A cloud of witnesses

Hebrews 12:1 "Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run...."

Who are these witnesses? They are previous generations of believers who have gone before us, having lived out their faith while in their physical bodies and are now cheering us on to run the same race that they ran. They are witnesses of the same truth that we believe in. In the previous chapter, the writer tells us that these saints had not received what they had been promised and that God had planned something better for us so that only together with us would they be made perfect. 

In other words they are waiting for us. And when we die, we'll also wait for future believers to complete their course in this world. Not until the last believer has run their race will we together enjoy the perfect eternity that God has planned for us. 

What this means is that we better get good at loving. Because the race we are running now seems to be preparatory phase for eternity with God and with many others. No wonder Jesus said that all the commandments can be summed up to these two: (1) Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. (2) And love your neighbour as yourself. (Matthew 22:37-39)

Why bother with the Law?

Christians are saved by grace--meaning we are accepted by God already based on the work of Jesus. It is not like all other religions where we have to abide by certain creeds or do good works in order to be accepted by God. 

So, why should Christians do any good work or obey God's commandments? And why would God create such a salvation plan, is it not too easy for us to abuse his grace? 

I think the answer lies in how seriously we believe in Jesus in the first place. If we truly believe that God squeezed himself into a human body, endured abuse, mockery, and death in the greatest measure in order to save us. Would this not make us love him? And when we love someone, don't we want to do what pleases that person. In the Bible, we are told again and again that our obedience makes God happy. 

In Exodus 19:5-6, God said to the Israelites--after he had delivered them out of slavery in Egypt--that if they obey him fully and keep his covenant with them, then they will be his 'treasured possession' amongst all the nations. And it is the same for Christians as indicated in John 15:10 "If you obey my commands, you will remain in my love, just as I have obeyed my Father's commands and remain in his love". Who wouldn't want to be God's treasured possession and remain in his love?

Freedom is complicated

We often associate the notion of freedom with a lack of rule or restriction. It is about doing whatever we want whenever we want. And today we live for freedom; we feel entitled to it.

But is this type of freedom really good for us--or even possible? For example, eating freely without restraint will certainly bring us health problems; spending without limit lead to bankruptcy; living without regard for the rule of law would destroy society. So, contrary to our natural inclination, freedom must happen within certain boundary. 

Perhaps the real issue is finding the course of life that permits the greatest freedom within the constraints--the realities--of our existence. In this regard, Jesus' words on freedom stand out: "If you hold to my teaching, you are truly my disciples. Then you will know the truth and the truth will set you free." (John 8:31-32) He ties our freedom to knowing the truth he teaches.

What is this truth that leads to freedom?

The truth that we are no longer slaves to our selfish nature because of what Jesus did on the cross. The truth about who we are and what we are made for. Without knowing answers to these basic questions in life, we are like fish out of water, trying to live freely on dry ground. A fish needs to know it's a fish and to stay within the bounds of its own environment (i.e., in water) in order to enjoy the freedom that it is made for.

A holy nation

1 Peter 2:9 "But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people belonging to God, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light."

Many things come to mind when I think of the label: 'holy nation'. First, Christians are a gathering of all races, crossing boundaries of skin color, language and bloodline. Second, we are not restricted by geography. Christians are everywhere around the globe, no matter where we travel, we experience an immediate familiarity with fellow believers in Jesus. Third, we are not separated by status or wealth. First and third world Christians have equal standing before God and therefore also with each other.  We are admonished and empowered to live out this truth through tangible deeds. A very interesting nation indeed!

What we have in common is our same allegiance to God, who purposed that his holiness should reflect on us. Having been called out of darkness into his light, we are able to be his reflectors of holiness.

A royal priesthood

1 Peter 2:9 "But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people belonging to God, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light."

The term royal priesthood is a struggle for me, I have no frame of reference to really understand what it means.

The elements of crown, rule and sovereignty are obviously key parts of the biblical sense of royalty--they are talked about a lot, including being used often in the descriptions of God and Heaven. Yet the concept of royalty remains distant because even the modern example of British monarchy doesn't quite fit due to their lack of true power. And really, most of us aren't even familiar with what it means to be a modern (relatively powerless) king or queen. 

Priesthood implies some aspect of outreach. In the Old Testament, the priests were intermediaries between God and his people. They were the ones who made sacrifices to God on behalf of the mass. Then again, priests also extended divine forgiveness to the people. 

This much I understand: being set apart as a royal priesthood, we serve duo functions. On the one hand, we present God's rule and sovereignty, showing what God is like to the world; on the other hand, we serve as intercessors for the lost. 

A chosen people

1 Peter 2:9 "But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people belonging to God, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light."

There is something about being chosen that makes us feel good inside.  I mean, don't people usually make choices based on some excellent quality about which they choose?  It implies something special.  But my understanding of God's selection has little to do with us; it rather has more to do with Him.  The gap between God and humanity is so huge that -- really, all of us are way below-grade.  God chooses completely on the basis of his mercy rather than any substantial benefit we have for him.

In fact, 1 Corinthians 1:26-28 says this, "Brothers, think of what you were when you were called. Not many of you were wise by human standards; not many were influential; not many were of noble birth. But God chose the foolish things of the world to shame the wise; God chose the weak things of the world to shame the strong. He chose the lowly things of this world and the despised things—and the things that are not—to nullify the things that are."

Being chosen also means God took the initiative.  All believers have stories of how God first entered our lives through circumstances, people or even dreams.  Without God's first move (and further persistent pursuit) we would still be groping blindly in darkness.  

So, as his chosen people we have a common reason to declare God's goodness because, amongst other things, we've experienced the goodness of being called out of darkness and the freedom of living without fear of condemnation in his wonderful light.

What is holiness?

The biblical concept of holiness is different than accomplishing a list of do's and don'ts.  Many believers try to adhere to a code of conduct by sheer will-power often placing vigorous external restrictions on themselves.  But that doesn't necessarily make them holy.  In fact, such moral achievement may lead us to a more insidious sin: pride!  Besides we know from experience that mere outward behaviour is inadequate; our internal struggles of greed, lust, anger, resentment etc. give us no peace of mind--we know we fall short internally even if we put up a good front on the outside.  

Specifically, holiness means to be set apart for a special purpose -- pleasing God.  

I Peter 2:9 tells us that believers in Jesus are 'a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation and a people belonging to God'.  Christians are set apart for God's purpose on the basis of our salvation through Jesus. This means that we have 'holy' status with God already because of Jesus; we are not set apart because we make ourselves holy: holiness is given to us.  

He graciously sets us apart and makes us pleasing to Himself.

What is holiness about?

The word holiness sounds ancient and prudish in our culture, it's not a popular word. That's unfortunate because many people now fail to understand what holiness even is. Striving for holiness is more about maintaining relationship with God than about achieving moral purity. 

Proverbs 28:9 says that "If anyone turns a deaf ear to the law, even his prayers are detestable." It's like saying don't bother praying, don't bother coming to God if we don't care about holiness. This is devastating to those of us who know and enjoy friendship with God. Imagine our spouse or best friend or parent or any other important person saying to us that our words are detestable, it would be a thousand times worse coming from God. Because He knows us deeper than anyone, loves us more than anyone and has sacrificed for us more than anyone, His rejection is the most devastating of all.  

This is where I come to understand King David's heart when he wrote in Psalm 63:3 '...your love is better than life...'.