I recently read an entry on a friends website, and came across this paragraph:
I emptied my folder on holiness. I still believe in holiness, perhaps more now than ever. But something about that file wasn’t holy at all – maybe I could have transferred everything over to a new folder and call it ‘moralism’. One of the articles had the picture of a famous preacher from times past who preached holiness but lived a reprobate life, as we came later to know. This is discouraging of course, but maybe it is better to see this development as enlightening. Everything in that old file I labeled ‘holiness’ seemed to preach perfection, and the things it enjoined were already passe. I did not close the folder but left it open for something more refreshingly Biblical – the work of God for sinners like me. I believe in holiness. I didn’t open a new file on moralism.
I thought it was a great thought … I know that I have been wrestling with this thought. So much of what we consider holiness unfortunately often simply serves to keep us away from getting involved in the world that Jesus loves so much … and no, I am not writing this thought because I am ‘struggling with some sort of holiness issue’ myself at the moment, and tryng to justify it …
Does our struggle to remain holy simply serve to give us a list of ‘do not’ behaviours … sounds a lot like legalism, rather than the freedom of Christ that asks us to ‘do’ things. Anyways, these are my quick thoughts, I always love to know yours. Feedback makes me happy!
Anyways, here is the link to Bob check out his thoughts.
