IN PURSUIT OF HOLINESS

48. REAL LOVE Love must be sincere. Hate what is evil; cling to what is good. Bedevoted to one another in brotherly love. Honor one another aboveyourselves (Romans 12:9, 10). Like everything good, love can be pretended and hypocritical.Genuine love is oriented towards others. It seeks the highest welfare ofothers. In a word, love is unselfish. Anytime we react selfishly we arenot acting in love. The truth about love is just that simple, just thatsearching. We know that Paul, to use a popular phrase, “is all about love.”To him it is a “way,” a road the believer is to travel. All of one’s life isto be dominated by a love that hates evil and does good. In his letters, when Paul talks about spiritual gifts he abruptlyinserts the subject of love. Why? Perhaps experience taught him thatwhen exercising spiritual gifts men and women sometimes left the wayof love to show off. See what I can do. Listen to what I know. Spiritualgifts are desirable and vital but they come with dangers attached. Weavoid those ego-traps by a loving exercise of those gifts. Love is unselfish. It devotes us to another’s honor, to another’sneeds. What the Lord has given us in love, let us exercise in love,seeking to exalt him and to benefit others. May our love be real, notpretended. 51

49. ALWAYS IN DEBT Let no debt remain outstanding, except the continuing debt to loveone another, for he who loves his fellowman has fulfilled the law. Thecommandments, \"Do not commit adultery,\" \"Do not murder,\" \"Do notsteal,\" \"Do not covet,\" and whatever other commandment there may be,are summed up in this one rule: \"Love your neighbor as yourself.\" Lovedoes no harm to its neighbor. Therefore love is the fulfillment of the law(Romans 13:8-10). The beloved KJV reads, “Owe no man anything…” That soundslike we are never to buy on credit or to borrow money. That isn’t whatPaul said or meant. He is saying that we will always be in debt. We oweit to God and people to live toward them in genuine love--not in mushysentiment, but in active good will. Not in Valentine Card love, but inGood Samaritan love. Love fulfills the law. We won’t wrong or harm neighbors if wetruly love them. Instead, we will try to help them in whatever ways wecan to improve their lives. We start by sharing the gospel message offull and free salvation from sin. Gospel and groceries are the rightcombination--help rendered in spiritual and material ways. In Paul’s scale of values love is greater than faith or hope, both ofwhich are huge factors in Christian experience. Both are betrayed,however, when we live and give without loving. Paul refers to living inlove as clothing oneself with Christ and wearing the armor of light. Wewant to be properly dressed. 52

50. SLAY THE MONSTER For since there is jealousy and quarreling among you, are you notworldly? Are you not acting like mere men? (1 Corinthians 3:3). The Lord can deliver us from jealousy and from the quarreling thatjealousy spawns. By his grace, the “green-eyed monster” can be slain.Jealousy is a monster that breeds constant and consuming strife. When the Lord’s people act out of jealousy they are behaving like\"mere men,” like men without Christ. Their words and deeds arecentered in themselves, not oriented toward others. They envy thepleasures and successes of one another. To hear others praised is painfulto hearts that are greedy for attention and commendation. From such wicked attitudes the Lord wants to shame us and changeus. He can enable us to rejoice in every servant that he empowers toreach others for his kingdom. He can enable us to take delight in the giftshe bestows upon others and in the good works resulting from theirexercise of those grace-gifts. He can slay the monster of jealousy and letus see others as co-workers instead of competitors. We must not act like“mere men” and women; we must act like the Lord’s men and women. “In love preferring one another” can become a reality, thanks to theLord’s cleansing grace and abiding love. Praise his name! Today, let uslovingly affirm the good that others are doing and share the cost of gettingit done. 53

51. THE TEMPLE Do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit, who isin you, whom you have received from God?\" (1 Corinthians 6:19, RSV). The Lord has conferred high honor on our bodies. They aremembers of Christ. They are temples of the Spirit. They are destined tobe raised from death. Our bodies are given respect and value because weare redeemed; we are “bought with a price” by the sacrifice of Christ’sbroken body and outpoured blood. What the Lord has provided at such great expense we should valuewith great respect. We should indeed “glorify” him in our bodies bymaking them instruments of good and not evil. Some of us are temples in need of repairs. We are old, weak, shakyand weather-beaten. Though the temples aren't much to look at, the innerglory is still the Holy Spirit. He is a fire, a light, a presence and energy notof this world. Though the temples deteriorate, we will continue to tend the altarflames. Each day we will offer anew our bodies for the Lord’s service. Hewill enable us to walk and talk, to love and lift, to think and work to theglory of his name. The human body should be an instrument of service, not an objectof lust. It is part of what God created and called “good.” To treat ourbodies with contempt is to insult the creator. 54

52. AIM HIGH Follow the way of love... (1 Corinthians 14:1). Another version tells us to “Make love your aim.” We can aim atnothing higher. The Bible makes it clear that love excels all spiritualgifts, all prophetic powers, all esoteric knowledge, all good works, allfaith and all hope. Wow! That’s an impressive list. Without love,however, these are all robbed of value and we are reduced to “nothing.”It doesn’t take a whiz at mathematics to know that “nothing” isn’tmuch. All that we are and have and do shrinks to zero compared to love,the love described in chapter 13--a Jesus-like love. Such love is not anabstraction, not a sentiment, but a pathway--“a still more excellent way.”Love leads to God in worship and leads to our neighbors in service. Theway of love is costly at times; it doesn’t allow us to withhold anythingfrom God or from our neighbors. It makes us brothers and sisters, notcompetitors, within the church. Aiming at love, we will not seek authorityor attention; instead we will minister to the well being of others. Only God’s transforming grace makes such a life of love possible.He must live in us and with us and through us. Otherwise, love will onlymock us as a concept we approve when it should be a reality weexperience. 55

53. THE TESTIMONY OF CONSCIENCE Our conscience testifies that we have conducted ourselves in theworld, and especially in our relations with you, in the holiness and sinceritythat are from God (2 Corinthians 1:12). How comforting is a good conscience when a person has beenmisunderstood and wrongly accused. We don’t see how any who preachcan escape unfair criticism and untrue charges. Being duty-bound toreprove sin, we will anger some sinners. Responsible for oversight of thechurch, we will incur the wrath of carnal church members. Hurt, angrypeople can quickly turn ministers into scapegoats or punching bags. Wehave seen this happen many times. How others act is not our problem, however. How we react can be.Nothing helps the Lord’s servants to “keep their cool” when under attacklike the testimony of a good conscience. If we know we have beenmisunderstood we can strive patiently to clear up the matter. If we knowwe have honestly and kindly explained and applied God’s word, we canendure hostility without wishing for revenge or wallowing in self-pity. Ifwe have behaved in sincerity and holiness, we can leave with the Lord allour failed efforts at reconciliation with our critics. He will enable us tolive and work in holiness and sincerity. 56

