Copyright
© 2012 by Dr. William Valmyr
“Make every effort to live in peace with all men and to be holy;
without holiness no one will see the Lord” (Hebrews 12:14, NIV).
A Biblical Definition
Holiness is not just the absence of immoral acts such as fornication,
adultery and all kinds of sexual sins; but holiness is the cultivation of
purity in the human mind and heart. Holiness is first an on-going internal work
of transformation, a godly fear and sensitivity to the presence and voice of
the Holy Spirit that is manifested through godly living. Truth be told, God is
more interested in our holiness than He is in our happiness.
God’s Picture of Holiness
“Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God” (Matthew 5:8,
NKJV). As Christians, we are called to spend our lives seeking to live holy
lives rather than seeking happiness in all the wrong places. Friends, I am afraid that we are out of the
will of God, when we neglect God’s admonition to live holy lives by sacrificing
our souls at the altar of happiness:
“And may the Lord make you
increase and abound in love to one another and to all, just as we do to you, so
that He may establish you blameless in holiness before our God and Father at
the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ with all His saints. Finally then, brethren,
we urge and exhort in the Lord Jesus that you should abound more and more, just
as you received from us how you ought to walk and to please God; for you know
what commandments we gave you through the Lord Jesus. For this is the will of
God, your sanctification: that you should abstain from sexual immorality; that
each of you should know how to possess his own vessel in sanctification and
honor, not in passion of lust, like the Gentiles who do not know God; that no
one should take advantage of and defraud his brother in this matter, because
the Lord is the avenger of all such, as we also forewarned you and testified.
For God did not call us to uncleanness, but in holiness. Therefore he who
rejects this does not reject man, but God, who has also given us His Holy
Spirit” (1 Thessalonians 3:12-13—4:1-8; NKJV).
A prayer of Repentance
Beloved, if you do not mind, would you pray this prayer with me? “Dear
Heavenly Father , I desire to deal with my own sins, and how often we have
grieved your Holy Spirit by our [my own] lack of holiness. Lord, I pray that we (Your children) would
hear and respond to Your plea for purity. Father, I pray that we would move
toward Your grace through a heart of repentance. Lord, please forgive me of my
sins (impurity, immorality and uncleanness); and please forgive us all for
sinning against Your holy character. And Heavenly Father, please strengthen me
by Your Holy Spirit so that I may be empowered to possess my own vessel in
sanctification and honor to You. I pray this in the matchless name of Jesus
Christ!”
Friends, today if you can hear God’s voice, do not harden your heart. I
plead with you for the love of Christ, to live a holy life before God and man.
God cares for our souls more than our momentary pleasures or anything else in
this life. I love you and I am praying for you!
No comments:
Post a Comment