Wholly Holy

By Edd Sterchi       Toward the end of his first epistle to the Thessalonians, Paul had these words for his Christian friends, “Now may the God of peace Himself sanctify you completely; and may your whole spirit, soul, and body be preserved blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ” (1 Thess. 5:23).     Interestingly, we have contained within this verse the whole makeup of every human in the description “spirit, soul, and body”. Let’s look at them in reverse order. We are a composite of... ...physical nature - The Greek word translated “body” is “soma” and is defined as, “a body; the body of both men and animals” (Thayer’s Greek-English Lexicon). ...emotional/intellectual nature - The Greek word translated “soul” is “psuche” and is defined as “the seat of the feelings, desires, affections, aversions” (Thayer’s). ...spiritual nature - The Greek word translated “spirit” is “pneuma” and is defined as “the soul” (Thayer’s).     It is God’s desire that we keep every aspect of our being pure and whole. We are to be wholly holy. God has promised to help us with this.     But we must be actively seeking holiness in our lives. I believe that the list Paul gives in the previous seven verses are some things we can do along that line: * Think about things that bring heavenly joy (v.16) * Stay close to God through prayer (v.17) * Be thankful for all that God has given us (v.18) * Give God access to all of our lives (v.19) * Read and love God’s Word (v.20) * Keep good things in our life (v.21) * Stay away from sin (v.22)     If we do these and stay faithful to God, He will be faithful in keeping us wholly holy and blameless. “He who called you is faithful, who will also do it” (1 Thess. 5:24).

- Edd Sterchi preaches for the Broadway Church of Christ in Campbellsville, KY. He may be contacted through the congregation's website: http://www.broadwaychurchofchrist.net/