Confusion about holiness, hope and glory

[eaglesway]

1 Peter 1:13-16 Wherefore gird up the loins of your mind, be sober, and hope to the end for the grace that is to be brought unto you at the revelation of Jesus Christ; As obedient children, not fashioning yourselves according to the former lusts in your ignorance: But as he which hath called you is holy, so be ye holy in all manner of conversation; Because it is written, Be ye holy; for I am holy.


Heb 12:14 Follow peace with all men, and holiness, without which no man shall see the Lord:

These are examples of scriptures that can be confusing, and sources of condemnation if not rightly divided.

How do we become holy? What is holiness?

The word, holy is hagios(Grk) meaning set apart.

We become holy when we are set apart from the rest of mankind(in Adam) and planted by grace through faith in Jesus Christ.

That holiness is two-fold, imputed(because He owns us) and imparted(because He dwells in us).

As soon as we believe we are washed in the blood of Jesus Christ and reconciled to God by the blood of Jesus Christ(imputed). Then we begin to experience, as Paul said, the mystery of God - "Christ in you the hope of glory"(imparted).

Any glory we receive is the result of Christ in us. The instant we are in Him,and He is in us, we are holy.

And you, that were sometime alienated and enemies in your mind by wicked works, yet now has he reconciled In the body of his flesh through death, to present you holy and unblameable and unreproveable in his sight: If you continue in the faith grounded and settled, and be not moved away from the hope of the gospel which you have heard and which was preached to every creature which is under heaven; whereof I Paul am made a minister
Col 1 21-23

The hope of the gospel is that we will be like Jesus. Being like Jesus is manifested holiness.

Beloved, now are we the sons of God, and it does not yet appear what we shall be: but we know that, when he shall appear, we shall be like him; for we shall see him as he is. And every man that has this hope in him purifies himself, even as he is pure. 1 John 3:1,2

If Christ lives within us we are set apart by the unmerited favor of God and the imparted seed of the divine nature that is planted and growing within us.

And we know that God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose. For those whom He foreknew, He also predestined to become conformed to the image of His Son, so that He would be the firstborn among many brethren; and these whom He predestined, He also called; and these whom He called, He also justified; and these whom He justified, He also glorified. Romans 8:28-30

Here we see again that the glory is given through the justification(imputed holiness) and the result is transformation (imparted holiness)- being conformed (inwardly) to His image.

Anyone who loves Jesus is in agreement with this, and as John said, that hope is a purifying force within- no matter how miserably we may be failing at it.

Yes you heard me.

It is possible to BE HOLY but not ACT HOLY.

Altho when we first believe, we are made holy, there are a variety of factors that can affect how well the seed of that holiness begins to manifest in us. Many times religion binds us into failed behavior patterns through condemnation, legalism, etc. Many times we do not receive all the proper ministrations of salvation, such as water baptism, the Holy Spirit baptism, confession, counseling and healing, and are not properly equipped to overcome certain things in our lives.

Sometimes our hearts condemn us but God is greater than our hearts and knows all things.

And yes, also sometimes we are not co-operating with God in our growth as we ought. Regardless of where in that panorama we are, we ARE HOLY, because we are vessels of Christ.

If we do an unholy thing, we are still holy by rights of His ownership in us(imputed holiness) and His dwelling in us(imparted).

The range of consequences for those unholy acts are broad. Only God knows our hearts and why we may be bound in something. But if Christ dwells in us, something inside will mourn, and be at unrest, because Christ in us desires his divine neature, tabernacling in our spirit, to expand and conquer the Cannan land of our body, mind and soul.

But if I do the very thing I do not want to do, I agree with the Law, confessing that the Law is good. So now, no longer am I the one doing it, but sin which dwells in me. For I know that nothing good dwells in me, that is, in my flesh; for the willing is present in me, but the doing of the good is not. For the good that I want, I do not do, but I practice the very evil that I do not want. But if I am doing the very thing I do not want, I am no longer the one doing it, but sin which dwells in me. I find then the principle that evil is present in me, the one who wants to do good. For I joyfully concur with the law of God in the inner man, but I see a different law in the members of my body, waging war against the law of my mind and making me a prisoner of the law of sin which is in my members. Wretched man that I am! Who will set me free from the body of this death Thanks be to God through Jesus Christ our Lord! So then, on the one hand I myself with my mind am serving the law of God, but on the other, with my flesh the law of sin. Therefore there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has set you free from the law of sin and of death.  Ro 7:17-8:2

Paul defines the state of the person who is not doing what they want to do and to some extent it is true of EVERY BELIEVER, as it was for Paul, even in all his excellence. James said it aptly, "For we all stumble in many ways"

But we know this also, "Love covers a multitude of sins"- so often we are struggling with outward sins when it is inward sins that are holding us back spiritually. That is why forgiveness and love are so important. If we do not forgive, we will struggle with sin. If we do not love- practically and emotionally and spiritually- we will struggle with besetting sins.

