I have been shown that the greatest reason why the people of God are now found in this state of spiritual blindness is that they will not receive correction."1 Who would have imagined when Ellen White wrote this in 1873 that we would still be here 120 years later? Does this apply only to the laity? I believe not. We as leaders need also to take responsibility. Very few people like to receive correction. It goes against the carnal heart. That is why we resist the message to the church of Laodicea. What does God want us to correct? One area concerns our conceptions of what is true holiness.
Holiness is very important to God. "But just as he who called you is holy, so be holy in all you do; for it is written: 'Be holy, because I am holy'" (1 Peter 1:15, 16)*; "Make every effort to live in peace with all men and to be holy; without holiness no one will see the Lord" (Heb.12:14); "Since everything will be destroyed in this way, what kind of people ought you to be? You ought to live holy and godly lives" (2 Peter 3:11); "It is God's will that you should be sanctified. For God did not call us to be impure, but to live a holy life" (1 Thess. 4:3-7).
"The great mistake made by most of the Lord's people is in hoping to dis cover in themselves that which is to be found in Christ alone." 2
The Bible describes two types of holiness: one we possess in Christ when we are justified; and the second in which we grow more and more. The first is the result of the work of Christ for us; the second is the result of the work of the Holy Spirit in us. The first is perfect and complete and is ours the moment we trust Christ; the second is progressive and incomplete as long as we are in this life.
Hebrews 10:10 speaks of the first kind of holiness: "And by that will [of God], we have been made holy through the sacrifice of the body of Jesus Christ once for all." There is nothing more to add as far as the basis of our salvation is concerned.
We can rejoice in the perfect holiness we enjoy in Christ. "For he chose us in him before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in his sight" (Eph. 1:4); "But now he has reconciled you by Christ's physical body through death to present you holy in His sight, without blemish and free from accusation" (Col. 1:22). Do we have to wait until the end of our life to be holy? No. When do we become holy? The moment we trust in Christ we receive His righteousness as a gift. And this righteousness is perfect and complete.
However, because we are perfect in Christ does not mean that the Christian can then relax because Jesus has done it all. There is a second type of holiness. Hebrews 10:14 explains that while we are perfect in Christ "By one sacrifice he [Christ] has made perfect forever those who are being made holy"), we also need to grow in intrinsic holiness—"being made holy." God emphasizes that He does not want us walking in the ways of the world. "Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind" (Rom. 12:2). "Be transformed" is in the passive present, which indicates a continual transforming.
Tension arises when the holiness that God's people are to achieve is emphasized over the holiness they possess in Christ. Both are received by faith. Both are vital in the dynamics of salvation. No one will receive the imputed holiness of Christ without also receiving the imparted holiness of Christ. But the right order needs to be maintained. If we emphasize the latter to people who do not know the former, they will only become frustrated and desperate. Holiness of character must always be based on Christ's holiness.
Another danger occurs when we limit holiness to certain easily observed behaviors—diet, dress, recreation and for get "love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control" (Gal. 5:22). This was the mistake the Pharisees made when they cleaned only the outside of the cup while leaving the inside filthy (Matt. 23:25, 26).
We can easily miss Jesus' emphasis that how we relate to each other is the true mark of being one of His disciples: "By this all men will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another" (John 13:35).
"The badge of Christianity is not an outward sign, not the wearing of a cross or a crown, but it is that which reveals the union of God with man.... The strongest argument in favor of the gospel is a loving and lovable Christian." 3
Jesus and the Pharisees often tangled over the issue of behavior and relation ships. The Pharisees taught very high standards. They developed more than 1,500 rules for keeping the Sabbath. They criticized Christ and His disciples for rubbing a few grains of wheat together on the Sabbath. Jesus replied by quoting from Hosea 6:6: "I desire mercy, and not sacrifice" (Matt. 12:7). God had ordained the sacrifices, but sacrifice without love, mercy, a tender regard for others, is pointless. It is tragic that so often those most intent on straightening out others when it comes to behavior often exhibit the most intolerant attitudes themselves.
Laodiceans should be known as those who "obey his commands and do what pleases him. And this is his command: to believe in the name of his Son, Jesus Christ, and to love one another as he commanded us" (1 John 3:22, 23). Ac cording to John, commandment keeping involves two things: believing in Christ and loving one another. Don't misunderstand me. I am not minimizing the regular Ten Commandments or victory over sin. I am saying that it is easy to miss what the true biblical emphasis is when it comes to holiness.
Are you and I known as loving and lovable people? Holiness is being like God, and God is love. Is that the kind of holiness we as pastors and leaders are teaching and modeling?
