January 18

Read: Exodus 19:3-6

I am the Lord your God: ye shall therefore sanctify yourselves, and ye shall be holy; for I am holy (Leviticus 11:44).

Ye Shall Be Holy

Have you ever found an unexpected treasure or a bit of beauty in some hidden spot? Here in our text are both. Lifting its face to the sun above the unattractive surface scum of an out-of-the-way pond, blooms a lily of purest white’ Here in the middle of a maze of ceremonial law God has given us the central purpose for His people, “Ye shall be holy.”

He is the God of all the earth but in a special sense He becomes the Father of those who obey His voice and keep His covenant. His chosen people in Old Testament times were to sanctify themselves — to set their lives apart for true worship. They were to be a unique people because they were to seek to be like a holy God.

That is what holiness means. Insofar as a man can resemble God, we are to be like Him in our attitudes toward right and wrong. We are to resemble Him in His love for persons. We were created in order that we might be “partakers of the divine nature.”

God created us to be like himself in holiness — not equal to God, but similar to Him — a little lower only than the angels in heaven. God is unalterably committed to righteousness and His nature is perfect love. When He created us, He planned that we should be persons like himself in our complete devotion to righteousness.

Prayer For Today

O God, Thou hast made me to be like thyself. Thy will for me shall be my will. Help me to set my life apart, to devote it fully to Thee. Because I seek to be wholly Thine, make me holy as Thou art holy. In Jesus’ name I pray. Amen.