The Power of Christ’s Holiness

Holiness can be a scary word sometimes. We see our inadequacies, where we fall short. There is a negative term out there, “holier than thou”. Have you ever heard of it or used it in a negative way towards somebody? “Oh, he or she thinks they are holier than thou because of…” fill in the blank. 

Sometimes we think of God’s holiness and we get worried or afraid. But Christ’s holiness has an immense power associated with it, and it is on full display in this passage. In fact, sometimes I don’t think we see the full ramifications of his holiness and power and just what it means for us. We’ve got a lot of text to move through today, but I want to make sure we do because it is so vital for us today as believers, so let’s get into it. 

Luke 5:1-32

1. Holiness that exposes us (5:1-11)

We start with a fishing story. Anyone ever heard a fishing story before? “I caught a fish and it was this big.” And then the more times you hear the story, the bigger the fish seems to get… In fact, if nobody was there to witness this miracle fish it seems to get even bigger! 

Jesus feels the pressing of the crowd, they want more of Jesus. So enter our friend Peter. You aren’t supposed to have favorites but Peter is my favorite disciple. And Peter has a little attitude here doesn’t he? A carpenter is trying to tell him how to fish… I’d be like dude, if I get a hole in my boat I’ll call you but I’ve been fishing all night, they aren’t biting. 

He finally gives in and trusts and he experiences a miracle. To which he replies, “Depart from me, for I am a sinful man.” Why does he respond like this? Because Peter see’s the holiness of Jesus… he responds like Isaiah in Isaiah 6. If you remember, he is brought into the throne room of God and what does he say? “Woe is me for I am ruined because I am a man of unclean lips and live among a people of unclean lips, and because my eyes have seen the King, the LORD of Armies.”

This is crucial: seeing God in his holiness makes us aware of our sinfulness. Peter finds himself where we all find ourselves: as sinners. In great need of a savior. The miracle shows the power and the glory of God, the holiness and the splendor. It exposes us to the gospel. It is only good news because of the need we have for a savior. We don’t know we need a savior until we see our sin. Exposure is good, it allows us to see our wounds and turn to Christ for the answer. Which leads to the next section and our next point:

2. Holiness that heals us (5:12-17)

Leprosy was all over him. Something we struggle to know the realities of today. Leprosy was a skin disease with no known cure. It was highly contagious, so much so that the law that we read in Leviticus earlier gives a lengthy plan for dealing with this. Mainly… separation from society. You weren’t allowed to be in society with this disease, you had to stay out in a leprosy camp. You had to legally yell ahead to people, “unclean, unclean!” so that they wouldn’t come near you.

Leviticus 13 gives the details on how you had to be socially removed and then see a priest and offer a sacrifice if it were to be healed AND forgiven. That’s right, leprosy meant you sinned. The law and a priest had to determine if you were clean or not, not a doctor. 

So what does Jesus do? He touches him. This is the most powerful part to me. Jesus isn’t afraid of your condition, no matter what it is, friend. The crowd must’ve been worried, “don’t get sick Jesus!” Jesus isn’t worried about that. Jesus possesses a holiness that provides what the law requires but can’t produce. 

We get so worried about unclean people, but as followers of Jesus, we can’t. The AIDS crisis scared our nation. COVID, scared our nation. Homeless folks, drug addicts, alcoholics… they don’t scare Jesus. He isn’t worried about becoming unclean, he is concerned about bringing them into the family. How about you?

I believe the Lord wants us in our mission to our neighborhoods to have a special concern and love for the “unclean.” That requires us to rethink our stigmas and attitudes. It requires us to rethink what makes a person clean. Jesus said in Matthew 15:11 that “it’s not what goes into the mouth that defiles a person, but what comes out of the mouth—this defiles a person.” It is the heart that defiles a person. We want to avoid the “holy huddle.” We aren’t a country club, we are a church on a mission.

3. Holiness that forgives us (5:17-26)

How upset would you be if someone cut a hole in this church ceiling to drop someone in here to get healed? Our insurance went up a lot this year, and it’s not covering that! What can we learn from this? God responds to demonstrations of faith. But what is Jesus concerned most with here? His physical healing or his spiritual forgiveness? Our main need is spiritual forgiveness. 

When we respond in faith, God moves. Sometimes it is physical, sometimes it isn’t, but spiritually, God is always moving. Don’t miss that move. Are you putting yourself in a position for God to move in your life?

Why is there a problem with these religious leaders? Because Jesus spoke to his sin and not to his physical need. The harder thing is to forgive sins, he is pointing to the greatest need and his ability to fulfill it. 

Jesus Christ came into the world to save sinners. He lived in our flesh to offer God the righteous obedience we owed. He died in our place as an offering to satisfy the wrath of God against our sin. God raised him from the grave to prove his sacrifice was accepted. Now God calls men everywhere to repent of their sin and seek his forgiveness by placing their faith in Jesus Christ as Lord. All God requires is that we admit our sin and trust in Jesus.

Conclusion: Holiness that calls us (5:27-32)

After these holy men fail to ask for forgiveness and see Jesus for who he is, who does Jesus call to be a disciple instead? A filthy, greedy tax collector. They were men who sold out to the oppressors of Israel, the Roman empire. Tax collectors were Jewish and lived in Israel, and selected by Romans officials because they would know where the money in that town was hidden. Spies, traders, cheaters who could take what Rome wanted and charge as much extra as they felt to line their own pockets. 

But look how Levi, also known as Matthew responds: he left everything and followed him. Not only that, he celebrates because of how real and potent this work of God in his life is. Levi is a missionary already! He doesn’t take his time to become a mature Christian first, or read the Bible all the way through. He doesn’t take a membership class, or an evangelism course. Heck, he doesn’t even get baptized yet! He just knows he has changed, and Jesus is everything. 

What do the religious leaders do? They continue to grumble. Check this out, to follow up a point from last week: if you are grumbling about the work of the Lord, you might be a pharisee. I love you, that’s why I said. I love the Lord’s work and I love what God is doing, how about you? 

Don’t isolate yourself from people who are lost, reach them. Use wisdom, I am not saying go to the strip club and enjoy sin with them. But have a heart for them. Reach them. See the mission and the bigger picture. And respond to God’s call the way Matthew did! We can’t be afraid to reach lost people. This isn’t a clean myself up and get myself sucked out of here in time situation. No, we have a mission! 

And you will always battle for holiness. The point though, is that you are battling. Fight sin, fight! But also know, that Christ has a heart for those who are lost. He had a heart for you when you were lost, he has a heart for them too. The holiness of our God. It is not something to be feared, but instead does a mighty work in us and empowers us to be the people God has called us to be.