A few weeks ago, while in prayer, I got an impression to write on living holy. What does it mean to you that you live holy? If you’re yet to know & accept Jesus, this article is a step too far. I encourage you to begin here: His redeeming love and come back to this.
Holy: Set apart to the service of God (Merriam-Webster Dictionary)
Sanctify the Church with the word
Some time ago, I stumbled across Ephesians 5:25-27, and I saw it in a new light when I saw this portion:
25. Husbands, love your wives [seek the highest good for her and surround her with a caring, unselfish love], just as Christ also loved the church and gave Himself up for her, 26. so that He might sanctify the church, having cleansed her by the washing of water with the word [of God], 27. so that [in turn] He might present the church to Himself in glorious splendor, without spot or wrinkle or any such thing; but that she would be holy [set apart for God] and blameless. CEV [Emphasis mine]
In the Old testaments, specifically Leviticus 19:2, you see God tell Moses to say to the Israelites:
“Speak to all the congregation of the children of Israel, and say to them: ‘You shall be holy, for I the Lord your God am holy. NKJV [Emphasis mine]
Here, you see that Christ is the one who sanctifies – makes you holy – , cleansing us through His word. This means that everything we’ll ever need to be holy is found in the Bible.
God’s holy temple
In 2 Corinthians 6:14-18, Apostle Paul instructs the Church in Corinth on not being unequally yoked with unbelievers. Furthermore, he emphasizes that “you are the temple of the living God”.
14 Stay away from people who are not followers of the Lord! Can someone who is good get along with someone who is evil? Are light and darkness the same?
Why was it important to mention? Did the Church in Corinthian not already know this? Do you not know that you’re God’s holy temple?
16 Do idols belong in the temple of God? We are the temple of the living God, as God himself says,
“I will live with these people and walk among them. I will be their God, and they will be my people.”
17 The Lord also says, “Leave them and stay away! Don’t touch anything that isn’t clean. Then I will welcome you 18 and be your Father. You will be my sons and my daughters, as surely as I am God, the All-Powerful.” CEV
If you recall, whatever is holy is set apart; not part of the crowd, distinct, unique, etc. If you know then that you’re set apart, why do you want to be a part of the world?
When you read the book of Joshua, Joshua 6:18 in specific, you find that Israel was commanded to abstain from the accursed things. Taking part in those things would certainly make them cursed and rob them of their holiness. If you read further, you’ll find that some partook in these, and caused Israel to be defeated at Ai.
Letting the Holy Spirit lead
In writing this article, I remembered that the Holy Spirit is actually called Holy Spirit. When Jesus left the earth, He left us with the Holy Spirit to show us how to live a life set apart unto God.
John 16:13 CEV says The Spirit shows what is true and will come and guide you into the full truth. The Spirit doesn’t speak on his own. He will tell you only what he has heard from me, and he will let you know what is going to happen.
While the Holy Spirit wants to show you how to live holy, you have an active role to play: You need to yield to the Spirit. I wrote this article sometime ago, and I believe it sheds more light: How yielding are you willing to be?.
Think of it this way: The Holy Spirit shows you the nature of God & sanctifies you, so you become Christ-like which in turn is Godliness.
Conclusion
Maybe you haven’t been living a holy life, this article isn’t meant to condemn you. Rather, it’s a reminder that you have all you need to live a holy life in this world. If you notice, I didn’t give you a list of things to do or not do, that’s not my aim. My goal is to show you the scripture and expound on it showing you that:
16 God has transmitted his very substance into every Scripture, for it is God-breathed. It will empower you by its instruction and correction, giving you the strength to take the right direction and lead you deeper into the path of godliness. 17 Then you will be God’s servant, fully mature and perfectly prepared to fulfill any assignment God gives you. 2 Timothy 3:16 TPT
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Thank you for reading – Funmi
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2 Responses
Hii Funmi! I really enjoyed reading this, especially the connection between living holy and the Holy Spirit. Sometimes I feel like it’s so hard (actually impossible😂), but truly we have already been given everything we need to live holy. We have His Spirit to teach us how, while constantly sitting in His free gift of righteousness, it literally doesn’t get better than that
Hi Seyi, Thank you for leaving a comment, I appreciate it :). I thought I was the only one who didn’t realise the connection, lol. I’m glad you see that we have everything to live holy.