54. PROMISES, POWERS, PERFECTING Since we have these promises, dear friends, let us purify ourselvesfrom everything that contaminates body and spirit, perfecting holiness out ofreverence for God (2 Corinthians 7:1). The holy life is based upon great promises: The promise ofacceptance--“I will receive you;” the promise of adoption--“I will be afather to you;” the promise of God’s abiding Spirit--“I will live withthem” (6:16-18). Upon such a foundation we should build sanctuaries,not shanties. Having “these promises” we cannot plead our weakness as anexcuse for uncleanness. The promises are signed by “the Lord Almighty.”His are the resources by which we renounce alliances with “wickedness,”“darkness,” and “Belial” (6:14-15). His is the power by which we cleanseourselves from all that defiles body and spirit. Fearing him we will notfear the world. We will not adopt its values and behaviors in order toavoid its rejection or curry its favor. We will accept the fact that holinessis separation. Only as we are separated from sin can we effectively servesinners. Holiness is a matter of family resemblance. By divine grace, aninner power greater than life’s outer pressures can make us increasinglylike the Lord. 57

55. IMPLORING IMPROVEMENT ...our prayer is for your perfection (2 Corinthians 13:9). The RSV reads \"for your improvement.\" To become perfected(completed) calls for constant improvement. Paul wished for the church an improved discernment. They hadfailed to discern between true and false apostles. In his ministry \"thesigns of a true apostle\" were evident. His scars were tokens of fidelity toJesus, to the gospel and to the church. Ignoring him, the foolishCorinthians had warmed to shallow and self-serving men of cunningminds and eloquent tongues, men who preached a false gospel formonetary rewards and personal fame. Paul sought also their improved deportment. Under the spell ofsome parasitic charlatans the Corinthians had not behaved as holy peoplereflecting the likeness of God. Moral compromises had stained their lives.He prays that they \"will not do anything wrong...but will do what isright.\" Such a high goal required them to order their lives \"by God'spower.\" The Corinthian syndrome can be seen in many churches today.The same \"improvement,\" is desperately needed now as then. Ourprayers ascend for those who are deluded and debased. Like Paul, letus gladly spend and be spent for the holiness of the Church. And likePaul, let us send no message to others that we are unwilling to accept forourselves. 58

56. SERVANTS THROUGH LOVE ...serve one another in love (Galatians 5:13). Serve! How the world despises that word. The world accordsgreatness to those who have servants, not to those who are servants. Jesus’ kingdom is not of this world. He turns this world's valuesystem upside down. He came, not to be served, but to serve, and to givehis life for others. We are called to be like him. Service in love fulfills the law. Service rendered grudgingly andangrily reflects a self-centeredness that despises others. Jesus teaches us both to give and receive service. We are \"servantsof one another\" (RSV). Some do not want to receive, only to give, but theydeprives others of the opportunity to become more Christlike when theyrefuse all service offered. Jesus both gave and received and neither wascoerced. In freedom he served, in freedom he allowed others to serve him.He teaches us to do likewise. Love's service not only fulfills the law, it preserves the church.Unless we serve one another through love, we \"bite and devour oneanother\" in selfish wrangling. Servanthood or cannibalism are ouroptions. As someone has said, \"You can't have your friends and eat themtoo.\" (I think it was Budd Schulberg, but my memory is hazy.) These are not easy lessons to learn, O Lord, but help us to be eagerlearners. 59

57. SPIRIT-PRODUCED CHRISTLIKENESS But the fruit of the Spirit is love... (Galatians 5:22, RSV). \"But\" is an adversative conjunction. It opposes the fruit of theSpirit to \"the acts of the sinful nature\" (v. 19). The Lord insists that oneor the other will dominate our lives. The two are incompatible and willnot share the same residence. We must crucify the flesh (v. 24) or wecannot belong to Christ. Love is not the only fruit the Spirit produces, but none of the othertraits listed here can live in the absence of love. In a sense, love containsthe others. All the fruits of the Spirit are character traits of Jesus. To bearthem is to be like him. The Holy Spirit is the Spirit of Jesus. He wasgiven to reveal Jesus to us and through us. By the Spirit’s purifying andenergizing presence, the Lord’s love is complete in us. We should declare war against everything in us that is unlike him.To wage and win that war, however, lies beyond our feeble powers. Whenhe imparts his strength we will triumph. As he enables us to \"keep in stepwith the Spirit,\" we will find ourselves tracking the footprints of theloving Christ. 60

58. BURDEN SHARING Carry each other's burdens, and in this way you will fulfill the law ofChrist (Galatians 6:2). We have learned from the Scriptures that the law of Christ is “loveone another\" as he has loved us all (John 13:34). To love another is toshare his or her burdens. Samuel Young used to tell us that the Lord would increase ourstrength or reduce our burden. He helps in yet another way; he has othersput their shoulders beneath our loads, and in turn he enables us to sharethe weight of others’ burdens. Burdens come in many forms and sizes. We cannot escape them;we must endure them. The burden shared is more easily endured. Jesusbore the heaviest of all humanity’s burdens: he “bore our sins in his bodyon the tree” (1 Peter. 2:24). Knowing this, how can we refuse to bear thelesser burdens of those about us who need our help? From the context of this passage we learn what it means, in part,to bear another’s burden. The phrases “share all good things” and “dogood to all people” leap out to grab our hearts. Feeding the hungry,restoring the fallen and supporting the ministry are some of the thingswe must do as we hear God’s word in obedient faith. He will show uswhere to do them today. 61

59. AUDIBLE AND VISIBLE I have heard of your faith in the Lord and your love toward all thesaints (Ephesians 1:15). True faith is not self-confidence; it is God-confidence. The Lord isfaith's object, not us. Faith is “heard of,” not because men boast of whatthey can do, but because they express, in lives of love, what the Lord hasdone. He has accepted, pardoned and changed them as they trusted inhim. Faith embraces the Lord’s acceptance of us. In so doing it createsour acceptance of others. We can love “all the saints.” The Lord knowshow unlovely some of the saints are, how quirky and cranky, howimmature and critical. He knows how difficult some of them find it tolove us. Still, our faith appropriates his love and his love empowers ourlove for him and for others. Love gets talked about, for it does things, unselfish things thatamaze people. Mother Teresa is a splendid example of this. She set aboutquietly serving the desperate poor, neither expecting nor desiringnotoriety. Behold, her faith and were heard of throughout the world! Ina world so full of cynical distrust and outright hatred, faith and love arenews. Let’s make some headlines today. 62

