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47 min read
by Randall McElwain
By the end of this lesson, the student should:
(1) Recognize the centrality of holiness in the epistles.
(2) Rejoice in God’s provision to make his people Christlike.
(3) Understand the balance between what God has already done to make us holy and what God is continuing to do as we grow in holiness.
(4) Appreciate the possibility of a life of consistent victory over willful sin.
(5) Memorize Philippians 2:1-5.
It is early Sunday morning about 30 years after Jesus’ ascension. A group of Christians gather for worship in a private home in Philippi. They are excited because they have received a letter from Paul, their beloved pastor.
The leader begins to read Paul’s letter. Paul writes from a heart overflowing with joy. Even though he is in a Roman prison, he rejoices in Christ. Paul does not know if he will be released or killed, but he has peace. Why? “For to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain” (Philippians 1:21).
As their spiritual father, Paul encourages the Philippian Christians to continue to grow in their Christian faith. He wants to see these believers mature as the holy people God has called them to be. Paul writes, “Let your manner of life be worthy of the gospel of Christ” (Philippians 1:27). Live in a way that is worthy of the gospel? How is this possible?
Paul’s answer is: Live with the mind of Christ. “Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus” (Philippians 2:5). If the Christians at Philippi have the mind of Christ, they will be like Christ. The secret to a holy life is to live with the mind of Christ. Holiness is Christlikeness.[1]
[1]A Prayer for Holiness:
“I am no longer my own, but yours. Put me to what you will, rank me with whom you will. Put me to doing, put me to suffering. Let me be employed for you or laid aside for you, exalted for you or brought low for thee. Let me be full, let me be empty. Let me have all things, let me have nothing. I freely and heartily yield all things to your pleasure and disposal. And now, o glorious and blessed God, Father, Son and Holy Spirit, you are mine, and I am yours.”
- John Wesley
The Epistles Called Christians to Holiness
Every Christian is called to be holy. God chose us in Christ before the foundation of the world that we should be holy and blameless before him (Ephesians 1:4). God’s eternal purpose in salvation was to make us a holy people. That is the goal for all followers of Jesus.
No first century Jewish Christian was surprised to read that Christians are called to be holy. God commanded holiness in Leviticus (Leviticus 19:2, Leviticus 20:7). Jewish Christians knew that God expects his people to be holy.
However, Gentiles grew up worshipping pagan gods who were not holy. The message of holiness was foreign to Gentiles. Peter wrote to Gentile Christians who had only recently been ransomed from the futile ways inherited from their forefathers (1 Peter 1:18). These people had been pagans with no concept of true righteousness, but Peter called them to a holy life.
The apostles taught Gentile converts how to live holy lives. They taught this message positively: “This is what you must do.” They taught this message negatively: “This is what you must not do.”
Forty times, the Epistles refer to believers as “saints” which literally means “holy ones.” A saint is anyone who is living as God called his people to live. Every Christian is called to be holy; every Christian is called to be a saint.
The Apostles Commanded Believers to Pursue Holiness
Paul reminded the Corinthian believers that they are the temple of the living God (2 Corinthians 6:16). The Temple was a holy place of worship. Because we are God’s temple, “let us cleanse ourselves from every defilement of body and spirit, bringing holiness to completion in the fear of God” (2 Corinthians 7:1).
God calls his people to put off the old self, which belongs to their former manner of life and is corrupt and put on the new self (Ephesians 4:22-24). Paul wrote that Christ “gave himself for us to redeem us from all lawlessness and to purify for himself a people of his own possession who are zealous for good works” (Titus 2:14). The writer of Hebrews instructed his readers to strive for peace with everyone, and for the holiness without which no one will see the Lord (Hebrews 12:14). God’s people are called to be holy.
The Apostles Prayed That Christians Will Be Made Holy
Paul prayed that God’s people would be made holy.
► Read 1 Thessalonians 1:2-10. Describe the Christians at Thessalonica at the beginning of Paul’s letter.
The people who received Paul’s letter to the church at Thessalonica were genuine Christians. They were known for their faith, their love, and the steadfastness of their hope. They were brothers loved by God. The gospel had come to them not only in word, but also in power and in the Holy Spirit and with full conviction. They had received the word in much affliction with the joy of the Holy Spirit. They were an example to all the believers in Macedonia and in Achaia. They had turned from idols to serve the living and true God.
At the new birth, God had begun to make them holy. However, Paul prayed:
"Now may the God of peace himself sanctify you completely, and may your whole spirit and soul and body be kept blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ" (1 Thessalonians 5:23).
This prayer was important to Paul. He had been praying most earnestly night and day that he might see them face to face and supply what was lacking in their faith (1 Thessalonians 3:10). These people were true Christians; but Paul knew that the holiness within them could be improved. This does not mean they were defective Christians; Paul had already commended them for their Christian experience.
There was nothing faulty about their Christian experience, but Paul knew that they needed further growth. They were sanctified, but he prayed that God would sanctify them completely. He prayed that God would make them holy through and through. He prayed that God would purify their spirit and soul and body.
The Epistles Promised that Christians Can Be Holy
When he prayed that the Ephesians would be filled with all the fullness of God, Paul had confidence that God would answer his prayer because he was praying “to him who is able to do far more abundantly than all that we ask or think, according to the power at work within us…” (Ephesians 3:20). We often quote this scripture when praying for some physical or financial need, but the statement was actually given in association with the highest spiritual goal mentioned in the Bible: to be filled with all the fullness of God. God’s call to a holy heart is not an impossible command. God’s call is available to every believer.
