Titus II Lesson -- April 5th

First Peter
How Shall We Then Live in a Post-Christian Culture
“The Call to Live in Holiness”
1 Peter 1:14-16


Introduction
As part of his introduction to the sermon on this passage, John Piper writes: “What amazes me again and again today — and defines my life and ministry — is that when I look into contemporary American cultural life the most awesome, stunning, frightening reality is the thoroughgoing insignificance of God. And when I look into the New Testament the most awesome, stunning, frightening thing is that God is everything (1 Cor. 3:7). Sometimes in a season of weakness I am so numbed by the normal insignificance of God in contemporary life that I don't feel the magnitude the evil and the danger I am a part of. As I was reading in the prophet Hosea, I came across these words (8:9): "Israel has forgotten his Maker, and built palaces." Sometimes I might just read right over that. But not this week. This week God spoke powerfully. And I lay down the Bible and closed my eyes and felt again the ever-recurrent call on my life: Tell Israel to remember their Maker; and warn them about their palaces. Preach it on Sunday. Teach it on Wednesday. Put it in poems. Write it in books. Take it to conferences. Live it before your family and staff and elders. The main thing to think about and feel about and act about in the world is God. Being caught up with anything more than God is idolatry.”[1] But I get ahead of myself…..

Context

“13 Therefore, gird your minds for action, keep sober in spirit, fix your hope completely on the grace to be brought to you at the revelation of Jesus Christ. 14 As obedient children, do not be conformed to the former lusts which were yours in your ignorance, 15 but like the Holy One who called you, be holy yourselves also in all your behavior; 16 because it is written, ‘You shall be holy, for I am holy.’”

This passage falls, contextually, in what we are terming as the section addressing the sanctification of believers (1:13-2:12). In 1 Peter 1:13, after having explained the greatness of our salvation in 1 Peter 1:1-12 (i.e., what God has done in salvation), Peter says: “therefore.” That is, in light of this great salvation we are to live in a consistent manner with this great salvation. Last week, we learned that we are called to live in hope (1:13). This week we will learn that we are called to live in holiness.

Transition
But there is a problem. What is that problem? To be called “holy” is to be likened to a “nerd”, to be called “puritanical” (whether the speaker understands the Puritans or not), or to be labeled as a “right-wing evangelical.” Holiness is not thought of as a virtue but as a vice. In today’s culture, it is simply insulting to be thought of as “holy” by your peers.

As a result, isn’t the Church very comfortable in presenting a gospel that adds God to our lives with little or no change necessary on our part? Yes. Unfortunately, such is not the message of the true gospel or the teaching of the Scriptures on the spiritual life. The Old Testament prophets, along with John the Baptist, and then Jesus called for a radical change for those who would trust and obey God. “Repent” was an indispensable word to those who proclaimed the Word of God in truth. To repent meant to change not only our thinking but our actions. When we are saved, we are saved from our heathen desires and practices and called to live a life of holiness.[2]

Our lesson, this morning, begins by defining holiness, then continues by tracing the theme of holiness through the Bible, and concludes with an explanation of its meaning.

The Definition of Holiness
First, let us consider the definition of holiness. The root idea of holiness in the Old Testament (quoted here) is that of being separated from what is defective and evil and separated for God. So the Sabbath is holy to the Lord: separated from the pursuits of other days and dedicated to the Lord (Ex. 31:15). Priests are holy to the Lord: they are set apart from ordinary pursuits and dedicated in a special way to the Lord (2 Chron. 23:6).[3]

Or to state it differently, to be holy is the opposite of being “common” or “profane.” God is holy in that He is utterly different and distinct from His creation. Likewise, God has called His people to be distinct, separate from the heathen attitudes and actions which characterized them as unbelievers.[4] The translation of 1 Peter 2:9 by the King James Version clearly conveys this idea of “separateness:”

“But you are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, an holy nation, a peculiar people; that ye should show forth the praises of him who hath called you out of darkness into his marvelous light” (1 Peter 2:9, KJV).