60. HOLY PERSONS ...God's holy apostles and prophets (Ephesians 3:5). Were they holy because they were apostles and prophets? Or werethey apostles and prophets because they were holy? The office did not make them holy. We know this because therewere in Israel, as there are in the church, unholy persons serving aspriests and pastors. God’s word condemns false apostles and falseprophets--unholy persons in \"sacred orders.\" God chose certain men to receive \"by revelation\" the \"mystery ofChrist\" because they were holy. They were made holy by what he did forthem, not by what they did for him. By his grace their lives were changedand claimed for his service. Unholy men can parrot revealed truths after they are written, butGod did not choose unholy persons to receive those truths. The realapostles and prophets were \"holy men of God\" who were \"moved by theHoly Spirit.\" We should thank the Lord for them. They were livingtransmitters of his word and by that word we found Christ as ourSavior. Our debt to them is immense. Indeed, for all who have written,preserved, copied, published and distributed the word of God we aregrateful. Now we are part of that divine / human enterprise ourselves;let us faithfully carry it forward! Share the word with someone today. 63

61. TO KNOW THE UNKNOWABLE I pray that you...may have power...to know this love that surpassesknowledge (Ephesians 3:17, 19). What a far-seeing and far-reaching prayer the apostle writes! Atits heart is “the love of Christ.” This love is to be known, not as an intellectual fact but as anexperienced reality. “To know” is to experience intimately, as a man“knows” his wife. “To know” speaks of profound union and communionwith the indwelling Christ, so that he becomes the object of our faith andthe power for our love. This indwelling of Christ, this communion of love, “surpassesknowledge.” There is always more of it to be realized. It is a “fullness ofGod” that widens, lengthens, heightens and deepens as the human vesselis enlarged. This sounds like an impossible goal when we look at ourselves. As ahymn puts it, “I am weakness, full of weakness.” But when we look to theLord we see a “power at work” that exceeds our aspirations and prayers.What exceeds our vision is “visibility unlimited” to our Lord. Let usknow more, ever more, of Jesus’ love. It can be truly known though itcannot be fully known. To the utmost of our capacity, we want to knowthat love. 64

62. THE TRUTH IN LOVE ...speaking the truth in love, we will in all things grow up into himwho is the Head that is, Christ (Ephesians 4:15). The Lord has made “speaking the truth in love” a means of growthin grace for the individual believer and for the corporate church. To always speak the truth is difficult; to speak it in love is harderstill. We do not always welcome the truth. Truth that exposes flawed lifeis embarrassing. It tends to make us instantly defensive. We shift into adenial mode. Nevertheless, we thank the Lord for those who have spokenthe truth in love to us, willing to risk misunderstanding and alienationbecause they cared for us. Without love, truth can be cruel. Love speaks the truth in an effortto help the listener. Truth without love aims to hurt, to avenge, and topromote self-interest at the expense of others. Truth spoken in love seeksreconciliation; truth without love seeks intimidation. The word of the Lord is truth, but we’ve all heard it preachedharshly by men who seemed more interested in winning arguments thanin helping people. We want to grow in Christ. May the Lord help us to speak thetruth in love, and to accept the truth when someone speaks it in love to us. 65

63. TRUE OR FALSE ... put on the new self, created to be like God in true righteousnessand holiness (Ephesians 4:24). The implications of “true” are obvious. There is a falserighteousness and a false holiness. The distinction between true and false is also obvious from thecontext. The true is “created,” the false is pretended. The true is “likeGod,” the false is “corrupted by...deceitful desires;” it wears the mask ofhypocrisy. The true is “the new,” for by nature we are not righteous and holy.Indeed, the “old self” is “separated from the life of God” by a corruptionthat springs from the “hardening” of the heart. We must therefore “putoff” the old and “put on” the new, which is possible only by grace. God isthe creator of “true righteousness and holiness.” The “truth that is in Jesus” teaches us to distinguish the true fromthe false, and to embrace the truth in order to be like him. We hear this; we do not merely overhear it. It is God’s word to ourhearts. Let us believe and obey the truth, for we want to be like Jesusfrom the center to the circumference of our lives. 66

64. IMITATORS OF GOD Therefore be imitators of God, as beloved children (Ephesians 5:1). Children learn by imitation. What they see, they do. What theyhear, they say. The role models they choose to imitate largely determinetheir speech and conduct. Above all, God is the role model for his children. We can learnfrom no higher, no better and no truer example. If we imitate him we will“walk in love”--not in mushy sentiment, but in that active goodwill heexpressed fully in Christ, who “loved us and gave himself up for us” inatoning death. The love of God is other-oriented and self-giving, and ourswill be the same as we imitate him. To “walk in love” will mean clean speech and conduct, which is“fitting among saints.” Such behavior patterns are ridiculed by theimmoral and impure, but they are demanded of and embraced by “thechildren of light.” We are God’s beloved children and heirs. Let us reflect ourFather’s love in all we say and do. We have trusted the Lord as oursavior; let us follow him as our example. To be like him is to be the bestwe can be, to borrow an army recruitment slogan. 67

65. RENEWABLE FULNESS ...be filled with the Spirit (Ephesians 5:18). Some scholars remind us that Paul's admonition points to acontinuous, not a crisis, experience. They interpret him to say, \"Be beingfilled with the Spirit.\" We may be unsure of what that means, but we know two reasonswhy renewed fillings are needed. If the vessel leaks further filling is required. Earlier Paul warnsagainst behavior that grieves the Holy Spirit. We conclude that whatevergrieves the Spirit diminishes our supply of the Spirit. Outright sin orsubtle compromises become barriers to the flow of his love and power inour lives. Grace will repair the leaks and replenish the flow. If a leaking vessel makes repeated filling necessary, so does a largervessel. We are called to \"grow in the grace\" of our savior. As we do, ourcapacity for life in him and service for him is enlarged. This requires alarger measure of his Spirit's fullness. Keep us growing, Lord, and keep us brimful and overflowing withthe Spirit! We do not want to live meager or fruitless lives. We want tobe assets to your kingdom, not liabilities. We want our lives to furtheryour mission to the world. Our time is short and the world’s need isgreat. When strength is demanded let weakness be deplored. Come, Holy Spirit! Purify us. Empower us. Deploy and employus, we pray. 68

66. SANCTIFYING LOVE Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her, that he mightsanctify her... (Ephesians 5:25-26). Christ’s love is sanctifying love. It aims at the holiness of hischurch. He cannot approve the spots and wrinkles that mar the moralbeauty of his intended bride. However, he does not reject us because ofthese imperfections; rather, he makes us holy. His love is a sacrificial love. \"Gave himself up\" is a reference to hisdeath on the cross as an offering for sin. Here, as in other places, theholiness of his people is grounded upon that sacrifice. We are sanctified,not by our service to him but by his sacrifice for us. That selfless and costly love, poured out for another's welfare,became the model for the love of Christian husbands for their wives. Aman who loves his wife enough to die for her will surely live for her also.Good wives are gifts from the Lord. We who are husbands need aChristlike love to govern our married lives. He can channel his lovethrough us to sweeten and hallow every earthly relationship. To care enough to give is love. To care enough to give oneself isJesus-like love. That is the goal to which we aspire. That is the life forwhich we pray. Let our love be reflections of your love. Let love prevailin our hearts that it may prevail in our homes. Amen. 69