When he prayed for the Thessalonian Christians, Paul had confidence that God would answer his prayer. Paul followed his prayer, “Now may the God of peace himself sanctify you completely” with this promise, “He who calls you is faithful; he will surely do it” (1 Thessalonians 5:23-24). The epistles promise that we can be holy.
In the Old Testament, God revealed the message of a holy heart and holy hands through the Law and the prophets. In the life of Jesus Christ, God gave a model of perfect love. In Acts, the early Christians showed that it is possible for ordinary believers to live a holy life through the power of the Holy Spirit. In the Epistles, the message of holiness is applied to the daily life of the believer.
Holiness is a Christlike Heart and Mind
The Epistles teach that holiness is Christlikeness. Believers are to be like Christ. To be holy is more than outward behavior; holiness begins in the heart. To be holy is to be like Christ in our hearts and minds.
Paul does not say, “You should act like Jesus Christ.” He insists, “You should be like Jesus Christ.” It is not enough to imitate Christ outwardly; we must be like him inwardly. God’s purpose is to transform his people into the image of Christ. “For those whom he foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son” (Romans 8:29). God’s eternal purpose is to make us into the image of Christ. This is what it means to be holy.
One of the most startling examples of this idea is found in Paul’s letter to Corinth. This church was full of problems, yet Paul addressed them as saints and called them to a holy life. How could this group of immature believers, struggling to overcome their pagan past, hope to be holy? Paul answered, “God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God” (2 Corinthians 5:21).
Because Christ became sin for us, we can become the righteousness of God. In the Old Testament, the blood of the sin offerings covered the sins of those who came to God in faith. Today, the blood of Christ covers the sins of those who come to God in faith. But Paul promises more than covering. We are not only covered; we are transformed. Because we have been reconciled to God, we have become the righteousness of God. Paul writes:
"Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come. All this is from God, who through Christ reconciled us to himself" (2 Corinthians 5:17-18).
Christ did not die to cover our continuing rebellion against God. Through Christ, we are a new creation. We are no longer rebels; we are new creatures who have been reconciled to a holy God.
This transformation goes much deeper than outward behavior alone. Paul prayed for the Thessalonians:
"Now may the God of peace himself sanctify you completely, and may your whole spirit and soul and body be kept blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ" (1 Thessalonians 5:23).
“Completely” carries the idea of being made holy in all aspects of their nature. This verse can be translated “sanctify you through and through.” Paul prayed that these believers would be transformed in their whole spirit and soul and body. He promised, “He who calls you is faithful; he will surely do it” (1 Thessalonians 5:24).
This transformation affects all areas of life. In Philippians, Paul writes about a new way of thinking. He calls it the “mind of Christ.” Paul describes Jesus’ voluntary submission of himself to the will of the Father. Jesus humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross (Philippians 2:8).
Paul does not say, “The humility of Christ would be a good way to live, but of course it is impossible for you and me to have this attitude.” Instead he says, “Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus” (Philippians 2:5). This mind is yours; you can be like Christ!
We can have the same spirit of loving submission that guided Jesus’ submission to the Father’s will. We can have the mind of Christ. We can look at life through the eyes of Jesus Christ. This happens not through good resolutions, but through transformed hearts. We are called to be like Christ not in actions alone but from the heart. We are called to have the mind of Christ.
Holiness is Christlike Behavior
Some people may respond, “My heart is Christlike, but my actions are not. Inwardly, my motives are good but outwardly I do not live like Christ.” The apostles could not accept this division between our inner and outward natures. Our inward nature will be seen in our outward actions. To be holy means to be like Christ in our behavior.
This message is seen throughout the Epistles. Paul said that Christ gave himself for the church that he might sanctify her. Christ gave himself to make his bride holy. He is preparing a bride without spot or wrinkle or any such thing, that she might be holy and without blemish (Ephesians 5:26-27).
Can you imagine an earthly bride who says to her husband, “I will be unfaithful to you with my body; but my heart will be pure”? Of course not! Neither can Paul imagine the bride of Christ saying, “My heart is holy, but my actions will be unholy.” The church is called to be a bride without spot or wrinkle.
Paul wrote to Christians at Thessalonica. This church included both Jewish believers and converts from Thessalonica’s pagan cults. The Jewish believers knew the Old Testament commands to holy behavior, but the pagans had lived in an atmosphere where sexual immorality was normal.
Paul taught these new believers what it means to live a holy life. He prayed that God would establish their hearts blameless in holiness before our God and Father (1 Thessalonians 3:13). These new believers were to be holy in their heart and they were to be holy in their behavior. “This is the will of God, your sanctification.” Sanctification affects not only their heart; it determines their behavior (1 Thessalonians 4:3-6):
To be holy is to have a Christlike heart which inspires Christlike behavior. To be holy is to be like Christ.
Holiness is Christlike Love
The Gospels show that holiness is love for God and love for our neighbor. Paul links Christlike behavior and Christlike love. He challenges the Ephesian Christians to be imitators of God, as beloved children. How will they imitate God? By living in Christlike love. “And walk in love, as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us, a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God” (Ephesians 5:1-2).
As they walk in self-sacrificing love, Christians show the image of God. To be holy is to love as Christ loved. In Romans 14, Paul gives a practical demonstration of this Christlike love. He calls believers to sacrifice their freedom of conscience for the sake of a weaker brother. Why? “For if your brother is grieved by what you eat, you are no longer walking in love” (Romans 14:15). If my freedom causes a brother to stumble, I am not walking in love. Christ surrendered his rights because of his love for us; we are called to surrender our rights because of love for others. This is Christlike love.
