Happy And Blessed New Year
Happy and Blessed 2024!
I am so grateful for all of you read and share this with others. This post is a redo of one I did a few years ago that I hope will help each of us navigate the challenges of the new year as we reflect on the scripture references and find both hope and strength. Blessings!
We are very close to turning the calendar page that will inaugurate a new year. In quiet moments after Christmas our thinking will often move towards what resolutions we will make to kick off the coming year. The anticipation of doing better in the coming year with our health, our finances, getting organized or maybe learning some new skill, are areas almost always on everyone’s Top Ten list. But, despite the best of intentions, once the glow of a fresh new year wears off many of us struggle to make good on our plans.
According to a study published in the Journal of Clinical Psychology, only 46% of people who made New Year’s resolutions were successful. That means over half of the people who set a goal for the new year will fail!
The study also involved non-resolvers, people who did not make a formal New Year’s resolution but had a goal that they wanted to achieve that year. Only 4% of non-resolvers were successful at achieving their goals, a far bleaker result than those who did make a New Year’s resolution. Right now, you may be thinking, “thanks for the positive encouragement!” Stay with me, please.
Let’s think “what if” for a moment. What if there was something you could pursue in this new year that would be a sustainable goal? What if you resolved to pursue something that would bless your life and the lives of those around you far beyond the year ahead? What if you resolved to find and pursue a goal that had eternal implications? Here’s the good news - I believe there is such a goal and I would like to journey with you to pursue it. Let’s consider this scripture together.
“Wherefore gird up the loins of your mind, be sober, and hope to the end for the grace that is to be brought unto you at the revelation of Jesus Christ; As obedient children, not fashioning yourselves according to the former lusts in your ignorance: But as he which hath called you is holy, so be ye holy in all manner of conversation; Because it is written, Be ye holy; for I am holy.” (1 Peter 1:13-16)
These Spirit filled words call Christ followers to be resolved. And what a resolution - the pursuit of holiness. Peter speaks first of the need for preparation by being “sober minded”. He uses this reference several times in 1 Peter, and it carries the idea of a seriousness and soundness of thought. It is the idea that we must be intentional about what we think about (Philippians 4:8). A renewing of our minds that will free us from our former passions and the things of this world that we were chasing after. Preparing our minds allows us to conduct ourselves in obedience to the pursuit of holiness.
Most of us probably associate holiness with righteousness, this is entirely understandable. When we read of men and women who are deemed holy in Scripture, we see that they are also renowned for their ethical purity, even despite their lack of moral perfection. Yet while righteousness is a part of holiness, it is not the primary emphasis of the term.
When we read about being holy in the Bible, the primary idea is that which is set apart, unique, or different. In (1 Chronicles 23:13) we read of Aaron being “set apart” or made unique in his capacity to offer sacrifices for the people of God. This quality of uncommonness or uniqueness can apply to people, objects, or time. The ground, for example, upon which Moses encountered the Almighty in the burning bush was holy ground (Ex. 3:1–6). The part of the tabernacle containing the ark of the covenant is the holiest place (Lev. 16:1–2), and the old covenant festivals represent holy time.
All of these earthly examples are holy because they are set apart by the Lord who Himself is the Most Holy. Scripture communicates this idea when speaking of God’s transcendence. Our Creator is high and exalted (Isa. 33:5), above all things and unmatched in His power, glory, and purity (Ex. 15:11).
This is also evident in the Ten Commandments and the first portion of the Lord’s prayer. Without God’s Word, man might have developed laws on his own that forbid murder or stealing, but would we make it illegal to profane the holy name of God (Ex. 20:7)? Even though we have been taught to pray in light of God’s holiness, how many of us pray regularly for the world to mark our Father’s name as holy (Matt. 6:9)? I know I do not. The biblical writers recognize that the way in which we speak God’s name reveals how we think about Him, and so they are careful to warn us to regard His name, and thus His being, as the Most Holy.
The good news for us is that God not only calls His children to holiness, but He graciously gives what He commands. Just as the word holy carries the idea of being set apart, so does another word – sanctified.
The basic meaning of sanctified is to be set apart to God, for His use. And God works in those whom He claims as His own to conform them "to the image of his Son" (Rom. 8:29). These scriptures point out that we are increasingly changed from what we once were, because of the indwelling Holy Spirit. (Rom. 8:13; 12:1-2; 1 Cor. 6:11; 2 Cor. 3:18; Eph. 4:22–24).
Clearly, we cannot achieve the level of holiness that is God’s alone. Yet Peter emphasizes in chapter 1, vs. 14,15 that resolving to put aside the former passions and conduct ourselves in a holy manner – realizing we have been set aside for God’s purposes - will make not just 2024 a year to remember but extend beyond time as we measure it here on earth.
Take a moment to read David’s zeal for holiness found in Psalm 101. I believe it will encourage us all to holy living as we worship the Most Holy God.
May you be blessed in the coming year!
