What Is Holiness?
Holiness in the Bible is first of all the quality proper to God himself: his being wholly other, pure and exalted. The angels' song 'Holy, holy, holy' in Isaiah's temple vision is its best-known expression. The root idea of the word is 'set apart': what is holy is separated from ordinary use and made to belong to God. For this reason days, places, objects and people can all be called 'holy' in Scripture. God calls his people to this same quality: 'be holy; for I am holy.' This call in Leviticus is echoed word for word in the New Testament. Holiness here is not withdrawal from the world but living in every area of life as one who belongs to God; it becomes visible in honesty, purity and love. According to the New Testament what makes a believer holy is not personal effort but Christ's work and the transforming activity of the Holy Spirit; effort is the response to that gift.