67. INSIGHTFUL LOVE And this is my prayer: that your love may abound more and more...(Philippians 1:9). Paul’s prayer for his Philippian friends should be our prayer forourselves and for one another. We do not appropriate the prayerselfishly; after all, no one needs it more than we do. The Holy Spirit has poured God’s love into our hearts. We wantthat love to be informed and insightful, that we may discern the goodfrom the bad and the best from the good. “Love is blind,” says an oldadage, but God’s word teaches us that it shouldn’t be and needn’t be. As there is nothing stronger than love, neither should there beanything wiser. The Lord can grant us heads filled with heart and heartsfilled with head. He can help us to think passionately and to feelthoughtfully. He can save us from blindness and coldness. Insightful loveis our prayer wish today. What we especially seek is knowledge of Jesus, insights into hischaracter and behavior that will shape and guide ours. We want to learnin love about him and from him--and from those farther advanced in hismind and his way than we are. We must keep loving and learning “untilthe day of Christ.” When every day is a day of learning from Christ, eternity will be anendless day of living with Christ. What could be better? 70

68. UNDER THE LIGHTS And this is my prayer: that...you...may be pure and blamelessuntil the day of Christ (Philippians 1:10). Scholars tell us that \"pure\" translates a Greek word that meanstested and proved in strong light. It refers to the practice of examiningcloth in the sunlight, where defects of material, coloring andworkmanship became readily apparent. The Lord can turn some powerful lights upon our hearts and lives.The light of conscience, the light of Scripture, the light of his incarnatelife, the light of the final judgment--these expose the deepest and truestthings about us. We need to be cleansed from all sin and equipped for allservice, so that we will have no fear of being rejected when tested by theselights. That the Lord intends such moral purity for his disciples in this lifeis evident from the phrase, \"until the day of Christ.\" Until the day of hisreturn we can live with such insightful love and in such blameless puritythat we will both give and inspire glory and praise to God. More than likeness to Jesus is impossible. Less than likeness to himis unacceptable. He is pure and blameless. May he make us so today! 71

69. RULED BY PEACE Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts...” (Colossians 3:15). Unless “the peace of Christ” rules us, life’s problems will keep usagitated and defeated. The peace he demonstrated by stilling a storm onGalilee can reign in our inner lives amidst outer conflicts. Only the humble are ruled by his peace. We must exercise“compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience,” for proud andselfish men are not at peace. They are driven and insecure, constantlythreatened by anything that might expose their pretense or compete fortheir privileges. Only the forgiving are ruled by his peace. “Forgive as the Lordforgave you.\" Those who bear grudges and seek vengeance have no peace.They are obsessed with protecting their dignity and rights and stature.They fear being regarded as “wimpy” if they forgive those who havemistreated them. Only the thankful are ruled by his peace. He admonishes us, “Bethankful.” Ingratitude fills the heart with repressed guilt and self-contempt. It tries to mask our interdependence. It seeks to create anillusion of self-sufficiency. This causes conflict, for it’s a postureimpossible to maintain. Rule our hearts, O Christ. Like you, let us be humble, forgivingand thankful. If your peace rules our hearts it will rule our lives. 72

70. GRACIOUS SPEECH Let your conversation be always full of grace, seasoned with salt(Colossians 4:6). “Always” is a tough standard. Speaking graciously to the graciousis no great challenge, but speaking graciously when one is replying tocritics and detractors can only be done supernaturally, not naturally. It’snatural to respond in kind, to “give as good as they send.” Only by theLord’s cleansing and enabling grace can speech be always gracious. To reply in kind is to allow those who speak to us, or speak aboutus, to determine the quality of our character and behavior. We deliverourselves as wood to a lathe when we allow their attitudes and actions todecide ours. We become the witless slaves of their wrong being andwrongdoing. To respond, not in kind but with kindness, even to the unkind, is toallow Jesus to rule our spirit and speech. This we devoutly desire. Gracious speech must be truthful speech. Jesus is “full of grace andtruth,” and “grace and truth” come from him (John 1:14, 17). Saltedspeech, therefore, may preserve a speaker’s integrity, but it doesn’t insurea listener’s acceptance. Some cannot hear the truth graciously. How wespeak is our responsibility. How they hear is the responsibility of those towhom we speak. Let’s ask the Lord to control our tongues. It’s a huge request, buthe is a great God. And face it, if he can’t control our tongues no one elsecan. 73

71. CHARACTER WITNESSES You are witnesses, and so is God, of how holy, righteous, andblameless we were among you who believed (1 Thessalonians 2:10). Blessed is the man who can summon God as his character witness.Paul knew that God willed his holiness. He knew that God called him tointegrity and purity of behavior. He knew that God provided for thatholy life-style by giving him the Holy Spirit. He knew that God expectedand enabled an overflowing love toward everyone. He knew that God wasfaithful to sanctify his people \"through and through.\" All of this was not just his intellectual conviction but his spiritualexperience. Without arrogance or deception he could testify to being holyin heart and blameless in conduct. He could call upon both his fellowbelievers and his God to attest that he possessed and practiced theholiness he preached to others. Think of it! God’s sanctifying work can be done in us with resultsso obvious that we could, if needed, obtain positive character referencesfrom him and the church. The standard is too high for us to reach bystraining and stretching. We need \"power from on high\" for such living.We do not pray for God to lower the standard but we do pray that he willchange our heart and lives. 74

72. CATHOLIC LOVE May the Lord make your love increase and overflow for each otherand for everyone else, just as ours does for you (1 Thessalonians 3:12). \"Everyone?” Are we to love the church and the world? Insidersand outsiders? Friends and foes? Are we not only to love them all, but to“overflow” in love to them? That sounds incredible, for each of us couldquickly make a list of persons hard to love. And our names wouldprobably appear on some of the lists. Nevertheless, loving everyone is theuniform demand of the New Testament. We too quickly think and say, “Impossible.” Paul sets himself forthas a model of such spilling-over love: “just as ours does for you.” He hadloved these people as a good father loves his children, willing to share hisvery life with them. He who once had such a capacity for hatred, such athirst for vengeance, had exercised toward them the gentle, caring love ofa mother for own small children. If the Lord so changed Paul, surely hecan transform all his people in that same way. The life of love is possible. The secret of loving all lies in the phrase, “The Lord make you...”The self-made or the society-made will never become such loving persons.Only the God-made can receive and dispense his abundant, accepting,forgiving and serving love. We pray, “Make us such persons, O Lord.” Itwill require a great change, but he is a great God. 75

