Holy in a Unholy World

​Gross immorality. Perverse sexual sin. Deplorable, despicable, unholy human behavior is polluting and crippling our culture, including segments of the church of Jesus Christ.
 

• Why? Because as a people have lost sight of a holy God who expects His people to live holy lives.

 
In our passage for this week, Peter exhorts and encourages Christians to live a holy life.
 
“But like the Holy One who called you is holy, be holy yourselves in all your behavior, because it is written, “You shall be holy, for I am holy.” I Peter 1:15-16
 

• Our God requires that all who represent Him be holy because Hs is holy. Christians belong to God, bear His name and His likeness. You and I are to be holy because He is holy. It is as simple as that.

 
Holy and sanctified means being set apart for something sacred and special. Missionary statesman Oswald J. Sanders, when asked what it meant to be holy replied “Holiness is being like Mr. Jesus.”  As a Theological Seminary graduate and minister of the Gospel of Jesus Christ for four decades, that is the simplest and most profound definition of holiness I have ever heard.
 

• Being holy is being like Jesus.

 
So, what does it mean in 2024 to be a holy believer in Christ? It means what it has always meant. Christians have been separated from the world system and set apart to serve God and His kingdom while we live on the earth. The apostle John tells us in I John 2:15-17 how the unbelieving world operates.
 
“Do not love the world, or the things in the world; if anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh and the lust of the eyes and the boastful pride of life, is not from the Father, but is from the world. And the world is passing away, and also its lusts; but the one who does the will of God abides forever.”
 
Lust of the flesh…. lust of the eyes…. and the boastful pride of life equals an unholy lifestyle. Unholy behavior is terribly temporal and will pass away. Holy behavior, being like Mr. Jesus, is eternal and will never pass away.
 

• News Bulletin: Christians are to be different from the unbelieving world that conducts its lifestyle based on pride and lust. If we profess Christ as our Lord and Savior, then our daily lives should reflect the character and conduct of Jesus Christ.

 
My brothers and sisters in the Lord, it really does matter what we look at, who and what we listen to, and what we take into our minds and bodies. God’s moral standards for holy conduct have been given in the Holy Bible to protect us from the dangerous evils and ultimate destruction of an unholy world.
 

• Holiness provides safe boundaries that protect and preserve our spiritual and moral lives.

 
It is high time for Bible-believing, Christ-centered, Holy Spirit empowered people to stop messing around with what God calls unholy.
 
Facts: Pornography is not holy. Fornication is unholy. Sexual affairs are not holy. Perversion is not holy. Pre-marital sex is not holy. Same sex marriage is unholy. Desecration and mutilation of the human body is unholy. Off-color, profane, perverse, blasphemous language is unholy. Secret sin is unholy. Lying to cover the truth is unholy.
 
Believe it or not, there are some who profess Christ as their Savior and Lord indulging in these unholy behaviors as you read this.  
 

• For some believers today, sad to say, the Lord Jesus Christ is no more than a BFF, best friend forever.

 
Jesus calls us His friends in John 15:14-15. He is our forever friend indeed. But first and foremost, as God’s only Son, Jesus is holy. Jesus shed His holy blood on a cruel cross so we could live a holy life in an unholy world.
 
Because of His sacrifice for your and my sin, Jesus deserves to be reverenced, adored and obeyed as the Holy One of God.
           
How To Live A Holy Life In An Unholy World
 

• Worship God as a holy God.                                 Isaiah 6:1-7, Revelation 4:8-11
• See yourself as a holy child of God.                Leviticus 11:44-45, I Peter 2:9-10
• Cleanse yourself from sinful behavior.                                         II Corinthians 7:1
• Flee from youthful lust (Flee means run!).                                II Timothy 2:21-22
• Separate yourself from unholy influences.                             II Corinthians 6:17-18
• Commit yourself to God’s standards for holy living.           I Thessalonians 4:1-8
• Choose to reject the world’s unholy standards.                               I John 2:15-17
• Be an example of a holy man or woman of God to the next generation.

 
Please ask yourself. What does my standard of holiness look like? Am I living a holy life in an unholy world? Or have I been deceived into compromising my convictions regarding what is holy?
 
If you are flirting with unholiness, please get alone with God. Sit in His holy presence. Search your heart with the light of His holy word. Make whatever adjustments to your lifestyle necessary to line your life up with His holy standards.
 
GOOD NEWS! You, yes you, are holy. You can live a holy lifestyle because you belong to a holy God. The Holy Spirit empowers Christians to live a holy life.
 
 “Therefore, come out from their midst and be separate says the Lord, and do not touch that which is unclean, and I will welcome you. I will be a father to you, and you shall be sons and daughters to me, says the Lord Almighty.”                      II Corinthians 6:17-18
 
“Therefore, having these promises, beloved, let us cleanse ourselves from all defilement of flesh and spirit, perfecting holiness in the fear of God.”                        II Corinthians 7:1
 
“Therefore, if a man cleanses himself from these things, he will be a vessel for honor, sanctified, useful to the Master, prepared for every good work. Now flee from youthful lusts, and pursue righteousness, faith, love and peace, with those who call on the Lord from a pure heart.”                                                                                 II Timothy 2:21-22
 
A Word For Your Week: Holy or unholy in an unholy world? You choose.