Be Ye Holy

1 Pet.1:15-16

God wants you to be Holy. He wants you free from sin and pure, because He is the purest example of Holiness. How does sinful man become holy? How does a Christian live a holy life?

At Salvation your Soul is Holy

At the moment a person believes in their heart [Rom.10:9-10] what Jesus Christ did for them by his death, burial, and resurrection, They become born again, [Jn.3:3-7]. Their soul is now Holy. [Eph.1:1-6] Paul writing to born again, saved people, “in Christ”. They are holy and without blame! They are “accepted in the beloved”. [Col.1:20-22] You were alienated and enemies, but now holy, unblameable and unreproveable. [Col.2:11-15] You are spiritually circumcised, separated from the body of sins, forgiven. [Eph. 1:13-14] Your soul is now sealed and protected, until the day of redemption.

[2 Cor.7:1]  Your flesh and spirit can become filthy ! Not Holy.

Paul speaks of “perfecting holiness”, which is a continual work for each of us. The promises he speaks of are found in the previous chapter.

[2 Cor.6:14-18] We need to be separate and touch not the unclean thing. We need to be Holy not filthy.

Verse 14, Our fellowship with a Holy God is affected by our filthy flesh and spirit. Both can be defiled by the associations that we have, unbelievers, unrighteousness, and darkness. Verse 17, “come out from among them, and be ye separate, saith the Lord, … and I will receive you.” Acknowledge your error and separate yourself. [2 Cor.7:8-10] “godly sorrow worketh repentance to salvation”, a great first step. [1Jn.1:7-9], Confess your sin and be forgiven, and restore your fellowship, perfecting holiness.

Verse 16, Your flesh is the temple of God. [1Cor.3:16-17], that temple should be holy! If you have filthy flesh, [Prov.6:12-19], that temple is defiled. [Rom.12:1], we are to present our “bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service.” All God requires is our reasonable service, but it needs to be done in a holy body. [Rom.6:19-22], It is up to us to yield our members to righteousness. When you got saved, you were spiritually baptized into the body of Christ, [1 Cor.12:13]. [Rom.6:3-4], “we should walk in newness of life”, we are new creatures, [2Cor.5:17]. [Eph.4:22-24], put on the new man created in righteousness and true holiness.

Thank God that he provided a means for a sinful man to be holy, through salvation in Jesus Christ. He has also provided means for us to have fellowship with a holy God. We should choose to walk in that newness of life provided by our new man, which God, through the Holy Spirit, [Gal.5:16] will help us accomplish.

[Gal.2:20] is the life we ought to live! Paul, toward the end of his ministry was still working this continual work, [1Tim.1:15], so we need to continue perfecting holiness till the day of His return!