BE HOLY!
1 PETER 1:13-16
1 Peter 1:13-16 introduces a new section. In 1:3-12, the apostle explains the
reality, security, and magnitude of our salvation. Now, in 1:13-2:3, he explains
how we should live in light of the great salvation the Lord has graciously given
us. And he speaks of the believer’s response to salvation in terms of three
relationships: 1:13-21 addresses the believer’s relationship to God; 1:22-25
addresses the believer’s relationship to other believers; and 2:1-3 addresses the
believer’s relationship to his or her self. Our text is the opening paragraph of this
new section of 1 Peter. And its place at the beginning of this section adds
emphasis and urgency to the message of the text. Catch the progression. When
we become Christians, we need a reorientation of our relationship to God, others
and even ourselves. But before we can learn how to properly relate to others and
ourselves, we must first learn how to relate to God. And so Peter begins by
teaching us how to relate to God as people who have been born again. And the
first lesson he gives on how to rightly relate to God is found in our text. Here it
is: BE HOLY. Interestingly, God primary priority for Christians is not that we be
healthy, wealthy, wise, prominent, or happy. God’s primary goal for your life is
to make you holy.
BILLY SUNDAY said it well: “The term ‘worldly Christian’ is a misnomer –
you might as well talk about a heavenly devil.” Indeed, the call to holiness is not
some optional incentive program mentioned in very fine print at the bottom of
the last page of our discipleship contract. Rather, it’s highlighted in bold print on
the front page. Holiness is to spiritual life what health is to physical life. God
commands every Christian to live in holiness. Well, what is holiness? The term
“holy,” which is used four times in 1:15-16, translates the adjective hagios.
Basically, it means to be separate or set apart. On one hand, it refers to places and
things that are consecrated to the service of God. But it also refers to people who
have been set apart for the purposes of God. And in the NT, every person who
places his or her faith in Jesus Christ for salvation is set apart by God and is thus
holy. In fact, the word “saint” is the noun form of this adjective hagios, “one who
is set apart.” Every Christian is a saint. That is, every Christian is holy before
God. In 1 Peter 2:9, we are called “a holy nation.”
In Christ, every true believer is holy before God. However, holiness is not
just an abstract theory that describes our standing before God. Rather, our
spiritual position of holiness should inevitably produce practical expressions of
holiness. Our salvation inevitably leads to our sanctification. The internal reality
of the new birth invariably results in the external manifestations of spiritual
growth. Because of the blood of Jesus, you are holy. But dig this. God says to
people who are already holy, “Be what you already are. Be holy.” It’s like a
marriage. In a wedding ceremony, you become a husband or a wife. But the
essence of the ceremony is your promise to be day by day what you become on
the wedding day. You don’t leave the ceremony and go back to living the way
you did before you got married. You leave the ceremony vowing to be faithful to
your spouse for better or for worse, for richer or for poorer, in sickness and in
health, forsaking all others, until you are separated by death. Likewise, when
you were saved, it was the beginning of a new relationship with God. So you
can’t receive Christ, join the church, get baptized, and then go back to living the
way you did before you were saved. You leave the waters of baptism vowing to
be faithful to God for better or for worse… So God says that your first and
foremost respond to his gracious gift of salvation is to live a holy life. And our
text teaches us four fundamental aspects of this call to holiness.
I.
THE BASIS OF HOLINESS
The opening point that Peter about holiness in this text is often missed
because it is succinctly stated in the conjunction that begins 1:13: “Therefore.” But
my homiletics profs taught me that whenever you see the word “therefore” in
the text, you should stop and ask what the therefore is therefore. “Therefore” is a
word bridge that connects what has just been said to what is about to be said.
Moreover, not only does “therefore” connect the two thoughts, but it also tells us
that what is about to be said is based on what has already been said. So the word
“therefore” in our text points us back to the previous section as the basis for the
call to holiness. Catch the connection.
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1:3-12 teach us Christian doctrine; our text teaches Christian duty.
1:3-12 record Peter’s explanation of salvation; our text records his
exhortations to the saved.
1:3-12 proclaim the reality of eternal security; our text proclaims the
response to eternal security.
1:3-12 give us the indicatives of the gospel; our text gives imperatives of the
gospel.
1:3-12 discuss our position in Christ; our text discusses our practice as
Christians.
