The Lord has called us to holiness. The beauty of holiness is that it not only pleases the Lord, but we also in the process of holiness, we become whole. Holiness requires surrender to God’s will and His ways rather than using our will power trying to make it happen.
Just as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before Him in love. Ephesians 1:4
When our desires, passions, and pursuits are to honor Him with our lives, He strips us of the world and purges us of ourselves. Holiness is a lifelong process.
The words “in love” are key in defining this process. When we are in His love, we are secure in our relationship with Him because of Jesus. We do not seek to earn God’s favor or secure eternity but strive for holiness because it pleases our heavenly Father.
As performance-oriented people, we often focus on accomplishing milestones rather than allowing God to lead us on a lifelong journey. Deep inside, we hope to become whole quickly so we can focus on doing His work or fixing others.
The Lord continually reminds us that we cannot solve the world’s problems, but we can allow Him to work in us. If God’s will and His kingdom are not established within us, we cannot influence His kingdom around us. The extent to which the Lord has taken hold of our lives determines the level of impact we have in affecting change around us. As we grow in Christlikeness, we become the salt and light the world needs.
Often, in Christian cliché, we say we love Jesus and that He is in our hearts. The question is not whether Jesus is in our heart, but how much of our heart belongs to Jesus? This is the essence of our lives. We cannot allow both Jesus and self to be the master. We cannot have two masters.
If we truly have a heart to live a holy life, He will not relent until He has it all. Our hearts must be completely captured by God. Every room, closet, and basement must belong to Him. He searches every corner, every hidden intent, exposing all things. Victory is only complete when the spirit man is in charge, and the flesh has been overcome. No idolatry or religious piety can remain.
The control of our hearts must be fully given to Jesus. We must apply the cross to our ideas, thoughts, opinions, and past experiences. They are finished. The authority and the kingdom have been given to someone far more powerful. He is the ruler who sets the order and the rules. Whatever His new government establishes becomes the standard. The old is dead, holding no power or authority.
Praise God for His goodness. Praise God for His authority and power to bring about the transformation only He can accomplish.