Or do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived: neither the sexually immoral, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor men who practice homosexuality, nor thieves, nor the greedy, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor swindlers will inherit the kingdom of God. And such were some of you. But you were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God. (I Cor 6:9-11)
Lord, you have made me new. Praise to your name. Now, by your grace, may I live new.
The Cross and Resurrection are powerful. They have changed us. We were hyenas. We are now men and women in Christ, a royal bride. This is our new identity, and it is a truth we must hold onto.
Now God is a realist. He expects that a fish will swim, that a lion will eat meat, and that a bird will fly. In other words, God expects a creature to live in accordance with its nature. In this sense, God is no different with humans. He expects people to live in accordance with who they are. Thus, He expects unconverted people to live like unconverted people, and He does not expect converted people to live like unconverted people. This means that when God converts us, He expects us to live a different way. The business of holiness is God’s business, which means that it must also be the business of everyone who follows Jesus. Salvation without a new life is not salvation. It may be a religious experience; it may make us feel good; but if we still live just as we used to live, or if we still live as the rest of our culture lives, who are we kidding? Holiness is the natural consequence of salvation. It is the common call for all disciples of Jesus. I need to talk some about this issue because people often misunderstand it, and sometimes for different reasons.
Some people, in their desire to emphasize the grace of God, make salvation nothing more than forgiveness. To them, any talk of holiness smells like earning our way to God. To them, holiness is a sort of code word for works righteousness. What they do not understand is that when salvation comes, we receive forgiveness by grace, but we receive a new life also by grace, and these benefits are a package deal. You can’t receive forgiveness without also receiving a new life. This means that holiness is not opposed to grace but is rather the fulfillment of grace. By grace God forgives our sins, and by grace He remakes us into new creatures. Once He remakes us, He expects that the new creature will live like one.
Others think that any talk of holiness somehow minimizes grace for a different reason. They look at the fact that Christians still wrestle with sin and conclude that holiness is not a reasonable expectation. If we talk about the importance of holiness, we might burden someone’s conscience and make him or her feel guilty for failing to measure up. The New Testament writers, however, had no problems mentioning holiness constantly. To them, holiness does not undercut grace or place an excessive burden on the disciple. Indeed, to them, holiness is the most normal and natural thing to talk about. It’s like teaching a boy to be a man. It is what you are called to, what you have been made for, and what you are growing into. It is your new nature. To neglect the teaching of holiness is to call people to an insipid mediocrity. To neglect the teaching of holiness is to deny the very thing we were made for. We are his workmanship, created for good works in Christ (Eph 2:10). To neglect the teaching of holiness is not from God. He has remade us, and He calls us to live out the new life He has made. God actually expects us to live in holiness.
We are to be holy because, in Christ, we are already holy. One of the operative words in the New Testament for a follower of Jesus is “saint.” It is used about 60 times, and means “one who has been sanctified” or “one who has been made holy.” Paul speaks to the Corinthians and says, “you were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God” (I Cor 6:11). To Paul, the washing, sanctification and justification come as a package, and they are the foundation for living a new life. Paul says that the Corinthian believers were once one type of people, but now they are a new type. That’s why they are no longer sexually immoral or idolaters or thieves. The natural consequence of a new identity is a new life. In other words, holiness has already happened (v 11). In God’s sight, we are holy in Jesus Christ. Right now. The call to holiness, then, is nothing more than a call to be who you are. It’s like telling my son, “You are a Demchsak. Live like one.”
Thus, the man addicted to pornography must change; the woman who is so full of herself must die to self, and the person dominated by anxiety must trust God. These changes in lifestyle must take place because a change in identity has already taken place. We can no longer continue a life in sin because that is not who we are. We are one in Christ.
The idea that we can be in Christ and remain in sin is both inconsistent and treacherous. To Paul, a lifestyle of sin disqualifies someone from the kingdom of God (I Cor 6:9). It’s that serious. Christ and sin do not mix. If we are in Christ, we begin to come out of sin. If, however, we are content to keep living in our sin, then we have good reason to think that we are not in Christ. If nothing changes in our life, then nothing likely ever changed in our salvation, for salvation brings a new life.