Paul’s most famous exposition of what it means to love like Christ is 1 Corinthians 13. To a church marked by division, self-seeking behavior, jealousy, and pride, Paul wrote:
"Love is patient and kind; love does not envy or boast; it is not arrogant or rude. It does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful; it does not rejoice at wrongdoing, but rejoices with the truth" (1 Corinthians 13:4-6).
In 1 John, the apostle emphasized practical aspects of Christlike love. 1 John shows what Christlike love looks like.
What is the result of this Christlike love? Confidence before God. “If we love one another, God abides in us and his love is perfected in us” (1 John 4:12). This perfect love gives us confidence for the day of judgment and casts out fear of punishment (1 John 4:17-18).
How will we live this perfect love? “For we know that our life in this world is His life lived in us” (1 John 4:17, NLV). We can model Christlike love only through Christ living in us.
Jonathan wanted to be a holy person. Unfortunately, Jonathan’s understanding of holiness was based more on emotional feelings than on scripture. Because of this, Jonathan went from one extreme teaching to another.
For a while, Jonathan fasted frequently, prayed for hours, and tried to discipline himself into holiness. He was sure that we become holy through our self-discipline.
Jonathan soon became discouraged and gave up this effort. He grew careless in spiritual disciplines and began to yield to sin. When someone asked him about an area of sin, Jonathan answered, “I live by grace and do not need discipline. God will make me holy when he is ready.”
At another time, Jonathan prayed earnestly for a dramatic spiritual gift. He decided holiness is about spiritual gifts and outward power.
Jonathan’s search for holiness was based on emotion rather than on a careful reading of scripture. He did not study the Bible to understand how holiness is lived in daily life.
The Epistles teach important truths about the holy life. If we forget these principles, we will become unbalanced in our understanding of holiness. The apostles wrote to show us how to live the holy life to which God has called us.
You Have Been Made Holy; You Are Being Made Holy
When Paul wrote to saints, he was saying, “You are holy.” A saint is already holy, but Paul wrote to these saints, “You must be holy.” You are holy; you must continue to grow in holiness.
This balance is seen repeatedly in the Epistles. As believers, we are already holy, but we continue to grow in holiness as we walk in obedience to God.
The writer of Hebrews shows that we were made holy by Christ’s death. “We have been sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all” (Hebrews 10:10). We are sanctified through Christ’s death.
The writer continues, “For by a single offering he has perfected for all time those who are being sanctified” (Hebrews 10:14). This sentence includes two words related to the theme of holiness. Through his death, Christ has perfected (teleios) those who are being sanctified (hagiazo). This verse tells us that:
We Have Been Made Holy: “He Has Perfected for All Time…”
Christ died so that we can be freed from the power of sin. Jesus suffered outside the gate in order to sanctify the people through his own blood (Hebrews 13:12). God’s purpose to make his people holy was fulfilled through Jesus’ death. We have been made perfect.
We Are Being Made Holy: “Those Who Are Being Sanctified”
Christ’s death accomplished God’s purpose of sanctification for all time, but our growth in holiness continues throughout our entire life. It is a continuing process. Through Christ’s death, we are holy; through Christ’s death, we are being made holy.
Paul’s own testimony illustrates this principle. In Philippians 3, Paul writes that he is not yet perfect, but a few verses later, he refers to himself as one who is already perfect (“those of us who are mature”). The bolded words in the following excerpt both come from teleios. Both words can be translated “perfect.”
"Not that I have already obtained this or am already perfect (teleios), but I press on to make it my own, because Christ Jesus has made me his own…. Let those of us who are mature (teleios) think this way, and if in anything you think otherwise, God will reveal that also to you" (Philippians 3:12-15).
Paul says, “I am not yet perfect.” He continues, “Those of us who are perfect.” Paul has not yet arrived at the goal; he is growing in holiness. In this sense, he is not yet perfect. But, Paul is straining every muscle towards the goal. He is committed to finishing the race. In this sense, Paul is already perfect. Paul can say “I am not yet perfect” and “I am perfect” in the same paragraph.
To be perfect does not mean that we have climbed a ladder of works that makes us perfect. Instead, it means that we have fully surrendered to God’s grace in our life. It is instantaneous in that there is a moment in time in which God reorients our hearts in his direction. It is a process in that our movement towards him will continue for the rest of our life.[1]
Think of a football player[2] who kicks a ball into the goal; it is a perfect shot. The shot does not become perfect only when it lands in the goal. As it is moving through the air, the shot is already perfect; it is on the path to the goal. It is perfect from the moment the player kicks the ball.[3]
In the same way, Paul was headed for the final goal. He had set his course and was moving towards the goal with an undivided heart. He was not yet at the goal, but he was on the path to the goal. He was not yet perfect; he was already perfect.
As believers, we are holy saints who have been accepted by God through Christ, but we are called to yield ourselves as living sacrifices who continue to grow in daily obedience and surrender (Romans 12:1). We have already been made holy; we are being made holy.
You Are Saints; You Must Live as Saints
Paul wrote to saints who lived in Corinth. 1 Corinthians is addressed to holy people, “those sanctified in Christ Jesus” (1 Corinthians 1:2). 2 Corinthians is addressed “To the church of God that is at Corinth, with all the saints who are in the whole of Achaia” (2 Corinthians 1:1). They were saints – but they had much to learn about living as saints.
There are two ways in which Christians misunderstand this truth. First, some Christians say, “I am called a saint because God sees Christ’s righteousness rather than my sin. My holiness is a ‘legal fiction.’ I will never be holy in this world, but God calls me holy anyway.” Romans 6 makes clear that this answer is not acceptable to Paul. Holy people must live holy lives.
