“Therefore, having these promises, let us cleanse ourselves from all filthiness of the flesh and spirit, perfecting holiness in the fear of God” (2 Corinthians 7:1).
What is holiness? What does it mean to be holy? The writer of Hebrews put it this way: “Pursue peace with all people, and holiness, without which no one will see the Lord” (Hebrews 12:14).
So, we need to know what holiness is, what it isn’t, and how to perfect it if we plan on seeing the Lord.
Holiness is not something you do; you can’t make yourself holy. You can practice all the things that are typically held up to do in Christian life, but they won’t make you holy. You may attend church meetings every time the doors are open; you may read your Bible regularly; you may be a faithful tither; you may be an evangelist, pastor, teacher, deacon, or song leader; but none of these will make you holy.
Holiness, or being made holy comes from God alone. Holiness has everything to do with your heart being separated from this world and separated unto God. And to fully understand this, we must look at what God has done and is doing.
Your old heart is corrupt and dead in trespasses and sins; it cannot be made holy. And you cannot ever see or be with God in that condition. But God, in His great love for you, wants you to live with Him and Jesus forever in His home as His dear children. And so, before ever creating this world or making man, God made plans to make unholy people holy.
One of the first to preview God’s plan was a man named Nicodemus. He came to Jesus, thinking he knew about God and Jesus. And that’s when Jesus revealed the only way anyone could ever see God:
“Most assuredly, I say to you, unless one is born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God…. Most assuredly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God…. You must be born again” (John 3:3-7).
It is through the new birth that a sinner man is brought to life by the mercy and grace of God and given a new heart. The new birth is of God.
“Jesus came to His own, and His own did not receive Him. But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, to those who believe in His name: who were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God” (John 1:12-13).
When anyone is born of God, Paul declares he is in Christ and “…is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold all things have become new” (2 Corinthians 5:17). And this is when and where the sinner is made holy.
When a person is born again, they are baptized into Christ, both by the Holy Spirit and in water. The water visibly demonstrates what God has done through His Holy Spirit. The new believer is joined to Christ in His crucifixion, burial, and resurrection. In this spiritual oneness in Christ, the believer is effectually separated from the world and separated unto God. The old man has died with Christ, and the newly born one has risen with Him. The new man is holy unto the Lord; he has been separated from the domain of darkness and translated into the kingdom of God’s dear Son.
Peter writes:
“You also, as living stones, are being built up a spiritual house, a holy priesthood, to offer up spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ… you are a holy nation…” (1 Peter 2:5-9).
There is only one way we may become holy, and that is by being born of God. The text at the beginning of this article calls for us to perfect that holiness in the fear of God. How are we to do that? God’s word is plain and simple: it’s all about watchfully and willingly separating yourself from the love for the things of this world.
We live in this world: we go to school, we marry and raise families, we work, we buy and sell, we build, and we form friendships. But in living in this world, we are called to remember that this world is not our home; we are pilgrims and strangers just passing through. Paul warns and instructs us:
“…Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God” (Romans 12:2).
But Paul declares a particular area where, if we would be holy, we must be separate:
“Do not be unequally yoked together with unbelievers. For what fellowship has righteousness with lawlessness? And what communion has light with darkness? And what accord has Christ with Belial? Or what part has a believer with an unbeliever? And what agreement has the temple of God with idols? For you are the temple of the living God.
“As God has said: ‘I will dwell in them and walk among them. I will be their God, and they shall be my people.’ Therefore ‘come out from among them and be separate, says the Lord. ‘Do not touch what is unclean, and I will receive you. I will be a Father to you, and you shall be my sons and daughters, says the Lord Almighty'” (2 Corinthians 6:14-18).
This Scripture calls for us to behave as God’s holy children, thereby perfecting holiness in the fear of our Father. Separation from the ungodly is the call here; The world and the apostate church of Rome are calling for and promoting just the opposite. Brotherhood among all religions is the order of the day. The great deception is well underway. And many affluent and high-profile Western “pastors and teachers” are buying into it.
All the religions of this world deny Christ as the Son of God and God in the flesh; the religious cults deny Christ as being the virgin-born Son of God: true God and true man; they deny His literal resurrection. All of these have one thing in common: they are of the spirit of antichrist. So, to call for “fellowship and brotherhood,” mutual respect and understanding for all religions is to ask Christ to have fellowship with the devil.
Do you want to be found in a church that is part of this deception; do you want to sit under a teacher that promotes this? This is the broad road that leads to destruction.
You may say, “Well, I agree with what you say, but I love the fellowship and don’t intend to leave. I’ll just ignore what’s being said.”
You can easily dismiss what I’ve said, but can you afford to ignore what the Scripture says?:
“Come out from among them and be separate, says the Lord.”
Separation will cost you friends and positions, but if you want to follow Christ, you will perfect holiness in the fear of God.
Brother Bill Oldham
