Holiness: The Heart God Purifies
By Nancy Leigh
DeMoss
Quotes & Summary in White – My thoughts in Red
Chapter 4 – The Face of Holiness
I hated myself; I
hated my sin… I felt that there was nothing I so much desired in this world (as
holiness), nothing I so much needed. But
so far from in any measure attaining it, the more I pursued and strove after
it, the more it eluded my grasp; till hope itself almost died… (J. Hudson
Taylor)
I prayed, agonized,
fasted, stove, made resolutions, read the Word more diligently… but all was
without effect. Every day, almost every hour, the consciousness of sin
oppressed me. (J. Hudson Taylor)
Do I have
this same desire for holiness? Do I
desire it more than anything else in the world? Do I recognize my need for
it? While I don’t think God wants us to
hate ourselves, He does want us to desire Holiness and recognize our need for
it… because He is a Holy God… He also wants us to realize that we cannot obtain
it on our own… when we try to pursue it in our own strength… we will feel like
a failure… for our Holiness comes from Christ… It is the gift He gave us when
He died on the cross for our sins. Yes…
God does desire for us to pray, fast, read His word… but He wants us to do it
out of love and because of our relationship with Him… not to “earn” anything
from Him… He is the one making us righteous… He is the one that gave us the
ability to be Holy…
While my
circumstances may not be the exact same as Hudson Taylor’s… I can understand
where he is coming from… the pressure of circumstances in my life look
different but they are still very much real and unbearable… continually
fighting with L&I, Matthew’s multiple health issues, my own migraines,
stresses of teaching (especially teaching online), endless demands on my time,
loss of a loved one… and so much more… everything can add up and if I’m not
careful I can live in my human nature and be irritable, bitter, depressed, and
prone to harshness… We all have our own trials… life is not easy and God never
said it would be… in fact we are facing a spiritual battle here on earth and
believers will face more spiritual warfare than we can imagine… that is why we
need to keep an eternal focus at all times.
“Abiding, not
striving nor struggling; looking off unto Him; trusting Him for present power;
trusting Him for to subdue all inward corruption; resting in the love of an
almighty Saviour; … this is not new, and yet ‘tis new to me. I feel as though the first dawning of a
glorious day had risen upon me.” (John McCarthy)
What is
the key? Abiding in Jesus… too often we
strive to be holy instead of abiding in the one who makes us holy. We struggle with our sins because we are not
drawing near to the One who cleans our slate and makes us new. We try do things on our own instead of
trusting in His power. We try to be
perfect instead of resting in the love of our almighty Savior… I know that this is area that I too need to
work on. Lord, help me to draw near to
You each day and rest in You… I can not do it on my own.
Jesus can keep you
and me from sinning. And when we do sin, it is He who will cleanse and pardon
us. Through the Cross of Christ, God has
made provision for every sin we could possibly commit. His grace is infinitely more powerful than
any sinful bondage.
Our
salvation and our ability to not sin comes from Christ alone. He is the One who pardons us and cleanses us
from our sins. He is the One that gives
us the strength to turn away from our sins and to be free from the bondage of
sin. When we try to do it on our own, we
only fall defeated and discouraged. We
need to remain focused on His grace and power…
As we look upon Him,
we are changed into His image. At the
moment, our ability to behold the Savior is limited, because we are in these
finite bodies and still have to contend with our corrupt flesh. But one day, totally freed from sin, we will be
able to see Christ clearly, as He is.
Seeing Him, we will adore Him fully and will be drawn to become like
Him. In that moment, our transformation
into His likeness will be complete.
The longing of my
heart—and the longing of every follower of Christ—is to be like Him. That transformation is not something we can
produce on our own, apart from the power of His indwelling Holy Spirit. The Lord Jesus invites you to cease your
striving, to come to Him, and to find rest for your soul. As you meditate on His magnificence and
follow in His footsteps, He will bring about in you a marvelous transformation
that will be completed when you finally see Him face-to-face.
Spending
time with Jesus changes us… I want to spend time in the Word, not because it
saves me but because it is the only way I will become more like my Savior… I
may not understand everything here on earth… because I am trapped in my finite
body but one day, I will be able to see clearly and rejoice fully and what a
day that will be. Until then I will
relish in the moments of joy that I have with the Lord… the moments I feel
close to Him and feel His presence here on earth.
As we look at the
jumbled pieces of our lives, sometimes it’s hard to fathom that they could ever
form anything attractive. God has given
us a picture that shows what we will look like when He has finished His
sanctifying, transforming work in our lives.
It’s a picture of Jesus. He is
the pattern for our lives. We need to be
constantly reminded what the finished product is supposed to look like. That’s why it’s vital that we keep looking at
the picture throughout the assembly process.