Second, other Christians say, “I am a saint. I never fall short of God’s absolute standard of perfection. I never repent because I am never wrong. I am a saint!” Paul rejects this error as strongly as he rejects the first error. Paul wrote to teach saints in Corinth to live holy lives. They are lacking in knowledge and maturity, so Paul teaches these saints how to live as saints. Holy people must live holy lives.
The city of Corinth was infamous for the ungodly behavior of its citizens. Paul calls believers living in this wicked city to holy behavior. They are to avoid sexual immorality because their bodies are members of Christ (1 Corinthians 6:15). Paul lists behaviors that are forbidden in the kingdom of God:
"Do not be deceived: neither the sexually immoral, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor men who practice homosexuality, nor thieves, nor the greedy, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor swindlers will inherit the kingdom of God" (1 Corinthians 6:9-10).
After this list of sins, Paul observes, “And such were some of you.” Paul is writing to an audience that has practiced these sins. As believers, Paul expects them to abandon their former lifestyle. Given their sinful past, how can these people live pure lives? Paul gives the answer:
"But you were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God" (1 Corinthians 6:11).
The sins of 1 Corinthians 6:9-10 have been erased by the transformation of 1 Corinthians 6:11. This transformation is not just a legal transaction; Paul nowhere suggests, “You will continue to commit these sins, but God will count you as righteous despite your wicked behavior.” No! He says, “Such were some of you, but you were washed.” The Corinthian Christians must never return to the sins of their past. Paul says, “You are saints; act like it!” They have been washed; they have been sanctified; they have been made holy. They are saints; they must live as saints.
When a young man joins the army, he is given a uniform that marks him as a soldier. At the same time, he is given a manual that gives the Army Code of Conduct. The uniform alone is not enough; he must live according to the Code of Conduct.
It takes longer to learn the Code of Conduct than to put on the uniform. The new soldier must learn to live in a manner that suits his uniform. He must mature as a soldier. Many times, this young soldier will have to be reminded of the rules of the military. Is his performance perfect? No. But, is his commitment to being a soldier complete? Yes. On the first day in the army, he is a soldier; but he will spend many days learning to live as a soldier.
Imagine a young man who says, “I want to be called a soldier, but I do not want to follow the Code of Conduct.” He buys an army uniform, but he does not live the Code of Conduct. Is he a true soldier? No. He only pretends to be a soldier.
The Epistles are written to believers who have put on Christ. Now they are learning to live holy lives. In Ephesians 4-6, we learn what a holy life looks like in family relationships, in relationships within the church, and in business ethics. In Galatians 5, we learn the fruit of a life lived in step with the Spirit. In 1 Peter, we learn how to live a holy life in the face of persecution. When we read James, we learn how a holy person controls his tongue.
Paul wrote to the believers at Colossae, “For you have died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God.” These believers have died to sin; they are alive to Christ. They are no longer prisoners of sin; they are holy. But Paul continues, “Put to death therefore what is earthly in you” (Colossians 3:3, 5). You are dead to sin; put sin to death. You are saints; you must live as saints.[5]
The principle is stated at the beginning of the chapter.
"If then you have been raised with Christ, seek the things that are above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. Set your minds on things that are above, not on things that are on earth" (Colossians 3:1-2).
Paul says, “Day after day, you are to keep seeking heavenly things. Day after day, you are to continue setting your mind on the things of God.” The key to a holy life is to set your mind on the things of God. You have been made holy (“you have been raised with Christ”), so be holy (“set your mind on things that are above”).
What is the result of this holy life? “When Christ who is your life appears, then you also will appear with him in glory” (Colossians 3:4). A holy life prepares you to spend eternity with a holy God. Enoch walked with God, and he was not found, for God took him (Genesis 5:24). A holy walk with God in this world prepared Enoch for eternity with God. A holy walk with God in this world prepares us to appear with Christ in glory.
The Epistles were written to saints. We have been made saints through the blood of Jesus Christ. We have put off the old man and put on the new man. Now, we are learning day by day what it means to be holy. We are being transformed day by day into the image of God. Is our performance perfect? No. But is our commitment to being holy complete? Yes. We are saints; we are learning to live as saints.
God Makes You Holy; You Must Pursue Holiness
In Leviticus, God said, “Consecrate yourselves, therefore, and be holy.” This was a command that the people must follow. In the next verse, God promised, “I am the Lord who sanctifies you” (Leviticus 20:7-8). This was a promise of what God would do. To understand holiness, we must balance two truths:
The Pharisees remembered only, “You must pursue holiness.” They believed they could become holy through their own efforts. The Epistles respond, “God makes you holy.”
Some Christians in the early church went to the opposite extreme. They believed, “If God wants to make us holy, he will do it. We do nothing.” The Epistles respond, “You must pursue holiness.”
Both surrender and pursuit are important in sanctification. God makes us holy; we must pursue holiness. We surrender to God and allow him to transform us, but we strain forward to the goal God has for us (Philippians 3:13). Paul understood that trusting God’s promises does not mean that we no longer press towards the mark. We are empowered to pursue holiness because God makes us holy.
When Stephen’s children were young, they would sometimes read scripture aloud in family devotions. One day, Stephen’s young daughter came to Philippians 2:12 when it was her turn to read. With great fervor, Ruth shouted, “Work out your own salvation with fear and trembling!” She was quite impressed with this command to “work out your salvation.” But the next verse says “for it is God who works in you.” Our work is done because of God’s work.
