Holiness – A Call to Commitment
If we are called to holiness – or indeed, wholeness – then what does this call look like? In his sermon Donald Shafer suggests that first of all, holiness is a call to commitment. Here’s what he says: “Holiness is a commitment to God of your total personality. This was the call of Jesus to those desiring eternal life: ‘You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul’ (Luke 10:25). If you are to be inwardly wholesome, then, there must be this basic commitment to God.”
So it’s all about seeing Jesus, recognizing him as God, and committing our lives to him. Receiving the loving grace that he has, and then trusting him to bring us back into relationship with the Father.
Commitment to Becoming
But I love what Shafer goes on to say: “We must go beyond the beginning. After we find ourselves (or lose ourselves) as being in Christ, we then face the adventure of becoming. The life of holiness or wholesomeness is a call to the commitment of becoming. It is to allow the Holy Spirit to effect in us any change necessary for a life of growth and ministry in all our relationships.”
That’s profound. It is not just being in Christ, it is becoming like Christ more and more.
Here’s the question for us today: are we committed to becoming like Christ? Or are we content to be in his love and just leave it at that? A holy or whole person has the desire for transformation – for a life that reflects the ethics and values of Jesus himself.
Commitment to Growth
In fact, Shafer says it’s like getting married. While you were engaged, you were simply enjoying the other person’s company, but once married you have committed to maturing in your relationship to become the spouse that you need to become. It’s a total commitment to that.
My prayer for you and I today is that we don’t just enjoy being with God, but that we commit to becoming like Jesus, and look for every opportunity to grow in His grace, knowledge and love.
A holy life – and a whole life – is one committed to becoming like the one who saved us.
