Probably the hardest challenge in all of Scripture comes from the mouth of God to His people, Israel, (rf. Leviticus 11:44; 19:2; 20:7), echoed and applied to all believers in Christ (rf. I Peter 1:15-16): “‘Be holy for/as I am holy’ says the Lord.” In this grammatical format, God intended for this statement to be taken as a command with obedience as its explicit, expected result. There was not so much an outlook for sinless perfection as there was the prospect of separation or uniqueness from the rest of the world or world system in this idea of being “holy”. This concept is reflected in the Apostle John’s admonition of I John 2:15: “Do not love the world nor the things of the world...” It is also found in the Apostle Paul’s statement of encouragement in Romans 12:2: “...and do not be conformed to this world...” God’s intent in telling His people to “be holy” is to be purposefully different by following His Word, His precepts, His commands. When we obey these teachings, we truly exhibit the qualities of being His “peculiar people” (rf. I Peter 2:9 KJV).
But, that’s the “rub”, isn’t it? Do we really want to be “peculiar”, unique, different? Or is there a driving force within us to “fit in” with the culture that surrounds us? We really want to be liked and loved by the unbelieving world. The pressures to conform to the culture are astounding. The media, video and audio, bombards us with messages that we should “follow the pack”. As adults, at work or in classes, the mentality presented is one that uniqueness is only valuable if it meshes with the acceptable perspective of the prevailing culture. God forbid (so to speak) that one should introduce Christian morals into an adult setting and expect them to be willingly integrated. How much less is such a prospect for those less in age and maturity where the introduction of Christianity is perceived as a threat to self-expression and creativity and, thus, by political decisions the young are systematically being separated from its positive influences. To the outside world, taking such stands of difference as commanded by God are seen as eccentric, crazy, even dangerous because serious believers do not conform to societal “norms”. However, in God’s economy, to be “salt...and light” (rf. Matthew 5) requires greater bravery than most Christians are ready and willing to practice today. There is an amazing amount of sacrifice that comes with fulfilling God’s command to “be holy”.
Does it mean a complete break with the outside world as some groups, like the Amish, have taken? It is hard to fulfill the part of being the “salt of the earth” and the “light of the world” concept of Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount if we virtually withdraw ourselves from the surrounding humanity. Nor does God give us liberty to surrender ourselves and our children to the pagans and their unbelieving culture for the ungodly to oversee, influence and educate the generations of believers in the cultural perspective and worldview. The responsibility of generational instruction is to stay solely and securely within the context of our own faith (rf. Deuteronomy 6:1-15). What He does command is that we keep ourselves “unstained from the world” (rf. James 1:27), meaning that we must stay engaged within the culture without becoming part of it, remaining distinct from it by the way that we live and the things that we believe and affirm.
The Jewish people for centuries practiced their faith in this very way, living differently from the peoples that surrounded them, educating their children in their own schools, and, yet, engaging the outside culture as needed. In this way they were endeavoring to uphold God’s commandment as stated in Leviticus. As a result, they endured much persecution because they were misunderstood for their distinctions.
The same will hold true for us if we choose to obey God’s Word as well. Our unbelieving friends will not grasp our actions and decisions. But, remember, to “be holy” is to seek to please God not men. It is to possess a heart that desires to obey God above all else. We leave the ramifications of our following after Him...to Him.
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