1 Peter 1:15, 16
Prize Chukwuka
These verses have been bastardized by many who have little or no understanding of Gospel (New Covenant) truth. These are religionists who make this verses appear to say something they are not. The way these verses have been erroneously interpreted make it look like, or as if God is asking us to be holy, as though it were up to us to make ourselves to live holy lives. This is the view many sincere Christians hold. But you see being sincere doesn’t mean you are right. Truth surpasses sincerity. This implies that a person can be sincere and yet wrong. In other words, that someone is sincere does not mean that they are right. Sincerity does not and can never make one free, but the truth does (John 8:32).
First you must understand that you cannot make yourself holy, neither can you make your way pure, or make your way of life holy by yourself, no matter how much you try or how much effort you put in (see also 2 Cor. 7:1; Heb. 12:14). All of these passages are poor translations of the text.
But I am not going to talk about all of these passages here. For now as I am led to do, I will just focus on the above subject.
As a matter of truth, the Bible even confirms unequivocally that if you try to keep all the instructions of the law and yet fail in one point, just one point, then you have failed everything (James 2:10). In this verse James is simply pointing out that it is completely meaningless and impossible for anyone to try to please or follow God through adherence to the instructions of the law. Anyone trying to please God or attempting to live a holy life by trying to keep or follow the instructions of the law, is only wasting his or her time. Because it's impossible do so. Such an attempt will keep leading to repeated failure and frustration.
Majority of Christians are yet to understand that holiness is not an attainment. You cannot attain holiness by your performance. Those advocating adherence to the commandments, instructions, ordinances, rules and regulations of the law are preaching a false Gospel.
You must understand that, only God can make a man holy. You cannot make yourself or anything about yourself holy in the sight of God. You may religiously pretend to be doing so in the sight of men, but not in the sight of God. So 1 peter 1: 15, 16, isn’t saying that you are to make yourself or your way holy before God, as though it were up to you.
When religious Christians talk about holiness or living a holy life, all they are referring to is basically nothing other than behavioral modification, a modification of your moral. While I am not against any of these, yet I must make it clear that this is not what God’s holiness means. God’s holiness, viz-a-viz our holiness in Christ is beyond behavioral modification. It’s more than just changing your behavior, having good morals, or trying to be a nice person. None of these things is holiness as far as God is concerned.
WHAT IS HOLINESS?
So what is holiness? The generally accepted understanding of the word holiness is that it is about doing right things, moral excellence, behavioral modification, etc.
But check the original New Testament Greek, you will see that the word “holiness” is translated from the Greek word HAGIASMOS, which means “separation to God, blameless”. HAGIASMOS also carries with it the idea of being one with God, to belong to God.
Under the Old Covenant, the children of Israel belonged to God because God set them apart from the world through the blood covenant they made with Him at Sanai (see Exod. 19: 1-25; 20-1-Deut. 5:2, 3; Heb. 9:18-21). They did not become a holy nation because they were morally upright, or perfect. Now don’t get me wrong, I am not against being morally upright. What I am trying to get you to understand is that as far as God is concerned, as far as the Gospel or the New Covenant is concerned, being morally upright, doing right, is not holiness. You see, you are not made holy by your thoughts and actions. You are made holy because you believe in and have accepted the sacrifice that Jesus Christ for us made on the cross.
The key to understanding 1 peter 1:15, 16, is to understand that the phrase “be ye” is a poor or weak translation of the text. This phrase as rendered in the King James Version and most English variants is translated from the Greek word “GENESTHE” as found in the Textus Receptus. GENESTHE as we know is a derivative of the GINOMAI, which means; ‘to be’, ‘to become’, ‘to come into being’. GENESTHE as you must understand is the aorist tense of GINOMAI. It means; ‘made to be’, ‘to be made’, ‘have been made’. It presents the idea of something that has already been made, or something that has already become. Not something that is yet to be.
In other words, a better rendering of 1 peter 1:15, 16 would be. “But as He which has called you is holy, so you also have been made holy (blameless) in all manner of conversation, because it is written, you are Holy, because I am Holy. ”
We are holy because God our father is holy. You are not made holy by your thoughts and actions. In these verses, the Apostle peter is trying to get Christians to understand that as our heavenly Father is holy, so also He has made us to be in every area of our lives. This is true because the Bible clearly declares that “…as He (Jesus, the Father) is, so are we in this world” (1 John 4:17).
As one who is born again, you are not trying to be holy. The Apostle Peter wants you to understand that you’ve already been made to be holy (blameless) in every area of your life. This is how the father has made us to be. We are not trying to be, we already are.
As the father is holy (blameless) so has He made us to be in this world. And this is how we shall forever be.
This profound truth is completely contrary to the erroneous religious teachings of the so called holiness movements of the modern Christian age, who are nothing more than mere advocates of moral or behavioral modification.
This truth is so vital because it destroys false teachings of that Satan inspired pretentious counterfeit called “RELIGION.”
Understanding that God already has made you holy (set apart, blameless) helps to destroy in you that DO IT YOURSELF MENTALITY, which is the badge and false gospel of the religionists.
The father wants you to be aware that He has already made you holy (set apart, blameless) by himself, and not by your thoughts or actions. This is because this awareness or consciousness is what transforms our lives and propels us to live the life of faith that we do. This awareness should govern our thinking.
You see, when you recognize that you are not of this world, this awareness will transform the way you live your life. (John 17:16). You don’t have to struggle.
There is nothing to struggle about. You are forever blameless (holy) in the father’s sight. That’s how He made you to be and that’s how you will forever be in His presence because of Jesus. Stop struggling trying to please God. Instead, live by faith, rely on Jesus and His finished work, and this will give the Holy Spirit the latitude to help you stand firm against all odds.
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