Therefore, with minds that are alert and fully sober, set your hope on the grace to be brought to you when Jesus Christ is revealed at his coming.  As obedient children, do not conform to the evil desires you had when you lived in ignorance. But just as he who called you is holy, so be holy in all you do; 1 for it is written: “Be holy, because I am holy.”
1 Peter 1:13-16

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The time was 1970. The place was my best friend’s basement. We held our spears in our hands (pool sticks). My friend spouted off, “You just think you are ‘holier than thou.’” We were discussing our favorite topic, sex—and whether we would choose to have it before we were married. I may have said to her, “Well, I don’t think God or my mom wants me to do that, even though it sounds fun—maybe.” 

That summer, I had been voracious in reading the Living New Testament, and I knew what Paul said in 1 Corinthians 6:9, but  I didn’t bring it up. Still, I remember that stinging feeling—how hurt I felt by that comment on that day with my pool stick in my hand. My friend had been using that “Holier than Thou” phrase for a long time with me. I think that, quite often, I was coming off pretty legalistic. Legalism doesn’t help at all when sharing the Gospel, which I was always trying to do back in the day of “Free Love,” Woodstock, and black armbands. 

At that point in my life, I also kept asking the question: If I truly love Jesus, why doesn’t He stop me from sinning? 1 Peter 1:16 says, “It is written: ‘Be holy because I am holy.’” Why did I have so much trouble being ‘holy’ like God?

In 1978,  pastor and theologian Jerry Bridges wrote in his book “Pursuit of Holiness”, “But we need to pray daily for humility and honesty to see these sinful attitudes for that they really are, and then for grace and discipline to root them out of our minds and replace them with thoughts pleasing to God.”

These words erupt in my soul today. I must pray for humility and honesty to see my sin. And friends, I prayed those exact words just moments ago! Even as we grow spiritually, changing and becoming more like Christ, we lapse into disobedience. We must repent, turn from our sins, and start over again. God doesn’t want us to be “holier-than-thou” or judgmental. He does want us to quickly recognize our sin, arrogance, and lack of a loving heart. 

As I “become” closer to Jesus, I am also “becoming” more like Him, and I am so grateful. 

Next Steps

Rejoice and sing the words to this song on earth and someday in Heaven, where our sin will be vanquished forever. Keep praying, keep reading God’s Word, and stay in fellowship with other Christ-followers. Sometimes, it is hard to see my own growth, but every once in a while, I faintly glimpse it—you will, too. God’s not “finished with us yet!”