From A Heart of Thanksgiving: The Motivation to Live Holy

Written by Minister Dominique Brunson; Northeastern NY District

Greetings to you all!

I pray that this note finds you and yours in the best of health and spirits, despite all that is currently going on in our world. We must be encouraged that the Bible is only fulfilling itself and SOMEBODY must play each part, whether it be good or evil. It's only by the grace of God that we were chosen to play the good and we ought to be forever grateful.  I want to briefly share with you some reasons that God is calling us as His people to live holy and be the examples that unbelievers need to see. We ought to be willing to live as such because it is the least we can do to show our gratitude for His unbelievable sacrifice.

We are to be holy...

1. Because God is holy: God is the ultimate Standard and the Source of our holiness. People are supposed to be able to look at Christians and see what God is like. Our lives should make God believable to the world. So many don't believe He exists, but He is real! (1 Peter 1:15-16; Matthew 5:16)

2. Because holiness is God's stated goal for every believer: Holiness is God's supreme purpose for our lives. Not only is it an individual calling, it is also the collective calling of the Body of Christ. We are His "Bride-in-the-Making" and should be in preparation for our heavenly wedding when He returns, making sure that we are without blemish. (Ephesians 1:4; 5:27; 1 John 3:2-3)

3. Because Jesus died to deliver us from sin: He laid down His life willingly for our freedom from sin and made it possible for us to just say NO! Sin is most definitely a choice, but no matter how appealing to our flesh it may be, the Holy Spirit is our Helper and will help us to say no if we so desire. But again, that is our CHOICE. God will never make us do anything we don't want to simply because He wants us to be free in our walk with Him. Cold is the heart that can think of all that He suffered on our behalf and yet cling to the sins that were the main cause of all of the suffering! (Galatians 1:3b-4)

4. Because our relationship with God depends on it: Unholy people cannot fellowship with a holy God and sin destroys that fellowship. Just as in a natural relationship, if there is an issue that has not been discussed or something that has not been confessed between the two parties, the relationship will be strained or possibly fall apart until the air has been cleared. It is the same way between us and our Father. We will tend to hide from Him until we confess whatever it is that may be keeping us from living as He has called us to do. But, I'm grateful that He loves us enough to wait for us to get it right. Aren't you? (Isaiah 33:14-15; Psalm 5:4: 11:7) 

5. Because the well-being of others depends on it: Everyone in your life's greatest need is to see in you a reflection of what God is like and of the transforming power of the gospel. Your life can create in them a hunger and thirst for God! On the other hand, your life can also cause irreparable damage to others. For example, how was Adam to know that his eating the fruit from that tree would have caused sin to continue even through our generation (Romans 5:15, 18b)? He couldn't have known. But, that's why we ought to thank God for Jesus' obedience to the will of the Father to come and break that cycle. As Tasha Cobbs would say, "the chains are broken!"  Other believers are affected by our choices and to a significant degree, the lost world determines its view of God based on the lives of those who know Him. What are you portraying by the life you are living? 

As you keep these things in mind, I pray that you have an awesome week and focus more on what you do have left rather than what you may have lost over the course of this year. We've all been through so much. However, we should recognize that although we may not have everything we want, we do have everything we need and therefore, we are still ABUNDANTLY blessed! There's no need to worry about a thing because God has, is, and always will take care of you :)

Love and Blessings,

Domonique B.