Set Apart In Christ

The term "holiness" has certainly made a resurgence within Army circles of late. It may just be me, but I've noticed that there has been a conscious move on the part of Army leaders, writers and commentators to use this term more frequently in the last few years. Certainly when I was growing up in The Salvation Army the only time I heard the term was in relation to the "Holiness Meeting" at 11am on Sunday morning. Of course, that could have been that I wasn't listening as well!!! It's my belief that, whilst there are some that use it with the best of intentions, I'm not convinced that collectively we understand what we mean by this term. Sometimes I get the impression that it's used politically; that is, in order for someone to be seen to use today's "buzz" term and so give the impression that they're in with the "holy crowd". Other times, those who use this term give the impression that it's just about moralism ...

Just the other day I picked up a copy of "Humility: The Journey Toward Holiness" by Andrew Murray (Minneapolis: Bethany House, 2001). It's a good little read and has a lot to contribute to a discussion on holiness. Humility is something I have struggled with my whole life. Not so much because I'm full of myself and want everyone to know about it. Quite the opposite. Rather, it's because I much prefer to not be in the spotlight, but I find that God has gifted me with particular talents and abilities that see me often in the public eye. So I have constantly battled with the issue of remaining humble, living a life that points to Christ and glorifies God through the power of the Spirit, but at the same time being confident in who I am in Christ. To be perfectly honest, I get that balance wrong at times. Sometimes I do promote myself rather than Christ and so humility gets left behind. Other times I "bury my talents" in the name of humility (which is no...