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.” – 1 Peter 1:15–16
At home I have a few “mini-me’s.” While we don’t all look the same, it is clear that the five guys in our home are all Lingenfelters. By God’s grace I have the privilege of being the daddy to four boys who desire to imitate and impress their dad. From time to time I hear them saying things that I say and spot them doing things that I do. Sometimes I see and hear things I’m proud of, while other times, well… you know. Even at this stage, having people who imitate you is incredibly humbling.
I remember feeling this way about my father when I was a kid as well. I wanted to be just like my dad. He worked on cars, so I wanted to work on cars. He went hunting, so I braved the cold to go hunting. He liked Ford trucks, so I drew pictures of Ford trucks. I wanted to be like my dad; and on occasion, he made clear what it meant to be a Lingenfelter. We had a way about us that made us who we were. The way we worked, the way we treated people, the way we approached every challenge defined. There were just things we did and didn’t do.
And now, having sons of my own, I am blown away by the joy of experiencing this from this side of life. What a blessing. I’m not sure how long this will last, but you can be sure that I will teach them the Lingenfelter way and do everything I can to be a man worth replicating.
Now with this sentiment in mind, consider that our God and Father calls us to be like Him. To “be holy as He is holy.” Our God is perfect. He is always worth imitating. The difficulty, however, is that I fall woefully short of being like Him. Yet still He calls out to me to be holy as He is. How is this possible? Only through God’s perfect son Jesus Christ, who lived out the holiness of His Father in every way. Because of Jesus’ perfection, you and I can stand as righteous before our God and Father (Eph 2:4-6). Because of His death and resurrection, you and I now have the power of the Holy Spirit in side of us which enables us to actually pursue a life of holiness. Wow, how awesome is that?
This Sunday, we are going to find strength in the purity and holiness of God. As we study Exodus 19-20:21, we will witness God revealing the standard of His holiness with clarity through the giving of the Ten Commandments. Through the covenant of the Mosaic law, we see with clarity what it looks like to be holy as God is holy. As we read the passage, may we see the pure character of our God and praise Him for sending Jesus to fulfill the law so that you and I would have the privilege to live an empowered life as a holy child of God.
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Loved & sent with you,
Pastor Jerry