Hope leading to holiness

Therefore, preparing your minds for action, and being sober-minded, set your hope fully on the grace that will be brought to you at the revelation of Jesus Christ. As obedient children, do not be conformed to the passions of your former ignorance, but as he who called you is holy, you also be holy in all your conduct, since it is written, "You shall be holy, for I am holy." And if you call on him as Father who judges impartially according to each one's deeds, conduct yourselves with fear throughout the time of your exile, knowing that you were ransomed from the futile ways inherited from your forefathers, not with perishable things such as silver or gold, but with the precious blood of Christ, like that of a lamb without blemish or spot. He was foreknown before the foundation of the world but was made manifest in the last times for the sake of you who through him are believers in God, who raised him from the dead and gave him glory, so that your faith and hope are in God. - 1 Peter 1:13‭-‬21 ESV

Rev. Dwight Yoo

Meaning of holiness

What does it mean to be holy? What is it exactly? It is embedded in the verse. Be holy as God is holy. It is a communicable attribute. We can't be omniscient or omnipotent like God. But we can be God-like.

So how can we be like him? He is totally other. He is set apart from everything else. He is transcendent. We can be other in regards to our relationship with others. We are totally other in how we live our lives. We should be distinct from the world and the culture around us. We are called to be thermostats, not thermometers. We don't reflect the culture around us, but rather we are to set and change the environment.

We are supposed to look like God. How does God look like in human form? That's easy. Jesus is the word in flesh. He accurately reflects God's character to the world. Holiness should not be confused with haughtiness. Holiness comes along with humility; we know this because of what we see in Jesus' life.

Motivation for holiness

Paul uses the word, therefore. This means that he has an important point to make. The command to be holy, comes after talking about what Jesus has already done. In Christ, we are elect exiles, saved. Because Jesus has done for us, we are to do these things. This is a pattern in many parts of the Bible. The ten commandments, for instance, tells is all these things to do. But right before, God says
"I am the Lord, your God..." God has saved and claimed them as his, therefore, act like this. We aren't earning anything. It is the response to what God has already done. Indicative comes before imperative.

We are compelled because Christ has died for us. We are commanded for the same reason. We are not doing these things to be saved. But rather as a way to express gratitude, thankfulness, and joyfulness for salvation. We can obey because of what has already been done.

The faith that saves is always accompanied by good works. A faith that does not result in a desire for good works is a dead faith.

We were slaves to sin and death. Our fathers both biological and thinking give us ways of thinking that are futile. From cultural, philosophical, and other modes of thinking... we have inherited ways of living and thinking that are useless. But God frees is from these things. We no longer need to live according to those rules. We have a new Master.

Maturing in holiness

Even though we were enemies of God, He saved us. In Christ, we have an eternal inheritance. God's salvation of us frees us from having to impress others. We can do good works without looking for other's approval. We are already loved and approved by God through the death and life of Jesus. This allows us to genuinely love others. Without envy, without pride, without ulterior motives, without needing their approval.