The Joy of Holiness

          Highlights from the final chapter of The Pursuit of Holiness, by
     Jerry Bridges.


                                     "For the kingdom of God is not a matter of
                                      eating and drinking, but of righteousness,
                                      peace and joy in the Holy Spirit."
                                                                            Romans 14:17


                                                **********


          God intends the Christian life to be a life of joy -- not drudgery.
     The idea that holiness is associated with a dour disposition is a car-
     icature of the worst sort.  In fact, just the opposite is true.  Only those
     who walk in holiness experience true joy.

          Jesus said,

                                      "If you obey my commands, you will remain in
                                       my love, just as I have obeyed my Father's com-
                                       mands and remain in His love.  I have told you
                                       this so that my joy may be in you and that your
                                       joy may be complete."
                                                                           John 15:10-11


          In this statement Jesus links obedience and joy in a cause and effect manner;
     that is, joy results from obedience.  Only those who are obedient -- who are pur-
     suing holiness as a way of life -- will know the joy that comes from God.


          Holiness produces fellowship with God.
          David said,

                                "You will fill me with joy in your presence,
                                  with eternal pleasures at your right hand."
                                                                          Psalm 16:11

          True joy comes only from God, and He shares this joy with those who walk in
     fellowship with Him.  A life of disobedience cannot be a life of joy.

          David lost his sense of God's joy because he lost fellowship with God when he
     committed the awful sins of murder and adultery.  Later he prayed,

                                   " ... restore to me the joy of your salvation."
                                                                  Psalm 51:12


          The daily experience of Christ's love is linked to our obedience to Him.  It is not
     that His love is conditioned on our obedience.  That would be legalism.  But our ex-
     perience of His love is dependent upon our obedience.
                           
                                                           **********

          In addition to the joy of fellowship with the Holy God, a holy life also produces
     the joy of anticipated reward.  Jesus was motivated to endure by anticipating the  joy
     of His reward.  No amount of hardship and struggle could deprive Him of that an-
     ticipation.

          In the parable of the talents, the Lord said to the two servants who used their tal-
     ents, "Well done thou good and faithful servant ... Enter thou into the joy of thy Lord."
     Matthew 25:21,23

          One of the "talents" God has given to every Christian is the possibility of walking
     in holiness, being free from the dominion of sin.  We, too, can look forward to enter-
     ing into the joy of the Lord as we walk in holiness to the end of our days.

                                                          **********

          Joy not only results from a holy life, but there is also a sense in which joy helps
     produce a holy life.  Nehemiah said to the dispirited exiles who returned to Jerusalem,
    
                                "The joy of the Lord is your strength."
                                                                Nehemiah 8:10

          The Christian living in disobedience also lives devoid of joy and hope.  But when
     he begins to understand that Christ has delivered him from the reign of sin, when he
     begins to see that he is united to Him who has all power and authority, and that it is
     possible to walk in obedience, he begins to have hope. 

          And as he hopes in Christ, he begins to have joy.  In the strength of this joy he be-
     gins to overcome the sins that so easily entangle him.  He then finds that the joy of a
     holy walk is infinitely more satisfying than the fleeting pleasures of sin.

          But to experience this joy, we must make some choices.  We must choose to for-
     sake sin, not only because it is defeating to us, but because it grieves the heart of
     God.  We must choose to count on the fact that we are dead to sin, freed from its
     reign and dominion, and we can now actually say no to sin.  We must choose to ac-
     cept our responsibility to discipline our lives for obedience.

          God has provided all we need for our pursuit of holiness.  He has delivered us
     from the reign of sin and given us His indwelling Holy Spirit.  He has revealed His
     will for holy living in His Word, and He works in us to will and to act according
     to His good purpose. 


                                                            **********


          If we are to attain any measure of holiness we must have a similar attitude.  God
     has said, "Be holy, because I am holy"   Leviticus 11:44.

          Surely He has not commanded us to be holy without providing the means to be
     holy.  The privilege of being holy is yours, and the decision and responsibility to be
     holy is yours.  If you make that decision, you will experience the fullness of joy
     which Christ has promised to those who walk in obedience to Him.

Adopted into God's Family

         
          The birth of a child is a time of joy and celebration for the family and
     their friends, and although the circumstances are different, the adoption of
     a child is also a time for celebrating.

          Likewise, there is rejoicing in heaven every time an unregenerate per-
     son is born again, and then repents and trusts in Jesus Christ for sal-
     vation, leading to his adoption by God into His family.