Contrary to the belief of many Christians, God’s work is accomplished as we work out our own salvation. Does this mean that we earn holiness by works? Absolutely not! Paul continues, “It is God who works in you, both to will and to work for his good pleasure” (Philippians 2:13). It is God who gives the desire (“to will”); it is God who empowers the work. Without God who works in us, our work is fruitless. We cannot make ourselves holy, but God will not make us holy apart from our own pursuit of holiness.
Paul reminded the Corinthians of God’s wonderful promise that “you shall be sons and daughters to me” (2 Corinthians 6:18). He then commands them to live holy lives. “Since we have these promises, beloved, let us cleanse ourselves from every defilement of body and spirit, bringing holiness to completion in the fear of God” (2 Corinthians 7:1). Because of God’s promises, we cleanse ourselves from every defilement. God’s promise to make us holy gives us confidence to pursue holiness.
Writing to the Christians at Thessalonica, Paul prayed that God would establish their hearts blameless in holiness (1 Thessalonians 3:13). This is God’s work. Then, Paul began to teach how they ought to walk and to please God. Why? “For this is the will of God, your sanctification” (1 Thessalonians 4:1, 3). God was making the Thessalonian Christians holy, so they must pursue a holy life.
Galatians is written to believers who are tempted to return to salvation by the works of the law. Paul reminds them that they were justified by faith in Christ and not by works of the law, because by works of the law no one will be justified (Galatians 2:16). If justification by faith is the end of the gospel, this would be the perfect letter for Paul to say, “You have been justified by faith. Now you can live as you wish and you will go to heaven. Your place in heaven is assured.” But Paul does not say that! Instead, he says:
"And those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. If we live by the Spirit, let us also keep in step with the Spirit" (Galatians 5:24-25).
To keep in step means to walk in line behind a leader. It suggests discipline and self-control. It suggests living by the Spirit’s guidance, not our own desires. God has made the Galatians holy, but they must continue to pursue holiness.
The author of Hebrews wrote that God disciplines us for our good, that we may share his holiness. What an amazing truth! Fallen man can share in the holiness of God. This is not some type of mystical union like the pagan cults. This is a very practical teaching about spiritual discipline. He is writing about the fruit of righteousness, about peace with others, and about sins such as bitterness and sexual immorality (Hebrews 12:10-16). This is not mysticism; this is normal Christianity. God calls his children to be holy; he expects his children to share in his holiness.
How can we share in God’s holiness? We share in God’s holiness when we become partakers of the divine nature.[4] Peter points both to God’s power to make us like himself and to our effort to grow in his image.
First, Peter promises that we can be partakers of God’s nature:
"His divine power has granted to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of him who called us to his own glory and excellence, by which he has granted to us his precious and very great promises, so that through them you may become partakers of the divine nature, having escaped from the corruption that is in the world because of sinful desire" (2 Peter 1:3-4).
God makes us holy. His divine power has granted to us all things necessary for spiritual life and godliness. Godliness is not an impossible dream; God has granted to us his precious and great promises. One of these promises is that we may become partakers of the divine nature. The promise that we can look like our heavenly Father is for every child of God. This is not accomplished through our efforts; godliness is the gift of God’s grace. Through God’s power, we can live in harmony with God’s character. God makes us holy.
Then, Peter continues:
"For this very reason, make every effort to supplement your faith with virtue, and virtue with knowledge, and knowledge with self-control, and self-control with steadfastness, and steadfastness with godliness, and godliness with brotherly affection, and brotherly affection with love. For if these qualities are yours and are increasing, they keep you from being ineffective or unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ" (2 Peter 1:5-8).
Because God’s divine power has made us partakers of the divine nature, we must make every effort to grow in virtue, knowledge, self-control, steadfastness, godliness, brotherly affection, and love. Because of what God has done, we must pursue holiness.
Peter never suggests that we make ourselves holy by our own effort. He is not teaching legalism. We do not earn God’s favor through our efforts. However, Peter wants us to understand that we cannot live a holy life without self-discipline.
We pursue holiness because of God’s grace. His grace empowers our pursuit of a holy life. Because of God’s divine power (verses 3-4), we make every effort to grow (verses 5-8). Our pursuit of holiness is not legalism; it is the natural desire of a transformed heart. If we are truly God’s children, we will want to grow in holiness. If we are truly God’s children, we will want to see God’s purpose fulfilled in our lives.
[1] Timothy C. Tennent. The Call to Holiness (Franklin: Seedbed Publishing), 2014), 54-55
[2] In America, this sport is called “soccer.”
[3] Illustration adapted from T.A. Noble, Holy Trinity: Holy People (Eugene: Cascade Books, 2013), 23.
[4] This material is drawn from Dr. A. Philip Brown, “Divine Holiness and Sanctifying God: A Proposal,” unpublished paper
[5]“Paul said, ‘I have been crucified with Christ....’ He did not say, ‘I have made a determination to imitate Jesus Christ,’ or, ‘I will really make an effort to follow Him’— but ‘I have been identified with Him in His death.’”
- Oswald Chambers
Writing to the Philippian Christians, Paul pointed to Jesus as an example of the attitude they should demonstrate. Christ humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross (Philippians 2:8). Paul wanted these believers to understand that the path for God’s children is the path of humility, not the path of self-promotion. We must have the mind of Christ.
We may be tempted to respond, “Of course, Jesus lived a perfect life. He was the Son of God. But that does not help me. I’m not Jesus!” How can we follow Christ’s example? Paul taught that the Spirit of Christ lives in the believer.
