Pursuing Holiness 2

“Pursue holiness…without [holiness] no one will see the Lord” (Hebrews 12:14
NKJV).

In an earlier blog, we discovered that the above verse functions as a warning to believers not to give up the pursuit of holiness. The pursuit of holiness becomes an indicator of one’s spiritual life. If one gives up the pursuit of holiness he is revealing his lack of faith in Christ. But, the person who continues this pursuit in spite of the difficulty shows that he does have faith in Christ. However, still another question arises from this verse, that is, if I am going to pursue holiness, what is holiness?

The technical theological term for pursuing holiness and the process is sanctification. The Westminster divines address this question in question 36, “What is sanctification? Sanctification is the work of God’s free grace, whereby we are renewed in the whole man after the image of God, and are enabled more and more to die unto sin, and live unto righteousness.”[1] This definition implies that sanctification is a process that takes place over one’s entire life and affects one’s whole life. It is “both a status and condition”[2] The believer's status before God is perfect righteousness because of Christ’s death. “However, this status does not mean that the believer is in a wholly sanctified condition.” Martin Luther expressed this truth with the Latin phrase simul justus et peccator (“at once righteous and a sinner”). Believers will remain in this condition until they reach heaven because “sanctification is never complete in this life…Yet, as Thomas Boston notes, the work of sanctification will progress in us because ‘of the continued application of the blood of Christ to the believer by the Spirit.’” Thomas Watson adds, “’If [sanctification] does not grow it is because it does not live.’”

The Puritans used the term universal to describe the complete change that sanctification effects. “Everything is to be sanctified. Holiness…affects our privacy with God, the confidentiality of our homes, the competitiveness of our work, the pleasures of social friendship, and our Lord’s Day worship. No time is exempt.” The change is not only universal, but it is also “inward” and “moral” as 1 Thessalonians 5:23 and Galatians 5:22-23 suggest.

Sanctification involves both “[dying] unto sin” or mortification and “living unto righteousness” or vivification. “Mortification… involves putting to death every form of sin…watching and praying against any sinful habits in such a way that, whenever a bad impulse arises, you immediately recognize what is happening and ask the Lord for strength to refuse it.”

“Vivification is being quickened from the heart to do God’s will” (See Heb 13:20, 21). In other words, one is seeking grace to live in obedience to God’s Law, which is received through the means of grace (the Word, prayer, and worship) both privately and corporately. Perfect righteousness or holiness is described in God’s Law. Therefore, one must perfectly follow the Law of God to be righteous or holy. However, we must remember that God’s Law does not make us righteous or sanctified. Only Christ through faith makes one righteous, and a believer behaves righteously because of being made righteous. Thus, one’s status affects his condition.

If we are going to pursue holiness, we must seek the grace from God and mortify every sin that creeps into our lives so that every area of our life is holy to the Lord. The Word of God, prayer, and worship are the ways God works to apply grace to the hearts of his people. To be holy, we must make use of these means of grace on a regular basis both privately and corporately.

[1] Westminster Shorter Catechism. Q.35 available @ http://www.reformed.org/documents/wsc/index.html
[2] This blog is a summary of two chapters entitled Sanctification in Puritan Thought and Practice from Beeke, Joel R. Living for God’s Glory An Introduction to Calvinism (Reformation Trust 2008) all quotes unless otherwise noted are from Beeke. This excellent introduction to Calvinism is available @ http://www.heritagebooks.org/bookstore/catalog/product_info.php?products_id=9347

Pursuing Holiness

“Pursue holiness…without [holiness] no one will see the Lord” (Hebrews 12:14 NKJV).

This passage of Scripture could very easily cause many Christians to despair of ever making heaven his home because we know intuitively that no person is absolutely holy. The Christian life is fraught with dangers, which trip up even the best believers. In light of this verse, how can one have any assurance of his eternal destiny?

The first clause in this verse is the command to pursue holiness, and the second clause gives the reason one should follow the command. Consequently, the function of the passage is not to suggest that one must earn his right to eternal life by pursuing a life of holiness; rather, it functions as a warning to believers not to give up the pursuit of holiness. The pursuit of holiness becomes an indicator of one’s spiritual life. If one gives up the pursuit of holiness he is revealing his lack of faith in Christ. But, the person who continues this pursuit in spite of the difficulty shows that he does have faith in Christ.

However, understanding this does not necessarily solve the dilemma because believers are often blind to their progress in holiness. John Calvin encourages those who do not see much progress in holiness though they pursue it: “But seeing that, in this earthly prison of the body, no man is supplied with strength sufficient to hasten in his course with due [eagerness], while the greater number are so oppressed with weakness, that hesitating, and halting, and even crawling on the ground, they make little progress, let every one of us go as far as his humble ability enables him, and prosecute the journey once begun. No one will travel so badly as not daily to make some degree of progress. This, therefore, let us never cease to do, that we may daily advance in the way of the Lord; and let us not despair because of the slender measure of success. How little soever the success may correspond with our wish, our labour is not lost when to-day is better than yesterday, provided with true singleness of mind we keep our aim, and aspire to the goal, not speaking flattering things to ourselves, nor indulging our vices, but making it our constant endeavour to become better, until we attain to goodness itself. If during the whole course of our life we seek and follow, we shall at length attain it, when relieved from the infirmity of flesh we are admitted to full fellowship with God.”[1]

Let us not forget, as well, that while believers must pursue holiness, attaining it is not ultimately dependent on human effort but on Jesus Christ. Paul informs believers that “[Jesus Christ] became for us wisdom from God—and righteousness and sanctification [or holiness] and redemption.”[2] Believers become holy through faith in Christ through the use of the means of grace (prayer, Bible, and worship); therefore, pursuing holiness is actually pursuing Christ. This is the reason the author of Hebrews charges believers to “fix… [their] eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of faith.”[3]

A believer should not despair of making heaven his home if he is not perfectly holy. One may rest assured of his heavenly destiny if he is pursuing holiness through faith in Christ even if his progress is minimal. However, beware that assurance does not turn into complacency and so turn one from the pursuit of holiness without which he will not see the Lord.

Pastor Jeremy Lee
Twining Baptist Church

[1] Calvin, John. The Institutes of the Christian Religion (Hendrickson 2005) 3.6.5 A special thanks to John Botkin for pointing this passage from Calvin out to me and inspiring this post. See his article @ http://deadtheologian.wordpress.com/2009/03/25/the-slow-steady-fight-for-holiness/
[2] 1 Corinthians 1:30 NKJV
[3] Hebrews 12:2 NASB