Cost of Holiness

"Speak to the sons of Israel and say to them, 'When a man or woman makes a special vow, the vow of a Nazirite, to dedicate himself to the Lord, he shall abstain from wine and strong drink; he shall drink no vinegar, whether made from wine or strong drink, nor shall he drink any grape juice nor eat fresh or dried grapes. All the days of his separation he shall not eat anything that is produced by the grape vine, from the seeds even to the skin. All the days of his vow of separation no razor shall pass over his head. He shall be holy until the days are fulfilled for which he separated himself to the Lord; he shall let the locks of hair on his head grow long. All the days of his separation to the Lord he shall not go near to a dead person. He shall not make himself unclean for his father or for his mother, for his brother or for his sister, when they die, because his separation to God is on his head. All the days of his separation he is holy to the Lord.'" -Numbers 6.2-8

God lays out one of the vows that His people could make, the Nazirite vow. With this a person would dedicate themselves to God, and live a very strict and disciplined life for the time frame of the vow. The Bible only records three examples of this vow being made, Samson, Samuel, and John the Baptist. These three men were to be set apart, and with the vow came a filling of the Spirit of God. Samson had great strength to fight for the people. Samuel was a prophet who communicated God's will to the people. John was the one who came before the Messiah to prepare the world for His coming. Each of them had a job to do. Each of them had the Spirit upon him. Each of them was a Nazarite.

If we look at the specifics of this vow it's one that I doubt many of us would take. There is no consumption of alcohol, or other strong drink (that might include coffee). You can't have grapes in any form. I just had a cotton candy grape yesterday, and based on that alone I wouldn't sign up for this. You can't ever cut your hair. After a couple months mine begins to get unruly (it's naturally curly) and I hate dealing with it. If someone you care about dies, you can't go to the funeral. This vow is made so that a person may be separated to God and be holy.

Men, there is a cost to holiness. It isn't something that we can achieve haphazardly or casually. It isn't something we are just going to stumble upon accidently. If we would be holy, we must intentionally pursue it. We must commit ourselves to God, separating ourselves from other distractions, maybe addictions, and focus on God.

I read a book years ago called The One Year Daily Grind. The premise of the book is based around the fact that some people can't function in the morning until they get their coffee, what if we viewed our time with God the same way? What if you gave up your "strong drink" whatever that thing you think you have to have is, and instead picked up the Bible and allowed yourself to be fueled by God?

What if instead of indulging in the pleasures of "grapes" you engaged in worship, and allowed the Spirit of God to fill you and enrich you? What if your greatest delight was found in praising God?

What if instead of "cutting our hair" we ignored our outward appearance, and instead worked to develop our character and integrity? What if we were more concerned about the appearance of our hearts before God than what the mirror says?

What if instead of pouring into relationships that only end in death, we invested our time in the eternal relationship with God? What if our first priority was to grow more intimate with God?

I'm not saying that any of these things are bad. I'm not a coffee drinker, but I know many people who love it. It is a good part of creation, and therefore a gift from God for us. The little, non-sinful, pleasures of life are other good things from God. They are gifts from a loving father to His precious children. There is nothing wrong with wanting to look your best. We are made in the image of God, and taking care of ourselves and looking presentable is a way that we honor Him. Certainly there is nothing wrong with human relationships. God created man and said that it was not good for him to be alone. We were made for fellowship with each other, and that is not to be abandoned.

The question is, what is more important? Do any, or all, of these things have more value to you than God? Does one of these things rule your life, or does God? If we would be holy, the answer must be God.

The Nazarite vow was made for a time, and during that time all of these other things were set aside so that God would be the only focus. Sometimes that time frame was the life of the individual. Are you willing to set aside any of the above things for a time to focus on God? The examples I gave might have no meaning for you, what would? It doesn't have to be forever, maybe a day, or a week, but are you willing to set something aside to draw closer to God?

There is a cost to holiness, and it involves sacrificing something to be able to pursue God more fully. Are we willing to pay that cost?

"Iron sharpens iron, so one man sharpens another."

To God alone be the Glory!

Strength and Honor