Just as we
need to see the finished product of a puzzle while we are working on it… being
able to see Jesus helps us to complete the process of Sanctification. He is the finished product and as we keep our
gaze on Him and constantly look to Him, He will do the amazing transforming
work in us… He will sit next to us and work on the “puzzle” with us. We are not expected to do it alone… but we
have to sit at the table with Him and be a part of the process.
Jesus is holiness
with a face. To be holy is to be like
Him. Let’s take a closer look at this
portrait of holiness in human flesh. As
we do, ask yourself how your life compares to Jesus in each of these
traits. The answer will help you
identify where you are in the process of becoming holy.
·
His
relationship with His Father
o
He lived
a life of total dependence on His Father.
o
He was
fully surrendered to the will of His Father.
o
He lived
to please God rather than men.
I think I struggle with depending completely on God. I want to be secure here on earth and so I
work hard to find a little bit of that security instead of trusting God to
provide everything for me… even though I know and have seen Him provide even
when I have had nothing in the past… Lord, help me to depend on You even now
when I have a job that pays more… help me to surrender completely to Your will…
help my focus to be on what pleases You and not mankind. May I live a life that glorifies You in all I
do and say.
o
His
supreme motivation was to glorify God.
o
He
exalted the eternal over the temporal.
While I do desire to glorify God, I don’t think I can say that it is
my supreme motivation… I have so many other things fighting for my
attention. All too often I am motivated
by what I can get out of a situation… or earthly benefits (money, praise,
etc.). Lord, help turn my focus to the eternal things… things that really
matter and away from the earthly, temporal things that just waste my time. Help me to focus on glorifying You each and
every day… doing things that bring praise to Your Name.
o
He was
selfless and put other ahead of Himself
o
He was
available to those who needed Him, even when they interrupted Him at
inconvenient times.
o
He was
submissive to human authorities.
o
He was
merciful and extended forgiveness to those who wronged Him.
Relationships can be messy… yet Jesus lived out a perfect example on
how to love others and put them first always… Jesus served unconditionally…
even when He was tired or frustrated with their lack of understanding. There are times I do a really good job at
serving others… it really depends on my energy level… we hear a lot about the
importance of self-care, and we can spend so much time taking care of ourselves
that we never spend any time serving others.
I work in a job where I serve others all day long… and then I come home
and serve Matthew. Do I do it perfectly?
NO! But I try… and when I fail, I try
again. Jesus is the one who gives me strength
when I want to give up at times. I also submit to human authorities… I may not
do it with the best attitude, and I should work on that, but I am a rule
follower by nature. Mercy and
forgiveness to those who have wronged me is something I have been working on a
lot lately. It is easy to forgive the
little things… but I struggled with the deeper hurts for a long time. I am doing better at it… perfect? No, but
better.
o
He spoke
only the words His Father told Him to speak.
o
He
always spoke the Truth.
o
He spoke
gracious words that ministered to the needs of the hearers
Lord, I know that I often fail in how I use my words. Forgive me… forgive me when I use my words to
hurt others, when I use my words to spread gossip, when I use my words to tear
down instead of build-up. Help me to
keep a tight rain on my tongue. Help me
to speak truth but to do so in love.
Help me to use my words to minister to the needs of others. May my words be a blessings to others.
o
He lived
a life of praise and thankfulness.
o
He was
bold when people needed to be confronted with wrongdoing; He was courageous
when the will of God required Him to do something difficult.
o
He was
not competitive or jealous.
Lord, I too desire to live a life of praise and thankfulness… I know
that it is not as easy to do so during the trials… that is why I come to You
and seek Your strength… fill me up and give me strength during this time at
work when it is stressful, and we are understaffed… may I find reasons to be
thankful. May I be bold when I need to
be, yet graceful at the same time. I
know that many others are struggling as well so help me to see that and believe
the best in others. May I recognize that
people want the best… May I be just as courageous for You as I am for my
students. May I love others well. May I not be vindictive or competitive with
others but seek ways to love and support them.
Lord, I want to live like You do… like the example You left behind.
o
He was
filled with the Holy Spirit and manifested the fruit of the Spirit at all
times:
Lord, I want to be so filled with the Holy
Spirit that He overflows from my life… I want His characters to flow out of me…
I want His fruit to be evident in my life at all times… If I can do it at a
fraction of what You did Jesus than I would be doing it better than I do
now.
·
Love –
He loved God will all His heart. He
loved others selflessly and sacrificially.
Lord, I go back in forth in this area… there are times that I am on
fire for God… that He is constantly on my mind, and I can’t wait for when I can
spend time with Him again… and then there are times when I am distant and cold
towards Him… forgive me for those times and draw me back into a loving
relationship. I want to love others
better as well. There are people in my
life that I love selflessly and sacrificially (to a point…) but how often would
I do the same for an enemy. There is so
much work that needs to be done in my heart in this area. Lord, only You can transform me.