                                         "Then Jesus told them this parable:
                                          'Suppose one of you has a hundred
                                          sheep and loses one of them.  Does
                                          he not leave the ninety-nine in the
                                          open country and go after the lost
                                          sheep until he finds it?
                                         "And when he finds it, he joyfully
                                          puts it on his shoulders and goes
                                          home.  Then he calls his friends and
                                          neighbors together and says, 'Rejoice
                                          with me; I have found my lost sheep.'
                                          I will tell you that in the same way
                                          there will be more rejoicing in heaven
                                          over one sinner who repents than over
                                          ninety-nine righteous persons who do
                                          not need to repent."
                                                                         Luke 15:3-7

          Everyone who trusts in Christ as Savior and Lord is adopted as God's child
     and enters into His family for eternity.  All this is according to the pleasure and
     will of God, who chose us in Jesus before the creation of the world for salvation,
     adopting us as His children through faith in Him.
    


                                         "For He chose us in Him before the creation of
                                          the world to be holy and blameless in His sight.
                                          In love He predestined us to be adopted as His
                                          sons through Jesus Christ, in accordance with
                                          His pleasure and will -- to the praise of His
                                          glorious grace, which He has freely given us
                                          in the One He loves."
                                                                                    Ephesians 1:4-6


          We become co-heirs with Christ, as we inherit salvation, forgiveness, sancti-
     fication, justification, glorification, and eternal life.


                                         "For you did not receive a spirit that makes you
                                          a slave again to fear, but you received the Spirit
                                          of sonship.  And by Him we cry. 'Abba, Father.'
                                          The Spirit Himself testifies with our spirit that
                                          we are God's children.  Now if we are children,
                                          then we are heirs -- heirs of God and co-heirs
                                          with Christ, if indeed we share in His sufferings
                                          in order that we may also share in His glory."
                                                                               Romans 8:15-17


          Jesus is not only our Savior, but also our brother.


                                         "For those God foreknew (or foreloved) He also
                                          predestined to be conformed to the likeness of
                                          His Son, that He might be the firstborn among
                                          many brothers."
                                                                              Romans 8:29


          The NIV commentary states:

                                  "Just as the firstborn son had certain privileges and rights
                                   in the Biblical world, so also Christ has certain rights in
                                   relation to all creation -- priority, preeminence and
                                   sovereignty."

           The term "firstborn" does not mean Jesus was the first created, but the high-
     est in rank.  He was not part of creation, but has authority over it.


                                             "He is the image of the invisible God, the
                                              firstborn over all creation.  For by Him
                                              all things were created:  things in heaven
                                              and on earth, visible and invisible, whether
                                              thrones or powers or rulers or authorities;
                                              all things were created by Him and for Him."
                                                                                   Colossians 1:15-16


                                                   **********


          Jesus is our Savior and brother, and also shares something else in common
     with us.  He was also adopted -- by Joseph.

          Joseph knew that by taking Mary as his wife, he was getting a "package deal" --
     a wife AND a son.  He named Jesus, as the angel commanded him, and raised Him
     as his own son.  He was to be the earthly father of the Savior of the world.


                                             (The angel told Joseph), " ... you are to give him
                                             the name Jesus, because he will save his people
                                             from their sins."
                                                                                  Matthew 1:21b


          Jesus came to save His people, and to adopt them into the family of God.


                                               


                                     
                                       
                                      
                                    
                                     
                                                                        
                                       
                                                                             


                                         


                                        

   

Holiness in an Unholy World

          Highlights from the sixteenth chapter of The Pursuit of Holiness,
     by Jerry Bridges.

             

                                                  
                               "My prayer is not that you take them out of the world
                                but that you protect them from the evil one."
                                                                      John 17:15


          All believers must live their Christian lives in the context of an unholy
     world.  Some face extraordinary temptation as they live in the midst of a
     flagrantly sinful atmosphere.

          Unless the Christian is prepared for such evil assaults on his mind and
     heart, he will have great difficulty maintaining personal holiness.

          James said that part of true religion consists in keeping ourselves,
     "from being polluted by the world" (James 1:27), and Paul urged us to
     "come out from them and be separate" (2 Corinthians 6:17).

          It is clear from our Lord's prayer that He does not intend for us to with-
     draw from contact with the world of non-Christians (John 17:15).  Instead,
     He said we are to be "the salt of the earth" and "the light of the world"
     Matthew 5:13-14).

          Christians will live in the midst of an unholy world, and we are never
     told in scripture that it will be easy to live in a godless environment.  Instead,
     we are warned to expect ridicule and abuse.


                                        "In fact everyone who wants to live a godly
                                         life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted ... "
                                                                                2 Timothy 3:12


          Instead of withdrawing from contact with the world, we must strive to re-
      sist its influence.  To do this we must first of all resolve to live by the con-
      victions God has given us from His Word.

