Hebrews 2:10-13
When I was younger, I never liked having someone telling me what to do. When someone, other than my mother, told me what to do, I would often reply “Make Me.” My attitude of stubborn rebelliousness and independents did not work well in the army. I soon learned that when someone told me what to do, I had best do it. We often talk in church about being in God’s army. There are some major differences. In the U.S. Army, the system makes soldiers obey orders. The church can be much like an army because we are fighting together against evil. However, unlike a real army, obedience remains voluntary. God does not make us obedient; we must choose to be obedient.

In Hebrews, we learn that Christ has made us holy. In the Hebrew language, the word for “holy” is the same word for “other.” In the Greek language of the New Testament, the word “hagios” “holy” has a core meaning of “different.” To “be made holy” does not mean Christ has made us, perfect, good, or godlike. It means that when we accept Christ as our savior he makes us other than what we were, he makes us completely different. Before Christ does his work in us, we are condemned to death, we are guilty and we are dirty. His salvation pardons us; it removes our guilt and teaches us that we are not shameful. He cleanses us from the inside out. Sometimes the world does not recognize just how holy/different Christ has made us. They do not recognize it because they do not see where we were when we met Jesus. Satan will lie to us. He will tell us we are not holy. We know the truth. We were once a child of sin, and now we are a child of God. That is the greatest difference of all.