The Biblical book of Leviticus is not usually my favorite devotional reading; I take it in spurts, giving myself a bit of a break from all the detail of ancient Jewish religious, dietary, and health law every few days. If you've ever tried reading through Leviticus, you know what I mean. Every so often however, there is a nugget that I find lying right on the surface. Today was such a day. The text was Leviticus 11:44-45, but the same phrase is found also in the 19th chapter.
In Christian circles, we often talk about holiness. Some denominations and churches even identify themselves as "Holiness" churches. Sadly, holiness in the minds of many is nothing more than a list of things they don't do, such as drinking alcohol, using profanity, or affiliating with people whose doctrinal teachings are different than their own. "Holiness" gets a reputation for being dour-faced and judgmental.
Much of our problem comes from our definition of holiness, and much more comes from the things we use to motivate people to holiness. When we define holiness by the behaviors we negate, we've already set ourselves up to miss the point. Biblically, the word refers to the "otherness" of God; he is qualitatively different from us, the Source of all goodness, beauty, courage and strength. When we elevate certain behaviors as the gold standard of holiness, we fall far short of what true holiness is all about, and we attempt to motivate people to these lesser standards with promises of blessing for compliance and of baleful consequences for non-compliance.
The text I read today states it simply: "Be holy because I am holy." The goal is to be different from the culture around us in a positive manner, to be willing to stand out for what is good and uplifting; the motivation is simply to be like God himself. What this means is our focus in life should not be the things we are against, but the God we are for and who is for us. Holiness is nothing more nor less than studying and then imitating the character of God himself. This lifts a tremendous burden from our shoulders. If holiness is all the stuff I should and shouldn't be doing, there will be no end to the list. If however, holiness consists of being like God, everything is simplified; all that is necessary is to know him better and allow him to develop his character in me. As St. Paul told the Galatian church (4:9) he labored for them till Christ was formed in them. I have a long way to go, but thankfully the road is clearly laid out before me, and though I stumble, I get up and keep walking. Jesus is both the Way and the Goal; he is always with us as we walk closer to him every step of the way. That...is holiness.
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