The New Life
As we continue looking at I Peter 1.13-16, there is the rather difficult challenge: BE HOLY.
What does; that mean? What does that look like? It may take you by surprise. To "be holy" is simply living according to the new life that we have been given through Christ. We saw last week that we have been born again to a living hope. To be born again means that we have been given a "new life". That "new life" begins to take shape on the inside. It begins with our heart and soul It also begins with our mind. As a result, all that is being "born again" from within begins to become noticeable on the outside, in what Peter calls our "conduct", or our behavior.
We are "holy" because of what the Holy Spirit is doing within us. We are not considered "holy" because of anything we "do", but because of what the Holy Spirit is "doing" on the inside.
The word "sanctification" is about the process of becoming a new creation in Christ. We will never be perfect. To be holy is not about being perfect. To be holy is to recognize that God has called us out of the world, set apart, chosen, to be unique and distinct from the world, even our old nature. We have been given a new life, and we are "becoming" holy. It's an ongoing, moment by moment, transformation.