73. GOD WILLS HOLINESS It is God’s will that you should be holy...For God did not call us to beimpure, but to live a holy life. Therefore ...God...gives you his Holy Spirit (1Thessalonians 4:3-8). God’s will, God’s call, God’s gift--these combine to make holy lifeboth necessary and possible. God wills our holiness. Because he is holy, he cannot will less thanholiness for us, nor can he will more than holiness. No life excels the life ofholiness. To be holy is the ground of intimate communion with him. Hisnature repulses all that is morally incongruent with itself. He calls us to holiness. Holy life is not a matter of communion withhim alone. The vertical relationship must control our horizontalrelationships. To be holy we must not indulge our desires in ways thatwrong our brothers. He calls us to purity in our total lives, including oursex lives. We must live in revolt against the “sexual revolution” that hasmade a moral cesspool of society. He gives us the Holy Spirit to energize holy lives. He supplies innerpower to withstand the outer pressures, so that we do not collapse. Thequality of life to which he calls us is only possible supernaturally, notnaturally. His gift of the Spirit is our only hope of clean living in anunclean world. When we try in our own strength to be holy we miserablyfail. Only when filled with God’s Spirit can we do God’s will. He is theengine under the hood, not just the hands on the steering wheel. 76

74. HOLINESS AND PEACE May God himself, the God of peace, sanctify you through andthrough.... The one who calls you is faithful and he will do it (1Thessalonians 5:23-24). We live from the inside out. A holy life demands a holy heart.Unless God makes us holy “through and through the call to holiness ismocked by our native corruption and weakness. “God himself” is theonly power adequate for making and keeping us holy. He is “the God of peace,” and when he sanctifies us wholly we have“the peace of God” to steady and secure our otherwise unstable hearts.He has peace and gives peace--the peace of adequate resources forblameless living until Christ’s return brings down the curtain on humanhistory. He who calls us to holiness is faithful to his word and to our need.He will do it. He will reproduce his character in those who believe. Wedo not believe in holiness because we trust in our resolution or dedication;we believe because we trust in the blood of the Savior, in the power of theSpirit and in the teaching of Scripture. In the light of these available resources we cannot excuse unholylives. 77

75. MAINTAINING HOLINESS Brothers, pray for us. Greet all the brothers with a holy kiss. I chargeyou before the Lord to have this letter read to all the brothers (1Thessalonians 5:25-27). The Lord makes and keeps us holy, but he does neither without ourconsent and cooperation. This passage tells us what we need in order tomaintain holiness. We need prayer. Our own prayers are not enough. We need theprayer support of others. God’s blessings are channeled through theirintercession. We need fellowship. To greet and be greeted is essential to our wellbeing. To meet together for worship, to share mutual petitions for grace,mutual confessions of faith, and mutual expressions of love is a means ofspiritual victory. “Brothers.... brothers.... brothers...” We need them.We are persons-in-community. Saints are always plural in the NewTestament. Perhaps that is because we each much have the spiritual helpof other believers in order to be victorious Christians. We need Scripture--the gospels and letters that proclaim andexplain the significance of the crucified and resurrected Christ forsalvation and for life as saved persons. To get into the Bible and to get theBible into us is vital for holy living. Most of all, we need “the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ.” He willpurify our hearts and prop our lives by his grace. 78

76. THE SANCTIFYING SPIRIT God chose you to be saved through the sanctifying work of the Spirit(2 Thessalonians 2:12). We praise the Lord for the sanctifying work of the Holy Spirit. Hewho is holy in himself makes his people holy. The Holy Spirit convicted us of sin. He sealed and applied to ourhearts the truth about God, about ourselves and about salvation. Webelieved the truth and were “born of the Spirit.” With that new life, holiness began, for it was holy life, God’s life,which the Spirit gave to us. We soon discovered that the greatest hindrance to the growth ofthat new life was a residue of sin in us. Sin dwelling in us, though notreigning in us, opposed God’s will and thwarted our spiritualdevelopment. Once again his Spirit showed us the truth and proclaimed to us thepromises of cleansing from inward sin and power for holy life. Webelieved the truth and were delivered from that paralyzing pollution. The Spirit abides as our source of strength and our guide intotruth. For his gracious and mighty work we offer God the praise of ourthankful and trusting hearts. 79

77. OUR CHARGE The goal of this command is love, which comes from a pure heart anda good conscience and a sincere faith (1 Timothy 1:5). Paul charges us to avoid “myths\" which produce speculations andto embrace apostolic doctrines which produce transformations. Pauldidn’t preach and teach to indulge personal opinions but to proclaim agospel that changes the hearts and lives of sinners and releases the loveand gifts of believers. We are to share his goal. Love--active goodwill--flowing from a cleansed heart, andstreaming through the twin banks of a good conscience and a sincerefaith, is the goal of Christian ministry. We cannot be content withpopular acceptance and gracious compliments, but only with preachingand teaching that is on target. Only as our lives are love-filled can we be fruitful as the Lord’sservants. We must not speak simply to win arguments or gainacceptance. We must witness in order to take hearts captive to Christ.Our aim, like our source of power, comes from him. He will keep usaiming high and shooting straight as we proclaim “the glorious gospel ofthe blessed God” (v. 11). Love, even when spoken in truth, does not always result inobedience to truth. Our obligation to live and speak in love does not restupon the acceptance of others but upon the command of God. His blessingsustains us when the world rejects us. 80

78. HOLY HANDS I want men everywhere to lift up holy hands in prayer, without angeror disputing (1 Timothy 2:8). That we pray is not enough. Prayer can be an empty ritual, a self-indulgence, a spiritual facade. The religious leaders who hounded Jesusto a cross were praying men. \"Holy hands” are the mark of true prayer. Holy hands reflect holyhearts. Hands are a metaphor for outward conduct and heart is ametaphor for inward character. Attitudes and actions must both be rightif prayer is to be acceptable to God. Prayer “without anger anddisputing,” therefore, is the apostle’s desire and the Lord’s demand. This text is another reminder that we cannot be right with ourFather in heaven if we are wrong with our brothers and sisters on earth.Private prayer cannot escape its link with public behavior. We dare notpetition from God what we will not share with others. This is truewhether we are asking for bread or forgiveness. For our hands to be holy our hearts must be cleansed. By naturewe are corrupt and selfish, and being and doing are centered uponourselves. The Lord must graciously re-center our lives, from the insideout, upon himself and others. He will make our hands holy and we willgladly lift them to him in prayers of thanksgiving. 81

79. THE GIFT SUPREME God did not give us a spirit of timidity, but a spirit of power, of loveand of self-discipline (2 Timothy 1:7). Some translators and commentators prefer to spell “spirit” with acapital “S” in this passage. That squares with the experience of manyreaders. “Timidity” describes what many are by nature, as does hating andself-indulgent. “Power,” “love,” and “self-discipline” only became true ofus as the Holy Spirit lives in us and works on us. God’s Spirit alonesupplies our power to stand, speak and serve whatever the consequences.Apart from his inner reinforcement we would readily yield to outerpressures, becoming time-serving, truth-trimming, man-pleasing falsewitnesses. God’s Spirit alone supplies our power to love the unlovely andunloving. He enables us to love God supremely and our neighborsunselfishly. God’s Spirit is also our power for self-discipline. There is no sin wemight not commit, no person we might not exploit, except for theguidance and restraints of the Holy Spirit. . Anything of excellence in our lives and work we owe entirely toGod’s supreme gift--the Holy Spirit. Let us today praise him, bless him,and thank him for this Gift. 82

