a thought on Christian holiness and ethics...

One of the main themes we are discussing in my Pauline Epistles class is the meaning of Christianity and its influence on our behavior. Jamie Smith told us, "To understand Christianity as a set of behaviors or moral applications is a misunderstanding of what Christianity is. Christianity is about a state-of-being. It is about being the renewed Israel of God. It is about being the people of God. It is about being the children of God, the friends of God. It is about being a holy person. We do not inherit this status by birth, we do not earn it through works; rather, it is given to us by grace through the cross of Christ. Those of us in Christ are holy. Our behaviors do not make us any more or any less holy, nor can we become more holy by being better, more loving people. We are already perfectly holy, as holy as we can be, in Christ. This is grace. Paul continuously urges Christians to reflect this status of holiness in their lives by obeying God and seeking to live a life that honors Christ. Our adherence to the behaviors that are reflective of our holiness is not a matter of salvation; however, if someone claims membership in the body of Christ and yet does not seek to adhere to holy living at all, then there might be some questioning of the truth to their claims to be had." Those are his words in summary, not verbatim.

This has really gotten me thinking lately. "How am I reflecting--or not reflecting--the holiness that God has bestowed upon me by His grace through His Son, Christ?" I look at my life and I see ways that I could better reflect my status as God's child and friend. I honestly seek to please God and make Him proud of me, yet I understand that He is already proud of me because He looks at my status, not my behavior. Just as a good father is proud of his child despite his mistakes, errors, and pitfalls, so God is proud of me despite the sin in my life. His affection towards me is not determined by my behaviors; it is determined by who I am in Christ.

This understanding has been both liberating and motivating. On the one hand it is liberating: my status in God's kingdom and my being in His favor is not determined by how well of a Christian I am; it is not determined by my performance; my status cannot be lost or gained by my own works, but exists because of my faith in Christ and the grace God gives me through Him. It is liberating because a weight comes off my shoulders: I humbly acknowledge that I am imperfect, that I am a miserable sinner in need of grace, yet at the same time I am a holy person who is in a dynamic, interactive, intimate friendship with God (Christianity is full of paradoxes, is it not?!). On the other hand it is motivating: obeying Christ is not something to be done in order to attain God's favor (for if that were the route to God's favor, then none of us would find it!), but something we do in thanks to the status God has bestowed upon us. We embrace a life of seeking to please God because this is our real life--the new life God has given us--and we wish to reflect the holy people that we are. In some way, once I have come to the understanding that my favor in God's eyes and my status in His kingdom is not dependent upon performance, I have more of a desire to live according to His will!

With all this said, let me take a step back and examine my life... [examining... okay... done!] In my great and quiet contemplation, two aspects of my life that need changing jump out at me. Two addictions that need to be exterminated. New ways of life need to be embraced in their place. My addictions must change into an addiction for serving God and pleasing Him, however that manifests itself in my daily life.

So if you're serious about living this new resurrection life with Christ, act like it. Pursue the things over which Christ presides. Don't shuffle along, eyes to the ground, absorbed with the things right in front of you. Look up, and be alert to what is going on around Christ—that's where the action is. See things from his perspective.

Your old life is dead. Your new life, which is your real life—even though invisible to spectators—is with Christ in God. He is your life. When Christ (your real life, remember) shows up again on this earth, you'll show up, too—the real you, the glorious you. Meanwhile, be content with obscurity, like Christ.

And that means killing off everything connected with that way of death: sexual promiscuity, impurity, lust, doing whatever you feel like whenever you feel like it, and grabbing whatever attracts your fancy. That's a life shaped by things and feelings instead of by God. It's because of this kind of thing that God is about to explode in anger. It wasn't long ago that you were doing all that stuff and not knowing any better. But you know better now, so make sure it's all gone for good: bad temper, irritability, meanness, profanity, dirty talk.

Don't lie to one another. You're done with that old life. It's like a filthy set of ill-fitting clothes you've stripped off and put in the fire. Now you're dressed in a new wardrobe. Every item of your new way of life is custom-made by the Creator, with his label on it. All the old fashions are now obsolete. Words like Jewish and non-Jewish, religious and irreligious, insider and outsider, uncivilized and uncouth, slave and free, mean nothing. From now on everyone is defined by Christ, everyone is included in Christ.

So, chosen by God for this new life of love, dress in the wardrobe God picked out for you: compassion, kindness, humility, quiet strength, discipline. Be even-tempered, content with second place, quick to forgive an offense. Forgive as quickly and completely as the Master forgave you. And regardless of what else you put on, wear love. It's your basic, all-purpose garment. Never be without it. (Colossians 3.1-14, The Message)