And both the connection and order of these two passages confront us with
the unpopular but essential truth that not every can or will stand before God as
holy. Only saved people can be holy people. Only born again people can be hol y
people. Only Christian people can be holy people. Any person who has not
received the Lord Jesus as the Forgiver of their sins and leader of their life cannot
be truly holy. Psalm 7:11 says, “God is a just God, and God is angry with the wicked
every day.” Romans 8:8 says, “Those who are in the flesh cannot please God.” And
James 4:4 says, “You adulterous people! Do you now know that friendship with the
world is enmity with God? Therefore whoever wishes to be a friend of the world makes
himself an enemy of God.” I repeat: unsaved people cannot be holy before God, not
matter what moral, ethical, or noble stuff they may do. You see, every deed falls
into one of three categories: bad-bad, good-bad, or good-good. Bad-bad is when
a person does the wrong thing for the wrong reason. Good-bad is when a person
does the right thing for the wrong reason. Unfortunately, unsaved people are
only capable of bad-bad or, at best, good-bad. That’s why much of what the
church does in the name of evangelism is out of order, fruitless, and
counterproductive.
Mark it down: Morality does not save people. Jesus does. Lost people are
dead in trespasses and sins. Behavior modification does not cure death. New life
is required. So we should adopt this biblical principle into our mini stry of
evangelism: We do not expect unsaved people to act like saved people until they
actually become saved people. Our primary concern for lost people is not that
they drink, smoke, cuss, gamble, and sleep around. Our primary concern for lost
people is that they are on their way to the eternal torment of divine wrath in hell,
unless they hear the gospel, recognize their need for salvation, repent of their
sins, and put their faith is Jesus Christ as they Savior and Lord. Our job is to get
lost people to Jesus. And if you get them to Jesus, he knows how to fix the other
stuff in their life that’s not right.
Until then, unsaved people cannot be holy. However, saved people must
be holy. But we do not pursue holiness in order to win, earn, or merit the favor of
God. That would be bad-good, doing the right thing for the wrong reason. No,
Christians are the only people in the world who are capable of good-good. We
can do the will of God for the glory of God. We do not do good because we are
desperately trying to get to heaven. We do good because we are filled with
delight over the fact that we are already on our way to heaven. We pursue
holiness because we are chosen according to the foreknowledge of God in
sanctification of the Spirit for obedience and sprinkling of the blood of Jesus. We
pursue holiness because we are born again to a living hope through the
resurrection of Jesus from the dead. We pursue holiness because we an
imperishable, undefiled, and unfading inheritance that is being kept in heaven
for us. We pursue holiness because we are being kept by the power of God
trough faith. We pursue holiness because we love Jesus, even though we have
not seen him. We pursue holiness because we have received what the prophets
predicted. We pursue holiness because we enjoy that grace of God that angels
long to understand.
II.
THE MEANS TO HOLINESS
The process of sanctification involves both divine sovereignty and human
responsibility. Philippians 2:12-13 states this parallel perfectly: “work out your own
salvation with fear and trembling, for it is God who works in you, both to will and to
work for his good pleasure.” Ultimately, our progress in holiness is made possible
only because God the Holy Spirit lives within us giving us both the desire and
the strength to do the things that please God. But that does not allow us to adopt
a “let-go-and-let-God” attitude toward holiness. God commands us to be holy.
And it is our responsibility to heed his call to holiness in the power of the Holy
Spirit. The question is how do we fulfill this call to holiness.
The sad fact is that there are many sincere believers who have given up
the pursuit of holiness because their repeated failures have convinced them that,
outside of a supernatural act of God, they can never live a holy life. Thank God
Peter does not just command us to be holy, but he also tells us how to do it. He
tells us that holy living is the result of holy thinking. If you are going to change
your ways, you must first change your mind. 1:13 says, “Therefore, preparing your
minds for action, and being sober-minded, set your hope fully on the grace that will
brought to you at the revelation of Jesus Christ.” Don’t miss that. If your hope is
resting on the things of the world, your lifestyle will be governed by the wo rld’s
false value system. But if you set your hope on the fact that Jesus is coming again
soon to fulfill all the promises of salvation, your live will be governed by
holiness. 1 John 3:3 says: “And everyone who thus hopes in him purifies himself as he
is pure.” Holiness is the result of a mind that is fixed and focused on the future
but imminent return of the Lord Jesus. And Peter gives two ways you can set
your hope fully on future grace for holy living.
A. HOLINESS REQUIRES A PREPARED MIND.
First of all, if you are going to develop and maintain a mental disposition
that will facilitate holiness, you must have a prepared mind. Peter says, “Gird up
the loins of your mind.” It was a practical, powerful, and picturesque metaphor
that Peter’s original readers would have readily understood. You see, in the
ancient Near East, people wore long, flowing robes that hindered mobility,
agility, and even stability. So when a man would go on a journey, begin
strenuous labor, participate in athletics events, engage in warfare, or perform any
kind of physically demanding activity, he would first pull of the end of his robe,
wrap it around himself, and then stick the end of the robe into his belt or girdle.
