The Pursuit of Holiness
My wife and I recently began attending an evening Bible study with a few other couples. We are going through The Pursuit of Holiness by Jerry Bridges, and it has been refreshing to sit in fellowship, share our struggles with sin, and talk about what it means to truly follow Christ.
The book itself is simple, straightforward, and incredibly profound. It does not overcomplicate the concept of holiness. Instead, it brings it to the surface in a way that makes you pause and reflect. Through its pages, Jerry Bridges reminds us that holiness is not a distant, unreachable idea. It is the very character of God Himself.
When I think about God’s holiness, I try to imagine a place where there is no pain, no suffering, no fear, and no worry. None of the things that weigh us down in this world exist in His presence. Those things are the product of a fallen world, a world marred by sin. Yet, God’s holiness is untouched by any of it. It is perfect. It is pure. It is complete.
Jesus Christ lived that holiness out perfectly. He walked this earth as the Son of God, completely without sin, and yet He willingly took on the punishment of a criminal’s death for our sake. He did it for the unworthy, for sinners like me and you. And through His resurrection, He overcame death itself so that we could have life in Him.
Still, even as believers, we struggle. We stumble. We fall short. Holiness feels like a mountain we are always climbing but never quite reach. Yet, as the book points out, this pursuit is not about perfection. It is about direction. It is about setting our hearts toward God and continuing to walk in His ways, even when we fail.
I have come to understand that my surrender to God and to His Son, Jesus Christ, is only one of the criteria I must meet in order for my name to be written in the Book of Life. As Christians, we are called not just to believe, but to live as Jesus lived, to walk in holiness within a sinful world. It is through our lives that we exemplify our belief in Him.
The way we treat others each day, the way we pray constantly for everything and everyone, reflects the posture of our hearts. It is not enough to simply know Jesus or to have knowledge of Scripture. We must live according to that knowledge and faith. We are not meant to receive this gift of salvation and then hide it away so no one else can see it in our lives.
That can be hard to do, especially when our old habits or self-justifications for sin creep in. But sinning is sinning. All sin is evil. In the eyes of God, murder and lying carry equal weight. They are both defilements of His holiness and will be judged accordingly.
We must be mindful of our words and our actions so that we do not continue to defile ourselves. This is our responsibility: to live in holiness and create daily disciplines that share the Gospel through the way we live. When we do sin, we must ask for forgiveness, but never use His grace as an excuse to continue sinning. That, in itself, is worse than sinning in ignorance.
Scripture reminds us that we are not alone in this struggle:
1 Corinthians 10:13 (NLT)
The temptations in your life are no different from what others experience. And God is faithful. He will not allow the temptation to be more than you can stand. When you are tempted, He will show you a way out so that you can endure.
That verse gives me hope. It reminds me that God is not asking for perfection. He is asking for pursuit. Holiness is not about never falling; it is about continually turning back toward Him every time we do.
If we are honest, this journey can feel impossible at times. But when we keep our eyes on Christ, we are reminded that it is not about what we can do. It is about what He has already done. His grace covers our imperfection, His Spirit strengthens our weakness, and His holiness becomes our hope.
Reflection
Holiness begins with surrender but grows through obedience. It is shaped in the quiet moments of prayer, refined in the trials we face, and revealed in the way we love others. My prayer is that we never become content with calling ourselves Christians without living in the likeness of Christ. May our lives reflect the light of His holiness, so that others might see Him through us and find the same freedom we have found in Him.
For His Glory and Our Good,
Calen
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