Often believers are condemned because of an addiction, or some unholy behavior. The accuser whips them and berates them, "you are not a 'good Christian'"....."are you sure you are even saved"? Often times the outward sin is only a symptom of bitterness or pride. Often times our sins are the result of unhealed wounds- areas where we have not yet allowed the Lord in to heal us and wash us on earth, even tho He has completely healed and washed us in heaven.

Through any and all of that, any believer still is holy in both ways, imputed and imparted- but the imparted holiness wants to grow, and for it to do so we must be "renewed in the spirit of our mind", be "edified in love" and "strengthened by His Spirit in our inner man". If we do not give up hope, we will receive the hope of glory, becoming like Jesus. As long as we have this hope in us, we are purifying ourselves- even if only in our minds as we cling to grace through the mercy of God.

What we need now, is to be edified. Built up. To move from the wilderness into the land of promise- which is Christ in you the hope of glory, the tree of life standing  and the fruit of the Spirit manifesting as we abide in the Vine. But how, if we are failing and stumbling can we exchange our experience and reverse our stumblings and begin to walk as sons of the most High?

We start by listening. "Be still and know that I AM GOD." It is God who is in you to will and to work of His good pleasure, but we must listen so that we can access His grace. Often we quit listening because we are ashamed, but that is not the way to escape a wilderness experience.

"Today if you hear His voice harden not your heart as they did in the wilderness"

The adversary condemns you so that you will not listen, but if you will listen God Himself will speak to you and He will tell you three things.

I love you and I will never forsake you.

You are holy and blameless because of My son and His blood shed for you.

I will show you the way into the promised land, and you will be conformed to the image of my Son, if you will just keep listening.

This happens in the same way our salvation happened, by grace through faith. Faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God. Becoming "holy" has been so mistaught as legalism, I almost despise the word. Holiness is walking in the love of God. It is the fruit of the Spirit. It is forgiving and receiving forgiveness and being healed within. That is walking in the Spirit by grace, and as we walk in the Spirit, the old man shrinks into the ground of death and Jesus Christ rises up in humility, kindness and righteousness. The divine nature grows.

You are already holy if you love the Lord. He has given you that. His holiness is imputed to you, and altho at times you may not see it, it is imparted within you as well. It is His divine nature- Christ in you the hope of glory.

Grace and peace be multiplied to you in the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord, as His divine power has given to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of Him who called us by glory and virtue, by which have been given to us exceedingly great and precious promises, that through these you may be partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust. 1 Pet 1:2-4

To be partakers of the divine nature. That is our promised land, our hope and our only glory. So as we listen, He will lead us in.

Next chapter: Keys to the kingdom

[jabcat]

Agree, excellent.   :thumbsup:

[micah7:9]

EXCELLENT WORD :HeartThrob:

i am a soul redeemed, still i am a weak vessel, in my mind it seems my birth is troubled. Several years ago as i prayed and offered up all my weakness and sinful past, EW what you wrote...

"We start by listening. "Be still and know that I AM GOD." It is God who is in you to will and to work of His good pleasure, but we must listen so that we can access His grace. Often we quit listening because we are ashamed, but that is not the way to escape a wilderness experience.

"Today if you hear His voice harden not your heart as they did in the wilderness"

The adversary condemns you so that you will not listen, but if you will listen God Himself will speak to you and He will tell you three things.

I love you and I will never forsake you.

You are holy and blameless because of My son and His blood shed for you.

I will show you the way into the promised land, and you will be conformed to the image of my Son, if you will just keep listening."

As i prayed He shut me up and spoke a word.....LISTEN! i stopped praying and listened......listened and then i heard the words....I KNOW! He KNOWS and understanding that a great weight was lifted, lately i have found myself again in the struggle.......why......well i been doing all that praying and i quit LISTENING...
I love you and I will never forsake you.
You are holy and blameless because of My son and His blood shed for you.
I will show you the way into the promised land, and you will be conformed to the image of my Son, if you will just keep listening."

Thank you! :HeartThrob: :dsunny: He Is Risen

[sheila]

   Praise God!!!!!!!!!!   Micah  thank you for sharing that with all of us. His love and tender care for all of us is beautiful!!!

[eaglesway]

 :HeartThrob: Amen!

[marie glen]

That is a great study and encouragement.. thank you EW (and thank you Micah) :icon_flower:

So often, because of fear, we (christians) are taught to mix law with grace, but if we "mix law with grace, we are fallen from grace" and grace is what we most need!

"imputed holiness" and "imparted holiness"  :thumbsup: :banana:

[Tom]

I agree that our "holiness" is not because of anything we've done, only because we were chosen. I prefer expectation to "hope," but I think we have it because of the belief we've been given by the grace of God, again not because of anything we've done. And I think the "glory" is all God's that we just get a taste of, again not because of anything we've done, just because it is God's will to bless us.

"Out of Him and through Him and for Him is all: to Him be the glory for the eons! Amen!" (Romans 11:36)

[jabcat]

:HeartThrob: Amen!

Paraphrase of Paul to the Corinthian church;  "you've been redeemed, washed in the blood, given and made Christ's righteousness.  So with Christ living and working through you, straighten up, live like you're the redeemed child of God that you are, behave yourselves, stop sinning -- SAINTS!"