Blazing With Holiness

Good morning,

Yesterday, at church, one of our college-age members - - - one of the precious young ladies who has served as a leader in our church's girls' ministry, one of the sweet members of our college-age SS and Bible study classes - - - surrendered to the call to full-time Christian service.  She will enroll in seminary in the late summer of this year.  What a blessing!

I thought of her this morning as I read today's passage:  1 Peter 1:13-16.  In fact, it is my prayer for her, for me and for you.  Here it is, in The Message version.

13-16 So roll up your sleeves, put your mind in gear, be totally ready to receive the gift that’s coming when Jesus arrives. Don’t lazily slip back into those old grooves of evil, doing just what you feel like doing. You didn’t know any better then; you do now. As obedient children, let yourselves be pulled into a way of life shaped by God’s life, a life energetic and blazing with holiness. God said, “I am holy; you be holy.”

Blazing with holiness!  What a standard to meet!  Patterning ourselves after God's example of perfect holiness - - - what an example to follow!  Peter is exhorting the young churches of Asia to pursue holy living.  This kind of Christian life does not happen by accident.  This kind of life does not automatically fall into place once a person accepts Jesus as Savior.  In fact, Peter makes it plain that "the default setting" is to "lazily slip back into those old grooves of evil."  (Don't you just love that language?)  If we don't keep a guard on our hearts, we will not "naturally" become more holy.  No, just the opposite will occur.

We have been warned.

The closest example to my own heart is that of following my feelings.  (I know that none of the rest of you ladies out there ever do that!)  "Follow your heart!"  Isn't that the popular mantra?  Somebody posted that, in essence, on Facebook the other day.  My response/comment was that our hearts, unless indwelled by the Holy Spirit, are "more deceitful than all things and desperately wicked" (Jeremiah 17:9).  This is a description of the human heart without Jesus Christ.

See, when we accept Christ as Savior, He gives us a new heart.  The problem is that our old one is still with us, warring with the new heart, the new nature.   The old heart says, "Do what you feel like doing!"  Peter makes it clear that such is an old evil groove.  Not groovy, Y'all, not groovy!

Christians!  We.Know.Better!  We have the Holy Spirit in us, Who testifies to us of the Truth and Who speaks to us of God's better way of holiness.  We need to choose His holiness.  This is God's path of obedience for us.

I just love the college kids in whom Hubster and I have been privileged to invest.  One of them quipped yesterday that she needs to "find her big girl panties"!  She was referring to the popular expression "Put your big girl panties on!"  In other words, "re-adjust your attitude toward holiness". She was saying that she needs to blaze with holiness.

At the time of this writing, it is Monday morning.  What a good time to re-commit ourselves to allowing the Holy Spirit to shape us, to cleanse us, to sanctify us and to fill us with His righteous energy for this new week!  And, if you are not reading this on Monday?  No matter.  You can still re-commit yourself to yielding to His shaping.

We talk about Holy Week in conjunction with the Easter Season - - - let's allow the Spirit to make every week "holy week".  What is pulling you back into the muck and mire today?  Give it to the Lord (perhaps "again"... and "again" .... and "again").  That's okay.  Don't be discouraged.  We are human.  Slip happens.

Holiness is a spoil of (spiritual) war.  We begin to win the battle when we "put our minds in gear". It is the prize we gain when our old sinful nature rises up in us and we scream "By the power of the Holy Spirit and in the glorious Name of Jesus, Heck-to-the-NO!"  Then, we ask the fiery Holy Spirit to fill us with fresh wind and fresh fire, to blaze up in us until we are filled to the brim with Him, with His holiness, not some fake, manufactured imitation.  Holiness is His gift to His own.

Father, You have commanded us to follow Your example of perfection.  We acknowledge that it is only through the power of Your Holy Spirit living within each Christian that we can even begin to approach that standard in our daily living.  Help us, O Father, to walk resplendent!  Empower us and fill us, so that we may walk in the way that brings You honor and glory - - - the way everlasting!  (Psalm 139:23-24 NIV - - - Search me, God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts.  See if there is any offensive way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting.) 
In Jesus' name, amen.