Credit: Ron Kelley
I am so grateful for all of you read and share this with others. This post is a redo of one I did a few years ago that I hope will help each of us navigate the challenges of the new year as we reflect on the scripture references and find both hope and strength. Blessings!
We are very close to turning the calendar page that will inaugurate a new year. In quiet moments after Christmas our thinking will often move towards what resolutions we will make to kick off the coming year. The anticipation of doing better in the coming year with our health, our finances, getting organized or maybe learning some new skill, are areas almost always on everyone’s Top Ten list. But, despite the best of intentions, once the glow of a fresh new year wears off many of us struggle to make good on our plans.
According to a study published in the Journal of Clinical Psychology, only 46% of people who made New Year’s resolutions were successful. That means over half of the people who set a goal for the new year will fail!
The study also involved non-resolvers, people who did not make a formal New Year’s resolution but had a goal that they wanted to achieve that year. Only 4% of non-resolvers were successful at achieving their goals, a far bleaker result than those who did make a New Year’s resolution. Right now, you may be thinking, “thanks for the positive encouragement!” Stay with me, please.
Let’s think “what if” for a moment. What if there was something you could pursue in this new year that would be a sustainable goal? What if you resolved to pursue something that would bless your life and the lives of those around you far beyond the year ahead? What if you resolved to find and pursue a goal that had eternal implications? Here’s the good news - I believe there is such a goal and I would like to journey with you to pursue it. Let’s consider this scripture together.
“Wherefore gird up the loins of your mind, be sober, and hope to the end for the grace that is to be brought unto you at the revelation of Jesus Christ; As obedient children, not fashioning yourselves according to the former lusts in your ignorance: But as he which hath called you is holy, so be ye holy in all manner of conversation; Because it is written, Be ye holy; for I am holy.” (1 Peter 1:13-16)
These Spirit filled words call Christ followers to be resolved. And what a resolution - the pursuit of holiness. Peter speaks first of the need for preparation by being “sober minded”. He uses this reference several times in 1 Peter, and it carries the idea of a seriousness and soundness of thought. It is the idea that we must be intentional about what we think about (Philippians 4:8). A renewing of our minds that will free us from our former passions and the things of this world that we were chasing after. Preparing our minds allows us to conduct ourselves in obedience to the pursuit of holiness.
Most of us probably associate holiness with righteousness, this is entirely understandable. When we read of men and women who are deemed holy in Scripture, we see that they are also renowned for their ethical purity, even despite their lack of moral perfection. Yet while righteousness is a part of holiness, it is not the primary emphasis of the term.
When we read about being holy in the Bible, the primary idea is that which is set apart, unique, or different. In (1 Chronicles 23:13) we read of Aaron being “set apart” or made unique in his capacity to offer sacrifices for the people of God. This quality of uncommonness or uniqueness can apply to people, objects, or time. The ground, for example, upon which Moses encountered the Almighty in the burning bush was holy ground (Ex. 3:1–6). The part of the tabernacle containing the ark of the covenant is the holiest place (Lev. 16:1–2), and the old covenant festivals represent holy time.
All of these earthly examples are holy because they are set apart by the Lord who Himself is the Most Holy. Scripture communicates this idea when speaking of God’s transcendence. Our Creator is high and exalted (Isa. 33:5), above all things and unmatched in His power, glory, and purity (Ex. 15:11).
This is also evident in the Ten Commandments and the first portion of the Lord’s prayer. Without God’s Word, man might have developed laws on his own that forbid murder or stealing, but would we make it illegal to profane the holy name of God (Ex. 20:7)? Even though we have been taught to pray in light of God’s holiness, how many of us pray regularly for the world to mark our Father’s name as holy (Matt. 6:9)? I know I do not. The biblical writers recognize that the way in which we speak God’s name reveals how we think about Him, and so they are careful to warn us to regard His name, and thus His being, as the Most Holy.
The good news for us is that God not only calls His children to holiness, but He graciously gives what He commands. Just as the word holy carries the idea of being set apart, so does another word – sanctified.
The basic meaning of sanctified is to be set apart to God, for His use. And God works in those whom He claims as His own to conform them "to the image of his Son" (Rom. 8:29). These scriptures point out that we are increasingly changed from what we once were, because of the indwelling Holy Spirit. (Rom. 8:13; 12:1-2; 1 Cor. 6:11; 2 Cor. 3:18; Eph. 4:22–24).
Clearly, we cannot achieve the level of holiness that is God’s alone. Yet Peter emphasizes in chapter 1, vs. 14,15 that resolving to put aside the former passions and conduct ourselves in a holy manner – realizing we have been set aside for God’s purposes - will make not just 2024 a year to remember but extend beyond time as we measure it here on earth.
Take a moment to read David’s zeal for holiness found in Psalm 101. I believe it will encourage us all to holy living as we worship the Most Holy God.
May you be blessed in the coming year!
Credit: Ron Kelley
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