Paul wrote to young Christians, “You, however, are not in the flesh but in the Spirit, if in fact the Spirit of God dwells in you. Anyone who does not have the Spirit of Christ does not belong to him” (Romans 8:9). We live a holy life not in our own strength but in the power of the Holy Spirit.
Paul’s own testimony shows this transformation. Paul points to his life as a Pharisee attempting to fulfill the demands of the law in his own power. He remembers the time when he had the desire but not the ability to do right. He says, “It is no longer I who do it, but sin that dwells within me” (Romans 7:17). Paul’s efforts to be righteous in his own strength were doomed to failure.
After meeting Christ, Paul’s testimony changed from “not I, but sin” to “not I, but Christ” (Galatians 2:20). Paul could live a victorious Christian life because Christ now lived in him.
Paul encouraged the Corinthians, “Do you not realize this about yourselves, that Jesus Christ is in you?” (2 Corinthians 13:5). We can be Christlike because Christ lives in us. The Lutheran theologian Dietrich Bonhoeffer put it like this: to be a Christian means that “the exact space once occupied by the old man is now occupied by Jesus Christ”.[1]
Christ lives in us, or to state the same principle in another way, “We live in Christ.” One of Paul’s most representative phrases is “in Christ.” Paul uses some version of “in Christ,” “in him,” “in whom,” or “in the Son” more than 150 times in his letters. Paul repeatedly points to our place in Christ as the secret to the Christian life. Daily victory comes because we are in Christ.
Our old life was lived “in Adam,” in our fallen sinful self. Our new life is lived “in Christ,” in the power of the risen Lord who gives us daily victory over sin.
This understanding is crucial to the victorious life. When we see ourselves in Adam (“forgiven sinners” who live in bondage to sin), we will continually fall to temptation. When we see ourselves in Christ (“transformed saints” who have power through Christ), we will live in victory over sin. Paul told the Colossian Christians the secret to a holy life: “Therefore, as you received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk in him” (Colossians 2:6). As we walk in Christ, we are made holy.
Some people imagine sanctification like a flu shot that the doctor gives you to prevent sickness. They think that when we ask God to make us holy, he gives us a “holy shot” that prevents us from being sinful. They believe that after God sanctifies us, we live a holy life in our own power.
The Bible nowhere gives that picture. Instead, we live in Christ. We are holy in Christ. We are set free in Christ Jesus from the law of sin and death (Romans 8:2). We are sanctified in Christ Jesus (1 Corinthians 1:2). We are not made holy through our desperate attempts to imitate Jesus in our own strength. We are made holy by letting Jesus live in us. So let the one who boasts, boast in the Lord (1 Corinthians 1:31).[2]
Paul testified:
"I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me. And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me" (Galatians 2:20).
Paul’s testimony can be translated like this: “The life I am living now in the body I live by faith in the Son of God.” Paul does not postpone the call to holiness until death. Paul testifies that he is living the holy life now. How does he live a holy life? By faith in the Son of God. Paul lived a holy life only because “it is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me.”
Paul’s language parallels Jesus’ teaching in John 15.
"I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing" (John 15:5).
Holiness is not an object to be received apart from our life in Christ; holiness is a relationship to be maintained. We are alive as we remain connected to the vine. We live a holy life only through our life in Christ. A holy God dwells in us and we are holy as we walk with him.
“For you have died and your life is hidden with Christ in God” (Colossians 3:3). A holy life is not achieved in our power; a holy life is hidden with Christ in God. We live a holy life by living each day with the mind of Christ. As we walk in Christ, we have power to live a holy life in a sinful world. We have power to be holy in everyday life. This is what it means to be holy.
[1] Dietrich Bonhoeffer, Ethics (New York: Macmillan, 1965), 41
[2]“The secret of a holy life lies not in imitating Jesus, but in letting the holiness of Jesus manifest itself in me.”
- Oswald Chambers
A message of a holy life is a beautiful message. However, a doctrine that cannot be lived in daily life is of little practical value. Is it possible to live a life of victory over willful sin or is the message of a holy life simply a dream?
Is Victory Over Sin Possible?
Paul promised that we can be more than conquerors through him who loved us (Romans 8:37). Surely this promise of a victorious life in Christ includes victory over the power of sin. If it is possible to live in daily victory over willful sin, why do so many Christians fail to live victoriously? What are some causes of spiritual defeat?
We Will Be Defeated If We Do Not Believe a Life of Victory Is Possible
Some Christians do not live a victorious life because they have become convinced that a victorious life is impossible. They have heard sermons that teach that we must continually fall to willful sin – and they have despaired of any victory over sin. If we want to live a life of victory over sin, we must take seriously John’s call: “I am writing these things to you so that you may not sin” (1 John 2:1). John wrote to Christians in the confidence that it was possible for them to live a victorious life. We must claim this hope in faith to give us confidence in the face of temptation.
We Will Be Defeated If We Rest on Past Spiritual Experience or Church Status
Some people view the holy life as a one-time experience that requires no ongoing discipline or effort. They believe that once they testify, “God has cleansed my heart by faith and made me pure” there is nothing else to be done. However, as Paul showed, we must continue to press toward the mark. Victory over sin requires an ongoing life of discipline. I must continue to say “no” to sin so that I can say “yes” to God.
Some sermons on the temptation of Jesus end with Jesus’ victory over Satan’s temptation. However, Luke ends the story with an important concluding statement, “And when the devil had ended every temptation, he departed from him until an opportune time” (Luke 4:13). This was not the last time Jesus would be tempted. Although the Gospels do not record details of later temptations, Luke makes clear that Satan planned to again tempt Jesus.
