clothed in holiness

Speak to all the congregation of the people of Israel and say to them, You shall be holy, for I the Lord your God am holy.

Leviticus 19:2

There are two parts to holiness described in this verse that are good reminders for my day. First, God wants holy people. He demands holiness from His people. This is what was expects of Israel. It is what is repeatedly expected of Christians in the New Testament as well (1 Peter 1:16; 1 Thessalonians 4:7). We are called and commanded to be holy.

Furthermore, a second reality is that in Christ, Christians are empowered to by holy in a way that would be utterly impossible as broken sinners without the saving power of the gospel. Christ made us the righteousness of God (2 Corinthians 5:21). Our own broken sinfulness is replaced by Christ's pure righteousness (Philippians 3:9). Our new self in Christ is created in true righteousness and holiness (Ephesians 4:24). We can be holy because Jesus is holy and, praise God, we are given His righteousness to stand before our holy God!

Lord,

You are holy. And Jesus, it is in Your righteousness that I stand forgiven. I am holy ONLY because I have been clothed in Your righteousness. You tore off my disgusting filthy rags made up of my pathetic attempts at holiness and You covered me, by Your gift of a blood-stained cross, with Your pure robe of righteousness! And that is how I stand before the Father, self-conscious of a holiness that is clearly not my own. Truly I am forever grateful. Now I must live in Your holiness, for Your glory!

Amen