The Transforming Power of God’s Holiness in Everyday Life

Weeks after my conversion to Christ, many of my friends had questions for me, particularly related to what this meant for my nightlife moving forward: Would I still be going out? Was I “allowed” to drink? One question that stood out in those early days came from my friend’s father. He approached me and asked, “What is it like knowing that for the rest of your life, everyone will be out having fun and enjoying life while you are stuck going to church?” Looking back now, I chuckle at such a question, but at that moment it made me quietly ask: Was I ready (and able) to give up my “party” life? Was I ready to spend Sunday at church? Was I, paraphrasing the Apostle Paul, willing to forget what lay behind and strain forward to what lay ahead? (Phil. 3:13).

Conversations like the one above have occurred frequently throughout my thirty-plus years of following Christ, and the recurring focus when confronted with such inquiries has always been earthly. It has always been about me and my desires, who I am, and what I want. It has never been about God and His desires, who He is, and what He wants. This isn’t surprising; we should never expect an unbeliever to think beyond the material realm. These things can only be understood by those united to Christ. As Paul says, “The natural person does not accept the things of the Spirit of God, for they are folly to him, and he is not able to understand them because they are spiritually discerned” (1 Cor. 2:14).

This leads me to the topic of this article: the transforming power of God’s holiness. Months after becoming a Christian, it became obvious to me that my desire to put behind me the things of this world and instead pursue holiness was dependent upon my experiential knowledge of God in Christ. The deeper my understanding of who God is, the greater my pursuit to be like Him became. This is especially true when it comes to God’s holiness.

God’s holiness is not just an attribute—it is the foundation and very essence of who He is. It is His absolute purity, moral perfection, and complete separation from whatever is common or profane. As theologian Louis Berkhof put it, the holy God is “distinct from all His creatures, and exalted above them in infinite majesty.”¹ Holiness is the only attribute of God emphasized with the triple repetition, “Holy, holy, holy” (Isa. 6:3; Rev. 4:8). This triple proclamation of holiness emphasizes that God is completely set apart—there is no one like Him. Joel Beeke describes this as follows: “He is set apart by his glory, for his glory. . . . He is holy because of who he is as God, [and He] is holy because he is zealously committed to displaying who he is in all he does.”²

Unlike our holiness, which is flawed and inconsistent, God’s holiness is eternal and unchanging. It defines everything He does. For example, God’s love is holy; His justice is holy; His mercy is holy; His power is holy; His truth is holy. Thus, understanding and embracing God’s holiness will transform how we think, live, and worship.

When we truly encounter God’s holiness, we are changed. Consider Isaiah 6. Isaiah is overwhelmed by the display of God’s holiness. He is completely undone, crying, “Woe is me!” (Isa. 6:5). Encountering God’s holiness humbles us, exposes our sinfulness, and reshapes our minds and hearts, compelling us to align our desires and will with His desires and will. And God’s desire and will for us is to be holy because He is holy: “Be holy, for I am holy” (Lev. 11:44; 1 Peter 1:16). Recognizing our need for Him, we are set apart for His purposes and transformed into His likeness.

Fleshing this out is beyond the scope of this short reflection, but the lesson is simple: If you want to be more like Christ, make every effort to know your Holy God—Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Read R.C. Sproul’s book The Holiness of God, or J.I. Packer’s Knowing God, or Stephen Charnock’s The Existence and Attributes of God. Most importantly, prayerfully read the Scripture with the aim of growing in your knowledge of Christ. As D.A. Carson has said:

People do not drift toward holiness. Apart from grace-driven effort, people do not gravitate toward godliness, prayer, obedience to scripture, faith, and delight in the Lord. We drift toward compromise; . . . we drift toward disobedience; . . . we drift toward superstition.³

A growing knowledge of our holy God in and through Christ derails that drift, puts us on the path to holiness, and promises us a life of lasting pleasure and delight. So, the next time someone asks you, “What is it like knowing that for the rest of your life, everyone will be out having fun and enjoying life while you are stuck going to church?” smile and say: “If you only knew my holy God, if you only knew Jesus, you wouldn’t ask that. Going to church to worship Him is my delight, for He alone can fill my heart with gladness and an overabundance of joy!” (Ps. 16:11; Isa. 35:10; John 16:24).