A Friendly Talk: Walking in God's Principles The Bridge — Knowing the One We Walk With Chapter 7: Be Holy, For I Am Holy

I know I’ve said this in many of my other blogs, but it’s because it’s true: as powerful and mighty as God is, He is also a just God. And that justice is a direct reflection of His holiness.

God’s holiness isn’t something He simply chooses to put on. He’s not deciding to be holy today and holy tomorrow. The reality—the truth—is that He is holy. The word holy exists because of Him.

He is completely pure. No wrong. No corruption. No hidden intentions. No pretending. Just God—perfectly righteous, perfectly pure, and unchanging.

Holiness is not a trait He picked up. Holiness is who He is. And because He cannot change, His holiness cannot change either.

His holiness is like a pedestal—set above, set apart, and reserved for only One. That pedestal cannot hold two. It cannot be shared. It belongs to God alone.

In fact, the Hebrew meaning of holy carries the idea of being set apart. It means you are no longer standard or common. Just like a wedding ring is set apart from all other jewelry to belong exclusively to one person, a holy life is one that has been uniquely reserved to belong to God and to reflect His goodness. There is only one beginning. There cannot be two beginnings. There is only one Creator. And because He is the Creator, He is the source of everything that is good and everything that is righteous.

Righteousness does not come from anywhere else or anyone else. Righteousness comes from Him—because He is the beginning.

No one can stand before God and say, “This is righteous and that is not.” As the Creator, He defines righteousness. He is all righteous. And everything that is truly righteous flows from His nature, His character, and His holiness.

And because of His holiness, He cannot hold sin or darkness within Himself. Even our human understanding cannot fully grasp the depth of His holiness. That is one of the reasons He gave us His Word—because He is a just God. He calls us to read, meditate, and be guided by His truth so we may know Him and understand what He requires of us concerning holiness.

Can we truly comprehend the depth and absolute purity of God’s holiness? We know that God is love, and His love is just as pure as His holiness. His love never contradicts His holiness, and His holiness never contradicts His love. Everything within God’s character exists in perfect harmony.

To even begin to understand this, we look at the reflection of God within ourselves. We are made in His image. As fathers and mothers, we know the fierce, protective love we have for our children. Ask yourself: Would you ever be able to forsake your own child? The very thought breaks a parent’s heart.

Yet this is exactly what happened at the cross.

When Jesus hung in the darkness and cried out, “My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me?” it wasn’t a scripted line. It was a genuine, painful question. He knew He was going to be the sacrifice. But the actual experience of bearing our sin and crying out, “My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me?” reveals an agony deeper than anything we could imagine.

Our God has a righteous right hand that can rescue anyone, so why didn’t He reach down and pull His Son up?

The answer is found in the absolute, uncompromising purity of God’s holiness.

In that moment, Jesus bore the weight of our sin. Imagine that—every dark, broken, and evil deed in human history placed upon Him. Because God is perfectly holy and perfectly just, He cannot obtain sin or hold darkness within Himself. His holy plan of redemption required the perfect sacrifice—Jesus Christ, who bore our sins and satisfied the demands of justice.

But the ultimate beauty of this moment is that even while carrying the crushing weight of all sin, Jesus never doubted who He belonged to. Even at the moment of being forsaken, Jesus still cried out to His Father with a loud voice and gave up His spirit.

This was God’s holiness as a just God, and the ultimate proof of the faithfulness of a holy God.

His holiness does not forsake us. We need to keep this in mind: the more we worship, the more we praise, the more we pray—the closer we are to God, and the further we are from the enemy.

Psalm 145:18“The Lord is near to all who call on Him, to all who call on Him in truth.”

Proverbs 18:10“The name of the Lord is a strong tower; the righteous man runs into it and is safe.”

As Scripture says:

“Be holy, for I am holy.” — 1 Peter 1:16

Now, when we read this verse, it is incredibly easy to feel overwhelmed. If God’s holiness is flawless, it can feel discouraging—as if God is asking us to achieve sinless perfection.

But when we look closely at Jesus’ life and at how God designed our relationship with Him, we find a beautiful, grace-filled truth: God’s holiness is an absolute, finished perfection—but our holiness here on earth is a continuous, daily walk.

