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An old tale is told about a group of blind men who touch an elephant to learn what it is like. One man touches the leg and concludes, “Elephants are like trees.” “Oh no,” says the man touching the ear. “Elephants are like fans.” “You’re both wrong,” says the man touching the tail. “Elephants are like snakes.”

What is true of elephants might also be true of holiness. God is holy, but what is holiness? It’s like we have a bit of idea and from this bit we have formed a composite picture. “It’s like this,” says the theologian. “No, it’s like that,” says the Bible school student. We’re like blind men feeling our way around something that is far bigger than we can imagine.

I am aware of seven definitions of holiness – you may know of others – none of which is particularly good. To be fair, each definition has an element of truth in it and can be backed up from scripture. But as we will see, none of these definitions can be used to describe a God who is holy.

Why does this matter? It matters a great deal. We are called to “be holy as the Lord is holy.” But how can we be holy if we don’t even know what holiness means? In this short series, we are going to discover that holiness is far better than we’ve been led to believe. Just as elephants are more interesting that tree trunks and fans, true holiness will fry your mind.

But first, let’s dispel a few myths. Here are seven misleading and useless definitions of holiness:

1: Holiness is sin avoidance

Yes I know all about those scriptures exhorting us to “wash and make yourselves clean” (Isa 1:16). And I know that Jesus plans to present us to Himself “holy and unblemished” (Eph 5:27). So what’s the problem? The problem is we’re defining a thing (holiness) in terms of something that is not the thing (sin). It’s like defining light as the absence of darkness. It’s technically true but it’s not a good description. It doesn’t actually tell us what holiness is. Neither does it describe a God who was holy long before there was any sin to avoid.

2: Holiness is being set apart from something

Didn’t Paul say something about coming out and being separate from the world? He did (see 2 Cor 6:17-18). Wasn’t Jesus separate from sinners and undefiled? He was (see Heb 7:26). So what’s the problem with this definition? Like much holiness preaching, this definition is apt to make us allergic to sinners. Jesus was untouched by sin but He was also the friend of sinners. He spent far more time in the company of sinners than most holiness preachers. Jesus didn’t pray that we would be taken out of the world but that we would be sanctified in it (Joh 17:15-18). True holiness runs from nothing.

3: Holiness is being set apart to God

This definition probably comes closest to the literal meaning of the Hebrew (qâdôsh) and Greek (hagios) words for holy. It is certainly useful as an adjective it for describing holy things like temples (Ps 11:4) and mountains (Ex 19:23). But how does this definition describe a holy God? Is God dedicated to Himself? Is God set apart for Himself? How would He do that? That just sounds weird.

4: Holiness is moral perfection

This one is straight out of the old covenant (Lev 18:26-30) which means it’s popular on the majority of those websites preaching holiness. It was certainly popular with Charles Finney. He said, “Holiness is moral perfection, and nothing short of moral perfection, or moral rectitude, is holiness.” Since there are degrees of perfection, one might conclude that there are degrees of holiness. Some are holier than others. This is why those who preach “practical holiness” like to provide 7 keys or 12 steps you can take to become holy. (Good luck with that!)

What’s the problem with this definition? You can’t work your way to holiness! Didn’t fourteen centuries of law-keeping covenant teach us anything? You might as well try and climb to the moon. It’s just not possible.

5: Holiness is righteousness

You would be surprised at how often holiness is defined as righteousness. Certainty Jesus is known as the Holy and Righteous One (Acts 3:14), but do these two words mean the same thing? I think not. It’s like saying “Paul is witty and smart.” Sure, there is considerable overlap but there’s also a difference. God is holy AND God is righteous. They are not identical. So what is holiness?

6: Holiness is godliness

Again, this is not a bad definition and it is Biblical: “You ought to live holy and godly lives” (2 Pet 3:11). But it is not a particularly useful definition. It’s like saying God is godly which is redundant. We might as well talk about flowery flowers or bananary bananas. Write like that on your English test and you’ll get an F. Come on now – we can do better.

7: Holiness means worthy of devotion

I got this definition out of the dictionary. Yes, this one does apply to a holy God (finally!) – He is worthy of our worship. (See Ps 99:9 if you need a scripture to prove it.) But the angels are holy too (Mk 8:38). Should we worship them as well? And what about us? We are a holy priesthood and a holy nation. If holiness means worthy of devotion then we must worthy of devotion and frankly we’re not – at least not the sort of devotion that is due to a holy God. So either there are two kinds of holiness – one for God and one for us – or this is not a great definition.

