'Without Holiness, No One will see the Lord'

I am in the process of reading 'the Pursuit of Holiness' by Jerry Bridges...so far, so good. The need to strive for holy living is non-existent in the visible church, mainly because most are saved because they say they are and there is nothing else that needs to be considered. How horribly wrong is this mentality.
There was a reality cop show on and one of the folks on this show was a woman, arrested for being drunk and disorderly; guess what this woman said? 'I am a Christian'. Another man was dealing in fraudulent ways from a business he ran out of his home; again, guess what he claimed? 'I am a Christian'. Yes, Christians do sin, as the Bible clearly states. However, God deals with His own as needed, as Jerry Bridges states on page 29 of his book..."In fact, biblical evidence indicates that God may judge the sins of His saints more severely than those of the world. David was a man after God's own heart {Acts 13:22}, yet, after his sin with Uriah he was told 'now therefore the sword will never depart from your house' {2 Samuel 12:10}. Moses, for one act of unbelief, was excluded from the land of Canaan despite many years of faithful service. Jonah, for his disobedience, was cast into a horrible prison in the stomach of a giant fish for three days and nights, that he might learn not to run from the command of God".

So what is a good definition of holiness? Here is Paul Washer’s definition of holiness, ~ “Holiness is to be separated unto God, to be immersed in God, to be passionate about God, to be wild about God, to think about God, to be God besought, to be consumed by God.” How do we live a holy life? Again, I turn to Jerry Bridges from his book 'The Pursuit of Holiness', {page 15} "to live a holy life, then, is to live a life in conformity to the moral precepts of the Bible and in contrast to the sinful ways of the world. It is to live a life characterized by the putting off of your old self, which is being corrupted by its deceitful desires, and putting on the new self, created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness".

The desire for holy living seems to be sorely lacking in our day; it isn't preached on much in the pulpits because we certainly do not want to offend anyone. Every aspect of our lives should reflect holiness; our thoughts, our speech, our actions and emotions, how we spend our time and money, the desires of our hearts. Holiness is not something those who are dead in sin can comprehend, holiness is wrought by God. The born again child of God should not be engaged in wickedness, deceit, immoral behavior, or sin of any kind; holiness is the opposite of all that wickedness is. There should be a continual strive for holiness in our lives, until we leave this world.
Holiness is a distinguishing mark of God's own, 'but ye are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, an holy nation, a peculiar people, that ye should shew forth the praises of Him who hath called you out of darkness into His marvelous light' {1 Peter 2:9}. Peter calls God's people 'peculiar', meaning 'acquire, buy, purchased possession, acquisition': we are a purchased possession belonging to God. A price has been paid, and it was costly; we have been purchased by Christ's death, burial and resurrection to be holy people set apart by God; different from the rest of mankind, belonging to a God whose main attribute is holiness, from which all other attributes flow.

We do have a responsibility to strive for holiness as God continues to sanctify His own; we cannot expect God to mold and shape us without us disciplining ourselves towards holiness. From J. C. Ryle, "it is wise to proclaim in so bald, naked and unqualified way as many do, that the holiness of converted people is by faith only, and not at all by personal exertion? Is it according to the proportion of God's Word? I doubt it. That faith in Christ is the root of all holiness, no well instructed Christian will ever think of denying. But surely the Scriptures teach us that in following holiness the true Christian needs personal exertion and work as well as faith"- from J. C. Ryle's 'Holiness'
Sin is continually crouching at our door and desires to have us, however, with power from the Almighty One and the wisdom of His word, we will overcome through Christ, through whom we can do all things. The more we understand God's holiness and His purity, that He is set apart, high above His creation...the more we comprehend the holiness of God the more we will detest sin and be fearful of offending our Holy God.

It is interesting to note the three reasons Jerry Bridges gives why holiness is not sought after by today's professing Christians...
1. "our attitude toward sin is more self-centered than God-centered. We are more concerned about our own victory over sin than we are about the fact that our sin grieves the heart of God. God wants us to walk in obedience, not victory.
2. Our second problem is that we have misunderstood living by faith to mean that no effort at holiness is required on our part.
3. Our third problem is that we do not take sin seriously. It is compromise on the little issues that lead to greater downfalls. Are we willing to call sin 'sin' not because it is big or little, but because God's law forbids it? We cannot categorize sin if we are to live a life of holiness. God will not let us get away with that kind of attitude". {from -pages 16-19, chapter one, 'The Pursuit of Holiness'}

If our hearts have been regenerated by God, there should indeed be a desire for holiness; if you lack this desire, examine yourself to see if you are in the faith. Read 1st John and compare your life/heart/motives/emotions to what is taught there. Most of what passes as 'Christianity' in America today is anything but; preaching is weak, watered down and ineffective; God's word is used sparingly in favor of funny stories or motivational speeches. There is a famine of truth in the land, but take heart, God will not take His hand off His chosen ones. Strive for holiness and to bring Him glory...nothing else matters.