more for their needs than for my own! In Philippians 2:3, we find this admonition to the Church, “Let nothging be done in strife or vainglory; but in lowliness of mind, let each esteem other better than themselves.” Certainly, this is the example Jesus set for us!
6. Because we recognize that we represent our holy God to this world, we will find ourselves seeking God to help us “Abstain from all appearance of evil.” (I Thessalonians 5:22) This is another Principle to live by; it impacts every area of life. We don’t want to give the impression that we condone sin, much less that we engage in sinful activities. To be careless of this besmirches the only name under heaven given amoung men whereby we MUST be saved: Jesus. Between the leadership of your pastor, your daily Bible reading, and the Holy Spirit of Christ dwelling in you, God has given you all the resources you need to be able to determine if something has the appearance of evil. When in doubt, ask your pastor or someone who has lived for God successfully in the Truth for a very long time.
7. Like the holy women of old, we are to be modest. Being modest does not equate to being dowdy and unkempt, nor socially backward, nor frumpy and disheveled. Modesty is the quality of being modest, unassuming, descent, moderate, humble, reserved, proper, reasonable, possessing a lack of excess, and not pretencious. Truly Good leaders are modest! As a follower of Jesus Christ, you might do well to think about your reasoning behind Why you select the clothes you wear, the way you fix your hair, the manner of your speech, and the things you are entertained by. Peter wrote about this in his first letter to the Church. Addressing women in chapter 3, verses 3-5, he wrote: “Whose adorning let it not be that outward adorning of plaiting the hair, and of wearing of gold, or of putting on of apparel; but let it be the hidden man of the heart, in that which is incorruptible, even the ornament of a meek and quiet spirit, which is in the sight of Gof of great price. For after this manner in the old time the holy women also, who trusted in God, adorned themselves…”

As a follower of Jesus Christ, you might do well to think about your reasoning behind Why you select the clothes you wear, the style of your hair, the manner of your speech, and the things you are entertained by.

~ Julie

As I began this life of following Christ, I became aware that I represent him. As his representative, I found this Principle in God’s Word: In all I do, I am to draw attention to God, versus drawing attention to myself. This is so very contradictory to the philosophies I was brought up under. The examples my youthful gaze looked up to believed it was important to wear unusual clothes, hairstyles, and accessories with the goal of gaining attention and praise for the unique qualities of what was worn. It took time and maturity to teach me the value of having the mind of Christ. Now, I can honestly say I don’t need to be the center of attention to feel loved; God’s love for me provides my emotional and heart-needs abundantly in many other ways.

One final word, from Philippians 2:5-11:

“Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus: Who, being in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal with God; But made himself of no reputation, and took upon him the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men; And being found in fashion as a man, he humbled himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross. Wherefore…” I stop here for the sake of space; please do read the whole passage. It is rich beyond words!

If you have a burning question related to parenting that I might be able to shed some light on, please let me know! Your comments are welcome!