The History of Holiness[5]
Having defined holiness, let us see how it is addressed by the law, by Christ, and by the early church (after the coming of the Holy Spirit).

1. By the Law
Once the Israelites were brought out of Egypt, God gave them laws which governed the conduct of every Israelite and of every one who dwelt among them as aliens. What laws, of all those given at Mount Sinai, would you expect to set the Israelites apart from all the nations as a holy people? Most think the Ten Commandments were given particularly for this purpose. Surprisingly, we do not find “holiness” directly linked with these commandments. The command, “Be ye holy, for I am holy,” is found several times in the law of Moses but not in Exodus 20 or Deuteronomy 5. Rather, this command is found in the Book of Leviticus. That means that it is found in that part of the law many Christians feel is the least relevant and the least applicable to the New Testament saint – the part normally called the “ceremonial law.”

Why is this so? The Ten Commandments do not set the Israelites or contemporary Christians apart because virtually every civilized nation accepts many of the values and commands of these Ten Commandments as a valid standard of conduct. For example, civilized nations condemn stealing, lying, and murder.

On the other hand, Israel was “distinct” in her obedience to the laws regarding “clean” and “unclean” as set down in Leviticus. While these distinctions were set out clearly, the reasons for them were not. Why, for instance, was a woman declared “unclean” twice as long for having a girl than for having a boy (see Leviticus 12:1-5)? Why was beef “clean” while pork was declared to be “unclean”? Many of the distinctions between “clean” and “unclean” made in Leviticus appear to be arbitrary without rational or logical explanation.

Yet, this is by divine design. What do I mean? That which sets the true child of God apart from all others is their faith and trust in God, evidenced by obedience to His commands even when they do not seem to make sense. Not eating of the fruit of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil did not make sense to Adam and Eve, but God required their obedience. Offering up Isaac as a sacrifice to God made no sense to Abraham, but God required his obedience. Likewise, obedience to the distinctions God made between the “clean” and the “unclean” made little sense to Israel, but God required her obedience. In false religions, men create their own “gods” and their own rules, all according to their own desires. In Christianity, God makes the rules, and they are not according to our preferences or desires.

2. By Christ
While the Law clearly addressed what it took to be “holy”, the definitions of holiness got corrupted over time. At the time of Christ’s incarnation, biblical holiness as practiced by many in Israel required clarification. Jesus willingly corrected the man-made holiness loved by the Scribes and Pharisees. Specifically, Jesus opposed their:

· Ceremonial Cleanness
The Scribes and Pharisees were miffed because Jesus’ disciples did not ceremonially cleanse their hands before eating. Now this was not the kind of hand-washing mothers require of their children before they can eat (to be clean in a healthy sense, free of dirt and germs). They wanted people to eat with “ceremonial” cleanness. Unfortunately, this “ceremonial” cleanness was not what the Old Testament Law required as described in Leviticus. This was a cleanness defined by a different standard — the traditions of the elders (verse 3). The elders had added all kinds of cleansings to the Law of God and then came to regard their definition of “clean” more highly than that which God had established in Scripture.

· “Hypocritical” Holiness
To add human standards to those of divine origin was one thing. But it was quite another to use these standards to set aside and even violate the Laws of God. Yet, this is exactly what Judaism had done. Jesus exposed this hypocrisy. For example: The Law required that one should honor their father and mother. This included caring for them in their times of need. And yet the Jews had devised a way to avoid this financial liability. They “dedicated their money to God” using the term “Corban” to do so and then excused themselves from their obligations to their parents by claiming that this was God’s money. So to speak, it was “holy money,” which they claimed could no longer be used to care for their aging parents. But it could be used to satisfy any of their lusts including -- for example -- a vacation.

· “External” Holiness
Holiness had never been a matter of externalism but it had always been a matter of the heart. So, the distortion of biblical holiness by the Scribes and Pharisee to focus on the “external”, required correction by Jesus. Jesus did so by clearly teaching that one is not corrupted by that which is external to the person but that which is within a person. For example, Jesus taught that food does not defile a man. Rather, it is that which is inside the man (his sin nature) that defiles him (Matt. 15:10-11).

