What’s Holiness Got to Do With It All Anyway?

I once read: “Growing in holiness is like riding a bike. If you stop pedaling, you fall off“—had to stop briefly and give that one some thought. And then the Scripture passage: “be holy, for I am the Lord your God” (Leviticus 20:7) came to mind, followed by “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).

As I’m sitting here contemplating this entire gamut of thought, I begin to recognize how out of sorts that line of reasoning is with the general consensus of our society. Certainly, our society understands the concept of falling off a bike, but the idea of holiness (a holiness necessary to see the Lord) just falls contrary to our societal way of thinking.

It is interesting how many people claim to “believe in God.” Sadly, the “god” of their belief is some generated idea that fits within their confines of thinking—one who would never judge one’s actions nor require a standard of holiness. Another interesting fact, while I am mentioning interesting facts, is how people immediately think they are being judged when someone quotes a Scripture that calls out their lifestyle. The god of their thinking would never judge nor condemn anyone for anything—that just isn’t right in their mindset.

The fact is simple—the god of their mind would never judge anything because the god of their mind is only a figment of their imagination. He doesn’t exist anywhere outside their made-up fantasies. Problem with all of this made-up stuff is the fact that there is a real God who is a God of grace and mercy at this time. A God who forgives and cleanses all who come to Him through Jesus Christ. But, that same God will one day sit in judgment over all who have rejected His free gift of salvation and all those standing before Him will be condemned to an eternal hell. There will be no shouting back at Him—don’t you judge me—because at that time all will recognize their missed opportunities.

It is this God, the Creator God, the God of the Holy Scriptures, who declares Himself holy and all who approach Him must be holy. Holiness begins with a salvation experience through Jesus Christ followed by an ongoing cleansing through reading and living out the Word of God. Don’t take a chance of missing the open door. Turn to Jesus today as your own personal Lord and Savior.