Holiness is like elephants

What is true of elephants may be true of holiness. Each definition above is partly true but wholly wrong. Each comes close-ish to the target without actually hitting it. So what is holiness? In my next post we’re going to take the blinkers off and find out. Stay tuned!

https://escapetoreality.org/2012/05/21/7-useless-definitions-of-holiness/

Heeee

GodsMopol:
Benny, I think gracelillian will be blessed by what you have to say.

Thanks

Jiggaz, thanks for your contribution on fellowship

You welcome my bro.

Life under the old covenant was so much simpler than the free and confusing world of grace. Back then if you wanted to stay on the straight and narrow, you just had to keep all the rules. But in the kingdom of grace, there are no rules (1 Cor 6:12). A good marriage doesn’t need them. For those unacquainted with the security of His love, the absence of rules can be terrifying. “Help! Somebody tell me what to do! I need rules!”

Enter the holiness preachers.

Much of what passes for holiness preaching today is old covenant theology dressed up in new covenant ribbons. See if you can spot the difference:

Then: God promised we would be His holy people if we kept the rules. The law is a how-to manual for holiness.

Now: Am I saved by the law? Oh, heavens no. That’s so old covenant. I don’t keep the law to earn salvation. No, the law shows me how to live pleasing to the Lord. The law is a how-to manual for holiness.

Do you see the difference? Strip away the mumbo-jumbo and there is no difference! Just read some of the comments I get whenever I talk about something like the commands of Jesus and you will find 101 different ways of saying the same thing: The Rules are a manual for holy living. The only difference between then and now is that some of the rules have changed. The Israelites lived by the ceremonial rules of Moses; today, many Christians make up their own rules. “I just keep the red letters of Jesus.” “I try to do everything in the Bible.” “I just do whatever my pastor says.”

D.I.Y. holiness

Practical holiness is a term to beware as it often comes hiding a fishhook. Much of it is pure mixture, as the following soundbites illustrate:

1) “Following Christ is a lifestyle.” (True.) “We’ve got to keep His commands to be His disciples.” (Nope – that’s backwards. That’s putting the fruit before the tree.)

2) “Find out what pleases the Lord.” (Okay!) “Keeping His instructions pleases Him.” (No it does not – that’s faithless, law-based living that nullifies grace and inflames sin – read Romans 7. Jesus pleases the Lord. Trust Him.)

3) “If you sow to the flesh you will reap destruction.” (Yep). “So we have to be earnest in getting people to change their behavior.” (But that’s sowing to the flesh! You’re setting them up for failure.)

Holiness preaching that emphasizes what you must do is carnal Christianity. Make no mistake, it comes straight out of the old covenant. Heed this sort of teaching and you will exalt the flesh at the expense of grace. And it won’t make you holy.

There are at least four ways to determine whether the holiness message you’re listening to reflects the condemning covenant of the law or the new and liberating covenant of grace:

1) Old covenant holiness is based on who you are (a bit of a reprobate) and is sold as a list of things you must do; new covenant holiness is based on who Christ is (our holiness – 1 Cor 1:30) and what He has done (sanctified you – Heb 2:11, Rom 11:16).

2) Old covenant holiness emphasizes sacrifices you are expected to make; new covenant holiness emphasizes the perfectly perfect sacrifice of the Lamb, by which you were “perfected forever” (Heb 10:14).

3) Old covenant holiness is sold as a process of increasing sanctification – something “we grow into” as we become more like Christ; new covenant holiness is presented as a done deal (Heb 10:10).

4) Old covenant holiness comes with a big stick – “the Lord will condemn you if you don’t deliver”; new covenant holiness has exhortations but no sticks because there is no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus (Rom 8:1).

Beware frowners preaching holiness

Because of these differences in message, we can also recognize differences in the messenger. An old covenant holiness preacher will come across as serious and threatening. He will remind you of Moses warning the Israelites at the foot of Mt Sinai. But a new covenant preacher of holiness will come across as life-giving and inspirational. He will remind you of Jesus speaking the words of eternal life (Joh 6:68). An old covenant preacher of holiness will speak the faithless language of longing and lack. But a new covenant preacher of holiness will bracket any exhortations with affirmations like these:

1) “Finally, brothers, we instructed you how to live in order to please God, as in fact you are living.” (1 Th 4:1).