80. TRUTH GUARD Guard the good deposit that was entrusted to you--guard it with thehelp of the Holy Spirit who lives in us (2 Timothy 1:14). “The deposit” entrusted to Timothy was “the gospel”--the goodnews that God’s power saves from sin through the death and resurrectionof Christ Jesus (vv. 8-12). We have been entrusted with that samemessage of salvation by grace. Ours too, therefore, is the responsibility ofguarding that truth. We must guard against corrupting it by robbing it of its gracecontent and reducing it to law. We must guard against manipulating it asa means of enriching us. Too many gospel-profiteers have damaged andembarrassed the church. We must guard against diluting it in an effort toremove its \"offense\" and make it palatable to \"cultured despisers.\" Wemust guard against stripping it of urgency, as though it were optional andnot essential to salvation. A great treasure has been entrusted to us. The Lord can help us tobe faithful custodians. He can help us to value the treasure as we ought,and to guard it with our very lives. The gospel is indeed a \"good deposit,\"good in what it promises and good in what is achieves. It is the truth thatsets us free, free to serve God, free to love the lost, free to befriend theforsaken and free to encourage the dispirited. The gospel is good news inthe face of constant bad news. Guarding such a treasure is worth lives ofsacrifice and worth the sacrifice of lives. 83

81. A USEFUL VESSEL In a large house there are articles not only of gold and silver, but alsoof wood and clay; some are for noble purposes and some for ignoble. If aman cleanses himself from the latter, he will be an instrument for noblepurposes, made holy, useful to the Master of the house (2 Timothy 2:20, 21). A house, a master, a vessel: these simple metaphors impose upon usa profound responsibility. The Lord Jesus is the master. A nobler master has never existed.He exercises his mastery in humble and merciful ways. Lepers prayed tohim, “Master, have mercy on us.” Neither powerless love nor lovelesspower could save them. In Jesus, lordship and love are perfectly joined. His house is his people, the church he purchased with his blood, thechurch he is building by his power to save. In the church he dwells.Through the church his grace and glory are proclaimed. From thechurch he receives honor and praise. His people are vessels. We desire to be his purified, consecrated anduseful vessels, “ready for any good work” he chooses to assign. Our lives are in his hands; he will prepare us and employ us. Thatis why we come before him each day. We pray for holy and helpful lives.We petition his power for such living. We want him to live in us and workthrough us to forward his “noble purposes.” 84

82. WE CAN BE PURE To the pure, all things are pure, but to those who are corrupted and donot believe, nothing is pure (Titus 1:15). We can be pure, and that is great good news. By God’s grace wecan be radically changed both inwardly and outwardly. He can take us aswe are and make us what we should be. We were corrupt by nature and unbelieving by choice. In that foulcondition, we were both defiled and defiling. We treated no one andnothing as pure or sacred or worthy. In our blindness and selfishness wereduced persons to things and elevated things as gods. Some of us evenmade religion a facade, a profession made with our lips and denied by ourlives. Despite our unworthiness, the Lord Jesus died to redeem us, topurify us, and to give eternal value to what sin had debased and enslaved. The depth and power of sin terrify us. Sin poses, to our view, aproblem unsolvable, a corruption incurable and a damnation inescapable.But God’s grace exceeds our sin! Sin could ruin us, but it cannot defeathis love, power and wisdom. Wonder of wonders, we can be pure! Maythe Lord help us to believe his promise, to receive his power and toachieve his purpose. 85

83. THE INWARD LAW I will put my laws in their minds and write them on their hearts(Hebrews 8:10). God first wrote his laws on tablets of stone. Moses shattered thosetablets when he found Israel already in violation of the first law. Theywere cavorting around a golden calf in a drunken orgy. God forgavethem, and etched the laws again on stone. What became of those tabletsno one knows. His laws were next written on sheets of paper and preserved asScripture. Portions were copied and fastened about his people'sforeheads and attached to their doorposts. Still the law, exterior to hispeople, could not keep them from idolatry and immorality. The problemwas not in his laws but in their hearts. God promised to write the laws inwardly, upon their minds andhearts. When our inner lives are conformed to his will, those laws becomea force to regulate thought, speech and action. At Pentecost, when Israel commemorated the law given on stoneand paper, God filled the new Israel with the Holy Spirit, fulfilling thisnew covenant promise. Let’s yield our hearts as tablets on which he can write his laws!Then will temptation will lose its power and faith will gain its victory. Inthe fullness of his Spirit we will be able to walk in his light and truth. 86

84. MADE HOLY THROUGH CALVARY \"Here am I, I have come to do your will.” And by that will, we havebeen made holy through the sacrifice of the body of Jesus Christ once for all(Hebrews 10:9-10). The devotion of Jesus to the Father's will took him to Calvary.When he might have escaped that agony he chose instead to embrace it(Matt. 26:53). An angel strengthened him to go to his death (Luke 22:43),but none appeared to save him from the cross. He was not spared that death, for only his death could save us fromsin. In his atoning death provision has been made for the removal of allbarriers to communion with God. The outer barriers are removed by justifying grace. Christ’s deathis the only sacrifice the Father accepts. For his sake the Father forgivesour sins. The inner barriers are removed by sanctifying grace. We are madeholy by a cleansing that reorients the inner life around the Father's will.His laws are written upon our hearts, energizing our obedience to himand our service to others. Blessed Sacrifice! We claim its merit and power as our access toGod for likeness to God. It was a “once for all” sacrifice. It is adequate tosave all persons from all sins for all time. We are included. Let us praisehis name! 87

85. DISCIPLINED FOR HOLINESS God disciplines us for our good, that we may share in his holiness(Hebrews 12:10). A good father will discipline his children. He does not allow themto become obnoxious child-monarchs, controlling and manipulating theirhelpless parents by ugly moods and tantrums. Such a father disciplines in order to enforce proper values and life-styles upon the children. Moral guidance and motivation are suppliedthrough discipline. The Lord disciplines us in order to teach values and developcharacter. His aim is to share his holiness, his moral rectitude, with hischildren. He is not a sadist, taking pleasure from the infliction of pain. Heis not a child-abuser. His whole purpose in discipline is to promote ourhighest welfare. His sole motive is love. Discipline is his sowing time. It will produce \"a harvest ofrighteousness and peace.\" It trains us to \"run with perseverance the racemarked out for us.\" We have a race to run, not a dash but a marathon.We have a crown to gain, not a laurel wreath but a share in the reign ofJesus Christ when the kingdoms of the world become his kingdom. A lotof discipline in needed to shape us for our endurance race and victors’crowns. We should thank him for the hardships by which he has toughenedus. We should thank him for the character-formation achieved byadversity. The rigors of the training program will be over-compensatedby a place with Jesus at the Father’s right hand. 88

