A Thought For The Week Of November 19

"... as he who called you is holy, you also be holy in all your conduct ... (1 Peter 1:15) Holiness is a tough thing to grasp, isn't it. And the idea of being holy? In all our conduct? That's a very tall order, it seems. And yet, let's remember that no one ever said that being a disciple of Jesus would be easy! Well, the truth is that being holy in our conduct might not be as difficult as it sounds. In what way is God holy? To say that God is holy basically means that God is separate from sin; that sin has neither power nor authority over God. Let's remember that God is spirit and not flesh (except for that brief moment in time called the "incarnation," but that's not what we're talking about right now.) For us, the call to be holy as God is holy presumably doesn't mean that we'll be without sin - because the Bible is clear in telling us that no one is without sin - but it does mean that our spirits will be freed from sin's power and authority, just as sin has neither power nor authority over God. Another way of saying that we are to be holy in all our conduct might be to say that we are to live righteous lives - not self-righteous, puffed up, prideful lives, but lives characterized by our "right" relationship with God and with others. The best example of how to do that was Jesus. When we look to him and pattern our lives after him, we've taken a huge step to being holy in all our conduct, and a huge step toward setting a great example for the world. Have a great week!