This act of girding himself would give free up his legs by removing the material
that may cause him to trip, stumble, and fall. Thus, he was read for action. And
Peter uses this physical act and uses it as a spiritual figure to exhort us to prepare
our minds for the strenuous pursuit of holiness.
Likewise, Paul uses this figure in Ephesians 6:14, where he says, “Stand
therefore, having girder your waist with truth.” Paul’s use of this figure was
motivated by the armor worn by Roman soldiers. But Peter’s use of this figure
was probably prompted by his remembrance of the Passover that delivered Israel
from the bondage of Egypt. In Exodus 12, God convinced the hard-hearted
Pharaoh to let his people God free by slaying the first-born male child in every
family of Egypt. However, God gracious spared the Israelite families by
promising to pass over every home that was covered by blood on its doorposts.
And in anticipation for this great plague God would rain upon Egypt, he give
Moses instructions to give to the Israelites, which included his regulations for
Passover meal. But Exodus 12:11 records some special instructions on how they
were to eat the Passover. It says, “In this manner you shall eat it: with your belt
fastened, your sandals on your feet, and your staff in your hand. And you shall eat it in
haste. It is the Lord’s Passover.” In other words, this meal was not to be eaten
leisurely. They were to eat this meal being ready for action. And that’s probably
the picture Peter had in mind when he says, “gird up the loins of your mind.”
Or, to put is in colloquial terms we can relate to, “Tighten your belt! Roll up your
sleeves! And take off your jacket! Mark it down: Just like a long, flowing robe
would hinder the progress of the ancient traveler, an unprepared, undisciplined,
ungodly mindset will hinder you from pursuing holiness. You need to prepare
your mind for action.
B. HOLINESS REQUIRES A SOBER MIND.
Not only does holiness require a prepared mind, but it also requires a
sober mind. The word “sober” in 1:13 translates the verb nepho. Literally, it
means to abstain from wine. It refers to sobriety. But in the NT, it’s always used
figuratively. That is, it’s not about the consumption of alcohol. But it’s about
avoiding anything abstaining from anything that would cause you to be
unprepared, unfocused, unbalanced, unstable, or uncommitted to God. In using
this term, Peter calls us to sober-minded, discreet, temperate, circumspect, and
watchful. In fact, he uses it two other times in this letter. 4:7 says, “The end of all
things is at hand; therefore be self-controlled and sober-mined for the sake of your
prayers.” And 5:8 warns, “Be sober-minded; be watchful. Your adversary the devil
prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour.”
III.
THE PRACTICE OF HOLINESS
One of the reasons why holiness is such a controversial topic is because of
the arbitrary lists of dos and don’ts that are often used to measure holiness. But
notice that in calling us to holiness, Peter does not specifically mention any holy
thing that we should do or any unholy thing we should not do. Instead of giving
of detail list of holy acts, he paints a beautiful picture of it. 1:14 tells us how
Christians should practice holiness in three words: “as obedient children.”
Literally, the Greek says, “as children of obedience.” Now, that may seem like an
inconsequential difference, but it’s vital to understanding Peter’s point.
“Obedient children” refers to our conduct, but “children of obedience” refers to
our character, our nature – who we are in Christ. It’s a Hebrew idiom that refers
to speak of a person as the child of a certain trait, knowing that children
naturally resemble their parents. Here’s the point: God is our father; we are his
children. God our father is holy; therefore, we should be holy. Ephesians 2:2 and
5:6 tell us that unsaved people are sons or children of disobedience. When we
were unsaved, we disobeyed God that’s our nature. It’s who we are. Psalm 51:5
says, “Behold, I was brought forth in iniquity, and in sin my mother did conceive me.”
But when we are born again, we are given a new nature. We become children of
obedience. That’s one way to tell whether or not you are really saved. People
who are born again have a natural disposition toward holiness. God commands;
we obey.
Aretta Loving, a Wycliffe missionary, was washing her breakfast dishes one
day when she saw Jimmy, her five-year-old neighbor, headed straight toward the
back porch. She had just finished painting the back-porch handrails, and she was
proud of her work. “Come around to the front door, Jimmy,” she shouted. “There’s
wet paint on the porch rails.” “I’ll be careful,” Jimmy replied, not turning from his
path.” “No, Jimmy! Don’t come up the steps,” Aretta shouted, knowing Jimmy’s
tendency to mess things up. “I’ll be careful,” he said again, by now dangerously close
to the steps. “Jimmy, stop!” Aretta shouted. “I don’t want your carefulness. I want
obedience.”
