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As human beings, we often have a problem putting the focus too much on ourselves. We love to get credit for anything positive that we do and hope that people will ignore or fail to recognize our mistakes. If we happen to reap the benefits of someone else's work, we don't make a big deal out of it. But if we work really hard and make sacrifices and notice someone else receiving our reward, we feel like an injustice has been done. This self-centered focus creates more than just a need for glory. It also gives us an improper perspective toward our own will power. When we desperately want to do good works and believe that we can will ourselves to do them, one of two things is bound to happen and both are unhealthy. Either we will swell with pride and arrogantly assume that we have the power to change ourselves after we've been successful, or we will simply give up the fight and collapse in shame after we've been unsuccessful. Regardless of the outcome, we get easily aggravated if the attention is not on us, because in our deception we believe it's all about us. I wonder if this is how God feels on the subject of holiness.

I certainly don't mean that God is deceived when He thinks it's all about Him, because it truly is! But I wonder how God feels when mere men take credit for something that belongs to Him. Katie wrote in Monday's blog that we should strive for holiness according to the definition she used. While I completely agree that we should strive to be more Christ-like, we must remember who it is that makes things holy. To understand what I am talking about, take a look at Genesis 2:3. This is the first time the word "holy" is used in the Bible, at least in my NIV translation. And it is used in reference to the seventh day, which later became known as the Sabbath. "And God blessed the seventh day and made it holy, because on it he rested from all the work of creating that he had done". So to be clear, God MADE this day holy. It did not exemplify the attribute of holiness on its own, so God chose to make it so by setting a standard of resting at least one day out of every seven. Fast forward to the part of the Bible where we are commanded to take a Sabbath - the Ten Commandments. "Remember the Sabbath day by keeping it holy" (Exodus 20:8). The Scripture then goes on to give the Israelites specific instructions on how to obey the commandment. But again, let's review. God MADE it holy, and we are charged with KEEPING it holy. Do you see the difference?

Holiness is not really our domain. We ought to really take the focus off of trying to will ourselves to be holy when we are not able to make ourselves holy in the first place. Trying to take ourselves from unholiness to holiness is impossible, and futile attempts to do so will do nothing but frustrate us even more. In the New Testament, Paul talks about the truth regarding holiness in verses that are some of my favorite in the whole Bible. "Once you were alienated from God and were enemies in your minds because of your evil behavior. But now he has reconciled you by Christ's physical body through death to present you HOLY in his sight, without blemish and free from accusation - if you continue in your faith, established and firm, not moved from the hope held out in the gospel" (Colossians 1:21-23a [caps mine]). So, very clearly, our behaviors alienated us from God until he intervened through Christ's work on the cross to MAKE US HOLY.

So, how does this change our pursuit of holiness? Well, in the words of a well-known Mad TV skit with Bob Newhart, STOP IT! I urge you to stop pursuing holiness, because the truth is that you have already been made holy if you are a believer and follower of Jesus Christ. If you are not a follower of Christ, you also might as well stop trying to be holy, because it's impossible due to your evil behavior. So, what is our part in this process then? As Paul says, our responsibility is to "continue in your faith, established and firm, not moved from the hope held out in the gospel" (v. 23a). We can't make ourselves any holier than God already sees us thanks to the work of Jesus Christ, but we can and must KEEP ourselves holy. Without Christ, this would have meant never sinning again because that's the only way we can measure up to God's standard of holiness. However, with Christ, it means standing firm in the hope and salvation that we find in the gospel no matter how many times we mess up, knowing that we have been set free and can continue to press on as disciples of Jesus.

Friends, this means you have no reason or right to beat yourself up over making mistakes. You see, the second you begin to live as if your failures change your standing with God, you are no longer "established and firm". You are beginning to undo the holiness which God has given you because you are living as if it was dependent on your actions in the first place! As you continue to strive to be more like Christ, I urge you to walk in freedom. Striving to be more like Christ isn't so that you can be holier in God's eyes, for that isn't possible once you've already chosen to put your faith in Jesus. Striving to be more like Christ is a response to what he has done for us, and recognizes that following him is the most abundant life we can have. So, next time you think about pursuing "a higher level of holiness", just STOP IT! And remember to thank God for having already made you holy in His sight!

Here's the video clip.