3. By the Early Church (after the coming of the Holy Spirit)
If this was the only change in how holiness is to be understood, the disciples would have clearly understood how holiness was addressed in the Law and clarified by Jesus. Unfortunately, Jesus appeared to also “redefine” holiness. What do I mean? Jesus declared “all things to be clean.” This created great confusion. What Jesus meant was only grasped after our Lord’s death, burial, and ascension, and after the coming of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost. In Acts 10, Peter was about to be invited to the house of a Gentile — Cornelius. There was no way Peter would have gone apart from the revelation he received from God in a dream:

“10 And he became hungry, and was desiring to eat; but while they were making preparations, he fell into a trance; 11 and he beheld the sky opened up, and a certain object like a great sheet coming down, lowered by four corners to the ground, 12 and there were in it all kinds of four-footed animals and crawling creatures of the earth and birds of the air. 13 And a voice came to him, “Arise, Peter, kill and eat!” 14 But Peter said, “By no means, Lord, for I have never eaten anything unholy and unclean.” 15 And again a voice came to him a second time, “What God has cleansed, no longer consider unholy.” 16 And this happened three times; and immediately the object was taken up into the sky” (Acts 10:10-16).

The sheet that descended from heaven contained all sorts of animals, some of which would have been unclean according to Leviticus 11. But God ordered Peter to kill some of them and to eat. Peter was horrified. He had never done so, and he did not plan to start now. The divine response was simply that God had cleansed them (isn’t that what Jesus had said) and that Peter was now no longer to consider them unholy. What had happened to make them clean? God had changed the definition of what was and was not clean (isn’t this what Jesus had said). Now, Peter must obey this new definition of clean and unclean because it is God alone who can declare something holy or unholy. It is He alone who can cleanse the unclean and make it clean.

What was the basis upon which God now declared these foods clean? The basis for this cleansing was the work of our Lord Jesus Christ. His shed blood cleanses us from all unrighteousness. This cleansing had been foreshadowed by the annual Day of Atonement (see Leviticus 16:30). It is this cleansing for which the Old Testament saints hoped and prayed and the Old Testament prophets promised (see Jeremiah 33:8). It is this cleansing which our Lord Jesus Christ accomplished by His death, burial, and resurrection (see Hebrews 9:13-14, 22-23). The fact of that cleansing to be sufficient to make all thing clean is the declaration of God that it is so.

Peter was soon to understand the significance and application of his vision. Messengers from Cornelius arrived and asked him to come with them to the home of their master. Peter complied, still puzzled at what God was teaching him. But when the Holy Spirit fell upon these Gentiles, just as He had upon the Jewish believers at Pentecost, he understood that the coming of our Lord was intended to cleanse both Jews and Gentiles from their sins. Those whom God had cleansed, no man should dare consider unclean.

The Call to Holiness
Having defined holiness and having traced holiness (and its changing definitions) through the Bible, let us now consider Peter’s call to holiness. Peter writes:

“14 As obedient children, do not be conformed to the former lusts which were yours in your ignorance, 15 but like the Holy One who called you, be holy yourselves also in all your behavior; 16 because it is written, “You shall be holy, for I am holy.””

Peter’s call to holiness provides us with a lot of practical advice. His call has at least four aspects.[6]

1. We Are to be Holy in All Our Conduct
We are to be holy in every aspect of our conduct (“in all our behavior”). Holiness is not to be compartmentalized into certain “religious” areas of our life. Holiness is a way of life that affects everything we do. Holiness is a lifestyle, rather than mere conformity to a list of rules.

2. We Are to be Holy By Not Being Conformed to Our Former Lusts
Holiness is a lifestyle which differs dramatically from our manner of life before we were saved. Though the Christian has died to sin and been raised to newness of life in Him, he or she must also choose to serve Him and turn from their former lusts. They must no longer allow sin to master them (Romans 6:1-14). Like Paul, they must gain control over their fleshly desires, rather than be mastered by them (see 1 Cor. 9:24-27).

