Holier Than Thou

It's an insult now-a-days to be told you have a "holier than thou" attitude. If that means you go around acting like you're better than everyone else, looking down your nose at everyone around you like your stuff doesn't stink, then yea, it's an insult. A fitting one. Because that's not holiness. That's acting like the rest of the world. Kind of ironic.

A lot of people don't even know what the word holy means. A common definition of the word holy is set apart. It has the connotation of being distinct, sacred, special. Something reserved for special, not common, purposes. To be holy means to be different.

And guess what--we as Christians are supposed to be just that. We are supposed to be set apart from the rest of the world. We are supposed to be distinct, sacred, special in what we do, how we act, what we say. God has reserved us for special, not common, purposes. We are supposed to be different. In comparison to the world, we are supposed to be holier than thou.

Peter tells us this in I Peter 1:15, 16 when he says, but as he who called you is holy, you also be holy in all your conduct, since it is written,"You shall be holy, for I am holy." The reference Peter uses is from Leviticus 11:44.

Paul tells us in Romans 12:2 to no longer be conformed to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind . . ." That's another way of saying, "be holy." Be distinct. Be set apart. Be different.

That's not easy in the world today. Being different in this age may earn you the title of being a radical, a zealot, intolerant, or even--the shame!--holier than thou. You know what? That's what the world said (and still says) about Jesus. If the unbelieving world sees you in the same light as they see our Lord and Savior, I'd say you're doing something right.

When Jesus told us that we are salt and light (Matthew 5:13, 14), and in 5:16, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven, that was a call to be different. To be holy. In those same verses, Jesus said that if salt loses it's taste, or a light is placed under a basket, they are of no good use. If we are not set apart, if we are no different from the rest of the world, if we indeed are not holier than thou, of what good use are we?

Holiness is not haughtiness, arrogance, pride, condescension. To be holy does not mean to consider yourself better than others. To be holy means to strive to be different from the sinful world and similar to our holy God and His Son, Jesus Christ. Jesus is God, reflects God in all He does, says, and is, and Jesus had some pretty strong opinions and ways of interacting with others. Jesus was most certainly different, and in the end it cost Him. It cost Him popularity. It cost Him comfort. It cost Him acceptance, friends, and even family. In the end it cost Him His life. Being holy isn't easy, and it comes with a price.

But it also comes with a reward. Over and over in the Bible, God rewards those who are different, who strive to be holy. Think of Joseph. Think of Daniel, Meshach, Shadrach, and Abednego. Think of Noah, Ruth, Mary Magdalene. The Apostles. Paul. Zaccheus. They dared to be different, they dared to be holier than thou and each was rewarded--some in this life but, more importantly, all received their reward for eternity, even if it cost them temporary loss.

Here's the point: We are supposed to be holy. This is more than a calling, it is a command. We are supposed to be different from the world, to stand out, be noticed not because we think we are better, but because we reflect the One who is better than all.

 But as he who called you is holy, you also be holy in all your conduct, since it is written,"You shall be holy, for I am holy."