Holy and Without Blame

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According as He (God) has chosen us in him (Christ) before the foundation of the cosmos, that we should be holy and without blame before Him (God) in love (many translations put these last 2 words “in love” at the beginning of the next verse).  (Ephesians 1:4)

The word “holy” is the Greek word hagion.  It is the same word as is used in the expression “holy spirit” or “Holy Ghost.”  It means pure, undefiled, dedicated or set aside or set apart, not for common use.  It generally has the meaning of being set aside for a specific use or purpose.  The word “saints” is the plural form of this word (as in Ephesians 1:1), which should more accurately be translated “holy ones” or “those (who are) holy.”

I searched the entire Old Testament and was only able to find the term “holy spirit” (whether or not it is capitalized in your version of the Bible) used 3 times – in the entire Old Testament!  Psalm 51:11, Isaiah 63:11,12, all of which deal with salvation, deliverance.

In the New Testament, this term, “holy spirit” (or Holy Ghost) is used 27X in the Gospels, 41X in Acts (of the Apostles), 15X in Paul’s general epistles (Romans-Thessalonians), 2X in Timothy and Titus, and 9X in the rest of the New Testament, not including Revelation, where it is not used at all.  That’s 3X in the Old Testament, 94X in the New Testament!

The nature and dedicated purpose of this holy spirit is defined/described in the following verses:  (this is not in any sense an exhaustive list….there are many more).

… but if I depart, I will send him unto you.  (John 16:7b)

…whom I will send unto you from the Father…. which proceeds from out of the Father, he shall testify of me.  (John 15:26)

… whom the Father will send in my name, he shall teach you all things, and bring all things to your remembrance, whatsoever I have said unto you.  (John 14:26)

But whosoever drinks of the water that I shall give him shall never thirst; but the water that I shall give him shall be in him a well of water springing up into everlasting life.  (John 4:14)

… He that believes on me, as the scripture has said, out of his belly shall flow rivers of living water.  (But this he spoke of the Spirit, which they who believe on him should receive; for the holy spirit was not yet given; because that Jesus was not yet glorified).  (John 7:39)

And when he is come, he will reprove (expose in and by the light of truth) the world of sin, and of righteousness, and of judgment;  … of judgment, because the prince of this world is judged.  (John 16:8, 11)

… when he, the spirit of truth, is come, he will guide you into all truth.  (John 16;13)

He shall glorify me; …  (John 16:14)

… he shall take of mine, and shall show it unto you.  (John 16:15)

… he shall testify of me.  (John 15:26b)

This holy spirit, sent into the world by God by means of Jesus Christ, to be received into the lives of all who believe unto Jesus Christ, is not a static thing.  It gives life, light, love and power to all who allow its life to bubble forth.  The holy spirit of God (also referred to as “Christ” in Paul’s epistles….for “Christ” means the anointing of the holy spirit) is dynamic, imparting its nature, the nature of God Himself, to everyone in whom it abides.

It is the holy spirit that makes us holy, not our behavior.  As the holy spirit flows out from our heart; our being, our nature is transformed into the image of God, becoming more and more like Jesus himself.  This is an inside job, not an outward show.

Now the Lord is that spirit, and where the spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty.  But we all, with open face beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are changed into the same image from glory to glory (it’s all glory!), even as by the spirit of the Lord.  (II Corinthians 3:17, 18)

… Christ in you, the hope of glory.  (Colossians 1:27b)

This term, “holy spirit” can be understood as “purifying spirit” in that the term “holy” refers not only to a state of being, but to a work being carried out in our lives.

For John truly baptized with water; but you shall be baptized with the Holy Spirit not many days hence.  (Acts 1:5)

Washing with water (baptism) was very important in the Jewish faith, and whenever possible was to be carried out in running water, which is why John the Baptizer baptized in a river.  This is so that the impurities which the water cleanses from the person or object being baptised could be carried away by that same water.  So it is with the holy spirit of God not only cleansing us, but carrying our impurities away.  This it does on an ongoing basis.  In fact, it never sleeps, never stops; it is and provides an endless supply.

The holy spirit has sealed us unto a fate which overcomes death, continually delivering us into an eternal life of manifesting forth the glory of God, the Father.

… after you believed, you were sealed with that holy spirit of promise, Which is the down payment of our inheritance…  (Ephesians 1:13b, 14a)

That we should be to the praise of His glory, … (Ephesians 1:12)

… and he that loves me shall be loved of my Father, and I will love him, and will manifest myself to him.  (John 14:21b)

The holy spirit of God is like God, continually providing life, health, wisdom, and power to and for those who draw on it by seeking Christ.  The holy spirit of God is continually exposing sin in our lives as the working of the devil, thereby continually justifying us in the process, rendering us righteous.  This finished working by the holy spirit of God, a gift from out of God’s generosity, can never be accomplished by anything we do, other than to simply accept it as true for our lives.

The supply of the spirit of God is limitless, unbounded by the limited resources which the world is constantly throwing in our faces as truth.  God, our spiritual Father, is continually calling to us to accept his unlimited spiritual supply as the established truth in our lives.

One of the worst things we can do (and Satan has been tricking us into this very thing our whole lives) is to seek to deliver ourselves from the devil’s trickery by our will power to modify our behavior.  This endeavor doesn’t work, so abandon it … completely, once and for all!  Stop trying to be better, or to act better, or to stop acting poorly as the means to a Godly life.  Instead, seek Christ, the generous working of the spirit of God, which will continue to provide your mind and heart all the good things of God for your use and enjoyment.

This is why the purifying work of the holy spirit renders us without blame.  The blame has been put on the devil, for all time.  And because we now have access to the limitless resources of God Himself, via His spirit in us, we have no reason to blame anyone (other than the devil) for any of the evil which touches our lives.

My wife doesn’t make me angry.  This traffic jam doesn’t make me frustrated.  My friend turning against me doesn’t depress me.  That illogical viewpoint doesn’t make me argue.  That emptiness is not caused by my lack or failure or shortcoming.  That boredom doesn’t mean I’m not doing enough.  That guilt is only good for letting me know I’m not in Christ, where there is no guilt.  That shame comes from the devil, not my behavior.  That blame comes from my being blamed by the devil for his own devious working, because in Christ there is no blame.

Imagine a life with no blame!  Any and all sin evidenced in my life is simply an area not yet reached by the limitless love of Christ.  God is not blaming me for it, because He has cast all blame on the devil, where it belongs.  Wherever and whenever I am touched by the deceitfulness of sin, all of which is initiated and fomented by the devil, I have no one to blame but him.  I blame no other person, not even myself.

But with me it is a very small thing that I should be judged of you, or of man’s judgment; yea, I judge not mine own self.
(I Corinthians 4:3)

We are holy (and getting holier) and without blame (for us, toward us or by us).  God is continually challenging us to understand, accept and believe it as true for our lives.  Of course this can not be understood or believed except by the revealing work of the holy spirit of God.

The God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give unto you the spirit of wisdom and revelation in the intimate knowing of him (Christ); The eyes of your heart being enlightened; that you may know what is the hope of his calling, and what is the riches of the glory of His inheritance in the holy ones, And what is the exceeding greatness of His power toward us who believe, …  (Ephesians 1:17-19a)

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Other studies:
Justified, what it means
The Law vs. Faith
How God Deals with our Sin
Why do we get Tempted?
Satan’s Justification
Holy Spirit Sanctification