3. We Are to be Holy by Imitating God
As Jesus once put it: “Therefore you are to be perfect, as your heavenly Father is perfect” (Matthew 5:48). This means we must first come to know God, and then by His grace, seek to conduct ourselves in a manner that imitates Him. We must love what He loves and hate what He hates. We, like Him, are to be merciful, just, and kind. We become holy as we are conformed to His image.

4. We Are to be Holy by Obeying God’s Word
The standards of holiness are set down by God in His Word. That is why Peter quotes from the Old Testament Law. We are to be obedient and that obedience is directed toward His commands and standards as set down in His Word. In the days of our unbelief, we were ignorant, but now God’s Spirit dwells within us to enlighten our minds to understand His Word (1 Corinthians 2:6-16) and to empower us to obey it (Romans 8:1-4). Holiness is accomplished in our lives as the Spirit of God enables us to know God and to obey His commands, through His Word.

Conclusion
In closing, I would like to make three comments about holiness.[7]

1. We are Called to Holiness Not Happiness
The call to holiness is clear. It is not a popular appeal. It is a call that God has made of His people ever since the exodus. Those who attempt to market the gospel and appeal to the masses would say God has called us to be happy. But a serious study of the Scriptures would lead one to acknowledge that God has called us to be holy in an ungodly world. It is holiness which sets us apart from the world and to God. It is holiness we are called to pursue and to practice (see Matthew 5:13-16; 2 Cor. 6:14-18; 1 Peter 2:9-12). It is holiness, not happiness, that we are called to as children of God.

2. We are Called to Detest Not Just Avoid
When Peter was asked to eat what he thought was unclean – he was repulsed. Reading Leviticus 11 teaches us an important lesson about holiness. Those things God declared unclean were unclean. And these “unclean” things were not only to be avoided but to be considered detestable (see Leviticus 11: 10-11, 41). It was not enough for the Israelites to avoid eating what God declared to be unclean; they must also loathe what God called unclean. They were to adjust their desires to conform to God’s desires. They were to delight in what God found delightful and to loathe what God found detestable. This command is not just for Old Testament saints but for New Testament saints as well (see Romans 12:9). When we understand and apply this truth, we will find a great deal of practical help. We will not nearly be as likely to participate in those things we find detestable as those things in which we delight. Our problem becomes evident when our desires often do not conform to those things in which God delights. Conversely, we often desire the very things which displease God. When we find our delight in God and in the things which delight Him, then we, like David, will search His word to know more of His law rather than avoiding the Law of God and restricting its application to our lives (see Psalm 119:11-20).

3. We Are Called to Obey Even if We Don’t Understand
Why was the fruit of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil to be avoided? For one reason: because God declared it so. Adam and Eve did not understand why. They were not to understand why. They needed only to know that God had declared the fruit of this tree off limits to them. Why were some meats “clean” and others “unclean”? Because God declared them to be so to the people of Israel. Why was a woman unclean twice as long for bearing a girl baby than a boy? Because God said so. Why are sinners deemed to be righteous, forgiven, and destined for heaven? Because God declares them to be justified. Why are all foods now clean according to Mark 7:19? Because God declared them to be clean. The point of these series of questions is clear – we are called to obey even if we don’t understand.


[1] John Piper, “The Lust of Ignorance and the Life of Holiness”, By John Piper. © Desiring God. Website: www.desiringGod.org. Email: mail@desiringGod.org. Toll Free: 1.888.346.4700.
[2] Robert Deffinbaugh, “The Glory of Suffering: A Study of 1 Peter”
[3] John Piper, “The Lust of Ignorance and the Life of Holiness”, By John Piper. © Desiring God. Website: www.desiringGod.org. Email: mail@desiringGod.org. Toll Free: 1.888.346.4700.
[4] Robert Deffinbaugh, “The Glory of Suffering: A Study of 1 Peter”
[5] Robert Deffinbaugh, “The Glory of Suffering: A Study of 1 Peter”
[6] Robert Deffinbaugh, “The Glory of Suffering: A Study of 1 Peter”
[7] Robert Deffinbaugh, “The Glory of Suffering: A Study of 1 Peter”