Imagine that you are 75 years old living in a nation of idol worshippers when you suddenly hear God speak! How would you respond?
God said to Abraham, “Go from your country and your kindred and your father's house to the land that I will show you” (Genesis 12:1). “Leave everything and follow me!” God did not tell Abraham where he would lead. He simply said, “Follow me.”
Abraham believed God and followed God from Ur to Haran, and from Haran to Canaan. Abraham traveled more than 1,000 miles in obedience to God’s command.[1]
Abraham trusted promises that seemed impossible. He believed that God would give him a son, even though Sarah was past the age to bear children. He believed that God would give him the land of promise, even though he owned no land in Canaan. He believed that God would make him a great nation, even though he had no children.
Abraham, a man from a pagan society, was called a friend of God (James 2:23). He walked with God.
► Ask three members of your class to give a testimony of their walk with God to this point. How did this walk begin? What lessons have you learned during your walk?
[1]A Prayer for Holiness:
"Lord, I give up my own plans and purposes, all my own desires and hopes and accept Your will for my life. I give myself, my life, my all, utterly to You to be Yours forever. Fill me and seal me with Thy Holy Spirit, use me as You will, send me where You will, work out Your whole will in my life at any cost now and forever.”
- Betty Stam (A martyr in China)
Holiness in the Pentateuch: Walking with God
Holy people walk with God; they spend time with God. As they walk with God, they grow more like him. To be holy means to walk with God, to build a deep relationship with God.
God walked with Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden. After sin broke that ideal relationship, Adam and Eve hid from God. Sin separated man from God.
Sin breaks relationship with God; sin breaks relationships between people; Adam blamed Eve. Adam and Eve shared in the sin, but sin damaged their relationship with each other. God’s goal is for his children to walk in peace with himself and with each other. Satan’s goal is to destroy our relationship with God and with each other.
Sin damaged the relationship between God and man, but God provided a way to restore this relationship. The sacrifices provided a way to maintain relationship with a holy God. We cannot become holy through human effort; we become holy through relationship with a holy God.
Throughout the Old Testament, we find examples of holy people who walked with God. They no longer walked with God in a beautiful garden. Because of sin, men now walked with God in a dark world of sin. But even in a sinful world, it is possible to walk with God. This is holiness.
Walking with God Requires Self-Discipline
A close walk with God requires the self-discipline to say “no” to sinful desires (Titus 2:12). Joseph was an overseer for an important household in a foreign country. It was at that time that Joseph encountered sexual temptation. Joseph’s relationship with God governed his response to temptation. Other people may have said, “This pleasure looks good; I will enjoy it.” But Joseph said, “…How can I do this great wickedness and sin against God?” (Genesis 39:9). Joseph was unwilling to damage his relationship with God for the sake of physical desires.
We do not earn holiness by self-discipline. It is God’s grace alone that makes us holy. We are saved by grace; we are made holy by grace. However, grace does not mean that self-discipline is unnecessary.
Dallas Willard wrote, “Grace is not opposed to effort; grace is opposed to earning”.[1] Walking involves effort, but even the effort comes as the result of God’s grace. Our effort does not earn God’s grace; our effort is a joyful response to his grace. As God’s children, we do not earn God’s favor through our efforts, but we recognize the need for self-discipline (1 Corinthians 9:25-27).
Walking with God Requires Obedience
God called Abraham to a place he had never seen. “So Abram went, as the LORD had told him…” (Genesis 12:4). Abraham walked with God in a life of obedience. A holy heart is an obedient heart:
"By faith Abraham obeyed when he was called to go out to a place that he was to receive as an inheritance. And he went out, not knowing where he was going" (Hebrews 11:8).
God did not give Abraham a map to Canaan. He did not give Abraham details of the journey. He simply called Abraham to follow – and Abraham obeyed. Walking with God requires obedience. A life of holiness requires obedience (1 Peter 1:2; Romans 6:16, 22).[2]
Walking with God Involves Growing Faith
When Abraham left his home, there was no evidence for God’s promises. Abraham walked with God in a life of faith. As we walk with God, we learn to trust him fully. Our faith deepens as we spend time with him. This was important for Abraham because he faced an even greater test than leaving his homeland.
In Canaan, God called Abraham to sacrifice his son, Isaac. God had promised Abraham that he would be the father of a great nation. After many years, Abraham and Sarah had a son. Now, God asked Abraham to give his son Isaac as a sacrifice. The writer of Hebrews says, “By faith Abraham, when he was tested, offered up Isaac” (Hebrews 11:17).
Because Abraham walked with God, he trusted God. Abraham had walked with God, so he could trust God even when he could not fully understand God’s commands. Abraham walked with God in a relationship of growing faith.
Walking with God requires that we trust him. When we walk with God, we trust him even in difficult places. We allow God to do what he sees is best in our life.