2) “Now about brotherly love we do not need to write to you, for you yourselves have been taught by God to love each other. And in fact, you do love all the brothers throughout Macedonia. (1 Th 4:9-10)

How to preach holiness

One day I hope to do a series of posts on how to preach holiness the same way the apostles did it. For those who can’t wait, here’s the short version: To be holy is to partake of His wholeness; it is to stop acting broken (because in Him we are not broken) and to allow Him to express His whole and beautiful life through us.

The challenge is that being holy is a new experience for us. As sinners, holiness was totally alien to us. That old lifestyle was characterized by brokenness and hurt. Now that we are in Him we have to learn to walk in our new and God-given identity.

The wrong way to approach this is to think of yourself as a flawed sinner trying to become holy. That’s not who you are and that’s not how it works. Instead, see yourself as a toddler learning to walk. Just as you wouldn’t spank an infant if they stumbled and fell, neither will your heavenly Father spank you. He doesn’t condemn you when you fall; He encourages you to get up and walk! He has given you everything you need for life and godliness. In Christ you lack nothing. You just need to work out who you already are and what He has already given you. This is the adventure of holy living.

https://escapetoreality.org/2012/07/27/practical-holiness/

Booom

Hoi

Tomorrow now he will come and start disturbing us on Nairaland that he is married to The Queen of The Coast. This is how people bring problems to their lives. Bathing in the river... Smh

Janeyinspires:
Chai.This is just how law preachers has made christianity burdensome for Christ followers.Always quick to quote Rev3:16,then start telling you how you've not been working hard enough,how you are not commited,this n that;then they will now slam you with,"You are lukewarm for God.He will spew you out of His mouth.Work hard,if you still want to remain in God's presence."
Phew!!With this,they drag someone out of grace and into self-effort to please God. God is only pleased with us on the account of what Jesus accomplished on the cross.We don't gain acceptance from God by doing buh accepting what Jesus has already done for us.

Gbam!! Exactly!!

The Laodiceans were warned by Jesus that they were on the verge of being rejected. Why? Because they were neither hot nor cold. But as we have seen, this is not about being apathetic (see Part 1 of this series). In fact, the Laodiceans were probably as zealous as Pharisees (see Part 2). They were so caught up in their religious performance that they hadn’t noticed that Jesus was not with them. The astonishing thing is that most of the church was probably unsaved (see Part 3). They may have been a church in name but their deeds said otherwise.

The Laodiceans thought they were hot stuff. They thought they lacked nothing. But Jesus said they were “wretched, pitiful, poor, blind and naked.” He counseled them to buy refined gold so they could “become rich” (see Part 4).

Are you on fire for God? Why?

The tone of my series may have been somewhat negative, but I am heading to some very positive conclusions. I didn’t write this to make the Laodiceans look bad, but to make Jesus look good!

First of all, the good news for Christians is that we are not in a Mr or Miss Enthusiasm contest. God is not watching you on Sunday morning to see if you’re singing or clapping louder than the person next to you. Jesus is not going to vomit you out if you don’t get up and dance. Carnal zeal gets you nowhere with God.

Genuine enthusiasm comes not from what you have done for God, but from appreciating what God has done on your behalf. And what has he done? He has made you, a born sinner, righteous and acceptable through the blood of Jesus.

“Once you were not a people, but now you are the people of God; once you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy.” (1 Pet 2:10)

Contrary to what some have preached, there is no middle, lukewarm ground. You are either “the people” of God or you’re not. You have either “received mercy” or you haven’t.

And if you are a chosen priesthood, and if you have been called out of darkness into his wonderful light, then you won’t help but sing his praises! You’ve been set free! You’ve been brought near! You were blind but now, thanks to God’s amazing grace, you see!

Now that’s good news. That is something to get excited about! When you think about what Jesus has already done, you will want to shout and leap and say “thank you Lord!” Just like Bob Dylan.

“But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people belonging to God, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light.” (1 Pet 2:9)

So just in case you missed it, we sing his praises because we are a people belonging to God. We don’t sing his praises to become a people belonging to God.

Back to Laodicea…

I said in an earlier post that nothing will keep a sinner out of the kingdom of God like religion. If the law is good in revealing our need for a Savior, then religion is bad because it gives us a false sense of assurance. (By religion I mean all the good things people do to try and justify themselves before God and men.)

The Laodiceans were very religious. If you took your unsaved friends to their church they’d probably end up worse than when they went in. They’d get busy doing stuff for God thinking that somehow they were making themselves righteous when in fact they were becoming lukewarm and vomitous.

Now it’s very easy for us to dislike religious people. Afterall, they’re fault finders and grace-killers. And don’t forget that it was religious people who put Jesus on the cross!

