Core Values: Holiness
Holiness: “We are committed to nurturing holiness through submission to the Holy Spirit and obedience to God’s Word.”
Holiness is a foreign concept to many individuals. In contemporary society, it is often only used in a derogatory sense. One thinks, for instance, of the quip of someone being ‘holier than thou.’ An attitude of moral superiority, however, has no place in the Christian life (Gal 6:14). The believer’s holiness is declared by God at the time of regeneration (Col. 3:12; 1 Pet. 2:4-5). For this reason, the regenerate are consistently referred to throughout Scripture as being saints (see, for example, Rom 1:7; 1 Cor 1:2; 2 Cor 1:1; Col 1:2; Eph 1:1; Jude 1:3 among others).
Holiness, though, also involves the transformational goal to be formed into the likeness of Christ (Rom 8:28–30; 1 Pet 1:15; 1 Jn 3:5–9). To be clear, those who are born again are new creatures in Christ; the old person is dead and they are now made alive by the Spirit (John 3:3–8; 2 Cor 5:17; Col 3:5–10; 1 Pet 1:22–23; 1 Jn 3:9–10). The believer is to walk in the Spirit producing the fruit of the Spirit, so as not to gratify the desires of the flesh (Gal 5:16–26; 1 Thess 4:3–8).
“Those who are born again are new creatures in Christ; the old person is dead and they are now made alive by the Spirit.”
If we are to be faithful to Christ’s call to make disciples (Matt 28:19–20), we must be committed to nurturing holiness in both our own life (personally) and the life of the Church (corporately). This involves submission to the Holy Spirit and obedience to God’s Word.
Let’s unpack in more detail first what it means to walk in obedience to God’s Word. It can be ‘tricky’ sometimes to know what it means to fully follow and obey Jesus’ commands. For example, it is written: “If your right eye causes you to sin, tear it out and throw it away!” (Matt 5:29aff).[1] If Jesus meant this command at face value shouldn’t we all be blind and lame? The clarity of this command, however, became clear to me in high school when some friends of mine encouraged me to go onto certain websites that (to put it mildly) were dishonoring to God. After that incident I clearly knew what it was that Christ commanded me to do as his follower. Jesus makes it clear: “If you continue to follow my teaching, you are really my disciples and you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free” (John 8:31–32).[2]
Submission to the Holy Spirit works hand-in-glove with obedience to God’s Word. The subjective voice of God (as it is made clear through inner urges, prods, nudges, etc.) will never come into irreconcilable conflict with the objective voice of God as laid out in Scripture. God is not the author of confusion (1 Cor 14:33). A house divided cannot stand (Mark 3:25).
Within the context of the early Church, numerous believers were prompted by the Holy Spirit to do different things and each of them acted in full obedience to their understanding of his activity (see Acts 4:31; 5:32; 7:55; 8:26–40; 10:44–48; 13:1–3; 15:28–29; 16:6–10; 20:20–24; 21:1–14). Paul likewise states, “We proclaim him by instructing and teaching all people with all wisdom so that we may present every person mature in Christ. Toward this goal I also labor, struggling according to his power that powerfully works in me” (Col 1:28).
While justification is instantaneous, sanctification is a process. Growth is a journey. To nurture holiness requires intentionality, purpose, and focus on the part of the regenerate. That is why the vision statement makes clear that we must be committed to nurturing holiness.
Several things can facilitate this:
Prayer. The prayers of the saints are sweet smelling incense (Rev 5:8). Prayer enables us to have peace that surpasses understanding (Phil 4:6–7). Above all, prayer enables the regenerate to be aligned with the good, pleasing, and perfect will of God so as to readily love, honor, and serve him (Matt 26:39; Mark 14:36; Luke 22:42; John 6:38).
Bible Reading. God’s Holy Spirit guides us into all truth—His Word is truth (John 16:13–15; 17:17–23). Hiding God’s Word in our hearts helps us not to sin against him (Ps 119:11). Through the conviction provided from an acute awareness of God’s Word, we can learn to not grieve God’s Holy Spirit (Eph 4:17–32) and to live with true, heavenly wisdom (from above) that is first pure, then peaceable (James 3:13–18)
Christian Fellowship. The church is the pillar and foundation of the truth (1 Tim 3:15). The church is also Christ’s body and bride (1 Cor 12:12–27; Rev 19:6–9). The church’s mission and purpose is to glorify God (Eph 1:3–14) through making disciples of all nations (Matt 28:18–20). We are commanded to not neglect meeting together (Hebrews 10:25). When we do meet, we are commanded to anoint the sick and suffering (James 1:13–14), sing aloud for joy with praises to God (James 1:14), and to pray for one another, confessing our sins together (James 1:16). Confession always goes hand in glove with (real) repentance (Ezra 9; Neh 1, 9; Ps 106; Jer 29:11–13; Daniel 9; Zech 1:1–6; Acts 26:16–20). Through forsaking sin, we draw near to God and as we draw near to God, he draws ever nearer to us (James 4:8).
Suffice to say that anyone committed to nurturing holiness through submission to the Holy Spirit and obedience to God’s Word must maintain short accounts with God and others (Matt 5:23–24). We must bear with one another and forgive one another if we have any grievances (Col 1:13). Our conscience, too, must always be clean (Acts 23:1; 24:16; 1 Tim 1:19; 2 Tim 1:3; 1 Pet 3:16).
Thanks be to God that those who have been born again by God’s grace can stand confident in the fact that he who began a good work in us will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus (Phil 1:6; cf. Phil 2:12–18). For myself, personally, most of this process has been more ‘caught than taught.’ The example of numerous faithful men and women in my life have made it clear to me time-and-again over the years what precisely it means to imitate Christ amid life’s struggles (1 Cor 11:1).
Guy Doud puts it well:
“I'd rather see a sermon than hear one any day.
I'd rather you walk with me than merely point the way.
The eye is a more ready pupil than ever was the ear.
Good advice is often confusing, but example is always clear.”[3]
About the Author
This article in our Core Values series is written by Dustin Burlet, an instructor at our Winnipeg campus.
[1] All Bible translations are from the NET Bible unless otherwise indicated. See https://netbible.org/bible/
[2] The NET Bible states: “The statement the truth will set you free is often taken as referring to truth in the philosophical (or absolute) sense, or in the intellectual sense, or even (as the Jews apparently took it) in the political sense. In the context of John’s Gospel (particularly in light of the prologue [John 1:1–18]) this must refer to truth about the person and work of Jesus. It is saving truth. As L. Morris says, ‘it is the truth which saves men from the darkness of sin, not that which saves them from the darkness of error (though there is a sense in which men in Christ are delivered from gross error)’ (John [NICNT], 457).”
[3] https://www.focusonthefamily.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/01/id-rather-see-a-sermon-poem.pdf