1 Thessalonians 4:7
"For God hath not called us unto uncleanness, but unto Holiness."
Many people ask, "What do I need to do? What commandments do I need to follow to be holy? Should I go back and pick up some of those Old Testament laws and ceremonies?" Some preachers will preach grace but then turn around and mix it with laws and ceremonies. However, there is nothing you can do to be holy. You must be chosen by God from eternity, and one for whom the LORD Jesus paid your sin debt, and God has justified you by His death at the cross.
When one of God's chosen children is called to Holiness, it is a call to Christ. To understand God's Holiness, you must have Him—His Person and His finished work on the cross—revealed by His Holy Spirit.
Everything flows from the cross, where Christ shed His blood unto death for His elect. That is where a sinner is declared holy, sanctified, redeemed, and righteous, IN Christ. It is by the just satisfaction for sin in His death and His earned Righteousness. It is not something you do,. It is what God has done.
This call to Holiness is a revelation of the work of Christ. It is to consider the Person of Christ, Who IS the Holy One, "For thy Maker is thine Husband; the LORD of hosts is His name; and thy Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel” (Isaiah 54:5). To be called to Christ is to be called to Holiness. It is to be called to His Holiness, His Person, and His work. It is to be called because of His work— the righteousness He established by His obedient life and death on the cross—which God accepted and imputed to my account. That is why I am called, and therefore I am separated from this world IN Him. This calling affects all my motives and conduct by the Spirit of God. "But as He which hath called you is Holy, so be ye Holy in all manner of conversation” (1 Peter 1:15).
Now, we speak of His Righteousness. We speak of His finished work on the cross, His suffering on our behalf—-the Just for the unjust. We speak of His precious blood shed unto death for vile sinners such as we are. We honor Him alone as our ALL.
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