Holiness Over Happiness

Holiness Over Happiness Have you ever heard the phrase “do more of what makes you happy”? Though it would be easy to live our lives based on this philosophy, God calls us to a different standard. He calls us to a life that can feel like the complete opposite of doing what makes us happy: a life of holiness—of walking away from what might feel good or look enticing and, instead, walking toward the things that make us more like Christ. In today’s verse, Peter drew a clear line between children of obedience and those who “conform to evil desires.” He was aware of the worldly temptations that wage war for our attention, but he emphasized our ability to choose holiness in spite of them. Fortunately, we’re never alone in our attempt at perfection. We can rely on Jesus, the perfecter of our faith and our source of righteousness. Although it is our responsibility to choose obedience and to make God-honoring decisions, we can rest in the finished work of the cross—the only way we will ever be made holy. Daily, we choose between holiness and the desires of our flesh; yet when we truly grasp the hope of the gospel, the choice is simple.