“But just as He who called you is holy, so be holy in all you do ; for it is written: ‘Be holy, because I am holy’” (1 Peter 1:15-16). “ Be perfect , therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect” (Matthew 5:48). There are several common things in these two commands. First, they are not suggestions. Second, they are be commands, not do commands. Third, they are in each case related to the holiness and the perfection of the Father. We can assume that God does not command us to be something that He will not provide the means for us to be. Therefore, we should not think that these commands are impossible. If we think that way, then we are not believing or obeying God. We are following the suggestions of the Enemy. We can start obeying these commands by believing that it is possible to be holy and by wanting to be holy. This post coordinates with today's reading in the To the Word! Bible Reading Challenge . If you are not in a daily reading plan, please join us at
“Big words” normally mean lots of letters and a surplus of syllables. Here, I will use “big” to mean a word’s frequency of use and its influence on society. There are many wonderful words in the languages of the world. Some of these words have precise definitions like the word kind . Because of this preciseness, the word is not a “wide” word. There are other words that are “big,” “wide” and are not wonderful. Sin is one of those words. However, there is a word whose definition is “big,” “wide,” and it is still wonderful. That word is GRACE. Before I tell you about this word, let’s look at the various definitions of the word “definition.” The dictionary defines “definition” as: Definition #1: A statement of the meaning of a word or word group or a sign or symbol. Definition #2: The meaning of a word from the context of a paragraph or a story or a lecture. There are many such examples from the books of L.M. Montgomery. Here is one: “But an August afternoon, with blue hazes