Disciple are you wholly holy or is your commitment to the Lord tattered and holey? It’s a fair question! An honest Christian has to acknowledge that he is a work in progress. Who among us has not found himself stunned by the intensity of some temptation or even surprised by failure in himself or another? I can still recall the sick feeling that I felt in the pit of my stomach when, all the way back in 1988, the sexual addiction and sins of Evangelist Jimmy Swaggart became public knowledge. At that time, he was a well-known preacher whose broadcasts could be seen around the world. Then, we found out that his holiness was full of holes!
I am currently reading Longing for God, an exploration of the pathways of Christian devotion, written by Richard Foster and Gayle Beebe. The authors explore the writings of Christians of the past to see how they pursued holiness. In a chapter about John Bunyan who penned the classic, The Pilgrim’s Progress, the authors point out Bunyan’s understanding of the Christian life as journey. Bunyan’s allegory places emphasis on “struggle in the spiritual journey. He made much of the grace of God throughout his life, but he never saw grace as opposed to struggle, only as opposed to earning. Christian (Bunyan’s main character) struggles through the Slough of Despond and struggles to enter the Straight Gate and struggles up the Hill of Difficulty and struggles to overcome Apollyon (the Devil). At times he stumbles and falls and he must overcome these setbacks.”
Fighting the good fight of faith does not indicate hypocrisy or lack of holiness. It is the common experience of those who would walk with God in this world. The tragedy of the failure of people like Swaggart is born out of denying that temptation is real and powerful and present! Disciple, you should not conclude that you are unholy because you find the Devil roaring in your face, or the appetites of your body clamoring to be fed, or the bright lights of the world attractive! Nor should any sincere Believer decide that since temptation is so common and God’s grace so great that he should just wallow in the muck of self-indulgence!
The Word makes the declaration that comforts us and challenges us at the same time. "God’s law was given so that all people could see how sinful they were. But as people sinned more and more, God’s wonderful grace became more abundant. So just as sin ruled over all people and brought them to death, now God’s wonderful grace rules instead, giving us right standing with God and resulting in eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord. Well then, should we keep on sinning so that God can show us more and more of his wonderful grace? Of course not! Since we have died to sin, how can we continue to live in it?"(Romans 5:20-6:2, NLT)
The only way to become wholly holy is to be set right with God through the gift of grace found in Christ Jesus. By faith we accept the gift we could never earn by any amount of our own goodness. Christ Jesus sealed the covenant (the promise of God to receive us as His children) by His death. His Resurrection is the shout of triumph over sin and death! But we must not forget the journey, the struggle. Right alongside of that majestic message of grace is the call to endure, to ‘work out’ that salvation in our daily lives where we meet temptation.
Here’s a word from the Word.
"…the power of God, … has saved us and called us to a holy life—not because of anything we have done but because of his own purpose and grace. This grace was given us in Christ Jesus before the beginning of time, but it has now been revealed through the appearing of our Savior, Christ Jesus, who has destroyed death and has brought life and immortality to light through the gospel. … I am not ashamed, because I know whom I have believed, and am convinced that he is able to guard what I have entrusted to him for that day." (2 Timothy 1:8-12, NIV)
____________
Holy, holy, holy,
Lord God Almighty!
Early in the morning
My song shall rise to Thee.
Holy, holy, holy!
Merciful and mighty!
God in three Persons,
Blessed Trinity!
Holy, holy, holy!
Though the darkness hide Thee,
Though the eye of sinful man
Thy glory may not see.
Only Thou art holy;
There is none beside Thee
Perfect in power,
In love, in purity.
Holy Holy Holy
Dykes, John B. / Heber, Reginald
© Public Domain
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