We must never assume that we have reached a point of spiritual maturity from which we can never fall. Instead, we must continue to keep watch over our bodies and minds. Satan loves to attack at a moment when we let down our guard. The holy life requires careful vigilance.
Pastors and church leaders can be tempted to rely on our public status for spiritual victory. We can assume that because we preach truth and feel God’s anointing that we cannot fall. However, it is possible to preach on Sunday and to fall to Satan’s temptation on Monday. We must never rest on our past experiences or our position in the church.
We Will Be Defeated If We Try to Live the Christian Life in Our Own Power
A life of victory comes not in our own power but in the power of the Holy Spirit. The holy life is lived daily in the ongoing power of the Spirit. We never reach the point at which we, in our own power, can defeat Satan’s temptations. Peter boasted, “Even though they all fall away, I will not… If I must die with you, I will not deny you” (Mark 14:29-31). He believed he could face Satan’s attacks in his own power. He soon failed.
However, as we live in the power of the Spirit, he gives us victory over temptation. In the same way that Jesus faced temptation in the power of the Spirit, we can face temptation in the power of the Spirit.
Again, pastors and church leaders can be tempted to rest on our own efforts. As we lead in public prayer, we can fail to spend time alone with God. As we study to proclaim God’s Word publicly, we can forget to spend time listening to God speak to us personally through his Word. We must not allow our ministry efforts to diminish our reliance on a personal walk with God and the power of his Spirit for spiritual victory.
If We Fall
John called believers to a life of victory over sin. “My little children, I am writing these things to you so that you may not sin” (1 John 2:1). It is possible to live without spiritual failure. However, John gave provision for those who fall into sin, “But if anyone does sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous” (1 John 2:1). This balance is important – and often ignored.
On one side, there are those who emphasize only the first part of this verse: “I am writing these things to you so that you may not sin.” They preach that we can and should live free of willful sin. However, they have no message for those who fail in a moment of weakness.
On the other side, there are many who emphasize only the latter part of this verse: “But if anyone does sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous.” They imply that a victorious life is impossible and so we must continually fall into sin.
John provides the proper balance. First, a victorious life is possible; I do not have to yield to Satan’s temptation. But second, if I fall in a moment of weakness, I have an advocate. I do not have to abandon my Christian walk. I do not need to despair. Yes, God will discipline me. But he disciplines me as a loving father disciplines a child – in order to “yield the peaceful fruit of righteousness.” He disciplines us for our good, that we may share his holiness (Hebrews 12:10, 11).
Satan wants to convince Christians to rely on our performance as the means of pleasing God. He wants us to forget that we have been reconciled to God and are now his children. When we were sinners, we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son. Consider then, how much more, now that we are reconciled, shall we be saved by his life (Romans 5:10).
As sinners, we did not earn God’s favor; he reconciled us to himself by the death of his Son. Now, Paul says, “how much more will we be saved by his life!” Some Christians seem to believe that “I am saved by grace through faith, but I stay saved by being good enough to deserve God’s love.”
This is the same as a parent who says, “Yes, I loved you enough to bring you into the world – but now you have to earn my love through daily performance.” This is not a loving parent! And this is not our loving heavenly Father.
Instead, just as I relied on God’s grace to first bring me to spiritual life, I rely on grace to keep my spiritually alive. And, if I fall, I must again rely on God’s grace to restore me to spiritual health.
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One of the most influential missionaries of the modern era was Hudson Taylor, the founder of China Inland Mission.[1] Taylor was converted at the age of 17 through the prayers of his mother. He studied medicine and sailed to China as a missionary at the age of 21.
When he was 28 years old, he returned to England because of hepatitis. During the next five years, he sought God’s leadership and came to believe that God wanted him to recruit missionaries to go to the unevangelized China inland. At the age of 34, Hudson and Maria Taylor with their children sailed with a group of 16 other missionaries, the first group of missionaries from China Inland Mission.
One of Hudson Taylor’s most famous sayings is, “God’s work done in God’s way will never lack God’s supply.” We often interpret this as a statement about money, but for Taylor it was much more. He believed that God would supply money, assurance, faith, peace, strength, and everything else needed to accomplish his will. During five decades as leader of China Inland Mission, Hudson Taylor saw this promise fulfilled countless times.
In 1869, Taylor came to the great crisis of his spiritual life. He had struggled with temptations and failures. He wrote to his mother, “I never knew how bad a heart I have.” But he also wrote, “I know that I love God and love His work, and desire to serve Him only and in all things. May God help me to love Him more and serve Him better.”
On September 4, 1869, Hudson Taylor testified that God had poured out his Spirit in a new way in Taylor’s life. Taylor wrote to a colleague, “God has made me a new man!” The key to Taylor’s new assurance of God’s presence in his life was a sentence in a letter from a fellow missionary, John McCarthy. Taylor had been seeking through his efforts to gain a deeper faith and assurance of God’s presence. McCarthy wrote, “How do we get our faith strengthened? Not by striving after faith, but by resting on the Faithful One.”
Taylor wrote to his sister,
As I read, I saw it all! “If we believe not, he abideth faithful.” I looked to Jesus and saw (and when I saw, oh, how joy flowed)! that He had said, “I will never leave thee.”
“Ah, there is rest!” I thought. “I have striven in vain to rest in Him. I'll strive no more. For has not He promised to abide with me—never to leave me, never to fail me?” And, dearie, He never will.