Think about it this way: if we could reach absolute, flawless perfection in this life, repentance, forgiveness, and the renewing of our spirit would become useless. Why would God offer continuous forgiveness? Why would Jesus teach us the Lord’s Prayer? God’s mercy shows that He knows our imperfections.

Repentance and renewal are part of our daily life.

Our inward being is renewed day by day. Not instant perfection—but an honest heart. Stumbling doesn’t mean God is finished with you or that you should stop pursuing holiness. No matter how many times it takes—yes, again and again—we get up. We look up. We pray. We keep moving forward… one step, one principle, one day at a time.

It simply means you are still on the path.

“Set apart” does not mean we isolate ourselves from people who do not believe. We are called to be set apart from sin, not set apart from people. We are encouraged to be the light of the world and a reflection of God’s character.

Jesus perfectly reflected God’s holiness for us: He was completely holy, yet He spent His time eating, talking, and building relationships with people who were far from God. He was close enough for them to see His love, patience, and kindness up close.

We choose what is right and walk away from sin so that our lives can clearly reflect God’s light to a world that desperately needs to see it.

Our relationship isn’t to stand with God on the pedestal. Our relationship is to keep walking, keep striving, and keep reflecting His perfect light every single day.

And remember: the real reward of seeking God… is God Himself.

He blesses us with His strength. His presence. His comfort. His peace. His wisdom. His rest.

And above all, He surrounds us with His perfect love, holding us close as His beloved children.

Final Thoughts

For the Lord our God is holy.

Even though our God is holy and set apart, He chooses to draw near to us through our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. Only a God of all power and majesty could accomplish this—to draw near to His people, to dwell with us, and through Jesus Christ, make a way for us to come before Him. Through every season, let us praise Him and worship Him, for He is above all that we can think or imagine. Let us come to Him with a heart of thanksgiving, a heart of praise, a heart of worship—an honest and surrendered heart. Let us declare and proclaim to others His goodness and His justice. Let us stand boldly and speak of His wonders, of the peace He places within our hearts, of the joy He gives in every moment, and of the gentleness of His love. May we strive every day, with every breath, to honor Him until the day we stand before His holiness. May we grow every day in loving You with a pure and surrendered heart, because You first loved us. For You are holy and good, my Lord and my God. We give You all honor and praise, now and forever.

Teach us, Lord, to walk in humility before You, to seek Your presence above every earthly desire, and to trust Your hand even when we cannot see the way ahead. Let our lives be lived as an offering that honors You—not only with our words, but with our actions, our thoughts, and the love we show to others. Purify our hearts, strengthen our faith, and lead us deeper into the beauty of Your truth. May Your light shine through us in places of darkness, and may Your name be lifted high in every season of our lives. Let everything within us remember that You are faithful, You are righteous, You are merciful, and You are forever worthy. Holy Father, keep drawing us closer until our hearts reflect more of You and less of ourselves. We surrender before You, my God and my Lord, giving You all glory, all honor, and all praise!

And remember—the real reward of seeking God... is God Himself.

And no matter how many times it takes—yes, again and again—we get up.

We look up. We pray. And we keep moving forward.

Not chasing perfection, but bringing an honest heart that loves God's truth.

God's desire is to help us and to hear from us. The closer we walk with Him, the further we stand from the enemy.

So, take a breath.

Take a step.

And trust that God's got the rest.

And remember—God doesn't just guide us with wisdom and purpose; He also blesses us with moments of joy, laughter, and peace along the journey.

😄 A Little Smile

A man goes to heaven and arrives at the Heaven Gates. Peter looks at him and says, “To enter, you need 100 points. Tell me what good things you did on earth.”

The man says, “I was married to the same woman for 50 years and never cheated once.”

“Wonderful!” Peter says. “That is worth one point.”

The man looks shocked. “Well, I attended church every Sunday and gave 10% of my money to the poor.”

“Excellent,” Peter replies. “That is worth another point.”

The man begins to sweat. “I also started a soup kitchen and volunteered every single weekend!”

“Fantastic work,” Peter says. “That earns you one more point. You now have three points.”

The man despairs and cries out, “At this rate, the only way I will ever get in is by the grace of God!”

Peter smiles and says, “Now you understand. It was never about the points. Come on in!” 😄

A friendly talk- "God is Love"

(coming soon)

God Bless.

God’s grace meets you right where you are, wrapping your heart

in a love that never let's go.