G’day Church,
The Hole In Our Holiness is a great little book by Kevin DeYoung on the rather uncommon but very important topic of holiness. After spending chapter 1 explaining why he thinks this is an important topic (which is a good place to start) he properly kicks things of with an excellent question to open chapter 2: “Why did God save you?”
Of course, there are a number of ways that you could answer that question, but he points out one that is frequently overlooked, perhaps because it makes us feel a little uncomfortable: “God saved you so that you might be holy.” Referencing Ephesians 1:3-4, DeYoung makes his case: “God chose us for salvation in eternity past and sent Christ to save us in history and gave us the gift of faith by the working of the Holy Spirit in our lifetimes so that we might be holy.”
This is a surprisingly fun book to read because of DeYoung’s trademark clarity and relatable humour. It’s also one of the most helpful books I’ve come across at putting the Old Testament law into right perspective for Christians. This isn’t just because of how he grapples with the really tricky theological question of how the law applies to Christians, but also because of the simple, compelling way that he helps us to see God’s kindness in teaching us how to live. Teaching us how to live in a way that is pleasing to God, that is honouring of Jesus, that is good for us, that is… holy.
The Hole In Our Holiness will be a great book to read alongside the challenging but really important sections of Exodus we’re reading at the moment, with loads of great connections through to term 3 and the second half of Romans too. (And for those who like to listen rather than read – this one’s available on audiobook too!)
See you on Sunday,
Simon
Upcoming Dates:
Monday Evenings from June 10 – BCSA Public Lecture Series. https://biblecollege.sa.edu.au/bible-college-sa-celebrating-100-years/
Friday-Saturday June 14-15 – “A Firm Foundation” marriage enrichment course. https://www.trinitybay.church/upcoming-events/
Wednesday July 24 – CMS Online Dinner. https://cms.org.au/event/annual-online-dinner/