86. THE PURSUIT OF HOLINESS Make every effort to live in peace with all men and to be holy; withoutholiness no one will see the Lord (Hebrews 12:14). The pursuit of peace and holiness makes heaven both desirable andpossible. We could not enjoy heaven unless we can get along with people, forheaven is crowded with folks. John beheld \"a great multitude that noman could count\" standing before God’s throne. They had come from\"every nation, tribe, people and language.\" Unless we welcome suchpersons to our hearts, despite all our differences, we would not bewelcome to heaven where peace is perfect. Neither could we enjoy heaven unless we can get along with theLord, for heaven is filled with the glory of his presence. He is its light, andinto that light \"nothing impure will ever enter.\" He has quarantinedheaven against sin. We must get rid of sin or sin will get rid of us. He wants to purify our hearts and fill us with sincere love for \"allmen.\" He can make and keep us holy, so that we may live for him onearth and live with him in heaven. What else is worth more effort? Whatelse finally matters? 89

87. PERSISTENT HOLINESS Keep on loving as brothers (Hebrews 13:1). To be holy is to love the Lord wholeheartedly and to love othersunselfishly. This passage adds another dimension--to love persistently. The Lord knows how unlovable some of the brothers are. Some arereal stinkers. He also knows who is saying that about us right now. To love the brothers in their loving and lovable moments is easy.But to “keep on loving” them when they are at their weakest and worst--that calls for a disposition to love that burns like a steady flame, not like asputtering candle. It will help us to remember that love is not affectionate sentimentbut active good will. Even so, to love persistently is possible only by “thegrace of the Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the fellowship ofthe Holy Spirit.” When you look people over it becomes easy to overlookpeople, to have as little to do with them as necessary. God’s love, shedabroad in our hearts by the gift of his Spirit to us, makes it possible toknow the worst about people and still be willing to serve their deepestneeds. If Jesus died for us in spite of the shame of the cross, we can livefor them in spite of the shabbiness of their morals. When the Lord strengthens our hearts by grace (v. 9), we can easilylove and be easy to love. Abounding grace enables abiding love. We needthat overflowing grace, not because our trials are heavy but because ourweakness is great. His indwelling strength is the answer to that weakness. 90

88. HEART STRENGTH It is good for our hearts to be strengthened by grace, not byceremonial foods, which are of no value to those who eat them (Hebrews13:9). God’s word counsels, \"Above all else, guard your heart, for it is thewellspring of life.\" Weak hearts mean weak lives. Dirty hearts meandirty lives. Strong hearts mean strong lives. Holy hearts mean holy lives.The quality of the inner life determines that of the outer life. Our hearts are not made strong by what we do for the Lord.Observing rituals will not strengthen our hearts to overcome trials andtemptations. Religious activities will not strengthen our hearts. Biblereading, prayer-saying, church going and tithe paying all have a place inChristian lives, but none of them or all of them give our hearts theirneeded strength. Our hearts are strengthened by grace, by what the Lord does forus. The grace that strengthens the heart is specified: \"Jesus also sufferedoutside the city gate to make the people holy through his own blood.\" Themerit and power of Jesus’ sacrificial death provides our cleansing fromsin and our power to stand. Let us pray today as another prayed: \"Lord, heal me at the heartand let the world come on!\" 91

89. THE PROVISION FOR HOLINESS Jesus also suffered outside the city gate to make the people holythrough his own blood (Hebrews 13:12). Holiness is likeness to Jesus and it's possible, but only through themerit and power of his blood. Martyrdom will not cleanse from sin and fill with love. If we shedour last drop of blood in kingdom service, that would have no sanctifyingforce. Devotion to the Lord’s will and work, even to the point of death,still leaves us unworthy servants (Luke 17:10). Only a sacrifice that can shame us for sin and from sin will avail tomake us holy. Only the death of Jesus is such a sacrifice. \"When [we]survey the wondrous cross / On which the prince of glory died,\" our heartscry out to be purified from sin and energized for service. At great cost tohimself, Jesus made holiness possible. At any cost to us, he will makeholiness actual. To share his holiness we must bear his reproach. To be like him wemust endure the rejection of those who dislike him. To embrace his willfor us we must yield our wills to him. Let this be our prayer today: “Lord, make us holy--wholly yours. 92

90. THE HOLY LIFE--SUFFERING Let us, then, go to him outside the camp, bearing the disgrace he bore(Hebrews 13:13). Jesus \"suffered outside the city gate to make the people holy.\" Hewas \"despised and rejected by men, a man of sorrows, and familiar withsuffering\" (Isa. 53:3). We cannot be identified with him and escapereproach. Some form and degree of opposition is inescapable for thosewho will live in an unholy world as his holy people. \"Everyone who wantsto live a godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted\" (2 Tim. 3:12). Heonce said to your disciples, \"In this world you will have trouble\" (John16:33). We have found it so. As Christians we should not be looking for trouble, but we dare notforsake the truth in order to gain acceptance with the world. FollowingJesus puts us on a collision course with the world. His values andbehavior patterns are cross-grained with those of society. The differencehe makes by sanctifying grace arouses the fear, anger and hatred of thosewho prefer darkness to light. We have encountered this in families,schools, workplaces, and even in churches across the years. But we hadrather walk with Jesus and lose our lives than to walk with his enemiesand lose his fellowship. If we go to Jesus for cleansing we can re-enter \"the camp\" withoutbeing tainted by its idolatry and immorality. We can be fit to live withwhen he makes us holy. Yes, we can even be fun to live with when Jesusmakes us “partakers of his holiness.” 93

91. THE HOLY LIFE--SEEKING For here we do not have an enduring city, but we are looking for thecity that is to come (Hebrews 13:14). The world is filled with decaying cities and unstable populations.Violence and death fill them with despair. Crimes abound and no one’sperson or property is safe. In such surroundings God’s people cannot beat home. At best they are resident aliens on earth, but he has “prepared acity for them.” Their faith is not in vain. Their deaths will not be leapsinto the dark, but entrances into light. No sin, no sorrow, no suffering willever corrupt that city; all will be holy and happy there forever. As Paulwrote, “Our citizenship is in heaven.” The way of holiness is the wayhome. The city we seek will make the reproach we bear “the small dust onthe balances.” Every tear will be dried and every pain will be forgottenupon our arrival home. Compared to the eternal joy that awaits us, thetemporal trials we are now passing through are but light afflictions. Ourfathers were right: Holiness is a little bit of heaven to go to heaven in!The foretaste whets our appetite for the whole feast. The cities of earth are going. They are on the way out forever.Nothing corrupted by sin can be permanent. God’s city is coming. Apure and perfect society awaits those who embrace Jesus as their Saviorand serve him as their Lord. Enemies of God established the first city.Friends of God will inherit and inhabit the last city. “When the saints gomarching in” to that city, we want to be “in the number.” 94

