4. Living With Holiness

Introduction

A Clean Heart devotionals are available.

Read passage: 1 Peter 1:13-25 (ESV)

Biblical: Peter makes a remarkable claim: Our identity as born again children of God is the basis and foundation for ethics and morality. “Therefore” (v. 13)… “As obedient children” (v. 14)… “as he who called you is holy, you also be holy in all your conduct” (v. 15).

Subject: Live with holiness. Complements: (a) What does it mean to be holy? (b) Why does God care about my holiness? (c) How do we live with holiness?

Body

What does it mean to be holy?

Exposition: To be holy means to live for God rather than for self or society

God’s children are not enslaved to self-indulgence but exercise self-control. (1 Peter 1:13)

Society’s ethics: “If I have a desire, it must be good. God made me this way, so how can it be wrong?”

1 Peter 1:14…

Not every desire is a good desire. What happened to the doctrine of sin?

Just because you have a desire does not mean you have to indulge that desire. With God’s help, you can say no.

Illustration: “Holiness is not the absence of sinful desire. Holiness is choosing what God says is right in spite of sinful desire.” ~ Christopher Yuan

Application: 1 Peter 1:14-16

Don’t be conformed to self or to society. Be conformed to God.

Don’t be the best version of you. Be the clearest reflection of Jesus.

Why does God care about my holiness?

Exposition

God cares about your holiness because he loves you. (1 Peter 1:18-21)

The world’s way of life is a futile, meaningless way of life that is temporary, fading, and only leads to death.

According to a story in the Washington Post from this past week, there have been 39 mass shooting in the U.S. already in 2023. And there has been a 60% increase in homicides committed by minors in the last five years.

Society has lost all credibility to tell me what I should think and how I should live.

Example: The commercial where the mom takes her 10-year-old kid to the cell phone store and says, “You can have any phone you want.”

1 Peter 1:24-25… But God has rescued you through Jesus’s death and resurrection because he loves you.

God cares about your holiness because he loves the world, too. (1 Peter 1:22-23) God’s plan to redeem the world is to send redeemed people into the world.

Illustration

“Laws cannot make people good. And without good people you cannot have a good society.” ~ C. S. Lewis

Matthew 12:33-35

Application: We can’t fix the problems in society until we deal with the sin in our own hearts.

How do we live with holiness?

Exposition

Fear God. (1 Peter 1:17; Matt 12:36) Don’t forget who’s the Boss. “Don’t get too big for your breeches.”

Love one another. (1 Peter 1:22) What is love?

Love is not how great I feel when I’m with you.

Love is not you complete me.

Love is not automatically affirming everything you want or say.

Love is devoting yourself to the highest good of another.

Illustration: Pre-marital counseling

Lean on God’s grace. (1 Peter 1:13)

Conclusion

Our identity as born again children of God is the foundation for our ethics and morality. As God’s children, we are to live with holiness.

Holiness means living for God rather than for self or society. Don’t be the best version you; be the clearest reflection of Jesus.

God cares about our holiness because he loves us and he loves the world, and his plan to redeem the world is to send redeemed people into the world.

We live with holiness by fearing God, loving one another, and leaning on grace.