We are holy as our Creator is holy.

A holy Creator can only create that which is holy.

Just as parents pass on their DNA to their children, a holy creator passes on his holy DNA to His creation.

Holiness is a condition of being and not doing. We aren’t holy because we act holy. We are holy because we are created holy.

The direction given by God in Leviticus 19:2 that the Israelites “shall be holy” is not a command to be carried out. It is a pronouncement about the truth of our being. This is who we are.

This is understood through the definition of holy in both the dictionary meaning and in the Biblical context. In each, the definition of holy does not include any suggestion that holy is a condition that can be achieved.

The dictionary definition of holy is “dedicated or consecrated to God” and the Hebrew word for holy is “qodesh,” which means “apartness, set-apartness, separateness, sacredness.”

There is no evidence that holiness is something we can gain through behavior. Also, nothing in the definition suggests that holiness, once conferred, is something that can be lost through behavior.

Even in 1 Peter 1:16 the urging to be holy “in all your conduct” is directly tied to the pronouncement that all God’s created humans (and all His creation) are created to be holy as He is holy. “You shall be holy, for I am holy.” Stating the truth about our created holy condition, Peter is desiring that our actions be in accord (line up) with our created holy condition.

If this wasn’t the case, what conduct is Peter suggesting would cause us to be holy; i.e. dedicated to God, set apart, and sacred?

No, Peter is telling his Gentile audience the “good news” that they are created holy and that it would be good for them to conduct themselves in accord with this truth.

It is through our holy God-created nature that we understand the meaning of sin. Since we are created holy, falling short of that causes pain and suffering – to ourselves and others. This is sin.

Our moral compasses are set to guide us in our holiness. Acting contrary to that nature often causes us great discomfort. It’s what we refer to as a guilty conscience. Our conscience has been identified by sociologists, psychologists, and behaviorists as “an internalized set of values and objectives that guide a person with regard to ethical behavior and decision-making.”

Just as Adam and Eve hid and lied as a result of the shame they felt from using – for the first time – their freewill in opposition to God’s will, we know when we are not acting in accord with our created holy nature. As a result, we perform all kinds of gyrations (sometimes going to great lengths) to hide our sin.

Sin causes us to hurt others (as well as ourselves) blame others, cheat, steal, and anesthetize our shame with all sorts of addictions and dangerous behavior.

Hearing the truth about our created holy nature should have been good news to Peter’s audience and it should be to us. We don’t need to strive to be holy, as has been taught for many years in the Church. We are already holy. We have the Holy Spirit living within us. “Or do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within you, which you have from God . . . ” 1 Corinthians 6:19

God’s gift of free will, given to His human creation, gives us the ability to decide to act in opposition with our created holy nature. This is clearly seen in the story of Adam and Eve. But when we veer into sin, our holy nature beckons – urged on by the Holy Spirit within us – a return to “be holy, as I your God am holy.”

However, it is clear that living without sin, which means acting in accord with our created holy nature, is an impossibility without Jesus’ Spirit.

From creation to the time when Jesus walked the earth, man had veered widely away from acting in accord to his created holy nature. According to Isaiah 9:2, Jesus came to “people who walked in darkness” and “dwelt in a land of deep darkness.”

They had lost their way.

Jesus came to live among men to reintroduce them to their Holy Creator, reveal God as their unconditional loving spiritual Father, and expose the “lost” human condition steeped in sin and the truth of man’s created holy nature. In all ways, Jesus was resetting man’s moral compass and pointing it to the Father. He was the example of living an earthly life in perfect accord with His holy nature.

Best of all, Jesus sent His Spirit as our helper

Hallelujah!