Called to Holiness

When the Lord calls us to holiness, He is not calling us to a grim, tight-shoed approach to life that pretends to be holiness.  Neither does He call us to a kind of license that doesn’t care at all what God thinks of the matter and treat Christian liberty as freedom to do whatever you want.

The kind of holiness we are called to is a holiness that wants, that longs, that desires to be like Jesus – that wants to be free from sin and that wants to enjoy holiness with the Lord – obedience with great joy and hope surrounded by faith.

And this is something that God gives.  He gives holiness filled with joy, gladness, strength, grace, forgiveness, fortitude, hope and glory that has a backbone in all the details of life.  When you are given this kind of holiness, you don’t have to be told to pursue holiness – you only want to more and more.

This is connected to fighting temptation, which will be the topic of the sermon this morning.  No one fights temptation who has not been given this gift from God that loves holiness, that loves walking in the light, that loves walking with God in fellowship and glory.  Everyone that has been given this love for holiness hates their sin and that hatred is part of what God in you to learn to fight temptation.

As we come to worship our God this morning, be aware of His stirrings in you to love holiness and to hate sin – ask Him for more.  And if you have none of this desire – then come and hear the good news.  The only reason any of us – a pack of sinners – has come to Christ is because He has come to us.  But when He comes, He comes with holiness.