Holiness: A Necessary Practice

What is holiness
Why is it so important
How can I be Holy

When we look at the Old Testament specifically Exodus, Leviticus and Numbers. The Israelites in Exodus are the freed people. In Leviticus they are taught how to be the holy people and in Numbers they are taught to be the fighting people.

Today we focus on being the holy people.

What is Holiness

Holiness is a posture, a state of being set apart. Set apart meaning put aside for. We need to understand that holiness is not an act, it starts with a heart posture.

Holy acts make us Pharisees, holy hearts make us like Jesus.

This is because from the out-workings of the heart flow the goodness of our acts.

The Israelites were taken into the wilderness where they had to learn to exist for God, to understand how their behaviour affects God and not themselves. This looked like living intentionally. Meaning if you fell short you asked for forgiveness through sacrifices.

I imagine holiness as a form of an incubator where one gets transformed from having a heart of stone to that of flesh. A perfect way to reflect this is the parable of the four soils. The seed on the footpath is open to the public, hence why nothing ever lasts. Fertile soil is fertile because it possesses moisture and nutrients which mainly reside under the surface.

My point is holiness changes the state of your soil (heart). Holiness makes your soil moist and ready to absorb the word. Holiness makes you receptive to the transformation from the word of God. Unholiness makes you a footpath which is open to everything but rooted to nothing.

Holiness begs that you forget all and seek One, because in the One you will find all.

Why is it so important

Firstly to be able to do Christianity effectively is by partnering closely with the Holy Spirit and surrendering to its work. Holiness enables us to hear and understand God more. A preoccupied mind and spirit will not be able to hear the Lord. You wonder why you can’t hear God well, I reckon you are preoccupied.

”You must be holy because I, the Lord your God, am holy.“ ‭‭Leviticus‬ ‭19‬:‭2‬ ‭NLT‬‬

You’ve probably heard this multiple times, but God is holy. He is perfect in all things, lacking in nothing and needing nothing.

Holiness is the response we have to being forgiven people. As mentioned last week, when forgiven you have to stop living as a though you are still guilty. To be forgiven means you step into the process of rectifying, the process of rectifying is living holy.

It is important to be holy because holiness is like a winnowing fork which separates those who love God in truth and spirit and those who are gifted hypocrites.

A perfect example of a gifted hypocrite who participated in diluted holiness was

Balaam who God used to speak a blessing over Israel. He was used regardless of the fact that he participated in divination. He sought money, fame and favour in the eyes of man.

Your usefulness to the kingdom is not a reflection of the fact that you are holy. Your usefulness is a reflection of the fact that God is generous and pours out His gifts on people. Your posture and lifestyle as you are using your gifts is what makes you holy.

How can I be holy

Firstly we need to understand that holiness is not for a “the chosen people”. It is not a practice for those who are pastors, teachers, bloggers or in the worship team. It is for the average Christian.

”Don’t copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. Then you will learn to know God’s will for you, which is good and pleasing and perfect.“

Romans‬ ‭12‬:‭2‬ ‭NLT‬‬

You do not need to talk like the world does, you do not need to worry about the things the world worries about. You do not need to dress or go to places the world says you should. You do need to focus on getting your mind right and meditating on what the word of God says about matters of the world.

Holiness does not make you uptight. The beautiful thing about holiness is that you become fruitful. You become kind, you become good, you become patient. You become the version of yourself that God is proud of but also a version of yourself that your loved ones deserve.

So how can one be holy, read the word and do what it says to the best of your ability. Simply that.

”Since God chose you to be the holy people he loves, you must clothe yourselves with tenderhearted mercy, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience.“

‭‭Colossians‬ ‭3‬:‭12‬ ‭NLT‬‬

The world tells us to be yourself, God says be holy like I am. I love you and thank you so much for reading!

PRAYER

Lord, I am here before you. My heart and my life before you. Lord I kneel before you seeking your holiness. Make me like you Lord. Make me a worthy vessel of your anointing by being holy. Help me Lord to be holy like you are my Lord. Purify my mind and my heart that I may pursue holiness above all my desires. Thank you for Jesus who paved the way on what holiness looks like and through Him I am able to be strengthened to walk this journey.