Holiness is undesirable if Jesus is not your desire. In fact, holiness is bitter if you have not tasted and seen of the goodness of the Lord toward you.

Those who think holiness dull or boring have likely yet to experience the glory of God in the face of Christ. The grace of God in the forgiveness of Christ. The mercy of God in the sacrifice of Christ. The love of God in the obedience of Christ.

Those who have never tried Forty Weight coffee can never understand why I find it so amazing.

Those who have never loved music can never understand why I find it so integral.

Those who have never adopted can never understand why I find it so humbling.

Those who have never seen a Lake Ontario sunset can never understand why I find it so beautiful.

Those who have never walked under a gentle snowfall can never understand why I find it so moving.

But these are personal experiences that not everyone wants to have, nor can have.

For those who are in Christ, though, the same personal experience is shared: “If anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation” (2 Corinthians 5:17)

At the center of this “new creation” is a new heart and life from, to, and through Jesus. For those who confess, “it is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me,” to be holy is

• to walk in the fear of the Lord (awe and adoration of Him)

• which is the beginning of the wisdom of the Lord (how we should now live)

• for which we receive the power of the Lord (the indwelling Holy Spirit)

So, to be holy is to live a life in the fear of the Lord, in the wisdom of the Lord, by the power of the Lord. A life set apart with “a joy that is inexpressible and full of glory” (1 Peter 1:8).

Dear Elim Grace, holiness is irresistible to the holy, because Jesus is irresistible to the holy. Far from being a dull and gray life, a holy life is a life “saved by the beauty of the world”.