But what blows me away is that Jesus loves the religious Laodiceans. How do we know? Because he has come looking for them. He has come to warn them and set them free from religion’s heavy yoke.

Jesus Loves the Laodiceans, All the Laodiceans of the World…

I have literally got up and walked out of religious churches, yet here’s Jesus trying to get into one. He’s outside knocking on the door.

Have you ever known anyone who was so smug, so arrogant that they made you sick? Did you feel like spending time with them? Probably not. Yet here’s Jesus, nauseous from the Laodicean’s religiosity, asking if he can come in for dinner. How’s that for an apostolic heart!

These guys no doubt reminded him of the Pharisees. Yet Jesus went to the cross even for Pharisees. I guess that means if we have Jesus’ heart for the lost, we’ll want to reach out even to stuck-up religious types. (If that’s you, hey welcome! Jesus loves you. Hope you like the blog.)

Jesus Speaks our Language

Of the seven churches mentioned in Revelations 1-3, people in five of them were told to repent. But the Laodiceans got the repentance message slightly different from the rest. See if you can spot the difference:

Ephesus: “Repent and do the things you did at first” (Rev 2:5)
Pergamum: “Repent therefore!” (Rev 2:16)
Thyatira: “…unless they repent” (Rev 2:22)
Sardis: “Remember what you have received and heard; obey it and repent” (Rev 3:3)
Laodicea: “Be earnest and repent” (Rev 3:19)

Repentance should always be earnest and sincere, so why would Jesus specifically mention the word “earnest” in connection with the Laodiceans. (Remember, Jesus never wastes words.) In case you haven’t yet seen the irony, let me give it to you in other translations:

“…be zealous therefore, and repent.” (ASV)
“…be zealous therefore, and repent.” (Darby)
“…be zealous therefore, and repent.” (KJV)
“So be enthusiastic and in earnest and burning with zeal and repent” (AMP)

Do you get it? The Laodiceans were zealous with a carnal zeal. Their religious zeal had got them thinking they were rich and in need of nothing. Then Jesus shows up and says “You want to be zealous? How about zealously repenting!”

Jesus always meets us where we are at. The Ephesians needed to remember what they had done before and do it again. The Sardisians needed to remember what they had heard and hold onto it. The Laodiceans needed to redirect their natural enthusiasm towards the Lord and his righteousness.

If you have been zealous for the Lord with prideful religious zeal, then hear what Jesus says to the Laodiceans: “Be zealous and repent.” Change your mind about religion. Repent from your dead works. Stop trusting in your unfinished performance and start trusting in his finished work. You want to be enthusiastic for God? Great! Be enthusiastic because of who he is and what he is done.

There is nothing a religious person can do that will commend himself to God. But Jesus offers us a divine exchange, his life for ours, his perfect righteousness for our stinking self righteousness. Now that is something to get excited about.


https://escapetoreality.org/2010/05/31/lukewarm-in-laodicea-part-5-be-earnest-and-repent-rev-319/

Youuuu

Xxxxx

Janeyinspires:
God wants His sons back.He isn't looking for servants(angels are there to do His bidding.) God has called us into fellowship and sonship,not duty-ship and servant-ship.
.
.
.
Ehe! Father,your baby dey hail you o.Simple! I can't be a servant in my father's house.My father's business is my business;no obligation there.

Gbam!! Correct!!

pweetiedee:
Well said.

thank you

Beewee

Yaaaaaaaa

Cooooolioooo

Boookkk

Yyghhh

Baaaa

Sssss

Xxxxx

The letter to the Laodiceans is just 222 words long. In 47 of those words Jesus describes the Laodiceans and lukewarm and self-sufficient. The thing that made them self-sufficient was that they were lukewarm – they were mixing law and grace and ending up with self-righteousness. (See Part 1, Part 2 and Part 3 of this series for more.)

Just about everyone knows the Laodiceans were lukewarm. But few realize that this had led to them being self-sufficient. Yet Jesus clearly says so:

“You brag, ‘I’m rich, I’ve got it made, I need nothing from anyone,’…” (Rev 3:17, MSG)

The Laodiceans were a very religious church. They were doing so much for God that they thought they had it made. They thought they were rich but Jesus said they were poor. They thought they didn’t need a thing but Jesus said:

“I counsel you to buy from me gold refined in the fire, so you can become rich; and white clothes to wear, so you can cover your shameful unclothedness; and salve to put on your eyes, so you can see.” (Rev 3:18)

Can you buy your salvation?!