·
Joy – He
was full of joy in the Lord. His joy was
independent of circumstances, because He trusted God’s sovereign control in all
things.
Once again this is an area that I go back and forth in… I have
endured some difficult trials… and through them there have been times that I
have remained joyful… I didn’t let the circumstances steal the hope that I have
in the Lord… but there have also been trials that have knocked me down and left
me in a dark hole. Did I know God was in
control? Yes, but I wasn’t living in
that truth, I was living in the moment… letting the pain and hurt overwhelm
me. Joy during the trials is
supernatural and only found in You, Lord.
·
Peace –
He was calm and peaceful in the midst of storms, in the press of the crowd, and
when facing the cross.
Peace… I am more apt to have peace in the storms than joy… but just
like all the other qualities I am not perfect in this area either. There are times when I let worry get the
better of me. I think I have grown in
this area because all of the trials I have endured… I know that God was with me
through them all… He has not once left alone.
It has given me strength to endure the future trials as they come. I may not enjoy them (or be joyful) but I can
trust that He will get me through them.
·
Patience
– He was long-suffering; He willingly endured adverse circumstances as well as
injuries inflicted by others.
I learned long ago not to pray for patience… because the only way to
grow in patience is through the trials… let me tell you, I have grown in
patience. I am more patient today than I
was 10 years ago. Perfect, no… but I am
learning to wait in the Lord’s timing. I
am learning to endure the trials… by looking to Christ in the midst of
them.
·
Kindness
– He demonstrated genuine concern for others.
Lord, I know that there is always room for growth in every
area. Overall, kindess is a character of
the Holy Spirit that flows through me… especially to people who have not
treated me badly… they don’t necessarily have had to do something for me as
long as they have done something to “hurt me”.
I am less kind to those who have hurt me, so I have room for
growth. I feel like I do have compassion
for others… ever since I was a child, I have always looked out for the underdog…
I stood up for people being bullied, I spent time with peers with disabilities
on the playground… it is something God has put on my heart…
·
Goodness
– His inner moral excellence manifested itself in active good works toward
others.
So many “religions” have a scale to determine if your “good” works
outweigh your “bad” deeds… but that is not what this is all about. I am not to do good works to earn my way to
heaven but as a manifestation of the Holy Spirit within me. When I am allowing Him complete access to my
life then good works will naturally follow… when I am focused on myself, sin is
more apt to follow. Lord, may my life
reflect good works towards others so You can be glorified in me.
·
Faithfulness
– He was utterly trustworthy and always true to the will of God.
Lord, I wish I could say I was always trustworthy and true to Your will…
I know I have failed so many times… but I’m not going to give up and stop
trying… when I fail, please pick me back up and help me to get back on the
right path. I want to walk closely with You
and live-in obedience to what You are asking of me.
·
Meekness
– He endured misunderstanding and abuse without retaliating.
Lord, I have not always been meek… many times I have tried to defend
myself… especially when attacked with false claims… in my head I have so many
responses ready to go… whether I verbalize them or not. Help me to trust You and not need to prove
myself to others… knowing that Your glory is more important than my own… I don’t
need to be right in the eyes of others… I can’t let it go. It is so hard to turn the other cheek when I
am attacked but that is the example that You left behind for us. May I follow in that example so that You are
glorified.
·
Self-control
– He was temperate; His natural passions and appetites were always under the
control of the Holy Spirit.
Lord, I wish I could say that all my natural passions and appetites
were always under control of the Holy Spirit… but I know that so often I fail
and fall into the temptations… I cave to my own desires. I constantly need you to pick me back up,
cleanse me and help me to start over again on the right path.
The call to holiness
is a call to follow Christ. A pursuit of
holiness that is not Christ-centered will soon be reduced to moralism,
pharisaical self-righteousness, and futile self-effort. Only by fixing our eyes and our hope on
Christ can we experience that authentic, warm, inviting holiness that He alone
can produce in us.
When we
try to be holy on our own, we will fail every time… I don’t want to live like
the pharisees… bound to rules so that I appear “holy” on the outside but
knowing that inside I am a mess. I want
to live in a deep relationship with Christ… and allow Him to make the necessary
changes in my life… to clean me from the inside out. I want His holiness to shine
through me…
No amount of
striving or self-effort can make us holy.
Only Christ can do that. As we
turn our eyes upon Him, we will find Him to be our “priceless treasure, source
of purest pleasure.” We will begin to
desire Him- His beauty, His righteousness—more than we desire the sparkling
enticements this world has to offer. And
we will be transformed into His likeness.
Lord, I
want to desire You more than anything else… I want all the other enticements to
fade away into the background so that You can become my only desire once again.
I have lived with that intimacy before and I want it back.
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