A Wholly Christian

We hear the word all the time.

• "Look at the way he walks around. Totally holier than thou."
• "Holy mackerel!"* 

*Psst! Over here! Because you know you've always wanted to know..

Definition of Mackerel: a migratory surface-dwelling predatory fish, commercially important as a food fish. 

And according to elderly people who use this phrase often, a very sacred fish. 

• The Holy Bible

You get the idea. But what exactly do we mean when we say the word "holy"?

The dictionary definition is as follows.

ho·ly

adjective /ˈhōlē/ holier, comparative; holiest, superlative Dedicated or consecrated to God or a religious purpose; sacred - the Holy Bible - the holy month of Ramadan (of a person) Devoted to the service of God - saints and holy men Morally and spiritually excellent - I do not lead a holy life Used as an intensifier - having a holy good time Used in exclamations of surprise or dismay - holy smoke!

That seems about right. But did you know that the Hebrew word for holy, qadosh, actually means "to be set apart for a special purpose"?

Things suddenly just got infinitely more interesting. Admit it. It's easy for a lot of us to glaze over in boredom when we hear someone refer to something as "holy". Many of my non-Christian friends would agree that it conjures up images of a "prude", the convent, and high-waisted, pleated pants and pearl necklaces.


For many, they may hear the word "holy", but in their minds it's something more like...


NO! RESTRICTIONS! I'M BORED! MOTHER THERESA! MAKE IT STOP!


Hey, I get it. Over the years, ritualistic, organized religion has distorted the way others perceive spirituality, especially the Christian life. Most don't think of it as a personal relationship with God, and a way of life, but just one seemingly-endless set of rules.


But what if we looked at the word "holy" the way C.S. Lewis did?

"How little people know who think that holiness is dull. When one meets the real thing...it is irresistible. If even 10 percent of the world’s population had it, would not the whole world be converted and happy before the year’s end?"

Quite a different outlook, isn't it? As Christians, we are called to be wholly holy. In Leviticus 19:2, God flat out tells us "Be holy, because I, the Lord your God, am holy." But what does that mean? What does that require of me? Isn't going to church on Christmas and Easter good enough?


To examine this, let's go back to the Hebrew definition of the word: to be set apart for a special purpose.


In the above quote, C.S. Lewis says that real holiness is irresistible, which implies that there is then a "fake" counterpart. The Hebrew definition of holy that is used in the Bible mentions two key things that will determine what authentic holiness in the life of someone looks like.


1. The individual is set apart.


2. The individual has a special purpose.

The first part of the definition is perhaps the hardest to address. When you become a Christian, Jesus said: 

“Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross daily and follow me." -Luke 9:23

 This is not to be taken lightly. Literally. Those Roman crosses were heavy. The crushing weight Jesus must have felt on his shoulders and his entire body, especially after just having been flogged with a flesh-tearing whip with glass and other sharp pieces at the end of it (not even taking into account his incredible amount of blood loss, deep wounds, and dehydration), must have been incredible. And THIS is the analogy Jesus uses to describe our Christian walk?


Yes.


But as the title of this blog will tell you, we are "more than conquerers through him who loved us". And that's a promise.


Taking up our cross and following Him comes in many different forms.


-Trials of various kinds
-Persecution
-Illness
-Adversity


Et cetera et cetera. The Christian life is hard to stick to, friends. It isn't a fluffy, delusional, fairy tale existence. It demands radical discipleship. Yes, the demands are high. But "God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out so that you can endure it." (1 Corinthians 10:13)

The apostle Peter gives us a less abstract, more applicable way of looking at what it means to have the "stuff" it takes to persevere in the faith and maintain holiness that is pleasing to God:

"Now for this very reason also, applying all diligence, in your faith supply moral excellence, and in your moral excellence, knowledge; and in your knowledge, self-control, and in your self-control, perseverance, and in your perseverance, godliness; and in your godliness, brotherly kindness, and in your brotherly kindness, love." (2 Peter 1:5-7)

Sorry. I didn't say it would be easier.


The reason why I initially said that being set apart would be the hardest to address is because lets just be real here...


NO ONE wants to be convicted.


Just take a gander at that list Peter dishes out for us. Among the other necessary attributes of the believer is also the word self-control. This very word and what it means in our lives today was my very inspiration for writing this post, mostly because it is so difficult to exercise. Americans like to indulge all of their appetites, and often. We crave immediacy. We develop obsessions. All of this self-sacrifice stuff that Jesus preaches just doesn't fit into all of that. But this is what He is calling us to; no exceptions. This is where being set apart really comes in. Either you're committed to Christ and are willing to be separate from that which causes you to stumble in repeated sin, or you're in the world and living for yourself.


You know how nasty lukewarm yogurt is when it's been sitting out for a while? No one wants to eat it. The consistency is nauseating. Might as well just toss it when it gets to that point, because it will only go bad in a short period of time.


Well, that's kind of like how we are when we try to dabble a little bit in the heavenly world and a little bit in this one. We are of no use to His kingdom, because we are not really committed to Him to begin with. You can't serve two masters.


Sorry, gross analogy. But true.


Pastor Greg Laurie cut right to the truth in one of his messages when he said that the reason more people don't convert to Christianity isn't for lack of evidence, but a lack of desire to change their way of living. Holiness cannot come without God's help to override these dangerously powerful strongholds in our hearts. If we do not call on Him to help us, any hopes of achieving long-lasting self-control are useless.

"Do you not know that your bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own; you were bought at a price. Therefore honor God with your bodies." -1 Corinthians 6:19-20

The second element of holiness is being aware of your "special purpose". So now, not only is it important to be "set apart" from worldly temptations, but to be separated from them in order to do what God called us to do.


 Just before He ascended into heaven, Jesus told his disciples, 

"Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you." -Matthew 29:19-20


This is everyone's call, and it is serious stuff. After reading the Great Commission, it becomes easy to see why trying to balance living for the world and living for Christ doesn't work. Jesus' call is all-encompassing, and frankly, there is nothing more important than serving the Creator of the Universe. But that's just my opinion.


But what is so beautiful is that there are so many ways in which we can obey Jesus' call using our own individual talents, gifts, and interests. Within His Great Commission is a more specific will for your life that is unique to you and your circumstances, relationships, and environment. But only when you begin a relationship with Him and devote yourself to prayer and reading the Word regularly will you be able to discover what exactly that is.


What you can be certain of? God has a plan for you. Right where you're at. Right now.


And these aren't little errands I'm talking about, either. Shame on us if we ever make our God that small! God wants to use you in major ways for His Kingdom. It seems like a huge responsibility, I know. But we just happen to serve a huge God. Not only is He vast, but He is also omnipotent. And not only is He omnipotent, but He has perfect timing. Even more mind-blowing? He loves us passionately and wants to see us succeed as we glorify Him.

"For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the LORD, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future." -Jeremiah 29:11

Who would've ever thought that one little Hebrew word yielded so much responsibility?