Is It Possible for Us to Live Holy Lives?

God calls us to live holy lives because He is holy (Leviticus 19:2). But how seriously do we pursue holiness in our lives? At times, we do not even believe that we are able to live holy lives.

The book The Pursuit of Holiness discusses in great depth the holiness that God has designed for His children. We are able to live holy lives. Yet we cannot live holy lives through our own effort alone. This is what often makes people give up halfway and stop pursuing holiness.

“...pursue holiness, for without holiness no one will see the Lord.”

Hebrews 12:14

The illustration in this book describes the effort of pursuing holiness very accurately:

A farmer plows his field, sows seed, fertilizes it, and tends it. While he does his work, he realizes that in the end he must depend on power outside himself. He knows that he cannot make the seed he has sown grow. He also cannot bring down the rain and sunlight. To reap a good harvest, he must depend on the things that come from God.

Even so, the farmer knows that he must do his responsibility. He must diligently plow, plant, fertilize, and tend. Otherwise, he cannot expect to reap a harvest at the end of the season.

In truth, he is working together with God. The farmer cannot do what God must do, and God will not do what the farmer must do.

Why Does Living Holy Feel So Difficult?

Every morning, during our quiet time, we are often pierced by the Word and decide to leave sin behind. Yet not rarely we fail only a few hours later. In fact, the test often comes right after we close the Bible.

If God designed Christians to live holy lives, why is it so hard for us to attain it? The answer to this question can be grouped into three basic problems.

Our first problem is our attitude toward sin, which is more self-centered than God-centered. We care more about our “victory” over sin than about the fact that sin grieves God’s heart. If we cannot tolerate failure and struggle, it is because our orientation is success. Not because we know that sin does not please God.

God wants us to walk in obedience, not victory. Obedience is oriented toward God. Victory is oriented toward self.

The second problem is that we misunderstand the meaning of “living by faith” (Galatians 2:20). We think that to pursue holiness, we do not need to make an effort. We must face the fact that we have personal responsibility in our journey of holiness. Like the story of the farmer earlier, there is a part that can only be done by us.

The third problem is that we are not serious in the way we view sin. Without realizing it, we group sin into several categories. There is sin that is unacceptable, and there is sin that can be tolerated a little. Perhaps we think it is only a small compromise. Perhaps we think it is impossible for anyone to be completely without sin. We have underestimated sin and perhaps even “nurtured” it a little.

Are we willing to call sin “sin”? Not based on how big or small it is, but because God hates it? If we want to live holy lives, we must regard all sin the same.

Our Role and God’s Role

Living a holy life is not the way to attain salvation. Salvation is God’s gift. But, just like all things in life, there is a responsibility that we must carry out.

What does the responsibility that we must carry out to live a holy life look like? We will not truly be able to understand it until we understand God’s holiness. When we realize God’s holiness, we will begin to see the holiness that we must pursue. We can be holy in body, in spirit, and also in faith. We can train our personal discipline and our habits to live in holiness.

This book will equip us to begin doing our parts in living a holy life, while relying on the parts of God that can only be done by Him. Pursuing holiness is something we must always strive for in our lives. - Church GKDI is currently present in 35 cities. We have Bible Study activities in every area; if you need information or would like to get involved, contact us at contact Church GKDI Official: WhatsApp 0821 2285 8686 or Facebook / Instagram GKDI Official

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