TRUST AND OBEY
FOR THERE’S NO OTHER WAY
TO BE HAPPY IN JESUS
THAN TO TRUST AND OBEY
We are to live as children of obedience who live by faith in the heavenly
father. And Peter gives us two practical ways to do this.
A. DON’T CONFORM.
Notice 1:14 again: “As obedience children, do not be conformed to the passions of
your former ignorance…” Peter says that when we were unsaved we are ignorant
the sovereign grace of God, the redemptive work of Christ, and the powerful
ministry of the Holy Spirit. Paul confirms this in 1 Corinthians 2:14. He says,
“The natural person does not accept the things of the Spirit of God, for they are folly to
him, and he is not able to understand them because they are spiritual discerned.”
Consequently, when we were unsaved, we lived to fulfill our lusts, passions, and
fleshly desires. But now we have been born again. And Peter says don’t be
conformed to the fleshly lifestyle you practiced before you had a personal
relationship to Jesus Christ. The word “conform” translates the verb
suschematizo. It is a compound of the noun schema – a figure or fashion, and the
preposition sun, which means with or together. It means to fashion one thing
after the external pattern of another thing.
The word is only used twice in the NT: here, and in Romans 12:2, that
says, “And 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.”
If you read the same things, listen to the same things, watch the same things, go
the same places, and hag out with the same people you did before you were
saved, guess what, you will get the same results.
A teenage girl was being mocked at school for maintaining her virginity.
But she did not give into the pressures of those who made fun of her. In fact, she
shut them up be declaring, “What you are, I can become any day. But what I am
you can never become.”
B. DON’T COMPROMISE.
Proverbs 3:6a says, “In all your ways acknowledge him.” And Colossians
3:17 says, “And whatever you do, in word or deed, do everything in the name of the Lord
Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.”
Romans 12:1 says, “I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that
you present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, which is your
reasonable service.” Have you ever presented your body parts to God?
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IV.
Lord, here are my hands.
Lord, here are my lips.
Lord, here are my eyes.
Lord, here are my feet.
Lord, here is my heart.
Lord, here is my mind.
Lord, here are my private parts.
THE MOTIVATION FOR HOLINESS
Peter gives us the motivation for holiness in 1:15-16. “But as he who called
you is holy, you also be holy in all your conduct, since it is written, ‘You shall be holy,
for I am holy.” Notice that he does not incite fear, issue fear, or promise blessings
to motivate us to be holy. Instead, affirms the defining attribute of God:
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God is holy.
God is totally separate from his creation.
God is light and in him there is no darkness.
God is morally perfect, without sin, and absolutely incapable of doing
wrong.
God is good, just, and righteous in every way.
Turn on the average religious broadcast; read the average Christian book;
listen to the average Christian speaker – you will probably not be awestruck with
a sense of God’s holiness.
Matthew 5:48 says, “You therefore must be perfect, as your heavenly Father is
perfect.” 2 Corinthians 7:1 says, “Since we have these promises, beloved, let us cleanse
ourselves from every defilement of body and spirit, bringing holiness to completion in the
fear of God.” And Ephesians 5:1 says, “Therefore, be imitators of God, as beloved
children.”
Isaiah 53:6 says, “All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned every one
to his own way; and the Lord has laid on him the iniquity of us all.” Romans 8:1 says,
“There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.” And 2
Corinthians 5:21 says, “For He made Him who knew no sin to be sin for us, that we
might become the righteousness of God in Him.”
Imagine that somewhere in the universe there is a cesspool containing all
the sins that have ever been committed. It is deep, dark, and indescribably foul,
because all the evil deeds that men and women have ever done are floating there.
And imagine that a river of filth constantly flows into that cesspool. Replenishing
the vile mixture with all the evil done every day. Now imagine that while Jesus is
on the cross, that cesspool is emptied onto him. See the flow of filth as it settles
on him. It’s vile, toxic, deadly, and filled with disease, pain, and suffering. And’
never seems to stop.
ALAS! AND DID MY SAVIOR BLEED. AND DID MY SOVEREIGN DIE?
WOULD HE DEVOTE THAT SACRED HEAD FOR SINNERS SUCH AS I?
WAS IT FOR SINS THAT I HAD DONE HE SUFFERED ON THE TREE?
AMAZING PITY! G RACE UNKNOWN! AND LOVE BEYOND DEGREE!