God never intended for holiness, to be a heavy burden that exhaust us. He designed it to be a beautiful reality that captures us. When Jesus is unveiled in our heart, the exhausting effort of trying to be holy disappears, and we find ourselves no longer pushed from behind by the demands of the law, but effortlessly pulled forward by the beauty of a finished grace.
1 Peter 1:13 (tPt)
“So then, prepare your hearts and minds for action! Stay alert and fix your hope firmly on the marvelous grace that is coming to you. For when Jesus Christ is unveiled, a greater measure of grace will be released to you.”
From a performance mindset, a mindset that is depending on what I say, and what I do…we assume we have to work hard to earn more grace. But through the work of the cross, this verse reveals that grace is not earned by our effort, it is released by our sight.
2 Corinthians 3:16 (tPt)
“But the moment one turns to the Lord with an open heart, the veil is lifted and they see.”
When the veil is pulled back, nothing new is created. We are simply seeing what Jesus has already done, who He already is, and who we already are in Him.
1 Peter 1:16 tells us that we are to be holy because He is holy. As children of God, we have His DNA. His Holy Spirit lives inside of us. Well guess what? When Jesus is unveiled, we see His holiness. And when God looks at us, He sees Jesus‘s holiness.
Ephesians 1:4 (tPt)
“And in love he chose us before he laid the foundation of the universe! Because of his great love, he ordained us, so that we would be seen as holy in his eyes with an unstained innocence.”
We are holy because He is holy! What an amazing reality.
We need to realize that when the people brought their sacrifices to the priest, the priest did not inspect the people…the priest inspected the lamb. Please understand, God isn’t inspecting you. He’s not looking at your flaws and your past mistakes. God isn’t looking at what you’ve done, He’s looking at what Jesus did.
What a great day to be alive in a season where the Lord is awakening us – He’s removing the veil and we can see and know Him clearly.
True holiness is not the absence of life. It is the presence of a person, and that person is Jesus Christ. So let’s stop focusing on the rules that we think we have to keep and instead focus on a Savior who keeps us. Keep your eyes on Jesus, let the veil be pulled back, and watch how His grace beautifully transforms your world from the inside out.