This principle is seen throughout scripture. In unimaginable trials, Job learned that he could trust God. In exile, Jeremiah brought God’s promise to bring good from tragedy (Jeremiah 29:10-14). Suffering from a painful thorn in the flesh, Paul learned that God’s grace was sufficient for him, because God’s power is made perfect in weakness (2 Corinthians 12:9).
The story of Abraham and stories of God’s people through history teach us that walking with God involves complete obedience to his commands and complete trust in his promises. As we walk with him, our trust in him grows deeper.
Walking with God is an Exclusive Relationship
The image of walking is common in scripture. Sadly, Israel often walked with sin instead of walking with God. Many of Israel’s kings walked in sin. They built a relationship with sin. Abijah walked in all the sins that his father did before him (1 Kings 15:3). Other kings walked in the ways of their fathers rather than with God. They built a relationship with sin; they did not walk with God.
Walking with God is an exclusive relationship.[3] God is a jealous God (Exodus 34:14; Deuteronomy 4:24; Joshua 24:19). You cannot walk at the same time with God and with sin. The Psalmist asked about the requirements for living in God’s presence (Psalm 15:1). What are the requirements for living in God’s presence?
"He who walks blamelessly and does what is right and speaks truth in his heart; who does not slander with his tongue and does no evil to his neighbor, nor takes up a reproach against his friend" (Psalm 15:2-3).
Malachi said, “You have wearied the Lord with your words.” Israel asked, “How have we wearied Him?” Malachi responded, “By saying, ‘Everyone who does evil is good in the sight of the Lord, and He delights in them’” (Malachi 2:17). Israel wanted to be a friend of God while continuing in willful sin. Instead, Malachi warned that a day of judgment was coming like a hot fire. In that day, those who do evil will be like dry grass (Malachi 4:1). A holy God cannot overlook sin.
God condemned Israel for committing the sins of the other nations instead of living in obedience to God’s law. “For you have not walked in my statutes, nor obeyed my rules, but have acted according to the rules of the nations that are around you” (Ezekiel 11:12). Israel could not walk with God while they were walking with sin. Israel could not walk in God’s way and in sin’s way at the same time. Even though they were God’s chosen people, God punished them for their sin. They could not walk with God while walking with sin.
[1] Dallas Willard, Hearing God (Westmont: InterVarsity Press, 2012), 254
[2]“The rule for understanding in spiritual matters is not intellect, but obedience.”
- Oswald Chambers
[3]“If I walk with the world, I can’t walk with God.”
- Dwight L. Moody
Holiness in Practice: Walking with God Is an Ongoing Relationship
As we walk with God, we grow in our relationship with him. In Deuteronomy 6, Moses gave a picture of what it means to walk with God. He said that the people of Israel should teach God’s law to their children. When? At all times:
"You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, and when you walk by the way, and when you lie down, and when you rise" (Deuteronomy 6:7).
A person who walks with God maintains a consistent relationship with him. There is no distinction between “normal life” and “church life.” Holy people are not “Sunday Christians” who serve God only at church. Holy people desire a consistent, growing relationship with God.
When Israel failed to nurture a daily, growing relationship with God, they were soon drawn to other gods. When Solomon grew careless about his relationship with God, he was soon drawn to the false gods of his wives.
Even the early church faced this danger. The church at Ephesus was started by Paul in a dramatic revival. The apostle John served as their pastor for a while. Mary, the mother of Jesus, lived in Ephesus. They had a wonderful firsthand knowledge of the reality of the gospel. But within one generation, John would bring this warning:
"I have this against you, that you have abandoned the love you had at first. Remember therefore from where you have fallen; repent, and do the works you did at first" (Revelation 2:4-5).
What happened? Because they failed to maintain the passion of their early love and because they failed to continue growing in their relationship with God, their love grew cold.
We see this in human relationships. Can you imagine a man who marries a beautiful wife, hangs a marriage certificate on the wall, but never spends time with her? Is their marriage healthy? No! It takes more than a marriage certificate to build a healthy marriage. A healthy marriage grows through the years as two people continue to grow in their love for each other.
In the same way, we are called to continue growing in our love for God. Walking with God means continuing to spend time with him. Walking with God means continuing to grow in our relationship with him. This is what it means to be holy.
Walking is a continuing action. It implies a continuing, ongoing relationship. A holy person continues to grow in his relationship with God. A moment of surrender to God is not the end of the process. A holy life involves an ongoing walk with God. Our walk with God begins at the new birth and continues until we see God face to face. The life of holiness is an ongoing relationship.
Jesus taught his disciples that spiritual life depends entirely on maintaining relationship with himself.
"Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit by itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in me. 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 15:4-5).
Some Christians think of their relationship with God as a “Sinner’s Prayer” followed by a life that is little changed. The biblical picture of a relationship with God is much different. The Christian life is connected to the Vine (John 15:1-17). Our spiritual life is maintained through daily relationship with the Vine. A branch that is disconnected from the vine soon dies; a Christian who is disconnected from the Vine soon dies.