          But even though we resolve to live in the world by the convictions God has
     given us from His Word, and we openly identify ourselves with Christ, we are
     still often subjected to the pollution of unholy surroundings.

          The Bible is our best defense against this pollution.  David said, "How can
     a young man keep his way pure?  By living according to your word" (Psalm 119:9).
     The Bible will cleanse our minds of the defilement of the world if we meditate
     on its teachings.  It will also serve as a continual warning to us not to succumb to
     frequent temptations to indulge our eyes and thoughts in the immorality around us.

         We are to be salt and light to the world.  God alone knows how more corrupt the
     world would be without the restraining example , life, and prayers of the saints.
     As the "light of the world" we are the bearers of the good news of salvation.  Jesus
     Himself is the true light and just as it was said of John the Baptist, we are to be
     "a witness to testify concerning that light (John 1:7-9).

                                                                   **********

          Above all, we must look to Jesus who, though He ate with tax collectors and
     sinners, was Himself "holy, blameless, pure, set apart from sinners, exalted above
     the heavens" (Hebrews 7:26). 

          And we must claim His promise that "No temptation has seized you except
     what is common to man.  And God is faithful;  He will not let you be tempted be-
     yond what you can bear.  But when you are tempted, He will also provide a way
     out so that you can stand up under it" (1 Corinthians 10:13).

Holiness and Faith

          Highlights from chapter fifteen of The Pursuit of Holiness, by
     Jerry Bridges.


          Though we often think of holiness in a more narrow sense of sepa-
     ration from impurity and moral evil, in its broader sense holiness is o-
     bedience to the will of God in whatever God directs.  It is saying with
     Jesus, "Here I am ... I have come to do your will, O God" (Hebrews
     10:7).

          No one can pursue holiness who is not prepared to obey God in
     every area of his life.  The holiness described in the Bible calls us to
     do more than separate ourselves from the moral pollution of the world
     around us.  It calls us to obey God even when that obedience is costly,
     when it requires deliberate sacrifice and even exposure to danger.

          Obedience to the revealed will of God is often just as much a step of
     faith as claiming a promise from God.  For example the writer of He-
     brews speaks of the Old Testament Hebrews who would never enter
     God's rest because they disobeyed (Heb.3:18).  Yet they were not able
     to enter because of their unbelief (Heb 3:19).

          Hebrews 11 tells us about heroes of faith who were said to be "still
     living by faith when they died" (v3).  The important point, however, is that
     they obeyed by faith.  And since obedience is the pathway to holiness --
     a holy life being essentially an obedient life -- we may say that no one
     will become holy apart from a life of faith.

          Faith is not only necessary to salvation, it is also necessary to live a
     life pleasing to God.  Faith enables us to claim the promises of God --
     but it also enable us to obey the commands of God.  Faith enables us to
     obey when obedience is costly or seems unreasonable to the natural mind.

          It takes faith to pursue such biblical values when the society around us
     is pursuing goals that are totally opposite.  This faith focuses on believing
     that God ultimately upholds and blesses those who obey Him, and who
     trust Him for the consequences of obedience.

          Noah's life is an example of this kind of faith:

                             "By faith Noah, when warned about things not
                              yet seen, in holy fear built an ark to save his
                              family.  By his faith he condemned the world
                              and became heir of the righteousness that comes
                              by faith."
                                                            Hebrews 11:7


          Noah's building of the ark may well be considered one of the greatest
     examples the world has ever witnessed of perseverance in a difficult duty
     of obedience.  For 140 years he labored because he heeded the warning of
     God and believed the promise of God.

          Abraham's life also illustrates the obedience of faith.  The call of Abra-
     ham consisted of two parts -- a command and a promise.  The commmand
     was to leave his fathers' house and go to a land God would show him.  The
     promise was that God would make of him a great nation and through him
     bless all the families of the earth.

          Abraham believed that both the command and promise came from God,
     so he obeyed the command and expected fulfillment of the promise.  It is
     recorded of him, "By faith Abraham ... obeyed" (Hebrews 11:8).

          The path of obedience in the pursuit of holiness is often contrary to
     human reason.  If we do not have conviction in the necessity of obeying
     the revealed will of God as well as confidence in the promises of God, we
     will never persevere in this difficult pursuit.

          We must have conviction that it is God's will that we seek holiness --
     regardless of how arduous and painful the seeking may be.  And we must
     be confident that the pursuit of holiness results in God's approval and
     blessing, when circumstances make it appear otherwise.

