HOLINESS AS A WAY OF LIFE
Holiness as a Way of Life
Deut. 21-25
“As I have commanded them, so you shall be careful to do.”
We tend to compartmentalize our life and our faith. We view our relationship with God as part of our spiritual duty on Sundays and special religious days like Good Friday and Easter. However, we go throughout the week with little regard for how our faith and relationship with God affect other aspects of life. We compartmentalize our lives so that we have our religious obligations, family responsibilities, business duties, etc., and they remain disconnected.
As we read the application of the law in Deuteronomy 21-25, we discover the totality and scope that our faith influences and governs every element and decision in life. There is no detail or issue in our life that is not directly impacted by the faith we embrace. Reading through the various obligations, we are struck by how our faith changes everything. It governs our treatment of others and our treatment of their possessions, even when we find a lost item in the street. Our obedience to God governs our relationship with our spouse in marriage, our interaction, and the discipline of our children. It requires us to respect the ownership of things that belong to others. When we borrow or lend money, our relationship with God determines how much interest we charge and how we respond to those to whom we lend money. Holiness determines how we treat our bodies and even our clothes. There is nothing untouched by the holiness of God.
To understand all the details of the law that Moses reaffirms throughout the book of Deuteronomy, we need to understand the scope of what it means to live a holy life. Because we were created to reflect God’s image, then everything we do, and every facet of our life and existence, every action and thought, is to reflect God's purity, holiness, and righteousness. Even how we treat our animals reflects God’s care for all creation. Throughout this section, we see total life lived in total devotion to God; thus, it touches upon everything from sexuality to our possessions and the possession of others. We are to bring everything under the authority of God. We are confronted with total surrender to God.
In our culture today, with its emphasis on personal autonomy and the right to determine our own morality and identity, we regard much of our life to be under the control of our own choosing. Instead of surrendering everything to God, we desire to maintain control over our own bodies, our own choices and desires, and our own destiny. However, living a life of surrender to God and holiness requires that we submit to God in all things, and even the smallest act or decision is to be brought under God’s character and purpose. Our lives belong to God. It is not our body; it is God’s body. It is not our wealth; it is His wealth. It is not our plans; it is His plans.
Are you compartmentalizing your life so that you only give God control of your “spiritual” life? Do you desire and demand control over all the other aspects of life? Or are you completely surrendering everything to God to reflect Him in all attitudes and actions? If God is not governing everything and affecting every decision in life, then He is governing nothing. Start each day by giving all things to God and then strive to glorify Him and serve Him in every action and thought. With God, there is no division between what is secular and what is sacred. Everything and every thought and action is holy and reflects His holiness. Holiness is not just a moral compass for life but a way of living. Are you living in total surrender to His holiness?
Deut. 21-25
“As I have commanded them, so you shall be careful to do.”
We tend to compartmentalize our life and our faith. We view our relationship with God as part of our spiritual duty on Sundays and special religious days like Good Friday and Easter. However, we go throughout the week with little regard for how our faith and relationship with God affect other aspects of life. We compartmentalize our lives so that we have our religious obligations, family responsibilities, business duties, etc., and they remain disconnected.
As we read the application of the law in Deuteronomy 21-25, we discover the totality and scope that our faith influences and governs every element and decision in life. There is no detail or issue in our life that is not directly impacted by the faith we embrace. Reading through the various obligations, we are struck by how our faith changes everything. It governs our treatment of others and our treatment of their possessions, even when we find a lost item in the street. Our obedience to God governs our relationship with our spouse in marriage, our interaction, and the discipline of our children. It requires us to respect the ownership of things that belong to others. When we borrow or lend money, our relationship with God determines how much interest we charge and how we respond to those to whom we lend money. Holiness determines how we treat our bodies and even our clothes. There is nothing untouched by the holiness of God.
To understand all the details of the law that Moses reaffirms throughout the book of Deuteronomy, we need to understand the scope of what it means to live a holy life. Because we were created to reflect God’s image, then everything we do, and every facet of our life and existence, every action and thought, is to reflect God's purity, holiness, and righteousness. Even how we treat our animals reflects God’s care for all creation. Throughout this section, we see total life lived in total devotion to God; thus, it touches upon everything from sexuality to our possessions and the possession of others. We are to bring everything under the authority of God. We are confronted with total surrender to God.
In our culture today, with its emphasis on personal autonomy and the right to determine our own morality and identity, we regard much of our life to be under the control of our own choosing. Instead of surrendering everything to God, we desire to maintain control over our own bodies, our own choices and desires, and our own destiny. However, living a life of surrender to God and holiness requires that we submit to God in all things, and even the smallest act or decision is to be brought under God’s character and purpose. Our lives belong to God. It is not our body; it is God’s body. It is not our wealth; it is His wealth. It is not our plans; it is His plans.
Are you compartmentalizing your life so that you only give God control of your “spiritual” life? Do you desire and demand control over all the other aspects of life? Or are you completely surrendering everything to God to reflect Him in all attitudes and actions? If God is not governing everything and affecting every decision in life, then He is governing nothing. Start each day by giving all things to God and then strive to glorify Him and serve Him in every action and thought. With God, there is no division between what is secular and what is sacred. Everything and every thought and action is holy and reflects His holiness. Holiness is not just a moral compass for life but a way of living. Are you living in total surrender to His holiness?
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