The Atonement: Holiness

"For I am the LORD your God. Consecrate yourselves, therefore, and be holy for I am holy".
Leviticus 11:44

"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'".
1 Peter 1:15-16

This is the final post, in my series on the atonement. Our definition of the atonement has been; “God killed His perfect Son to save hate-filled rebels from the wrath they deserved from Him”. In this series of posts, on the atonement of Jesus we have covered; why it was necessary, the reconciliation it brought, the propitiation Jesus accomplished, the purpose and intention of it, the redemption Jesus gave through it, the sacrifice that satisfies, and the nature of Jesus as a sin bearer. Today I want to finish up the series understanding the holiness factor in the atonement. 

If I was to summarize the "why" of the atonement, it would be the truth that God is holy and we are not. If I was to answer "what it accomplished", it would be the reconciliation of a holy God and an unholy people. If I was to deal with the "how it accomplished this", I would be clear that a holy Savior became unholy by taking on the sin of His unholy people. If I was to show "who" were the key players in the atonement, it would be a holy God and holy Savior. If I was to explain "where the atonement happened", it would be shown to have taken place at the intersection of a holy God and an unholy people. And finally, it I was to point to the "when" of the atonement question, it would be when a holy God (in the flesh) walked this earth and died on the cross becoming unholy to save the unholy and make them holy. Surrounding every single question of the atonement is the holiness of God. 

God is holy. This fact is stressed in Scripture from the very beginning to the very end. In fact, God's holiness is the only attribute that is repeated in a set of three declarations in the Bible. God is called, "holy, holy, holy". God is never described as being; "grace, grace, grace" or "love, love, love" or "justice, justice, justice". God's holiness is the overarching point of who He is. As one scholars states, "it is as if all other attributes of God are framed in His holiness. God has a holy love. He has a holy justice. God is full of holy grace". God and His holiness is the core of who He is. God is holy is the staple, overarching, all-encompassing point of His character. 

But fallen, depraved, spiritually-dead humans, are the complete opposite of holy. Humanity is unholy. Humanity is dark, compared to God's holy light. Humanity is dirty compared to God's holy purity. Humanity is sinful by nature. God is holy perfect by nature. Humanity is as unholy as they come, while God is the standard and perfection of holiness. God's holiness and human unholiness will never be together becasue God's holiness will not allow it. So the holiness of God and the unholiness of humanity has a problem. 

Yet this is where the atonement enters the story. Jesus Christ lives a holy life. Jesus lives the only life that was perfectly pure, never defiled by sin. Jesus, as God in the flesh, walked the earth as the only holy being ever. God's holiness enters the unholy world and lives a perfectly holy, righteous life. Only to go to cross and die a death in unholiness. Jesus Christ became unholy to secure the way for unholy to become holy. 

That last line is the very heart of the atonement. Jesus became unholy, by taking upon himself the sin of His people. This action and imputation of Christ secured the way for the unholy people of Christ to then be imputed with the holiness He possess in His perfect life. Thus the unholy people of God become the holy people of God after their unholiness is removed and they are imputed with the holiness of God. The holy Jesus became unholy to secure the way for unholy people to become holy. 

Yes God is still perfectly holy and His holiness was never compromised in salvation. Yes, humans are still living in an unholy world, committing acts of unholy sin. Yet for all eternity, the people of God will now be reckoned holy. Jesus Christ took upon Himself the unholiness of the sheep He loved so those same sheep would now be reckoned holy and stand with full confidence before the holy God. What an amazing atonement that is. What an amazing plan of a holy God to secure for Himself a people. Let us stand in awe before the holy lamb that became unholy and was slain so we, an unholy people, could become holy. 

Now the question is, how do we, God's holy people, pursue holiness in our lives daily...