          A New Testament application of this spiritual principle is found in the
     words of Jesus,

                                "But seek first His kingdom and His righteousness,
                                 and all these things will be given to you as well."
                                                                       Matthew 6:33

          The command is to seek God's kingdom first.  The promise is that as we
     do, God will provide for our temporal needs.

                                                        **********

          Faith and holiness are inextricably linked.  Obeying the commands of God
     usually involves believing the promises of God.  One definition of faith might
     be "Obeying the revealed will of God and trusting Him for the results."

         
                                  "Without faith it is impossible to please God."
                                                                         Hebrews 11:6


          If we would pursue holiness we must have faith to obey the will of God
     revealed in the Scripture and faith to believe that the promises of God will
     then be ours.

              

Faith is Evidence of the New Birth

          Charles Spurgeon writes about faith and the new birth:


          "Read the third chapter of John's Gospel and do not dwell alone upon its
     earlier sentences.  It is true that the third verse says: Jesus answered and said
     unto him, 'Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again, he can-
     not see the kingdom of God.'

          "But, then, the fourteenth and fifteenth verses speak:  'And as Moses lifted
     up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of Man be lifted up:
     that everyone who believes in Him will have eternal life.'

          "The eighteenth verse repeats the same doctrine in the broadest terms:
     'He that believes on Him is not condemned:  but he that does not believe is
     condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of of the only
     begotten Son of God.'

          "It is clear to every reader that these two statements must agree, since they
     came from the same lips, and are recorded on the same inspired page.  Why
     should we make a difficulty where there can be none?  If one statement as-
     sures us of the necessity to salvation of a something, which only God can
     give, and if another assures us that the Lord will save us upon our believing
     in Jesus, then we may safely conclude that the Lord will give to those who
     believe all that is declared to be necessary to salvation.

           "The Lord does, in fact, produce the new birth in all who believe in Jesus;
     and their believing is the surest evidence that they are born again."


   
  

Habits of Holiness

          Highlights from chapter fourteen of The Pursuit of Holiness, by
     Jerry Bridges.


                                          "Just as you used to offer the parts of your
                                           body in slavery to impurity and to ever-
                                           increasing wickedness, so now offer them
                                           in slavery to righteousness leading to hol-
                                           ness."
                                                                        Romans 6:19


          The more we sin, the more we are inclined to sin.  Every sin we commit
     reinforces the habit of sinning and makes it easier to sin.

          Habit is defined as the "prevailing disposition or character of a person's
     thoughts and feelings."  Habits are the thought and emotional patterns en-
     graved on our minds.

          As unbelievers, we formerly gave ourselves to developing habits of un-
     holiness -- what Paul called "ever-increasing wickedness" (Romans 6:19).
     Repeated acts of unrighteousness became habits that made us in fact, slaves
     to sin.

          But now, Paul declared, just as we formerly gave ourselves to these
     wicked habits, so we are to give ourselves to developing habits of holiness
     (Romans 6:19).  We are to put off our old self -- our sinful disposition and
     its habits -- and put on the new self -- with its character and habits of holi-
     ness.

          To train ourselves in godliness is to discipline and structure our lives so
     that we develop godly habits.

                                   "Have nothing to do with godless myths and
                                    old wives' tales;  rather train yourselves to be
                                    godly."
                                                                       1 Timothy 4:7


          Putting off these sinful habits is what Paul calls mortifying or putting to
     death the deeds of the body.

                                  "For if you live according to the sinful nature, you
                                   will die; but if by the Spirit you put to death the
                                   misdeeds of the body, you will live, because those
                                   who are led by the Spirit of God are sons of God."
                                                                     Romans 8:13-14


          Though we are to deal with these habits of unholiness, we must not try to
     do it in our own strength.  Breaking sinful habits must be done in cooperation
     with the Holy Spirit and in dependence upon Him.

          There are practical principles which we can follow to train ourselves in
     godliness.  The first principle is that habits are developed and reinforced by
     frequent repetition.  This is the principle underlying the fact that the more we
     sin the more we are inclined to sin.  But the converse is also true.  The more
     we say no to sin, the more we are inclined to say no.

          The more we succeed in saying no to our sinful desires, the easier it be-
     comes to say no.  In the same manner we can develop positive habits of
     holiness.  We can develop the habits of thinking thoughts that are pure, true,
     and good.  We can develop the habits of prayer and meditating on the Scrip-
     tures.  But these habits will only be developed through frequent repetition.

          The second principle in breaking sinful habits and acquiring new ones is
     to never let an exception occur.  When we allow exceptions we are reinforc-
     ing old habits or else failing to reinforce the new one.  We must watch the
     "just this once" type of thinking, which is a subtle, dangerous trap.