Wait a second. Is Jesus saying salvation is something that can be bought? And if the Laodiceans were truly poor, how could they afford to buy anything?

To buy something is to exchange something we already own for something that we value more. Jesus is counseling the Laodiceans to give up what they have in exchange for three things that he offers:

“refined gold” speaks of Christ our perfect and everlasting treasure
“white clothes” speaks of Christ’s righteousness
“salve” speaks of having a revelation of who Christ is and what he has done at the cross
The Laodiceans were busy doing church stuff. They thought they were rich but without Christ you’re poor. They thought they were good, but without his righteousness you’re naked. They thought they could see but unless you’re looking at things from Christ’s point of view you’re as good as blind. The Laodiceans thought they had it made, but Jesus said they had missed the way. Like Martha, they were so distracted with what they were doing that they hadn’t noticed that Jesus wasn’t with them. They needed a revelation that he was on the outside knocking, wanting to come in.

“Behold, I stand at the door and knock; if anyone hears and listens to and heeds my voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and will eat with him, and he with Me.” (Rev 3:20)

Religion keeps God outside

To “behold” Jesus is to see him. Jesus is saying, “see me, hear me, open the door to me and I will come in.” What is God’s will for the lost? He wants to come in and have a meal. He wants to have fellowship. Religion says that God is distant and unapproachable, but Grace personified says, “I want to come in and be with you.”

The redeemed life that Jesus offers is free but it’s still up to us to “buy” into it. You might say we “buy” salvation by exchanging our sins for his forgiveness, but the real exchange is Jesus for us. Derek Prince calls this the “divine exchange.” Jesus went to the cross, took our sin and in return he gave us his righteousness. He took our hurts and gave us his healing. He took our rejection and gave us our acceptance. He took our death and gave us his life. I would say that was a good exchange, wouldn’t you?

Christianity is a Divine Exchange, our life for his. No doubt you’ve heard people say that following Jesus costs you everything. And it does. You cannot call him Lord without renouncing the right to your own life.

But see the bigger picture here folks! See what you get in exchange! If salvation means nothing more to you than self-denial and personal sacrifice, you’ve missed the whole point. Without him we are poor, naked and blind. With him we’re truly and eternally rich!

Notice how Jesus encouraged the Laodiceans to “become rich.” When you have Jesus as your treasure, you have the greatest treasure in the universe. When you have Jesus you are truly, literally, and eternally wealthy.

Somehow we have bought into the idea that God is stingy and wants us poor. But the Bible declares we are forgiven in “accordance with the riches of God’s grace” (Eph 1:7), we are strengthened according to his “glorious riches” (Eph 3:16), and we have all needs supplied according to his “glorious riches” (Ph 4:19). This may come as a bit of a shock, but God is not poor. And his kids aren’t poor either. In Christ we have a rich and glorious inheritance (Eph 1:18).

Religion bankrupts but grace enriches

So here’s the deal. Religion says you slave away doing religious things, perhaps earning the praise of men, but ultimately reaping condemnation and death. Grace says:

“Come, all you who are thirsty… and you who have no money, come, buy and eat! Come, buy wine and milk without money and without cost.” (Is 55:1)

This is not a fair exchange. God favors us with this exchange. We give him our sinful, godless little selves and get everything in return.

“If God didn’t hesitate to put everything on the line for us, embracing our condition and exposing himself to the worst by sending his own Son, is there anything else he wouldn’t gladly and freely do for us?” (Rms 8:32, MSG)

If you succeed at religion you will be tempted to think, “I am rich and I don’t need a thing.” But religion only bankrupts you. The only way to “become rich” is to buy into the riches of God’s grace revealed in Christ Jesus.

At the end of the day there are only two kinds of people in the world; those whose self righteousness leads them to say, “I don’t need a thing,” and those whose spiritual poverty causes them to say, “I need Jesus.”

Which one are you?

You can go to church your entire life and completely miss it with God. You can serve like a Laodicean with all the enthusiasm of a Pharisee and think you have it made. But without Jesus you’ve got nothing.

Christianity is not about doing stuff. Christianity is about an exchanged life; ours for his. See it from his point of view and make Christ your eternal treasure.

https://escapetoreality.org/2010/05/21/lukewarm-in-laodicea-part-4-buy-your-salvation-rev-314-21/

Youuuu

Xteris

Alright

Ken4Christ:
Lies from the very pit of hell. If after you believe, you continue to live a life not worthy of your calling, you will land in hell and your punishment will be worse.

Your opinion.... I choose to believe the word of God.

Taaaa