I saw not only that Jesus will never leave me, but that I am a member of His body, of His flesh and of His bones. The vine is not the root merely, but all—root, stem, branches, twigs, leaves, flowers, fruit. And Jesus is not that alone—He is soil and sunshine, air and showers, and ten thousand times more than we have ever dreamed, wished for or needed. Oh, the joy of seeing this truth! I do pray that the eyes of your understanding too may be enlightened, that you may know and enjoy the riches freely given us in Christ.
In this moment, Taylor understood that Christlikeness comes not through effort but through union with the Vine that gives life. It comes through identification with Christ. His son later wrote, “He had long known surrender, but this was more; this was a new yieldedness, a glad, unreserved handing over of self and everything to Him.”
This was not a temporary emotional experience. Thirty years later, Taylor looked back and wrote, “We shall never forget the blessing we received through the words, in John 4:14, ‘Whosoever drinketh of the water that I shall give him shall never thirst.’ As we realized that Christ literally meant what He said – that ‘shall’ meant shall, and ‘never’ meant never, and ‘thirst’ meant thirst – our heart overflowed with joy as we accepted the gift.” Notice that phrase, “as we accepted the gift.” Taylor understood that God’s sanctifying grace is a gift to be received, not an achievement to be earned.
This experience of God’s grace did not make the rest of Taylor’s life easy. The next year was one of the most difficult years of his life. In that year, two of his children died and Maria died at the age of 33. Later, Taylor would lead China Inland Mission through the terrors of the Boxer Rebellion. Seventy-nine members of the Mission would be killed during those terrible days.
But through all of this, Taylor remained confident in his trust that God would supply all that was needed. An Episcopal priest who visited Taylor during a difficult time wrote, “Here was a man almost 60 years of age, bearing tremendous burdens, yet absolutely calm and untroubled.” Why? Because Taylor was one with the Vine and he was resting in Christ. He was “one who serves by the strength that God supplies—in order that in everything God may be glorified through Jesus Christ” (1 Peter 4:11).
This experience was not the end of spiritual growth for Taylor. Nor did his “resting in Christ” mean that there was no effort involved. Each morning, regardless of the pressures of ministry, Taylor spent two hours in prayer and Bible study before he began the work of the day. He understood, with Paul, that we must press on toward the goal. But this was effort that relied on God’s strength, not Hudson Taylor’s strength. Taylor now knew that even the power to move from the bed to begin his Bible study was the gift of God’s empowering grace. He could be Christlike because he was ‘in Christ.’
Taylor’s son remembered his life of prayer and the Word. Resting in Christ did not mean that Taylor ignored the necessity of spiritual discipline.
To him, the secret of overcoming lay in daily, hourly fellowship with God; and this, he found, could only be maintained by secret prayer and feeding upon the Word through which He reveals Himself to the waiting soul. It was not easy for Mr. Taylor, in his changeful life, to make time for prayer and Bible study, but he knew that it was vital.
Often with only one large room, they would screen a corner for their father and another for themselves, with curtains of some sort; and then, after sleep at last had brought a measure of quiet, they would hear a match struck and see the flicker of candlelight which told that Mr. Taylor, however weary, was poring over the little Bible in two volumes always at hand. From two to four a.m. was the time he usually gave to prayer; the time when he could be most sure of being undisturbed to wait upon God…. The hardest part of a missionary career, Mr. Taylor found, is to maintain regular, prayerful Bible study. “Satan will always find you something to do,” he would say, “when you ought to be occupied” in prayer and scripture.
Today 1,600 missionaries work for OMF International, the successor of China Inland Mission. Millions of Chinese believers have been led to Christ through the ministry of this Mission. This is the fruit of a man who lived in union with Christ.[2]
[1] Image: "HudsonTaylorin1893", The Story of The China Inland Mission (1893), retrieved from https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:HudsonTaylorin1893.jpg, public domain.
[2] Material adapted from Dr. and Mrs. Howard Taylor, Hudson Taylor’s Spiritual Secret
Love divine, all loves excelling, joy of heaven to earth come down;
Fix in us Thy humble dwelling; all Thy faithful mercies crown!
Jesus, Thou art all compassion, pure, unbounded love Thou art;
Visit us with Thy salvation; enter every trembling heart.
Finish, then, Thy new creation; pure and spotless let us be.
Let us see Thy great salvation perfectly restored in Thee;
Changed from glory into glory, till in heaven we take our place,
Till we cast our crowns before Thee, lost in wonder, love, and praise.
(1) The apostles called every Christian to be holy.
(2) To be holy is to be like Christ.
(3) The Epistles show what holiness will look like in daily life.
(4) We are empowered to live holy lives through the Spirit of Christ living in us.
(5) We live a holy life “in Christ.” Our old life was lived “in Adam.” Our new life is lived “in Christ.”
(6) A holy life is based on an ongoing relationship with the Vine.
(1) Prepare a sermon on “A Christlike Life.” Contrast two ways to live: our old life in Adam and our new life in Christ. Show how being “in Christ” empowers us for victory over sin.
(2) Begin the next class session by quoting Philippians 2:1-5.
(3) Remember to work on the final project that will be due at the end of this course.
You will preach three sermons or teach three Bible studies on the doctrine and practice of holiness. You should record these sermons to submit to the class leader for your final project. You will prepare one sermon or Bible study on each of the following topics:
(1) A sermon or Bible study on one theological aspect of holiness. Choose one:
(2) A sermon or Bible study on a practical aspect of holiness. You may choose a topic discussed in this course, or you may select your own topic. Possible topics include:
(3) A sermon or Bible study on a biblical character who demonstrates holiness.
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