Walking with God requires that we spend time with him. You cannot walk with someone without spending time with them! Holy people spend time with God. They sometimes sacrifice business opportunities and entertainment so that they can spend time with God. They understand that nothing is more important than their relationship with God. Like Mary sitting at Jesus’ feet, holy people know that the one thing necessary is time with God (Luke 10:41-42).
Holy people make time with God a priority. They know that prayer and scripture are more important than other activities – even ministry activities. They remember that Jesus often got up early to pray to his Father, so they make a habit of spending time in prayer.
Holy people understand that walking with God means following his direction. They are sensitive to his leadership. They do not ask only, “Is this activity sinful?” They ask, “Will this draw me closer to God?” They want to please God in every decision. Because holy people have holy hearts, they are careful to keep their hands from sin. They understand that relationship with God requires that we be separated from anything that displeases him.
► What are some practical ways to develop a deeper relationship with the Vine?
► What are three challenges that hinder our relationship with God?
She Found the Secret - Frances Ridley Havergal (1836-1879)
Frances Havergal’s[1] father was a minister in the Church of England. At the age of 14, Frances testified to faith in Christ.[2] For the rest of her life, Havergal (1836-1879) longed to walk close to God. She wrote, “Oh, that He may make me a vessel sanctified and (ready) for the Master’s use! There are times when I feel such love for Him that I have not words to describe it… but I want to come nearer still. It is not knowing doctrine, but being with Him, which will give this.” As she walked with God, she drew closer to Him.
In 1873, Havergal testified that she was “cleansed from all sin and made holy by the continual sanctifying power of God’s Spirit.” There was nothing to hinder her walk with God. Her prayer of surrender to God became a famous hymn, “Take my life and let it be consecrated, Lord, to Thee.”
Havergal surrendered everything to God. This is what it means to walk with God. It is to be so close to him that everything belongs to him. After a lifetime of walking with God, Havergal’s last words were, “Beautiful! Splendid to be so near the gates of heaven! Blessed rest!” Her brother wrote that her face “was so glad, as if she were already talking to Him.”
Ms. Havergal walked with God; she was a holy person. Walking with God is not just for people who lived in Bible times. You can walk with God today; you can be holy.
[2] The story of Frances Havergal is adapted from Wesley L. Duewel, Heroes of the Holy Life (Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 2002), 80-89
Take My Life and Let it Be - Frances Havergal
Take my life and let it be consecrated, Lord, to Thee.
Take my moments and my days— let them flow in endless praise.
Take my hands and let them move at the impulse of Thy love.
Take my feet and let them be swift and beautiful for Thee.
Take my voice and let me sing, always, only for my King.
Take my lips and let them be filled with messages from Thee.
Take my silver and my gold— not a mite would I withhold.
Take my intellect and use every power as Thou shalt choose.
Take my will and make it Thine— it shall be no longer mine.
Take my heart, it is Thine own— it shall be Thy royal throne.
Take my love, my Lord, I pour at Thy feet its treasure store.
Take myself and I will be ever, only, all for Thee.
Lesson 2 in Review
(1) To be holy means to maintain relationship with God. Holiness is walking with God.
(2) Walking with God requires the self-discipline to say “no” to wrong desires.
(3) Self-discipline does not deny the power of grace. We are saved by grace; we are made holy by grace.
(4) Walking with God requires complete obedience to God’s commands. We cannot walk with God and walk with sin at the same time.
(5) Walking with God requires complete trust in God’s promises.
(6) Walking with God means building a consistent, daily relationship with God.
(7) A holy life requires a daily relationship with the Vine. Our spiritual life depends entirely on our relationship with God.
Assignments
(1) Imagine that a new Christian said to you, “I want to have a deeper relationship with God. I love God, but it is hard to know how to grow in my relationship with him. I can’t see God, so he seems far away. What can I do?” Write a one-page (450 word) letter in which you help this believer understand how to grow in his relationship with God. At your next class meeting, each student should read their answer and have time to discuss the answers.
(2) Begin the next class session by quoting 1 John 1:6-7.
(3) Remember to work on the final project that will be due at the end of this course.
Final Project
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:
Holiness as Relationship
Holiness as the Image of God in His People
Holiness as a Separated Life
Holiness as an Undivided Heart
Holiness as a Righteous Life
Holiness as Perfect Love
Holiness as the Fullness of the Spirit
Holiness as Christlikeness
(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:
Spending Time with God
Holiness and Personality
What Does It Mean to be Separate from the World?
Holiness and Business
Holiness and Family Life
Maintaining Victory Over Willful Sin
Holiness and the Life of the Church
(3) A sermon or Bible study on a biblical character who demonstrates holiness.
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