92. THE HOLY LIFE--SACRIFICING Through Jesus, therefore, let us continually offer to God a sacrifice ofpraise--the fruit of lips that confess his name. And do not forget to do goodand to share with others, for with such sacrifices God is pleased (Hebrews13:15-16). Two kinds of sacrifice are components of holy living. One is material, the sacrifice of shared goods. Holy people aregenerous; they are givers. Hearts cleansed from sin and filled with loveprompt them to compassionate ministry on behalf of needy persons suchas the homeless, the jobless, the hungry and the hurting. What we have isours to share, not to hoard. We are taught to be tenderhearted andopenhanded. Jesus \"went around doing good.\" He will help us to \"Goand do likewise.\" The other sacrifice is spiritual, the sacrifice of praise. Holy peopleare grateful. They bless the Lord’s name for blessing their lives. Theirpraises are continually offered, for daily mercies call for daily thanks. Our sacrifices, offered through Jesus, please God. His sacrificemade us holy (v. 12). How fitting it is that ours should make him happy. The goods we share with others are insignificant when compared tothe gifts we receive from the Lord. The praises we offer him are meagerwhen compared to the blessings he confers upon us. 95

93. THE HOLY LIFE—SUBMISSION Obey your leaders and submit to their authority (Hebrews 13:17). The Lord is our supreme leader. Our first responsibility is to obeyhim, to submit to his lordship. This means that we must read his word with serious intent to trustits promises and to obey its commands. His lordship is exercised as hemakes Scripture personal address to us. We cannot separate submissionto him from submission to the Bible. But he also exercises his lordship over us through his ministers,those called by him to preach the word and to oversee the church. Weshould respect their authority, and never reject it unless they are clearlyin error, issuing commands that contradict Scripture. We thank the Lordthat our leaders have been his followers, persons whose teaching andexample have challenged us to a closer walk with him. We must not increase our leaders’ burdens or diminish their joysby rebellious spirits. We do not envy their positions but we do supporttheir work. We value the peace and health of the church. We honor thosewho honor God by watching over us. Thank God for them all. May hegive them grace to rule wisely, to think deeply, and to model joyfully thegospel they proclaim! May he give us grace to follow them as they followhim. 96

94. THE HOLY LIFE--SUPPLICATION Pray for us... (Hebrews 13:18). We cannot be dogmatic about these plural pronouns. To whomdoes the writer refer? To himself alone? He seems to quickly switch tothe singular “I” (v. 19). Or does he refer to the “leaders” once more? Whoever they were, they were persons of clear conscience andhonorable lives, leading as surely by example as by precepts. We can take this “us” to indicate our pastors and their colleagues inthe oversight of the church. We will not allow our pastors to enter thepulpit without the support of our prayers. Regularly, though notexclusively, they will be the special burden of our intercession. We knowwhat awesome responsibilities they bear, and we know what a toll theirlabors of love exact mentally, physically and spiritually. We empathizewith their desire to so live and work that their people may be helpedtoward God and heaven. Because God’s word teaches us to pray for them, we assume thatdoing so plays a role in the quality of their ministry. We certainly knowthat praying for them makes us better listeners when they preach. Let usnot grieve God by failing them. They are his servants for our good. Thetreatment we accord them is a measure of our love for and trust in God. 97

95. SOCIAL HOLINESS Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: tolook after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself frombeing polluted by the world (James 1:27). True holiness keeps \"a tight rein\" on one's tongue (v. 26), and aloose rein on one's purse (v. 27). The love of “God our Father” mandatesa social dimension to holiness. His desire is not for flawless ritualsroutinely performed, but for compassionate service ungrudginglyrendered. Religion that ignores human need, however devoutly thatreligion is practiced, is impure in God’s eyes. How we treat the oppressed and impoverished is an acid test ofholiness. The Lord condemned praying, tithing and rules-keeping menwho \"devoured widow's houses.\" How sad that churches have often\"honored\" such men with high offices! To please God we must keep our hearts tender towards the poor,the helpless and the victimized. Groceries have a lot to do with holiness.Helping sick people with medical expenses and helping jobless peoplewith rent payments express the kind of religion that is acceptable toGod. Groceries are supplements and not substitutes for the gospel. If ouronly help is material we are treating people like animals. They havegreater needs than hunger or homelessness. They need above all a Saviorfrom sin. Holiness has to do with service to the whole person. 98

96. FAVORITISM DENOUNCED If you really keep the royal law found in Scripture, \"Love yourneighbor as yourself,\" you are doing right. But if you show favoritism, yousin and are convicted by the law as lawbreakers (James 2:8-9). When the Lord speaks through James, he pulls no punches.Favoritism is a violation of the love commandment. That’s “heavy,” asthe young folks used to say. To curry the favor of the rich, to treat withcontempt the poor, has been a frequent practice of the church. Bishopslavished praise on an American industrialist who exploited workers,pirated businesses, and even took a mistress with him as he traveled byprivate train to his church’s convention! Did his bishops and pastors notread James? Would they have tolerated without rebuke poor parishionerswho so brazenly flouted God’s law? The “royal law” reflects the Lord’s love. It embraces without fearor favor all classes of people. It plays no economic favorites, but holdsrich and poor and all between to a single standard of love. Those whoselove is restricted to their own households are fond of the adage, “Charitybegins at home.” Yes, it does, but true charity doesn’t stop at home. Itreaches out, according to the teachings of Jesus, to embrace others, evenone’s enemies. Let’s pray for the Lord to write his law upon our hearts. Then wewill neither \"show favoritism\" nor stand before those who do with closedeyes and silent tongues. It has often been said that \"Every one is some oneto Jesus.\" They should matter to us also. 99

97. WHOLLY CLEAN Wash your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded (James 4:8). We understand that \"hands\" symbolize our outward acts and\"hearts\" the inward attitudes and motives that prompt those acts. TheLord demands that his people be clean both inwardly and outwardly. Why we do something cannot be separated from what we do. Wemust not only appear good to others; we must be good within ourselves.This is the constant tenor of God’s word. James was not pleading for rituals but for realities. He was callingfor something other and deeper than the performance of ceremonialwashings. He knew that only God’s forgiveness can cleanse our hands,and only his sanctifying Spirit, dwelling in us and ruling over us, canpurify our hearts. As surely as we love the Lord, we want to be inwardly andoutwardly clean--clean in thought and speech and deed. We want to besingle-minded in devotion to him, in obedience to his word and in serviceto his people. At the day’s threshold let us pray anew: “Lord, unite,purify and energize our hearts.” Praying like this will keep us more alertthroughout the day to opportunities to share the Lord’s mission. Holinessgives focus to our lives. 100