“But as He who called you is holy, you also be holy in all your conduct, because it is written, ‘Be holy, for I am holy’” (1 Peter 1:15-16).

Perhaps no attribute of God is emphasized more to us in the Scriptures than His holiness (Isa. 6:3; Rev. 4:8). God is holy in that He is absolutely pure. He is unstained by sin and evil. He is perfect in every way. As the apostle John expressed it, “God is light and in Him is no darkness at all” (1 John 1:5). And based upon God being holy, we His children are called upon to be holy too (1 Thess. 4:7).

The root idea of holiness is that of separation from a life of habitual sin and all worldly defilement. Holiness entails dedication (consecration) to the service of God. A life of holiness has always been required of God’s covenant people (cf. Lev. 11:44-45; 19:2; 20:26), and such a requirement has always been based upon God’s own holiness – “be holy, for I am holy.”

The apostle Peter makes it abundantly clear to his Christian readers that we are not to simply be holy in certain areas of our life, but we are to be holy in ALL of our conduct (behavior). Our thoughts are to be pure and holy (Phil. 4:8). Our words (our speech) are to be completely holy (Eph. 4:29). Our lives are to be without spot and blameless (2 Peter 3:14). The clothing we wear is to profess our godliness (1 Tim. 2:9-10). The things that we watch, the audio that we listen to, and the places that we go must be rooted in our holiness.

In fact, a life of holiness ought to be our daily pursuit, knowing that we will not see the Lord or be with the Lord if it is absent from our life (Heb. 12:14). As Paul penned: “Beloved, let us cleanse ourselves from all filthiness of the flesh and spirit, perfecting holiness in the fear of God” (2 Cor. 7:1). May we earnestly strive to “be holy and without blame before Him in love” (Eph. 1:4).