If you could ask one hundred people to list their top ten men of Character, Billy Graham would most likely be on everyone's list. Why? Because he is one of the exceptions to modern-day leaders. He has never been caught in a scandal in the several decades he has served as what some call America's Pastor. I am sure that the rest of the list would include men like Abraham, Moses and the Apostle Paul and rightly so. But in Peter's first letter, he gives us one singular model to follow. That one person is Jesus. Next to Jesus, there is no comparison. Those other guys are great, but put them next to Jesus and they do not even come close. Jesus did not raise the bar. He set the bar for all of eternity. He is not a goal. He is the goal.

Peter uses the term holy. In 1 Peter 1:15–16 he says, "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.'" Holiness and character mean the same thing and in today's culture, we have grossly misinterpreted both of them. Most people define holiness as behaving a certain way or not doing certain things. We tend to define it by what we do or don't do. I remember the old sarcastic phrase I learned in BibleCollege: "We don't smoke and we don't chew and we don't go with girls who do!" Somehow, we believed that because we did not do such things we were holy and those who did such things were unholy. We said that in jest but it reveals something about our complete misunderstanding of the concept of holiness and character.

What goes through your mind when you think about the holiness of God? Does it conjure up images of a God who is unapproachable? I have heard preachers say that because God is holy, he cannot be where sin exists. To prove this notion they quote the story where the Father turns his back on Jesus as he took our sin on himself, that he could not look at him because of that sin. I would like to challenge this thinking because I believe it is bad theology. Yes, God is holy. Yes, the fear of God is the beginning of wisdom and a little fear and trembling at his presence is healthy. However, I think we have been guilty of misrepresenting God's true character when it comes to his holiness.

We need to define what it means to be holy, especially since God commands us in Leviticus 19:2 to "be holy because I, the Lord your God, am holy." God is not telling us to be sinless, because that would be impossible. He knows better than we do that no matter hard we try, we will never reach perfection. That is why we need a Savior. Until that day when he calls us home to be with him, we will struggle with sin. If you disagree, I invite you to read the first book of John. God would never demand something from us that would be impossible. Therefore, to understand what it means for us to be holy, we have to understand what he means for him to be holy. The word holy in this context simply means to be set apart. Simply put, God is telling us that he has set himself apart for us. He has pledged himself to us exclusively. Out of everything he has ever created and will create, he saved himself for us and us alone. This is what we do when we say our wedding vows. When I married my wife, I pledged to her that I would forsake all others and always and forever reserve my entire being for her alone. I promised to be holy—to be set apart from anything and anyone else to her. Therefore, when God commands us to be holy because he is holy, he is calling us to be like him—to set ourselves apart exclusively for him. That, in its simplest form, is what it means to be holy. I believe we over complicate the whole concept of holiness and add things to it that should not be there.

God's holiness is not something that separates us from him, but connects us to him. It is not about his unattainable qualities. It is about his character that longs to draw us to him in relationship. Our awe of his holiness now takes on a different dimension. We are in awe of his holiness, not because we are afraid of him, but because we are amazed by his love and mercy towards us. We are amazed that he chose us. I am still amazed to this day that of all the people my wife could have chosen to spend her life with, she chose me. Wow! And God chose you and me and his holiness is a testament to his love and devotion to us.

Read 1 Peter 1:15–16 again. Peter carefully chose his words here. Notice he says to be holy inall you do, not be holy bywhat you do. He is telling us that holiness is not the result of our actions. Therefore, we cannot make ourselves holy any more that we can save ourselves. We will see that holiness only comes through the work of the Holy Spirit. Holiness or character is not defined by your actions or behavior, your attire, your lifestyle, how much you read the Bible, your church attendance or anything else. Do not misunderstand here. Actions are important and God takes what we do and do not do very seriously. We cannot behave the way we want to and think it will not matter. However, our behavior or actions are not the focus. Keep reading as we peel back the layers of this concept.

It is widely accepted and taught in today's culture that what you do defines who you are. I follow several leadership gurus on Twitter because I like to see what they are saying. It gives me a snapshot into our modern leadership culture. Most of them, even the Christian ones, espouse this philosophy. A well-known Christian leader who will remain nameless tweeted, "Your character is the sum of your habits." It sounded great when I first read it, but the more I thought about it, I realized that it was just bad theology and contrary to scripture. Modern-day philosophy defines character as the fruit of our actions. Scripture, on the other hand, teaches that our actions are the fruit or result of our character. This is what Peter meant when he said be holy in all you do. Actions do not produce the fruit of holiness any more than an apple creates an apple tree. The apple is the result of a healthy tree. Are you beginning to see it now? Character is not something we do. It is who we are! Our actions are the fruit or outward indication of who we are. God makes us holy through salvation and therefore, what we do is holy. Matthew 12:33 says, "Make a tree good and its fruit will be good, or make a tree bad and its fruit will be bad, for a tree is recognized by its fruit." You could say, "Change the man and you change his behavior."

Let me illustrate it another way. My wife and I recently celebrated our 30th wedding anniversary. If another woman were to approach me and ask me to sleep with her, I would not say, "I can't. I'm married." My response would be an emphatic, "I'm not that kind of man!" There is a huge difference in the two responses. The first is based on actions—what I can or cannot do, while the second is based on who I am. Thirty years ago I became a husband and that identity determines what I do or do not do. Identity is everything!

Do you struggle with holiness? Perhaps you feel that God does not fully accept you because you are not holy enough. No matter how hard you try you seem to be anything but holy. Let me encourage you to radically change your thinking on holiness. Instead of trying to do the right things for God, simply focus on who you are and let your identity in Christ begin to shape your actions. Focus on relationship with him and let him do the work of holiness that only he can do in you. Remember, holiness is not something you do, it's who you are.