How can I be holy as God is holy? This question comes from the bottom of my heart! Who I am in God is the most important purpose and goal of my life. God proved His love for me by coming in flesh and dying on a cross to purchase my eternal salvation. Living a Holy Ghost controlled life is a wonderful opportunity to glorify God in my body and spirit that belong to God (1 Cor. 6: 18-20).
Do you want to live in heaven forever and ever and ever? This thought is exciting to me and is hard to describe because God has a bigger plan for His Bride in eternity than any of us can imagine. The next major event in God’s prophecy is His return in the clouds with the voice of a trumpet to call His Bride. The dead in Christ shall rise first and we that are alive and remain shall be caught up in the air with them to meet the Lord and live with Him forever! (1 Thess. 4:14-18 & 1 Thess. 5:9-11).
The Bride of Christ will rule and reign with God over the new heaven and new earth that He creates after the 7 years of the tribulation and the 1,000 years of peace. (Yes, there are a lot of prophecy details I’m leaving out, but it will happen! My father, the late Rev. Raymond G. Theobald, was an Eschatology theologian. I grew up in the study of Revelations).
How can I be holy as God is holy? Let’s search the scriptures wherein we think we have eternal life. We must obey the call to salvation according to Acts 2 accepting Jesus’ death on the cross as our justification for our sins. Sanctification is the process of being holy as He is holy until our glorification when He comes in the clouds for His Bride.
I love to study Galatians the 5th chapter. The works of the flesh versus the Fruit of the Spirit. If we have experienced the baptism of the Holy Ghost, we must allow God’s Spirit to work through us to create love, joy and peace. Galatians 5:22-25 Amplified Bible (AMP)
22 “But the fruit of the Spirit [the result of His presence within us] is love [unselfish concern for others], joy, [inner] peace, patience [not the ability to wait, but how we act while waiting], kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23 gentleness, self-control. Against such things there is no law. 24 And those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the [a]sinful nature together with its passions and appetites.
25 If we [claim to] live by the [Holy] Spirit, we must also walk by the Spirit [with personal integrity, godly character, and moral courage—our conduct empowered by the Holy Spirit].” This is living being Holy Ghost controlled.
The works of the flesh: Galatians 5:19-21 Amplified Bible (AMP)
19 “Now the practices of the [a]sinful nature are clearly evident: they are sexual immorality (including addiction to porn), impurity, sensuality (total irresponsibility, lack of self-control),20 [b]idolatry, [c]sorcery, hostility, strife, jealousy, fits of anger, disputes, dissensions, factions [that promote heresies], 21 envy, drunkenness, riotous behavior, and otherthings like these. I warn you beforehand, just as I did previously, that those who practice such things will not inherit the kingdom of God.” God’s Word is directive in how we ought to behave ourselves.
As we study I Corinthians 13, it describes God’s love – long suffering, kind, not jealous, not proud, is not selfish, good behavior, not easily angered, and thinks no evil. If we profess God’s love, we do not rejoice in evil, we rejoice in truth, we bear all things, we endure all things, and God’s love through us never fails. Does this describe you allowing God’s love to shine through you?
Being holy has He is holy is allowing God’s Spirit to rule and reign in our hearts in all areas of our lives. The greatest commandment says we are to love God with our whole heart, soul, mind and strength (Mark 12). Our heart, soul and mind are the seat of our emotions and will. The brain is the computer that processes our choices. Our strength is in the flesh, allowing God to be in control.
We are to be separated from sin and consecrated to God, sacred. We are to be morally and spiritually pure in God’s sight. We are to sanctify self, forsaking sin and living a “holy” manner of life. It’s putting God in the middle of everything in our life!
Psalms 101 & Psalm 119: 37 instruct us not to set anything wicked, evil or worthless before our eyes. I do this out of my love toward God. I want Him to be able to say to me, “Well done, thou good and faithful servant!” What is your goal for eternity?
Yes, it is possible to be holy as He is holy when we allow God to be the center of all our thoughts, feelings and actions. There is total freedom in this way of life. It’s all about choosing what is most important to us. Our hearts rule our actions. When God rules our hearts, then we are making holy decisions of conduct. It’s being Holy Ghost controlled. Join me in this delightful way of life!
© Carol Clemans – October 2016 – Bible teacher, Certified Pastoral Counselor, teaching for churches/conferences. Provides nationwide counseling by phone/Skype (636) 448-0121. Go to ‘about ministry’ page on www.carolclemans.org for details of life, ministry and education, teaching CD’s, DVD’s, book: God’s Design for Marriage.