Hamakua Marsh on Oahu, Hawaii,(shown in my photo above) is a bird lovers paradise and I enjoy visiting there and taking many photographs. Again, the beauty of Hawaii is a small glimpse of a paradise on earth. The paradise of God's heaven is too wonderful to even comprehend with our finite minds!
Two previous posts on this blog have dealt with how to enter the Kingdom of God; one is about repentance and being born again found here , and the other about how humility and being childlike is necessary to enter God's kingdom which is found here. I urge you to read both posts, and meditate upon the Scriptures found there.
Today, we will focus on holiness. I have dealt with this topic previously last year. Now I will go into more depth about the meaning of holiness and how you need to be holy to enter heaven, God's Kingdom.
"Follow peace with all men, and holiness, without which no man shall see the Lord." - Hebrews 12:14
A short note on being peaceable: we are not to engage in or instigate litigation, strifes, or slander. We are to make war with sin, but not with people; with bad passions and corrupt desires, but not with our fellowman. Being peaceable is part of being holy.
"They who are expecting to be saved without holiness or religion, are destined for certain disappointment. Heaven and earth will pass away but God will not admit one unrepenting and unpardoned sinner to enter heaven. "
Notice in Hebrews 12:14 that it says to "follow holiness." You will not gain holiness by just sitting still and doing nothing. It requires effort; you need to deliberately pursue holiness with a passion. To be holy means to be a true follower of Jesus Christ. Holiness requires cultivation. "You must pursue it with determination; with eagerness, with long-continued perseverance, as a hunter pursues his prey."
Remember, there is no heaven without holiness.
"You cannot achieve holiness by your own effort. But Christ can do it for you, and He can begin it now. Believe on Him and He will begin with you; in fact, that believing will be the fruit of His having begun with you." (Charles Spurgeon)
Pray for the Lord to help you to become holy. Read and study your Bible and pray without ceasing (1 Thessalonians 5:17). All Scripture is inspired by God. Therefore, God "speaks" to you through the reading of His Word. The more you take in spiritual food, the more spiritual (and therefore holier) you will become.
Someone has said, "Holiness is the beauty and ornament of the soul." Also, "It {holiness} is our brightest resemblance to God; our principle glory in this world, and our highest happiness in the next."
Holiness is the fruit of sovereign and effectual grace . (Ezekiel 36:25-26)
"Now if our text {Hebrews 12:14} said that without perfection of holiness no man could have any communion with Christ, it would shut every one of us out, for no one, who knows his own heart, ever pretends to be perfectly conformed to God's will.. It does not say "perfection of holiness", mark: but "holiness". This holiness is a thing of growth. As the spirit of God waters it, it will grow till the mustard-seed shall become a tree." - Charles Spurgeon
I have shared the following sermon previously, but felt it needed to be shared again on this post. It is a 45 minute sermon by Charles Spurgeon titled "Holiness Demanded".
"I have now concentrated all my prayers into one, and that one prayer is this, that I may die to self, and live holy to Him". - Charles Spurgeon
"The greatest test of whether the holiness we profess to seek or to attain is truth and life will be whether it produces an increasing humility in us. In man, humility is the one thing needed to allow God's holiness to dwell in him and shine through him. The chief mark of counterfeit holiness is lack of humility. The holiest will be the humblest." - Andrew Murray
"Holiness consists of three things - separation from sin, dedication to God, transformation into Christ's image. It is in vain that we talk about the last, unless we know something experimentally about the first." - James H. Aughey
"If Christ has died for me - ungodly as I am, without strength as I am - then I can no longer live in sin, but must arouse myself to love and serve Him who has redeemed me. I cannot trifle with the evil that killed my best Friend. I must be holy for His sake. How can I live in sin when He has died to save me from it?" - Charles Spurgeon
"If Christ has died for me - ungodly as I am, without strength as I am - then I can no longer live in sin, but must arouse myself to love and serve Him who has redeemed me. I cannot trifle with the evil that killed my best Friend. I must be holy for His sake. How can I live in sin when He has died to save me from it?" - Charles Spurgeon
True holiness is seated in the heart. It is not just a name you or someone else gives you, but rather your inward nature. It is a divine principle embedded deep within your heart and soul. The only way one can become holy is by a personal relationship with God through Jesus Christ; by fellow-shipping with Him; by knowing Him intimately and desiring His will above all else. You must be born again (John 3:3) and renewed in your mind (Romans 12:1-2) in order to be holy. But, of course, to begin with, you need to repent and turn from your sin and accept Jesus Christ as your Savior (John 3:16); to have faith in Him by grace and to believe His shed blood on the cross can wipe all your sins away; and believe also in His resurrection (Romans 10:9,10,13).
"Holiness is not a single grace, but an assemblage of all the graces. and extends to all the duties of the Christian life. ..... It is not meekness, humility, faith, hope or charity; but all these united...."
True holiness in man is through the mediation of Christ. Only as we begin to know Jesus can we grow in holiness as, at the same time, we increase in the knowledge of Him. "Real saints are a living image of the invisible Savior."
Beware of self-love that may prompt us to love God for His goodness to us. Many unregenerate men may have a selfish love towards God because of a selfish heart. "But to love God because He is infinitely holy, is a disposition natural to a renewed soul only, and argues a conformity to His image."
Ponder these things, and may grace abound towards you as you enter this Christ-filled weekend.
"But now being made free from sin, and become servants to God, ye have your fruit unto holiness, and the end everlasting life." - Romans 6:22
"Having therefore these promises, dearly beloved, let us cleanse ourselves from all filthiness of the flesh and spirit, perfecting holiness in the fear of God." - 2 Corinthians 7:1
"And that ye put on the new man, which after God is created in righteousness and true holiness." - Ephesians 4:24