          Because we are unwilling to pay the price of saying no to our desires, we
     tell ourselves we will indulge only once more and tomorrow will be different.
     Deep inside we know that tomorrow it will be even more difficult to say no,
     but we don't dwell on this fact.

          The third principle is that diligence in all areas is required to ensure suc-
     cess in one area.  John Owen said, "Without a sincere and diligent effort in
     every area of obedience, there will be no successful mortification of any one
     besetting sin."  It is important for us to develop habits of self-control over
     our physical appetites.  We may think indulging these appetites isn't so bad,
     but such indulgences weaken our wills in every other respect of our lives.

          Last, don't be discouraged by failure.  There is a vast difference between
     failing and becoming a failure.  We become a failure when we give up --
     when we stop trying.  But as long as we are working on those sinful habits,
     regardless of how often we fail, we have not become a failure, and we can
     expect to see progress.

                                                             **********


          It is vain to guard our minds and emotions against that which comes from
     without if we do not at the same time deal with habits of sin which are within.
     The battle for holiness must be fought on two fronts -- without and within.
     Only then will we see progress toward holiness.
  

God - The Heart Surgeon

          The Bible says that the heart is deceitful and full of wickedness.


                                      "The heart is deceitful above all things
                                        and beyond cure.  Who can understand it?"
                                                                         Jeremiah 17:9


                                      (The LORD said to Jeremiah) "Again and again 
                                      I sent all my servants the prophets to you.  They
                                      said, 'Each of you must turn from your wicked
                                      ways and reform your actions; do not follow
                                      other gods to serve them.  Then you will live in
                                      the land I have given to you and your fathers.
                                      But you have not paid attention or listened to me."
                                                                        Jeremiah 35:15


          Only those who have a pure heart may see God.


                                          "Blessed are the pure in heart,
                                           for they will see God."
                                                                        Matthew 5:8


                                         "Who may ascend the hill of the LORD?
                                           Who may stand in His holy place?
                                           He who has clean hands and a pure
                                           heart, who does not lift up his soul to
                                           an idol or swear by what is false."
                                                                         Psalm 24:3-4


          Paul urged believers to set their hearts on the things of God.


                                         "Since, then, you have been raised with
                                           Christ, set your hearts on things above,
                                           where Christ is seated at the right hand
                                           of God."
                                                                         Colossians 3:1


          Since we have a deceitful heart, but a pure heart is necessary to have a right
     relationship with God, what must happen for us to obtain such a heart?


                                                         **********


          In the book, Foundations of Grace, Steve Lawson writes about what must be
     done for us to receive a pure heart.


          "Hundreds of years before Moses, God commanded Abraham to circumcise all
     the males in his household."  (Circumcision was God's appointed 'sign of the cov-
     enant,' which signified Abraham's covenanted commitment to the Lord -- that the
     Lord above would be his God, whom he would trust and serve.  Circumcision
     signifies consecration to the Lord"  NIV commentary).


          "For Israel, circumcision was a picture of what God must do to the uncoverted
     heart.  In the new birth, God must circumcise the sin-hardened heart if sinful man
     is to love Him with saving faith.  By a sovereign work of the Holy Spirit, God
     must cut deeply into the unconverted heart and supernaturally set it apart to Him-
     self.

          "This is the omnipotent work of the Spirit in regeneration.  Again, then, we see
     that God is the sole initiating cause of regeneration.  Man is passive while God is
     active in this vital step in the process of salvation:

                                     
                                       'And the LORD your God will circumcise your
                                        heart and the heart of your offspring, so that you
                                        will love the LORD your God with all your heart
                                        and with all your soul, that you may live.'
                                                                           Deuteronomy 30:6

          Lawson continues:

          "Moses presented God's sovereign work of grace as a spiritual circumcision,
     a cutting away of the foreskin of the unbelieving heart.  It is a penetrating work
     of grace that removes man's inability to believe and replaces it with true repent-
     ance and faith. 

          "Regeneration is open-heart surgery, a soul-reviving work of the Spirit that
     probes to the deepest level of a person's being.  Already in the Old Testament
     we are taught that only God can bring about the radical change which is nec-
     essary to enable fallen human beings again to do what is pleasing in His sight.

          "In Deuteronomy 30:6 we find our spiritual renewal figuratively described
     as a circumcision of the heart.  Since the heart is the inner core of the person,
     the passage teaches that God must cleanse us within before we can truly love
     Him.

          "When God 'operated' on the heart, then indeed the people would be able to
     love the Lord and live."


                                                          **********


          In regeneration, God removes the hardness from our heart and softens it so
     that we are able to respond to Him in repentance and faith, receiving salvation
     through Jesus Christ.